Pupils from Broadford Primary School, from nursery and Sgoil Àraich through to P7, took to the stage last week to perform ‘The Wizards of Ness’ – a pantomime-style adaptation of ‘The Wizard of Oz’ with a distinctive local twist.
The performances took place on Thursday 15th January at Broadford Village Hall, with both afternoon and evening shows for families and the wider community. The production had originally been planned for before Christmas but was postponed due to illness across the school.
The show blended English and Gaelic throughout, featured many local references, and was written and adapted especially for the pupils. With only four P7 pupils in the current cohort, ‘The Wizards of Ness’ allowed the four P7s to take on the four leading roles.
The script and song arrangements, written by head teacher Stephen Atkins, had pupils enthusiastically embracing musical numbers such as ‘Follow the Single-Track Road’ and ‘Super-Witchy Spella-licious Hocus Pocus Pasty.’
Parents and audience members were full of praise for the show: “It was fantastic! The script was brilliant and funny, with great local references and Gaelic in it. The songs and singing were great too, and it was lovely that the whole school were involved. The children were buzzing afterwards and thoroughly enjoyed being part of such a fun and well-organised show.”
Another parent wrote: “A heartfelt thank you to all the staff and pupils for a brilliant production and for giving the children such a great opportunity on stage. The Broadford kids looked comfortable, encouraged and happy to entertain the crowds – and they did!”
One audience member summed it up simply: “It was truly a magical performance by all. A real joy to watch.”
A former Broadford teacher, who watched the show stated: “Coming back after the Christmas holidays and putting on a show is not easy, but you truly were incredible – the singing, acting and production were at a real professional level. I have been to many school shows in many schools and that was by far the best I have seen.
“Well done to all of the pupils and staff at Broadford Primary for aiming as high as the mountains (and beyond!). Tha mi cho, cho pròseil air an sgoil gu lèir.”
Reflecting on the performances, Mr Atkins said: “We are incredibly proud of how wonderful the children were – from the nursery and Sgoil Àraich pupils buzzing around as midges, through to the P1–3 pupils singing beautifully, all the way to our incredible actors on stage, especially our four P7s for taking such leading roles.
“It is a lot of work to put on a production like ‘The Wizards of Ness’, but when staff, pupils and parents all come together, support each other and aim high, the outcome is bound to be good. As always, the Broadford pupils manage to sprinkle a bit of something extra on top to make the show really shine.”
The performances were a wonderful celebration of creativity, confidence and community spirit – and a memorable experience for everyone involved.
