This year eight students from the Forbes High School Support Unit will be representing our town in the 2018 Schools Spectacular.
The entertainment extravaganza will be staged at the Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney’s Olympic Park on Friday, 23rd and Saturday, 24th November.
The students auditioned in March in the hopes of being selected to participate in the Schools Spectacular. At the beginning of June they were notified that they had been successfully selected as part of the D’Arts Ensemble, a disability program which specifically caters for students with special needs.
One of the students involved, Kendi-Lee Morley-Diggins said: “I was very excited to get chosen to go to Sydney. It will be so much fun and I just can’t wait!”
Due to the school’s rural location, students only have to attend one combined rehearsal in Sydney leading up to the event and all other rehearsals will be undertaken online.
With over 350 schools involved across NSW, Schools Spectacular really is an outstanding showcase of the talent in NSW public schools. In terms of sheer size, scale and scope, Schools Spectacular is unequalled in the world with a 2,700-strong choir, 2,300 diverse dancers, an 80-piece symphony orchestra, a world-class stage band and a huge number of solo performers.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity for students from a country town to participate in an event of this magnitude. I feel excited to be embarking on such an exciting journey with the students and their families,” said Nikki Patten, FHS Support Unit teacher and organiser of the school’s participation in the event.
The students will be staying in Sydney from 21st to 25th November, during which they will be travelling to Qudos Bank Arena each day. Two of these days will be spent fine-tuning their dances and the students will then feature in four separate performances to sell-out crowds.
The FHS Support Unit have been running a variety of fundraising events to assist with the financial cost of the trip and were delighted to receive a $1,000 donation from the Forbes Lions Club and a $1,200 donation from the RSL Club.
The 2018 Schools Spectacular will be televised on 1st December.
By Gizell van Wyk