Six young dancers who attend our school enjoyed the thrill of performing in a show in London’s West End.

The girls were among 34 dancers from The Sandra Welsh School of Dance in Bishop Auckland, who took part in the Stars in Our Eyes show, at Her Majesty’s Theatre in London, where the current production is the long running, Andrew Lloyd Webber/Charles Hart musical, The Phantom of the Opera.

Dance schools from all over the country took part in the showcase, which gave the young dancers the once-in-a-lifetime experience of appearing on a West End stage.

The Sandra Welsh dancers performed two dance routines, one to the Ricky Martin hit song, She Bangs, and the other to Donna Summer’s, Last Dance. The show’s celebrity host, Jenny Powell, complimented the dancers on their performance.

Year 9 student, Kate Ramage, one of six dancers from Bishop Barrington School, who took part in the show, said: “It was a fantastic experience. We got a great buzz from the audience.”

Fellow Bishop Barrington student, Sophie Moffatt, who is also in Year 9, added: “It was a once in a lifetime thing, I would love to do it again.”

The other dancers from Bishop Barrington, were: Year 9 students, Melissa Pole, Grace McAloon, and Rebecca Ingledew and Year 7 student, Rachel Legge.

The girls and their families also managed to fit in some sightseeing – a number had a ride on the London Eye – and went shopping in Covent Garden, where most of the girls bought new dance and leisure wear from the Pineapple store.

Commenting on the show, Dance teacher, Sandra Welsh, said: “It was just fantastic, the girls were superb. Dancing on a West End stage was a wonderful experience for them. One of the girls said, it was the best experience of her life. Other people complimented them on their performance. A member of the audience, from Birmingham, said our girls outshone everyone else.”

“The whole weekend was a wonderful experience. All the girls were so well behaved. The Bishop Barrington girls are a credit to the school. Their behaviour was outstanding.”