Oh, What a Night

On Saturday night the 26 August the OUCH Youth Festival was presented in front of a full house at the Bridgetown Repertory Theatre.

The OUCH Festival is run along the lines of a talent quest, in that there are many and varied acts. In all there were sixty-one performers on the night.

The performers showcased their talents with a wide variety of performances on display, there were dancers, singers, musicians and a variety of stage plays, with a rock band to finish the show.

The OUCH Youth Festival is run by the Bridgetown Repertory Theatre under the guidance of Meegan Cullen and Chris Shedley, with all the performers being seventeen or under in age.

A delighted Meegan Cullen takes us through the evening, “The youth who performed in the show came from throughout the district; Bridgetown Beatz, under the tuition of Emma Pickering and Jayne Dittrich, had 30 students who performed a number of ballet dances and hip-hop dances.

“Mark and Marisa De Vattimo from MMDV Music, their students, three soloist and two bands impressed all with their talents throughout the evening.

“There were also a number of other independent artists who were also standouts on the night, all their performances really were special.

“The Bridgetown Youth Theatre (BYT) performed scenes from their four one act plays, then to complete the show a rock band finished the night with the Black Sabbath hit ‘Paranoid’.

“It was a fantastic night with each dance, song, play and band receiving rapturous applause.

“The OUCH Youth Festival has now been run since 2003 and seems to be going from strength to strength each year, and every year it seems to get better.

“This year’s festival was once again a surprising display of the talent within our community, every act was a standout with all performers having their chance to shine.

“The OUCH Youth Festival initially got the name Ouch from the feeling of dread and impending pain some get from performing on stage, some on the night had that feeling, but after their performance it’s the euphoric feeling of joy they get from an appreciative audience which makes them want to come back and perform again.

“The Repertory Theatre, Chris and myself have all been heaped with praise for running the festival, and we can’t wait to start all over again next year.”