Kerry Ellis, star of the West End and Broadway, has teamed up with 1,000 West End Stage students, for a special charity fundraising recording of A Million Dreams from the hit film, The Greatest Showman.
The track is now available to download on iTunes. An official video for the track will be released soon.
All proceeds will go to the NSPCC’s Childline service (0800 1111), which is there to give young people a voice when no one else is listening. Whatever problems or dangers they are facing, Childline is a place for them to turn for support – any time of day or night.
West End Stage launched in 2006 in a bid to become the UK’s leading theatre summer school by igniting a global passion for theatre. Throughout the week-long course, students take part in drama, singing and dance classes led by West End stars, and then make their own West End debut in a showcase at Her Majesty’s Theatre. This year’s students, who all took part in the recording, ranged from just 8 years old through to 21, with 26% of them attending from outside the UK, from 52 different countries as far away as Australia, Cambodia and Indonesia.
Kerry Ellis, who is the Patron of West End Stage, has played many lead roles in shows in the West End and on Broadway including We Will Rock You, Oliver!, My Fair Lady, Miss Saigon, Les Miserables, Cats and Rent.
Mark Puddle, Chief Executive of West End Stage, said: “This year marked our 10,000th West End Stage student, and we wanted to do something fitting to celebrate that. The charity recording was an opportunity to channel 1,000 young voices to raise funds and awareness for Childline, hopefully inspiring and empowering others. Childline’s services help the same demographic of students that attends West End Stage, and at our summer schools we encourage an inclusive atmosphere where everyone can be themselves, be supported, and where no one is alone.”
