England has a history of giving birth to great musical talent and this boy is no exception!
Allow me to formally introduce England born 12 year old, Allan Clelland-Goddard.
Allan, son of Edward and Deborah, now lives in the small country of Trinidad and Tobago. While the country may be small, there is nothing small about the talent that young Allan has demonstrated!
Some children show talent at a very young age and Allan is a prime example of this. At only three years of age he would run and jump around the room singing (rollin, rollin, rollin), the thyme song from the old TV series Rawhide. At 5, he began taking piano lessons which he still thoroughly enjoys, and in addition plays the tenor steelpan. (The steelpan is the national instrument of Trinidad & Tobago and is a big part of the culture there).
When Allan was just 8 he was asked by his school to sing ‘Where is Love’ from The Musical ‘Oliver!’, on a cd which they were producing. He was the only solo artiston the cd so it was quite an honor! The following year, he auditioned for and was awarded the part of Oliverin the musical of the same name which was being produced by The University of The West Indies Arts Chorale. Allan just loved being a part of the show & he took to the stage as if he had been born there! The show was a success with Allan receiving many rave reviews.
In 2008, Allan continued performing on stage as “Kurt” in the “Sound of Music“ along with his twin sisters Kiona and Genevieve. Then just this year Allan won the part of ‘Chip’ in   ‘The Beauty and the Beast‘.
Allan has beensinging calypsosin national competition since he was 6 years old. He has won many competitions and for two years straight has received the title of one of the ‘Top Twenty Stars of Tomorrow‘. (Click on award picture above for full article)
Aside from singing and playing music, Allan feels a lot of compassion for underprivileged children especially ‘street children’ and hopes one day to be able to do more to help them.
He is very happy and excited that his song ‘Street Children’ is gaining in popularity on YouTube and is getting a wider global audience with hopes it will touch the hearts of people who are in a position to help these children.
Today, Allan attends Secondary school at St. Mary’s College in the capital city of Trinidad, Port of Spain. He is an ‘A’ student and especially enjoys Spanish, French and Science. He is a popular student with many friends. He also enjoys debate and has competed in the school’s debating contest. It is noteworthy to mention that his newly formed team nearly captured the title in the last contest and set records for being the youngest team to achieve such a winning record.
Allan shows diversity with his interest excelling beyond music. He enjoys football and participates in a junior team called ‘Skye’. His favorite team is Manchester United and remains a true fan.
Allan’s goal is to be a famous entertainer, and has shown great zeal and much discipline in his effort to improve his vocal skills.
This is a young man that you will need to keep your eyes on in the future. There is no doubt, that Allan will continue to be rollin, rollin, rollin. Rolling right into success!
Christmas is right around the corner and so is the annual Christmas in the Park event to be held in Auckland on December 12th.
Sam Verlinden has been rehearsing and getting ready to showcase his marvelous singing talent which is sure to please the large crowd expected to attend. The event will be televised and recorded so this blogger can cover the post reporting for all of you.
Sam who just turned 12 this past month, is the youngest performer named for this event. This is quite an honor for Sam, but has not come to him without much work and effort.
Sam continues to impress with his latest performances in the musicals “Oliver” and “Tommy”. Watching and listening to Sam is pure joy and I know that the same way he has made his country proud at past contests, he will make the producers proud to have chosen him for this event.
At the end of the month Sam will continue to be a crowd pleaser as he performs with some of the other boys who were in Oliver.
“The Oliver Boys”, as they are so aptly named, will be singing songs from the musical throughout the city. This will be a real treat for those who were unable to catch the musical which ran for four weeks in Auckland at the SkyCity theater. If you missed the Nov. 8th post you will want to go back and read all about these fine young men and watch the video clips of their performance on stage.
I’m not sure what Sam has planned yet for 2010, but if he is half as busy as he was this year we are in for a real exciting ride. Be sure to visitSam’s Websiteand wish him a Merry Christmas. Girl’s you don’t want to miss his picture there!