DOZENS of young stars performed as if they were on stage at London's O2 arena in a dazzling show of song, dance and drama.
Star for a Night, featuring almost 70 youngsters from across the Reigate and Banstead borough, returned to Redhill's Harlequin Theatre with a pop theme.
Young stars aged between 11 and 18 auditioned to take part in the show, and then perfected their routines over a series of rehearsals before performing the finished variety show last Tuesday and Wednesday.
Sue Sergeant, leisure development officer at Reigate and Banstead Borough Council, said: "It was a fantastic show.
"It is wonderful for the young people. Kids get such a bad press, it's good for them to do something well.
"The people who take part are from all walks of life.
"You have got kids from private schools, special needs schools, they all mix and work well together.
"It is not like the X Factor, it's not horrible and scary.
"We don't put them down, we encourage them and give them positive feedback."
Awards were dished out to those performers who displayed dedication to the show.
Sophie Taylor, 13, and Alex Marton, 12, both from Redhill, were awarded a one-year dance scholarship to Urban Play street dance classes at Donyngs Leisure Centre.
Natalie Maclean, 14, from Horley, won a one-year scholarship to So You Wanna Be! theatre school, based at the Harlequin.
And Ryan Belcher, 16, from Merstham, and Yasmina Nunjo, 14, from Reigate, won scholarships to a So You Wanna Be! week-long summer school.
Adam De Save, the council's executive member for leisure, said: "The performances were brilliant – the culmination of the hard work put in by our young people but also by the team of professionals who provided the coaching in the run-up.
"A special congratulations goes to our winners.
"I'd also like to thank our sponsors, Toyota (GB) PLC and So You Wanna Be!"
