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Young performers set to wow the audience at ChildAid

ChildAid began 13 years ago as a fund-raising showcase for children with musical talents.

It still helps thousands of children across the island, but when about 190 talents take the stage this week in this year's production, they will sing, dance, display martial arts skills and stage An Amazing, Awesome Asian Adventure.

In the hands of singer-songwriter and Cultural Medallion recipient Dick Lee as creative director, the 90-minute show follows the journey of four children who have their magical masks stolen by a witch and have to get them back.

The performance melds various performance mediums from different cultures to tell the story.

Proving that age is no object, the youngest performer, Megan Phuan, five, plays a piano duet with Jair Chan, who is just a year older.

Other performers gearing up for the concert on Friday and Saturday are Natalie Ong, 16, who was one of the finalists on The X Factor Australia last year, and Emiliano Cyrus, nine, and Neo Le Yang, 11, both of whom had parts in the 2017 edition of Forbidden City: Portrait Of An Empress, which was staged by the Singapore Repertory Theatre.

Jointly organised by The Straits Times and The Business Times, the ChildAid concert provides disadvantaged schoolchildren with meals and transport fees through The Straits Times School Pocket Money Fund, as well as paves the way for them to pursue the performing arts, through The Business Times Budding Artists Fund.

The main sponsors of ChildAid 2017 - which donated $500,000 and above each - include Citi Singapore, HSBC and United Overseas Bank. The official venue partner is Resorts World Sentosa.

 The Straits Times © Singapore Press Holdings Limited. Reproduced with permission.