Students at Doha’s GEMS Wellington School-Qatar (WSQ) and Dubai’s GEMS Wellington Academy Al Khail (WEK) have received a masterclass direct from the stars of London’s West End.

Sam Lathwood is a cast member of the Mary Poppins musical, and Sarah Earnshaw plays lead character Glinda in Wicked, in one of the world’s most famous theatre districts.

The talented professionals were brought to the Middle East as part of ArtsEd International’s partnership with GEMS to give their students exclusive lessons in performing arts.

WSQ is the only school in Qatar with an ArtsEd partnership, enabling the school to offer this unique opportunity to its young performers.

Stuart Williams, head of Performing Arts at GEMS Wellington School–Qatar, said: “Sam and Sarah have done an excellent job at teaching performing arts classes that are fun, lively and focus on such useful skills such as using your voice expressively, using your posture to convey feelings, plus dance and music techniques to professional standard. These are both performing arts skills and life skills, which can be used to boost a child’s self-confidence, creativity and self-presentation which are so valuable in life. As Head of Performing Arts, I am very proud of the work GEMS Wellington School – Qatar is doing with our new partnership with Arts Educational School International. We are the only school in Qatar to offer an experience like this, which gives our pupils a special experience and fits into our long term goal of being a school with the best Performing Arts Department in the country. We thank Sam, Sarah, our staff and pupils for all their support.

Sarah Earnshaw, Actress, ArtsEd: “I’ve had the most fantastic time working with the students at WSQ. The students, without exception, are respectful and so willing to learn. They have thrown themselves into the challenges of the week with enthusiasm and joy! If they take anything from this week I hope that it’s that Performing Arts skills are transferable to all areas of life and that growing in confidence and strength is important for their future. We’ve also had a lot of fun!”

Sam Lathwood, Dance Captain, ArtsEd: “My time at WSQ has been so inspiring. Seeing the progression and results of children and young adults throughout the course of a lesson is so refreshing. The students have an incredible work ethic, great passion and drive, and they always give 100 per cent in everything they do. Working with the students and staff as part of the ArtsEd residency has been an absolute pleasure.”

David Wilson, Principal / CEO, GEMS Wellington School – Qatar: “We are delighted to launch the new partnership between GEMS Wellington School – Qatar and ArtsEd International. WSQ is the only school in Qatar to offer such opportunities to students, and this and building on the existing relationships already established within the wider GEMS group. As the leading Performing Arts school in the UK, this partnership gives our students access to the highest quality of coaching and mentoring, learning from professional performers directly from London’s famous West End. Our first week-long residency has been a fantastic success with a large number of students throughout the school experiencing a variety of engaging workshops, helping to develop key life skills through drama, music and dance. We cannot wait to welcome them again later in the year.”