Evening of music and dance gets off on a High in Ballymoney

The Friends of Ballymoney High School group presented an Evening of Music and Dance in which all those involved were former pupils, teachers, parents and staff of the school.

The Principal, Mrs Currie welcomed the audience and thanked everyone for the support being shown to the school. Led by Mrs Glynis Brown, Head of Music at the school the Concert opened with a performance by the combined Friends Choir and the Ballymoney High School Choir. As previously detailed in the Ballymoney Times, rehearsals had been held over the past four weeks and having thoroughly enjoyed the rehearsal nights the evening itself was all the more rewarding for the Friends Choir. Mr Ian Davidson, a Technology teacher was a very entertaining compere, who took great pleasure introducing the wealth of talent on show, many of whom he had taught. Mr Davidson (sound) and Mr Montgomery (lighting) were very ably assisted by their teams and thanks to them for providing their very professional services in support of the school. Diana Culbertson and Laura Jayne Hegarty performed beautifully as soloists and came together to duet in a stunning performance. William Campbell was our piper for the evening and only moments into his performance William had the audience tapping their feet to the beautiful medley of tunes he was playing. The Bluebelle Scottish Country Dancers carried on the Scottish flavour with an elegant exhibition of the talents in their dance group. Following their performance the Interval gave the audience a chance to re-fuel and enjoy a light supper provided by the Friends group and volunteers from many different departments of the whole school staff. The lucky winner of the 39” LED TV, very kindly donated by Basil Knipe Electrics, was Miss Morrison, Principal of Balnamore Primary School who was thrilled with her prize. Friends wishes to thank Basil for his very generous support of both the Friends group and Ballymoney High School. The Laverty School of Irish Dance performed a mesmerising dance which swept the audience off into the second half of the show. There followed a Drama segment of “Blood Brothers” by Ballymoney High School Year 11 pupils. The schools long history of excellence in Drama was carried on by the current pupils and their teacher Miss McShane who gave the audience a flavour of what could be expected when the school produces this years school play in December 2016. Hannah, Cherith and Warren McCook performed a stunning medley showcasing their amazing voices and as the McCook family features in the school choir it was only fitting that the Concert ended with another performance by the Friends Choir and Ballymoney High School Choir. Nigel Kirkpatrick, Chair of the Friends of Ballymoney High School closed the show by thanking the many, many people who came to support the school. Mrs Brown especially deserves a huge thank you as she not only taught most of the performers but she also guided everyone through the evening in her own serene style. To every person who helped, a huge thank you from the Friends of Ballymoney High School. Anyone who is interested in joining the Friends of Ballymoney High School please contact Mrs Caroline Wade or Mrs Ailaine Campbell at the school. The Friends group aims to raise funds to directly benefit the pupils in their education and development and to provide a means for parents, pupils, teachers and staff to come together and enjoy supporting their old school. The event raised a fantastic £2380.