Author: Helen Steed

Casting call & open auditions for Arabian Nights

Arabian Nights information evening poster

Are you 8 to 19 years old and can sing, dance or act?
Now is your opportunity to join the award-winning Rising Stars for –

Arabian Nights

To be performed in Beccles Public Hall on the 27th – 29th March 2025

Rising Stars is looking for enthusiastic and talented singers, dancers and actors (especially boys!) to perform in this enchanting musical full of Eastern promise.

Arabian Nights follows the story of Scheherazade as she tries to save her own life by telling 1001 stories to the heartless king. Upset from his failed first marriage, King Shahryar marries a new woman each day and then kills her the next morning! To try and stop this, Scheherazade offers to marry the King – against the wishes of her family – but delays her execution by captivating him with familiar stories such as Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves and Sinbad the Sailor.

All existing members and anyone wishing to join Rising Stars are invited to an Information Evening at 7pm on Friday 13th September in Blyburgate Hall, Beccles, where there will be the opportunity to find out more about the show, meet the production team and get more details about how to audition to be in the cast or for a principal role.

To become an Arabian Nights cast member, you will need to:

  • Be a student in school year 3 or above (max age 19)
  • Book an audition slot by completing an Application to Audition form (available on the 8th or afterwards from the downloads page)
  • Attend the auditions on Friday 6th October (evening) and Sunday 6th October (afternoon).

These are open auditions. ALL roles and ensemble are available for casting.

For more information on how to get involved with this exciting, friendly and award-winning group of young performers, come along to the Information Evening or contact us.

If you can’t make it to the Information Evening but are still interested in being involved with the show, just let us know and we’ll make sure all the information given out on the night is emailed to you.

Tickets on sale NOW for Here We Go Again!

Tickets are now on sale for Rising Stars’ production of Here We Go Again! which will hit the stage at Beccles Public Hall & Theatre on Friday 12th and Saturday 13th July 2024.

Here We Go Again poster

Written specially for Rising Stars, this new cabaret-style show features a selection of our favourite music, songs, dances and colourful characters from previous productions – but with a new twist! Energetic, uplifting and upbeat, this production will look back on the past and look forward to the future.

‘Here We Go Again!‘ is the next fully staged show in an ever growing line of successful musical productions by the Beccles-based musical theatre group, whose previous credits have included Spamalot, Legally Blonde, Peter Pan and the award-winning Les Misérables and The Addams Family. Although the majority of the cast are under 18, they pride themselves on bringing the high quality and professionalism that you would expect of any theatre company to all of their performances.

Tickets for ‘Here We Go Again!‘ are priced at £10 for adults and £7.50 for under 18s and can be purchased online at any time from the Beccles Public Hall Box Office using this link.

BUY TICKETS NOW

Tickets can also be purchased by visiting Beccles Public Hall Box Office in person or by telephoning 01502 770060. The Box Office is open Monday to Saturday, 10am to 3pm and accepts both debit and credit cards.

For more information please Contact Us

Here We Go Again! – information evening

A crowd of potential cast members attended the Here We Go Again! information afternoon Friday 19th April to find out more about the show, meet the production team and get more details about how to audition.

Don’t worry if you couldn’t come along as you haven’t missed out on the chance of being in this exciting production.

All the Cast information that was discussed at the meeting, plus the Application to Audition form can be obtained from our Downloads page.

There will be a pre-audition rehearsal on Sunday afternoon (21st April) from 2-4pm in Blyburgate Hall, Beccles for anyone who would like to be in the cast of That’s Life! A music & movement workshop will be held on Friday 26th April.

Completed Application to Audition forms must be returned by Friday 26th April.

Please contact us if you have any questions or require any more information. Don’t miss this opportunity to perform with our friendly and talented group.

Information evening for Summer 2024 production

Are you 8 to 19 years old and can sing, dance or act? (or know someone who is)
Now is your opportunity to show the world what you can do!

It’s your time to shine as WLOG Rising Stars begin their search for the cast of their next production Here We Go Again! which will be performed in Beccles Public Hall & Theatre on the 12th & 13th July 2024.

Following the success of their recent production of ‘Peter Pan – A Musical Adventure’, Rising Stars is looking for enthusiastic singers, actors, dancers and musicians in school year 3 or above to perform in this new cabaret-style show. Written specially for Rising Stars, this new cabaret-style show features a selection of our favourite music, songs, dances and colourful characters from previous productions – but with a new twist! Energetic, uplifting and upbeat, this production will look back on the past and look forward to the future.

All existing members and anyone considering joining Rising Stars are invited to an Information Evening at 7pm on Friday 19th April in Blyburgate Hall in Beccles, where there will be the opportunity to find out more about the show, meet the production team and get more details about how to audition to be in the show as a singer, dancer or instrumentalist.

For more information on how to get involved with this exciting and talented group, come along to the Information evening or Contact Us

We look forward to seeing you on the 19th.

IMPORTANT – If you can’t make it to the Information Evening but are still interested in being involved with the show, just contact us and we’ll make sure all the information given out on the night is emailed to you.

NODA Awards success for Rising Stars

At the NODA East Gala Awards ceremony this afternoon, Rising Stars won the Best Youth Production award in NODA East District 6 for their production of ‘The Addams Family’ in March last year.

NODA (the National Operatic & Dramatic Association) are such experts in amateur theatrical productions that to be recognised by them in any capacity is a real achievement. To be nominated, is a honour – to win is absolutely fantastic!

This award is a testament to the talent and hard work of all the young cast, the production team of Chris, Clare, Jo & Jenn and to everyone involved with Rising Stars. I hope you are all as absolutely thrilled as we are.

The Addams Family’s musical director, Chris and stage director, Clare collected the award on behalf of Rising Stars

At the same awards ceremony, Fran was presented with a trophy for winning the Best Young Performer in District 6 for her portrayal of Alice Beineke in ‘The Addams Family’.

Congratulations also to our sister group WLOG for winning Best Musical for their production of ‘Made in Dagenham’. A successful afternoon for all the WLOG family.

Rising Stars Awards Winner 2024 – Most Memorable Moment

Miller Redpath Memorial Award for Most Memorable Moment

This award in presented in memory of one of our founder members, Miller Redpath, who sadly died in 2013. Miller’s personality, unique singing voice and head-banging style of dancing are always the first things we remember when thinking of that initial show.

The Memorable Moment Award is given to a person or group of people involved in an event or incident which springs instantly to mind when recalling a production in the last 12 months.

AND THE WINNER IS….. The entire cast of That’s Life!

The cast of That’s Life! was something special. From the very first rehearsal, they bonded as a team, supported each other and worked extremely hard to develop the show from it’s lowly beginnings to our usual high standards.

The Most Memorable Moment occurred during the opening number of the Saturday performance. An electrical storm earlier in the day had already caused power fluctuations and outages in the area. A sudden surge caused the sound desk to go haywire, leaving our sound engineer with no option but to kill the backing track and restart the system.

Technical problems like these usually spell disaster but not for our cast. Without hesitation they finished the song completely unaccompanied, including humming the music for the dance break. It turned out to be an absolute show-stopper, with rapturous applause from the appreciative audience who acknowledged their skill and bravery.

Thank you to the entire cast for a marvellous memory.

Rising Stars Awards Winner 2024 – Outstanding Personal Contribution

The Outstanding Personal Contribution award is given to a Rising Stars member who has made the biggest personal contribution to the success of Rising Stars in the previous 12 months. In a nutshell, someone who has gone above and beyond what is ordinarily expected of a member.

AND THE WINNER IS….. Rosie

Rosie, winner of the Personal Contribution Award 2024

Rosie was recognised for all the support they have given to the production teams over the last 12 months. Mirroring her role as Mrs Darling in Peter Pan, she became the ‘Mum’ of the cast, supporting the younger members with everything from developing their performance skills to quick changes. She even formed part of the stage crew!

Thank you for all your hard work, Rosie.

Rising Stars Awards Winners 2024 – Most Improved Members

Rising Stars held their annual awards ceremony after the last performance of Peter Pan – a Musical Adventure on Saturday 23rd March 2024.
The first two awards were for the Most Improved Members.

It was very obvious to us right from the start that being in Rising Stars was more than just singing, dancing and putting on a show. We noticed that members grew in confidence, made new friends and developed all sorts of essential life skills, such as teamwork, interpersonal skills and management.

The Most Improved Member award is not given to the most talented cast member – although many of our previous winners have developed into great performers and taken principal roles. The award is given to the member who has shown the most improvement in some aspect of their performance skills or personality in the previous 12 months as a direct result of their involvement with Rising Stars.

There are two awards in this category – Under 13 Years & 13 years and over.

Most Improved Member – Under 13 years

AND THE WINNER IS….. Zara

Zara, winner of the most improved member 2024 in the Under 13 category.

When Zara first joined Rising Stars for ‘The Addams Family’, she only wanted to part of the ensemble. She sang as part of a small group in That’s Life, but then went on to audition for (and get) the role of Tootles in Peter Pan – a role that required great characterisation and solo singing.

Over the last 12 months, we have had great pleasure in watching her improve in confidence and performance. Well done, Zara!

Most Improved Member – 13 years and over

AND THE WINNER IS….. Kai

Kai first joined us for School’s Out but was initially very shy and kept very much to themselves during rehearsals. Over the last 12 months, Kai has not only performed two comedy character roles brilliantly, but has become a fully integrated and popular member of the group.

We have watched him grow in confidence and ability throughout the last 12 months and the production team particularly like the way he is the first member of the cast to learn all of his lines.

Congratulations to you both. We look forward to seeing you perform in many more shows with us.

Tickets on sale NOW for Peter Pan – a Musical Adventure

Tickets are now on sale for Rising Stars’ forthcoming production of ‘Peter Pan – a Musical Adventure. The cast of talented 9 to 18 year olds are currently putting their finishing flourishes to this spectacular musical which will be staged nightly in Beccles Public Hall & Theatre from Thursday 23rd to Saturday 25th March at 7.30pm.

JM Barrie’s timeless tale of the boy who never grew up is reborn as a stunning musical with a score by Stiles & Drewe. Peter Pan whisks the Darling family’s children beyond the stars to his island where there are “no tedious distances between one adventure and the next”. Accompanied by a live band, this production is a musical treat for all the family.

Peter Pan is the next fully-staged show in an ever growing line of successful musical productions by the Beccles-based musical theatre group, whose previous credits have included Les Misérables, Spamalot, Legally Blonde and The Addams Family. Although the majority of the cast are under 18, they pride themselves on bringing the high quality and professionalism that you would expect of any theatre company to all of their performances.

Tickets for Peter Pan are priced at £13 for adults and £10 for under 18s and can be purchased online at any time from the Beccles Public Hall Box Office using this link.

Tickets can also be purchased by visiting Beccles Public Hall Box Office in person or by telephoning 01502 770060. The Box Office is open Monday to Saturday, 10am to 3pm and accepts both debit and credit cards.

For further details please Contact us

AGM 2024 date announced

Please be advised that the 2024 Annual General Meeting of WLOG & Rising Stars will take place at 7:45pm on Monday 12th February 2024 in the Quaker Hall, Smallgate, Beccles.

All members of Rising Stars who have paid their 50p membership fee since April 2023 (cast members of That’s Life! & Peter Pan) are invited to attend, but only members who have reached their 14th birthday will be eligible to vote.

The agenda, minutes of the last AGM, some reports and other documents will be circulated in due course.

Best regards
The Committees of WLOG & Rising Stars

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