Today’s youth is a slave to technology; you will either find them glued to their play stations, cell phones, music systems, computers or other such devises that call for stationary actions. Such activities do not involve much action, resulting in the youth staying put in one place for hours on end. It is a cause of concern for most parents - how to mobilise the youth and draw them away from the clutches of technology. Nothing can be more pleasing for the parents to see their kids involved in physical activity. And hence, we saw a sea of satisfied parents at a recent talent night where the youngsters put up a superb show.
It was on a breezy eve that the spirited youth of different parishes put up an energetic performance; and only the word energetic can explain the phenomenon that one witnessed at the Superstar - The Ultimate Talent Night. The youth of St. Lawrence's parish (Enflame) came up with this novel idea based on something similar organised by a school. Having been conceived in St. Lawrence's Parish, the unanimous decision was to be the hosts of the event, although a network was created with the youth of all the other participating parishes.
Participants between the ages 9 and 26 were to choose between Dance, Vocals, Drama, Photography, Art, Film-making and Radiocasting. The aim of the event was to revive the artistic skills of young people of the community. Its primary objective was to allow them to explore their talents (no prior experience or skill was required) and push their creativity and imagination to their limits. The secondary objective was to give young people an outlet and a platform to display their latent talents and abilities.
The evening was hosted by Viviana Rodrigues and Errol Rebeiro, who did a good job of entertaining the audience with their occasional wisecracks besides keeping them abreast of onstage activity. What was refreshing to see was the passion and determination of the youth with which they performed in their various genres. While the singers were entertaining, it was the dance sequences that were awesome - it seemed we were watching our local version of the Pussycat Dolls, Missy Elliot, Justin Timberlake, Jay Z and the likes.
Enflame now plans to continue working for the youth of the community. Plans are there for organising seminars and forums to share thoughts on topics like family, relationships, society, peer pressure, drug addiction, etc. Besides, preparations are underway for more such events providing a platform to youngsters to showcase their creativity and literary skills. We hope for more such exhilarating experiences.n
