Those who attended last Saturday?s semi-finals of Power In The Voice must surely have enjoyed their afternoon. This event will go down as one with some fine talents proving out their capabilities. Indeed, after months of preparation, along with their mentors, the youngsters showed a glimpse of their potential. The mentors of those young performers are well-known Mauritian artists in the likes of Knowme, Thierry Francoise, Hansley Antoine, Eric Rima and others. All kinds of art forms were on the program - plays, poems, dancing, slams and songs. The event began from noon until 4 p.m. From beginning to end the atmosphere was exciting. As a proof, Eric, one of the spectators comments: ?I am absolutely thrilled by the level of these youngsters. I never knew and never could imagine we had such a blend of talents in Mauritius.?

This innovative and creative programme set up by the BC for local students has several aims. One of them is to detect potential artists as well as promote the English language as this remains the priority of the different objectives of the British Council. Around 15 schools, from all corners of the island, were involved in the semi-finals. Six schools have made it to the final: New Educational College, Lycée de Beau-Bassin, Sharma Jugdamdi SSS, College Des Villes Soeurs, Imperial College and College Père Laval. The competition is an initiative of the British Council (BC) with the help of its main sponsor for the event: Peace Angels. Moreover, different bodies, such as the ministries of Education, Youth and Sports as well as Arts and Culture, offered their support. This support was underlined by Simon Ingram-Hill, director of the BC, in his speech. Following the performance of the different schools, the spotlights were on a very special guest. A guest who had travelled from England: Philip Wells, also known as the ?Fire Poet? in his home country. So it was not a surprise when he ?fired? the audience?s emotions with his words when he was asked to perform on stage. His words were a combination of freshness and of imagination.

Just before the competition got under way, Yasmin Heddoo, marketing events and PR manager at the BC, pointed at the members of the jury saying they would have a tough afternoon. She proved right, as all the participants were able to show how talented they were. In fact, their performance simply showed why they were able to reach the semi-finals. The jury consisted of Philip Wells, Linzy Bacbotte, Jean-Jacques Arjoon and Mordikiss as well as the Director of the BC.

One of the many who have devoted their energy to make the event successful, Yasmin Hedoo, is delighted with the way things went. She says: ?Overall, things went on as we had planned. But what impressed me the most, was to see how the kids improved from the last time I saw them, more precisely last February when the competition began. They have showed great confidence, and it was noticeable how they have really moved ahead.?

High quality show in Botswana

It is important to note that Power in the Voice is an international competition in countries like Botswana, Mozambique, South Africa, England, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The final of this competition will take place next year in February. The winning team will go to Botswana to perform in a high quality show. So those who have missed the semi final can catch up by attending the final. Especially, as the final will be as good, if not even better than last Saturday?s semi-final. For Simon Ingram-Hill: ?Power in the voice is a competition which gives young people the opportunity to express themselves. Moreover, it is a way to bring people with different experiences and different backgrounds together. There was an excellent turn-up for this event. I was particularly impressed with the standard of the performers. They showed great commitment and great quality in using the English language. We got a glance of their creativity and their team-spirit.?