A thrilling night was had by all at BGS’ inaugural Performing Arts Awards on Monday night (29th June), as a former student returned in the role of guest speaker.

Showcasing all that’s impressive about the Performing Arts departments, the evening started with an address from Headmistress, Miss MacKenzie, and guest speaker, Gloria Onitiri.

Gloria, who left Dame Alice in 2002, has gone on to achieve great success as a musical theatre star in the West End, as well as performing challenging roles in television and theatre.

She used her speech to urge the girls to pursue their dreams and dedicate themselves.

“The best advice I could give is to follow your heart and when you’ve made a decision on what you want to be, work as hard as possible,” said Gloria, who is most recently known for her role as Rachel Marron in the original cast of The Bodyguard, and Nala in The Lion King.

“Even though I’m now an established professional, I still have acting lessons twice a month as you can never stop learning. Even the likes of Gandalf are there.”

Gloria awarded colours for Music, Speech and Drama, Dance and Drama, with each presentation accompanied by a report of the year and performance from the girls.

The Arts Prizes saw Katy Sergeant win the Outstanding Performance Prize, Emily Tapp receiving the Outstanding Contribution to the Performing Arts Award and Phoebe Dolan winning the same gong for Technical Support.

In addition, Lydia Clewlow (Speech and Drama), Lucy King (Music), Ellie Webber (Drama) and Iona Webster (Dance) were Most Improved winners.
Bringing the night to a close, Gloria wowed the crowd with a beautiful rendition of One Moment in Time, from The Bodyguard.