Abu Dhabi pupils dazzle in video clip singing 'Les Miserables' chorus


Kelly Clarke
  • English
  • Arabic

Despite the pandemic putting a stop to in-person lessons for more than six months, it failed to bring the curtain down on pupil performers at Cranleigh Abu Dhabi.

A video posted online showed pupils from the school’s performing arts department re-enacting a famous chorus from the popular musical, Les Miserables.

Dressed in colourful costumes, children blasted out their solo vocals in style against a white backdrop, before each clip was edited and combined to create the entire musical, including the tuneful chorus of One Day More.

At a time when it was unable to celebrate the performing arts on school grounds, Cranleigh said the production was “monumental in connecting our community”.

Stephanie Sell, vocal coach at the school, told The National the pupils performed the historical musical using modern technology.

“The vast majority of rehearsals for the show were conducted online via Google Meet,” she said.

“Teaching and rehearsing songs online was challenging as there was a delay between playing the music and the pupils hearing it.

“The solution we found was for the soloists to download the backing tracks themselves to play and sing from their side, then we could give feedback on each section.”

The online clip, which is about one minute long, is the finale to act one and included pupils from pre-prep, prep and senior school.

Every voice heard in the musical was individually recorded. Once confident with their songs, pupils listened to the backing track through earphones while recording their voices into a second device, said Martin Barraclough, head of music performance.

Once the backing tracks were edited, the cast got into costume and filmed themselves against a plain, white wall.

They sang and lip-synched to their own edited vocal tracks, which allowed the footage to align with the audio.

While the editing process was challenging and time-consuming, Jo Lee, director of performing arts, said the final outcome was a checkerboard of faces singing passionately.

“The chorus choreography was pre-recorded videos for the cast to copy. All the videos were then submitted, and the final editing process began,” she said.

“This was an enormous undertaking with hundreds of videos to be cropped and edited into the final version that was shared with the Cranleigh Abu Dhabi community.

“Usually, a school production of this size would take one term to rehearse and stage.

“This process started in the first term and culminated in the final term. It is safe to say that it was a highly unusual and much longer process from a distance, but we were determined to continue our performing arts traditions.”

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Tearful appearance

Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday. 

Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow. 

She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.

A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.

The Gentlemen

Director: Guy Ritchie

Stars: Colin Farrell, Hugh Grant 

Three out of five stars

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While you're here

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Iftar programme at the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding

Established in 1998, the Sheikh Mohammed Centre for Cultural Understanding was created with a vision to teach residents about the traditions and customs of the UAE. Its motto is ‘open doors, open minds’. All year-round, visitors can sign up for a traditional Emirati breakfast, lunch or dinner meal, as well as a range of walking tours, including ones to sites such as the Jumeirah Mosque or Al Fahidi Historical Neighbourhood.

Every year during Ramadan, an iftar programme is rolled out. This allows guests to break their fast with the centre’s presenters, visit a nearby mosque and observe their guides while they pray. These events last for about two hours and are open to the public, or can be booked for a private event.

Until the end of Ramadan, the iftar events take place from 7pm until 9pm, from Saturday to Thursday. Advanced booking is required.

For more details, email openminds@cultures.ae or visit www.cultures.ae

 

Other must-tries

Tomato and walnut salad

A lesson in simple, seasonal eating. Wedges of tomato, chunks of cucumber, thinly sliced red onion, coriander or parsley leaves, and perhaps some fresh dill are drizzled with a crushed walnut and garlic dressing. Do consider yourself warned: if you eat this salad in Georgia during the summer months, the tomatoes will be so ripe and flavourful that every tomato you eat from that day forth will taste lacklustre in comparison.

Badrijani nigvzit

A delicious vegetarian snack or starter. It consists of thinly sliced, fried then cooled aubergine smothered with a thick and creamy walnut sauce and folded or rolled. Take note, even though it seems like you should be able to pick these morsels up with your hands, they’re not as durable as they look. A knife and fork is the way to go.

Pkhali

This healthy little dish (a nice antidote to the khachapuri) is usually made with steamed then chopped cabbage, spinach, beetroot or green beans, combined with walnuts, garlic and herbs to make a vegetable pâté or paste. The mix is then often formed into rounds, chilled in the fridge and topped with pomegranate seeds before being served.

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Engine: 3.5-litre V6

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Transmission: 8-speed auto

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Starring: Ramy Youssef, Steve Carell, Jason Schwartzman

Director: Jesse Armstrong

Rating: 3.5/5

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Engine: 3.5-litre V6
Transmission: six-speed manual
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Torque: 370Nm
Speed: 0-100km/h 3.9 seconds
Price: Dh230,000
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Engine: 3.5-litre V6

Transmission: eight-speed automatic

Power: 290hp

Torque: 340Nm

Price: Dh155,800

On sale: now

if you go

The flights

Etihad, Emirates and Singapore Airlines fly direct from the UAE to Singapore from Dh2,265 return including taxes. The flight takes about 7 hours.

The hotel

Rooms at the M Social Singapore cost from SG $179 (Dh488) per night including taxes.

The tour

Makan Makan Walking group tours costs from SG $90 (Dh245) per person for about three hours. Tailor-made tours can be arranged. For details go to www.woknstroll.com.sg

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Name: Kumulus Water
 
Started: 2021
 
Founders: Iheb Triki and Mohamed Ali Abid
 
Based: Tunisia 
 
Sector: Water technology 
 
Number of staff: 22 
 
Investment raised: $4 million 
MATCH INFO

Uefa Champions League semi-final, first leg
Bayern Munich v Real Madrid

When: April 25, 10.45pm kick-off (UAE)
Where: Allianz Arena, Munich
Live: BeIN Sports HD
Second leg: May 1, Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid

City's slump

L - Juventus, 2-0
D - C Palace, 2-2
W - N Forest, 3-0
L - Liverpool, 2-0
D - Feyenoord, 3-3
L - Tottenham, 4-0
L - Brighton, 2-1
L - Sporting, 4-1
L - Bournemouth, 2-1
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Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol

Power: 154bhp

Torque: 250Nm

Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option 

Price: From Dh79,600

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Labour dispute

The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.


- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law 

COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Airev
Started: September 2023
Founder: Muhammad Khalid
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: Generative AI
Initial investment: Undisclosed
Investment stage: Series A
Investors: Core42
Current number of staff: 47
 
Updated: August 09, 2021, 11:39 AM`