 And you're very welcome back. And that was the beautiful voice of Sophie Doran who plays Nancy in the forthcoming production of Oliver in the Millennium Forum. And as promised joining me in the studio tonight, I have got Judith O'Hare, who's chairperson of the LMS in Derry. I've got Kieran O'Connor who plays the role of Fagan. And I have Sophie Doran who plays the role of Nancy. Folks, you are very, very welcome tonight. Good evening Jean. How are you? And as I said before, we've shared the boards before Kieran and Jesus Christ Superstar here in Erich County. And I'm looking forward to seeing you as Fagan in Oliver tonight. That's a bit different, Jean. Seven years ago, hard to believe. But yeah, that I think I will be playing the role of Fagan. Maybe seven years later, not so much, but sure. Looking forward to it. Really, really enjoying it. Fantastic. And Judith, you are the chairperson and the LMS in Derry was back decades. Yes, we started in 62. Autumn 62, I think the first show was in 63. And it started off with Gilbert Sullivan. A lot of the early shows were in the, most the early shows were in the Guildhall. And then during the 70s, a few years during that, we just couldn't perform any shows in the city in the mid 70s. So there was a few lapsed years there. Then we went back to the Rialto for the old cinema, Hanson Columns Hall. But we've been in the Millennium Forum now since 2002. I think it was our first show in the Millennium Forum. And we've been there more or less every week with one show in the Waterside Theatre. There's a great venue, the Forum. So it's the 61st year of the Society. And we've had a tremendous community support. Support about business advertisers and patrons. And there seems to be, we've done Oliver's the third time we've done Oliver. And we have to sort of replenish your talent every so often, every few years. So it would be a marvelous group of children, the 35 children. And including, of course, we have a wonderful principal lineup this year, particularly. We're very fortunate with our production team. We have Michael Poole, who's co-ordinator in drama in the tech. And Michael is able to, sometimes young men are hard to encourage to come into music society. But Michael seems to be able to get us, always get us a few extra men. Vanessa Chapman is our longtime choreographer. And she's just so full of new ideas and encouragement, even for those of us who aren't really good dancers. And Peter Dardee is our MD. And Peter's always been enthusiastic and great attention to detail. So we're hoping that it's all starting to come together. And have you been rehearsing long? Started in January and just after, maybe the 7th of January, the children were in first. And adult chorus, we hadn't just seen them for a few weeks. And they were just brilliant. The first time we saw food, glorious food, they picked it up so quickly. But they've been working very hard. Then the adult chorus and principals have been a bit twice, twice three times, two or three times a week since January. So we're getting to the, towards the last stage now, getting it all put together, running the show. It was a very exciting time. And you were telling me just before we went on air that there's a number of Donnie Gold people in the cast and the kids as well. We're delighted. Well, Sophie here is from Inch originally. She lives in Bridgette and now we're delighted to have Sophie. So we have Rosie and Sonny, here are sisters. Leon is from Newton Cunningham, Alton, Annie, Holly. There's Arusha as well. And Lily May. So there's various from Boncranna and Cairndona and various parts of Donnie Gold. Leon is Newton Cunningham. So people are travelling from all over and then we have a big group from, well there's obviously people from the city done given. And then there's Limavadi, Bali Kelly, Castle Rock, Board Rush, Corian. I mean, it's great tribute to the society and to the encouragement and enthusiasm of the members that they travel from far and wide to take part in the show. We're delighted with that too. And Ciaran, you've been on stage for over 20 years and you played Jesus Christ Superstar here in Letter of Kenny and you were in Kinky Butts as well. And Fagan, is there a completely different role for you? It is. Definitely has been a challenge. I started at the start of January with all the kids because obviously I'm heavily involved with over 40 kids in this production which I have to say, talk about being kept in your toes. I definitely have been. They are mesmerising. They're fantastic. And yes, it's my 20th year actually now doing shows and my first time really working with such a large volume of children and they are just a delight. It has been a real privilege. To be able to actually witness what they're going to bring next week to the Millennium Forum stage is going to be just, it's going to make it all worthwhile for me. I'm really looking forward. Yes, to bringing Fagan to life, but also to watch these 40 children do their thing. It's going to be brilliant, Jean. And as well, just from your little blog that you were artistic director there in Lumen Christi and their production of Cinderella, did you find it different from being on stage to be directing it? Totally different. I actually come off the back of a musical director who would do a lot of the productions down here, Mark Bradley, who you probably be aware of. Mark's one of the teaching staff up there and I came to his mind in 2022 in the early part of it to take on the artistic directing role of the Lumen Christi production of Roger and Hammerstein's Cinderella. I thought, am I able to do this? But yeah, you know what, I stepped up and I was looking at it from a total different perspective and really threw myself onto it. And tried to approach it with as much commitment and as much of a visual enthusiasm as I possibly could and really, really enjoyed it. Again, it was just great to watch these young people, many of them who it was their first time on stage bring something to life and it was a great experience for me. I would love to be able to look at it from that angle again maybe someday, if God's good, but sure, we're looking at it all over now and we have to deliver Fagan in a week and a half time and he's playing havoc in the voice but listen, we're getting there and really looking forward to it, really am. Sophie, you're playing the role of Nancy and it's not your first time on stage with the LMS in Derry? It's not, no. I've performed a few times now with the LMS and that's with the Chorus, or not the Chorus, the choir we would do, Showstopper's Choir and my very first show was in the Chorus with the King and I back in 2012, that's going back, even thinking about it and even some of the cast members that we're performing with now in all over when they were in the King and I they were only about six or seven and they're all adults now, so it's crazy to see how they're still in the society as well developing their own interest in it so it's just wonderful to see the society, it's a brilliant opportunity for people of all ages to become involved and the arts especially, maybe a few of your re-classes at the weekend and you're wanting to maybe go on stage and put on a big show, you know, it's a brilliant opportunity and as Judith was mentioning, you have Michael, Peter and Vanessa and they are just a fantastic guidance and they give some brilliant skills and I mean this is free as well, you know, you have membership fee but you're getting all this training in a weekend, week-out basis and it's priceless, it's brilliant for them so yes, I'm delighted to be back this year playing Nancy. It's a very exciting role, it's one of those roles that I've definitely wanted to play for a long time and I'm delighted that I've been cast very, very exciting. She's a baddie in a way but she becomes the hero so I get to be nice and I get to be a wee bit cheeky at times so it's a very fun role but yes, I'm very excited now. And a very different role from the 9-5 role that you played last year. Well, polar opposite ends I'd say. Great show last year as well. Absolutely, it was a very fun uplifting show last year but it's very, very different this year, all over, I think it has a wee bit of everything. You have comedy scenes, you have the heartfelt, meaningful scenes and then the kids and everything. It's a brilliant show. I couldn't say anything. Good words about it now. Well we just heard you singing as long as he needs me and what a performance and if it's like that recorded sure it's going to be even better live but you've been performing since 4 and you've been on TV so you've quite a lot of experience Sophie. I'm really lucky and I have no one to thank better as fools than my parents. When I was young they were just amazing. They backed me 100 anything I wanted to do and anything at all. They gave me every opportunity with my lessons and they've waited rehearsals for hours for me. I'm so thankful to them and even then when I was younger performing with LMS they would bring me in as I say to you, I'm from Donegal so they would take me in the dairy and I'm really, really, really, really thankful. So I've been blessed and then when I was studying in NWRC Michael our director he was actually one of my lecturers and again his teaching was just fantastic so I've learned so many skills from him and then I was fortunate enough to be signed with Nova Artists so I've had a lot of great opportunities to do some professional work there as well so I am very, very, very blessed, very lucky. Fantastic and Judith we've got Fagan and Nancy here and Oliver, I know whenever I've been in two productions of Oliver myself I was Mrs Bedwin and the children to find they're all so fabulous it must have been a pretty hard task just to get the Oliver. Yes there's a little boy called David Langan who is really getting into the role he's the most beautiful voice and he's very dedicated, we boy again his parents are so good at bringing him his brother is actually in the cast he's playing Charlie Bates one of the other children but for a ten year old boy he's so mature but he's really enjoying himself and then our Dodger we're very fortunate it's actually a girl who's playing Dodger Francesca Kelly both her parents are her mother is an actress and her father Morris is a musician, a musical director who has directed Society's Need, Romssey Northwest Orchestra they're involved with Allegri their music group but Francesca is their daughter and she's a wonderful a wonderful girl she just loves her singing and dancing and her character role and you know the children will just be they react so well with Fagan and with Nancy and with the other characters it will be a joy to get it all on stage and it's such a family show as well like you know because of the children you've got all the grannies and all the aunts and uncles that have come to see it and it's an uplifting show like Umpapa and songs like that and as Sophie said it's sad and it's funny and it's there's something for everyone in it I mean Charles Dickens was such a wonderful writer I mean I think with a lot of musicals you need to be really successful with the story and there's no better writer of a script than himself and then Lionel Bart's music has really lifted it but even this year I've been in the show twice before but there are different touches each time each director brings a different slant to it you know and it's very exciting to you can't ever tire of it so this kicks off now so we're in the forum of Wednesday the 20th of March until Saturday the 23rd of March at 7.30pm and there's a matinee on the Saturday afternoon at 2.30pm so tickets are available from Millennium Forum they have a website and a box office if you I'll give you the address www.millenniumforum.co.uk Millennium is two L's and two L's and their number you can share if you just hold it here because I've got a better view you want me to hold it how's that for yous all their numbers are low tickets are available fantastic well the best of luck with it and many thanks for taking time out tonight to come in and speak to us here on Highland thank you very much Jane the effects of personal debt problems are