Pupils act smart to avoid getting ‘Hooked on' drugs
Deerpark Primary last week showcased the world premier of the drugs education musical ‘Hooked On!'
P5 and P6 pupils joined professional actors on stage to perform the show, which is based on ‘Hooked!' – a Kids on Stage resource developed by Aberdeen-based theatre in education company, Live Wire Productions.
The show has been distributed to schools across Scotland, but Deerpark were the first school in the country to take it to the public, with friends, parents, teachers, professionals and Provost Derek Stewart gathering at the school to take in the performance.
‘Hooked!' gives young people an opportunity to experience drug-related issues through interactive drama and music and, for the past few weeks, Deerpark's talented youngsters worked hard to learn the songs and their lines.
The Live Wire team of actors arrived early on the day of the performance to work with their young co-stars and were rewarded with a dazzling performance at the end of the school day.
Vanessa Chew, managing director of Live Wire Productions, said, “The children and their teachers have worked extremely hard on the material and it has been wonderful to see them singing and dancing on stage, delivering an important message to the audience while having fun.”
Presenter Sarah Chew added, “We're absolutely just thrilled to bits. The kids were amazing. They put in so much hard work, not only with the preparation but they turned up today and just gave it their best and I think it showed in the performance. It's absolutely fantastic.”
Sarah added, “It is wasn't for Scotland Against Drugs funding this resource, this wouldn't be possible, so I think it's important to thank them. It came alive today for us – there's lots of hard work gone into this and the kids really gave us a premier to be proud of. They're set the standard incredibly high for the other schools in the tour – they were just super kids.”
Headteacher Lorna Spence was extremely proud of her pupils and congratulated them for their efforts. She said, “I think that was a fantastic performance, especially when you consider these children got on the stage at nine o'clock this morning for the first time. It just proves that working with professionals in the field really does bring out the best in children, but you can't deny the hard work the teachers have put in behind that.
“This is a very important message to get out because, as parents, all of us are concerned about the choices our children have to face and seem to have to be making at a younger and younger age. It might seem quite a hard-hitting message for primary school children, but they have to be equipped to face the sad world that we sometimes live in.”
Alloa & Hillfoot Advertiser, 22nd June 2006