Local Stars in the Making: Long Ashton Students Share the Stage with The Opera Boys
Twenty Young performers from Long Ashton aged 6 to 14 geared up for a thrilling professional experience as they joined national touring sensation The Opera Boys live on stage at the Redgrave Theatre, Bristol.
Following a sell-out run of successful shows in Weston-Super-Mare in 2025, for their final tour The Opera Boys reached out directly to Stagecoach Long Ashton in search of a vibrant, talented, and energetic cast of young singers and dancers to support them in their performance.
For the principal and teaching team at Stagecoach Long Ashton, providing students with authentic stage experience is at the heart of their mission, believing that professional opportunities like this give young performers an invaluable platform to take the skills they learn in class and showcase them out in the real world.
The excited Stagecoach students had been working hard to prepare for their big performance, rehearsing the material in additional sessions since May. They performed four tracks with The Opera Boys and Britain's Got Talent winner guest tenor Paul Potts including Greatest Day - Take That, Angels - Robbie Williams, Nessun Dorma and the Jersey Boys Medley.
‘It was an amazing experience to work with such a talented and well-seasoned group of professionals, like The Opera Boys, they loved our singing and were really pleased with how professional our students were’, said Principal Olivia Kennard, ‘We were delighted to be invited by Opera Boys performer Rob Cherry to be part of the show. These industry opportunities give our students unique insight into how the theatre world works, build confidence and team building skills, and provide invaluable experience for their performance journey, whether they want to pursue a career in the performing arts or diversify into other areas.’
For many of the older students taking part, stepping onto a professional stage is familiar territory as several performed in London’s West End last year. Taking the stage at Bristol's iconic Redgrave Theatre alongside established professional vocalists represents an exciting and natural next step in their performing arts journey. But for some of the students, this amazing opportunity represented the first step into their professional performing arts journey, fully supported by their Stagecoach ‘family’.
Describing her experience on stage, Grace, aged 10, a student at Stagecoach Long Ashton, has definitely been bitten by the performance bug:
‘I really enjoyed performing with the Opera Boys and Paul Potts at the Redgrave Theatre in Bristol. I liked how funny they were and made us laugh, and that we could sing and dance along with them! It was a great experience to sing in a professional show, along with my Stagecoach friends. I would definitely do it again!’
Stagecoach Performing Arts Long Ashton is widely recognised as a joyful hub of creativity where young people learn to sing, dance, and act in a supportive, high-energy environment. More than just a weekly class, Stagecoach provides students with a cherished "Stagecoach family", a strong community of like-minded friends outside of their school routine that fosters confidence, purpose, and self-expression.
For more information about Stagecoach Long Ashton email bristolsouthwest@stagecoach.com
