350-plus youngsters are preparing to take the stage in a family song-and-dance extravaganza combining all the classic sci-fi stories with an alien Elvis lookalike, writes Humphrey Astley

An Alien Elvis-lookalike, Star Wars-style lightsabre fights and an army of school children saving the planet...

When it comes to putting on a show, they don’t get more spectacular than those staged by the young actors at Oxford’s Stagecoach Theatre Arts school.

“It’s a tale of love, megalomania, and children saving the world,” says Maya Sprigg, principal of Stagecoach, which brings its charity spectacular production Looking for Elvis to Oxford’s New Theatre on Sunday, March 8.

“It’s a real song-and-dance variety show that references all the classic sci-fi stories, including Star Trek, Starman and Close Encounters,” she goes on, adding that there may even be a light-sabre duel or two!

Stagecoach works with children and young people from the ages of 4-19, teaching them how to act, dance, and sing, giving them an extraordinary headstart in the world of professional performance. Indeed, their high-quality training prepares them for roles in most of the major productions that come to Oxford, with as many as 80 students at a time having appeared on-stage with touring extravaganzas like Joseph, The Lion King and Madame Bovary.

“This close and fruitful working relationship with the New Theatre, the largest venue of its kind in the region, makes it the perfect home for the charity show the proceeds of which go to ROSY (Respite nursing for Oxfordshire’s Sick Youngsters) and Maggie’s.

The show itself – which features an astonishing 350-plus students under the supervision of Maya, co-organiser Debra Fielding, and director Steve Dineen – tells the story of an alien anthropologist whose spaceship crash-lands in Accrington Stanley, a fictional town outside of Oxford.

The alien bears an uncanny resemblance to Elvis – a likeness that attracts the attention of a power-mad villain who intends to capture the visitor and capitalise on the King’s celebrity. With the help of some fearless local school children, however, the alien is able to contact a rescue ship and plan his escape... Needless to say, the show promises to be a tremendous spectacle of music and adventure, and is suitable for all the family.

Looking for Elvis certainly sounds like a lot of fun, but it’s just as much work as play for Maya, who founded Stagecoach, in 1989 and her team.

“It is more than just a show, with everyone working ridiculous hours and an army of chaperones on hand,” she says. “Safety is, of course, a high priority when working with children – a factor that isn’t even a consideration for some theatre groups.”

This all adds up to quite an operation, and Maya laughs when asked if she’d do one of these charity spectaculars every year instead of every other: “I think I would probably do myself some serious harm!” she says.

Of course, the schools and their productions are labours of love, which makes it all worthwhile: “Stagecoach is deeply committed to our students as performers, and the show allows them all to participate,” she explains.

“The commitment to the charities reminds us all that we are part of a larger world, so that when our students move on, they will be more ready to take a responsible place in the community.”

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The charities that will benefit directly from Looking for Elvis ticket sales are clearly excellent causes. ROSY is dedicated to the provision of additional respite care to children with chronic and life-limiting conditions, allowing these children to be nursed in their own homes with their loved ones, as well as their own pets, toys, and familiar surroundings.

Maggie’s meanwhile provides free practical, emotional, and social support to people with cancer and their family and friends, following the ideas originally laid out by cancer care improvement pioneer Maggie Keswick Jencks. The charities were chosen by the students and have a special place in the Oxford Stagecoach community’s heart, having provided care and support for 17 of its families in the past.

In the meantime, Stagecoach offers term-time classes in Headington and North Oxford, with numerous performance opportunities, workshops and an annual showcase at the Theatre at Headington during holidays.

For further information about courses and places at Stagecoach’s Oxford centres, Visit their website at stagecoach.co.uk/oxford – and don't forget to buy your Looking for Elvis tickets while you're there!

SEE IT
Looking for Elvis is at the New Theatre Oxford on Sunday, March 8.
Tickets are from stagecoach.co.uk/oxford