Jump into Sutton | Issue 3
up after performances to congratulate us, to say how phenomenal the piece was and how clear the message was. Then performing at the Southbank Centre and winning a Royal Philharmonic Society Award for our piece really showed that our hard work had paid off. It shows how much everyone enjoyed the piece, understood the meaning of it, and understood how important it was. The reactions have been amazing. What is next for The Endz? The Endz is now being performed in Salzburg in Austria this spring! I went there in January to watch their rehearsals, and give some advice to the singer Jessie who is performing my part there. They translated The Endz into German, and are working with young people from 5 schools in Salzburg who are coming to perform the piece with the orchestra at Salzburg State Theatre. I am going there again in June to perform with them. We also have a performance in Gloucester in July, and will record the songs from The Endz. I hope there will be more chances to share our piece further in the future.
What is the hardest part of doing a production like this? I would say the hardest part is definitely the message. The message of the piece was really strong and impactful, and it meant a lot to a lot of the people who wrote The Endz. Writing something so impactful and seeing it progress was really emotional. Being so connected to the story itself, we really wanted to make sure that the message was shared clearly and in a way that was right for everyone. I personally find the piece so meaningful and emotional because it is connected to Malcolm, our friend who passed away. That is the hardest thing about the production.
Where has the Endz been performed?
My class started the creative process of ‘The Endz’ back in 2019, and our school Harris Academy in Peckham. We performed it at our school Christmas concert, where Kate Whitley from Multi-Story Orchestra came and watched it. She then decided to partner up with our secondary school to help develop it into a whole musical. This led to us performing ‘The Endz’ multiple times at Bold Tendencies car park in Peckham, as well as then our biggest show at The Queen Elizabeth Hall at The Southbank Centre last year. What have reactions been like? Reactions have been overwhelmingly amazing. We have seen from the very beginning that everyone was very surprised that young people wrote the piece themselves, and they always reacted to that in a great way. As we progressed into performing it with the orchestra, more and more people saw the piece. They would come
Jump Into Sutton thanks Dupri Mckoy (on the mic, above) for the interview and Ambra Vernuccio for the use of the photos and Kate Whitley of the Multi-Story Orchestra
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