An evening of very special stars

There may have been more well-known stars who have appeared on Draiocht’s illustrious stage in the past but few will have been as special as the young people of the Norma Breen Stage Academy who bring their immense array of talents to the theatre on February 2nd.

In what has been described as “an energetic and fast-moving evening of song and dance,” the children, aged between four and sixteen years, hope to raise as much money as possible for the Cystic Fibrosis Hopesource Foundation, a charity which raises funds for the as-yet incurable, genetically inherited, life threatening disease. Dublin 15 audiences are being asked to come out and support the children in their efforts and enjoy a great family friendly evening of entertainment at the same time.

Maeve Mullin, one of the co-directors of the Foundation, lives in Hollystown and has particular reason to hope the turnout is a good one. Her daughter Aoife has Cystic Fibrosis and Maeve is only too aware of the need to support development into facilities and also into research. “The problem with CF is that having the disease makes the sufferer vulnerable to all sorts of other diseases,” she says. “That is why, when they go into hospital, there is always a risk of cross-infection because there are no single rooms available. They can pick up the winter vomiting bug or any of a host of different infections and the consequences can be very serious.

“We are really asking people to dig deep and come out and support us on the night as funds are urgently needed.”

There are currently 1,100 young people in Ireland with CF. Caused by a faulty gene, the illness mainly affects the lungs and digestive organs and being a parent of a sufferer entails a life of constant worry and vigilance. The Foundation funds the research , staff and treatment that aims to give these children a better quality of life. The public can help, not only financially, but by carrying an organ donor card, often the final hope for the CF sufferer.

Maeve is near neighbours with Norma Breen who, amongst other things, runs a weekly hip-hop dancing class in Kilbride on Wednesdays. Aoife and her older sister Aisling attend the classes and both will be performing at Draiocht. Community Voice has had a sneak preview of the repertoire and has learned that such feelgood classics as “YMCA,” “Tragedy,” “We’re all in this together,” “Puppy Love” and “There’s a whole lot of loving” will definitely feature on the night, thanks to some inspired musical direction from Chris Kineavy.

As an added bonus, RTE’s Anne Doyle has agreed to host the show – “Norma just rang her up and asked her,” says Maeve – and other special guests will also feature, including well-known actor Simon Delaney of Bachelor’s Walk fame.

Further information on the Foundation can be had on www.cfhopesource.org or by emailing the charity on info@cfhopesource.org

“Reach for the Stars” as presented by the Norma Breen Stage Academy plays Draiocht’s main auditorium on Saturday 2nd February at 8pm.

Tickets are €20.

Community Voice, Media House, Church Avenue, Blanchardstown, Dublin 15
Phone +353 1 822 1432 -  Fax +353 1 640 4444
info@communityvoice.ie

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