The Mini Pop Kids sang and danced their way into Regina in Sunday, while also showcasing some local talent. Throughout their tour, the organization has been inviting various youth performing arts groups to join them onstage for some numbers in the show.
“We’re not from where we perform usually, but the kids in the audience and the studios we work with are. So it’s a chance for the kids here to see, like, what they can actually go do, which is really cool,” Karli Feldman, the artist and tour manager for the Mini Pop Kids said.
One of the featured groups were students of Sterling Studios, who provided backup voices for a number.
“It gives them the opportunity to perform some modern music in a true choir style format. It’s really exciting, the kids are going to get to be part of what feels like a rock show,” Shanna-Marie Jones, founding artistic director for Sterling Studios and Productions said.
About 30 kids from Sterling Studios joined the Mini Pop Kids on stage.
“What’s really cool is that when you bring these young kids together and you create a community like this, which happens in the arts, so often they gain confidence, they gain self esteem. And of course, the skills of singing and dancing and performing. But it goes so much more than that,” Jones said.
For the Mini Pop Kids themselves, it’s a unique opportunity to connect with those who share a love of performing.
“I like that feeling like how we’re all dancing together or having a good time. We’re interacting with the audience. They’re having the best time of their lives and just being able to interact with each other just makes you feel so happy with people,” Maxton Schumacher, a member of the Mini Pop Kids, said.
The whole experience is intended to inspire young performers, regardless of what stage they perform on.
“We do a whole little chat with everybody before the show, and they kind of share that with the local dancers and singers and just say, you know, how important this opportunity is and how we get to inspire younger kids. And I think they all really respond well to that and really like it,” Feldman said
The Mini Pop Kids are made up of five young performers, so the addition of larger groups is a fun opportunity to fill the stage and make some friends.
“We’ve done some dances with them already, and they’re really nice....it feels very nice we get to interact with each other, we get to have a great time, they’re really good dancers and singers and just a good time,” Schumacher said.
Jones added that the process has been both educational and inspiring for her budding stars.
“You walk into the room and you’re just so loving and honest and excited to be here, and it is infectious. And they want to learn and they want to grow and they want all of these things, and ... each and every one of them is just such a cool person,” she said.
