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Gymnastics troupe lift Next Big Thing trophy ‘Cry Me a River’
brought tears of celebration to a group of young gymnasts when they performed a display to Michael Bublé’s version of the number and went on to win the final of The Next Big Thing 2012. An audience of more than 800 at the Gaiety Theatre on Saturday January 28 watched 15 finalists compete in the contest organised by Junior Achievement Isle of Man to showcase the talent of young people aged between 11 and 17 and which had attracted more than 150 entries to auditions held across the Island through November and December last year. Asteria, a troupe of 15 gymnasts from around the Island who train together at the Ellan Vannin Gymnastics Club, devised a breathtaking display combining graceful athleticism with daring lifts to win the trophy, £500 sponsored by IFG and the opportunity to be the opening act when The Gleek Club, the UK’s number one Glee tribute band, appears at the Gaiety Theatre on March 24. The troupe was inspired to enter the contest by the success of Spellbound, the Kent-based gymnastics squad that won Britain’s Got Talent in 2010. Another Britain’s Got Talent success, Steven Hall, the 53-year-old telecoms engineer from Kendal who wowed the BGT panel last year with his geography-teacher looks combined with hilariously accurate miming to numbers by artists ranging from Britney Spears to Freddie Mercury, opened the show with a wonderfully manic and crowd-pleasing performance. He also served on the judging panel, alongside Stuart Nelson from Barclays Wealth, Dean Helm from Paragon Recruitment and singer songwriter Anna Goldsmith. Panicland, a band made up of friends Chris Blackburn from St Ninian’s High School and Ffinlo Colley from Ballakermeen High School, both aged 17 and Lily Wolter, 15, from King William’s College came second with a performance of one of their own numbers to win £250 sponsored by the Manx Educational Foundation. Third place, and a cheque for £150 sponsored by Presence of Mann, went to 13-year-old Hamish Faragher whose combination of accomplished drumming and sharp-witted responses to compère James Turpin’s questions delighted the audience and the judges. Junior Achievement chief executive Sue Cook thanked sponsors Barclays Wealth, Paragon Recruitment and 3FM.
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All the money raised will go to support Junior Achievement Isle of Man’s work with more than 5000 students in the Isle of Man. To find out more, visit www.jaiom.im or call 666266. Tickets for The Gleek Club at the Gaiety Theatre on March 24 are available from the Villa Marina box office, 600555 or visit www. villagaiety.com. Adults £15, children, £10. The Next Big Thing 2013 final will take place in February 2013 at the Villa Marina.
Isle of Man style magazine