Shea joins line-up of all-star charity show

 

* Shea Ferron is amongst those appearing in the special charity show next month.

A young entertainer who became a local celebrity after appearing in a string of hit productions with a junior stage group is amongst the line-up of an all-star charity concert in Llangollen next month.

Shea Ferron, 20, has played leading roles in a host of musicals presented by the Young’ Uns, the junior section of Llangollen Operatic Society, including Half a Sixpence, Honk! the Musical, Bugsy Malone, Joseph, 9 to 5, Grease, Wizard of Oz and Little Shop of Horrors.

He has also been entertaining crowds with his solo performances since he was a tot, raising thousands of pounds for various charities.

And Shea, now away at college, became one of the first to sign up when three of Llangollen’s most popular amateur stage groups decided to join forces for the first time ever to present a glittering variety and music hall show in aid of the earthquake victims of Turkey and Syria.

Llangollen Operatic Society, Llangollen Twenty Club and The Collen Players are combining their considerable talents to stage Llangollen on Show for Turkey and Syria at Llangollen Town Hall over two nights on Thursday and Friday May 11 and 12.

All proceeds will go to support the Disaster Emergency Committee in which 15 of the UK’s top charities have come together to supply a lifeline to thousands of survivors of the earthquake which devastated southern and central Turkey and northern and western Syria in February.

Organisers say it will also be the perfect way to celebrate the coronation of King Charles III which will have taken place the previous weekend. 

The Llangollen entertainers have spent months planning for the big show which will see each of the groups involved showcasing their skills to audiences of up 250 on each of the two performances.

The Operatic, an all-singing and dancing outfit, will perform numbers from the smash-hit shows Hamilton, Six, Oliver Les Miserables and Half a Sixpence,  while the Twenty Club drama group will present comedy sketches – some specially written for the occasion – based on their own hilarious past hits such as Blackadder and Absolutely Fabulous.

The Collen Players will provide a taste of the rip-roaring Victorian music hall shows for which they have rapidly become famous, with their founder, Lee Taylor, acting as chairman for the show which starts each night at 7.30pm. 

There will be a bar and prize raffle on both nights and a number of local businesses have pledged their financial support.

Shea Ferron is currently on BA (Hons) Performing Arts course at the ICTheatre College in Manchester and is also a member of the John’s Boys Choir which recently won the male voice choir category of the Derry International Choral Festival in Northern Ireland and was the 2019 Choir of the World winners at Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod.

Shea, who will be belting out the songs on this occasion for the Collen Players, said: “The reason I signed up for Llangollen on Show for Turkey and Syria is because it’s a great opportunity to do what I absolutely love and is raising money for a fantastic cause.

“It’s also very exciting that the three main performing arts societies within the town are performing together. It’s going to be one special night indeed.”

Tracey Kempster Jones, one of the show’s organisers, said: “Llangollen is famously bursting with entertainment talent and this show will be a historic occasion because never before have all three of Llangollen’s main stage groups come together to put on such a show.

“Almost as soon as all of us heard about the dreadful earthquake in Turkey and Syria we know we had to do something.

“We’ve had some really dedicated people working on the show, both on stage and behind the scenes, and we’re counting on our respective regular audiences and others to come along to support this fantastic cause and have a great night into the bargain.”

Tickets for the show, priced at £12 (no concessions) are available online at www.ticketsource.co.uk/llangollenoperaticsociety or from Courtyard Books, Llangollen, and the Llangollen Oggie Shop in Caste Street or on the door on the night. Demand is expected to be such that organisers advise on booking early.