Watch Stamford School pupil Evangeline Lopez sing her award-winning rendition of Where Is Love? from Oliver!
The parents of a schoolgirl were left beaming with pride after their daughter won a national award and was invited to perform in London’s West End.
Martin and Kendra Lopez watched their daughter, Evangeline, take to the stage twice at the National School Theatre Awards on Monday last week (June 23).
The 13-year-old from Stamford was crowned Best Female Musical Solo by public vote for her rendition of Where is Love? from the musical Oliver!
Evangeline – a Year 8 music and drama scholar at Stamford School – played the title role in her school’s production of Oliver! in March and submitted a video of herself singing the ballad.
After a month of voting and winning by a landslide, she was invited to perform once again – this time live at the Gillian Lynne Theatre in the West End in front of an audience of 1,200.
Evangeline’s dad, Martin, said watching his daughter sing in front of her peers and industry professionals was surreal.
He said his daughter is still on cloud nine.
“We are so proud of her,” said Martin. “We just kept telling her to put herself out there and see what happens – even if nothing came of it – and this turned out to be a very positive outcome.
“I was trying to contain myself and not bawl my eyes out because I was filming it for her, but the amount of people screaming and cheering – most of them her peers – was amazing to see.
“It was incredible. She absolutely loves drama and singing.
“She’s been playing the piano since she was four and taking vocal lessons since she was six, but she’s always been a little jukebox – singing everything she can for as long as I can remember.”
Martin said this is the first award Evangeline has won for her singing.
He said the win has helped to boost her confidence and she now plans to sign up for a local busking competition later this year.
When asked about Evangeline’s future plans, Martin said she is still exploring her options – possibly something in the legal field – though she will likely continue to pursue her passion for music.
To follow Evangeline’s musical journey, click here for her social media page.
He added: “She’s a bright kid, so she has a lot of interest.
“The ultimate goal is to go to Cambridge, but we have some years to figure out what she wants to do .”
In a social media post, Stamford School said staff were enormously proud of Evangeline.
“We know that she will fully embrace this phenomenal opportunity, following in the footsteps of young musical theatre stars like Carrie Hope Fletcher and Charlie Stemp, who have also graced the stage at the Gillian Lynne,” the post added.
