On stage at York Barbican; Produced by the students of Thomas Hepburn Community Academy, Gateshead.

THE NORTHERN EDUCATION TRUST Arts Event took place on Tuesday the 5th July at the York Barbican centre. This is an annual event which celebrates all forms of the performing arts. It provides all students from academies across the Trust to showcase their many talents.

The theme of the festival was the world.

Each academy chose the music and dance from a particular part of the world to perform. Our choice of song was Shakira's 'Waka Waka' which was the signature tune of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. We chose this song because of its positive message about having high aspirations. The choice of dance was a form of South African dance named gumboot dancing. It is a unique form of dance as performers wear wellington boots to accompany the strong rhythmic beat of the music.

Our musicians played the drums, guitars and the djembe. The djembe is a drum originally from West Africa. It is played with bare hands.

I love performing in front of a big audience and we all felt extremely lucky to be given the opportunity to play in such a huge venue as the York Barbican. The experience has made me even more determined to pursue my dream to be a performer. The experience has given all of us a huge boost to our confidence.

Callum Clarkson who plays guitar said: 'I felt very nervous before we started to play but once we started to perform I felt great because it made me feel like I was in a real band with my friends. It is an experience I will remember for a long time.

We look forward to next year's event.

By Eve Bain

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Meet the gumboot dancers