Published: 03 April 2024
Tooting Show is one of St George’s annual charity shows whereby a script is written, directed and performed by St George's students and all proceeds from ticket sales goes towards charities chosen by the committee.
This year's chosen charities
Tooting Show is run in collaboration with St George's Afro-Caribbean Society. Therefore, the chosen charities this year were two local and black-founded charities: African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust (ACLT) and Jags Connect.
About African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust (ACLT)
ACLT was founded by the parents of Daniel De-Gale, a young boy who was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia, but had to wait much longer than his white counterparts to find a donor match to save him.
At the time, his chances of finding a donor were 1 in 250,000, largely due to the colour of his skin and lack of ethnically compatible donors.
Therefore, his parents set out on a mission to increase the chances of future Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) individuals in finding a life-saving donor.
About Jags Connect
Similarly, Jags Connect was founded by the parent of a young boy who lost his life too early due to youth violence.
Jags Connect helps to intervene in youth violence through schemes that work with children in schools, and supports those affected by youth violence through community workshops, bereavement support and providing thousands of free cooked meals every month.
This year we raised over £4,000 which will be split between the two charities to help support and fund their incredible work.
"An unbelievable experience"
Natasha Wollen, a 4th year medical student at St George's and Music Director of Tooting Show 2024 (alongside Co-Director Aizenosa Imafidon) tells us of her experience of directing the show this year.
"It was an unbelievable experience being trusted to direct the music elements of Tooting Show this year.
From the start of the auditions process, I knew that Tooting Show Music would thrive this year.
- Natasha Wollen, St George's medical student and Music Director of Tooting Show 2024 -
"We were met with such diverse talent, from incredibly powerful singers, to guitarists, pianists and saxophonists. We featured a wide range of music in the show this year, from gospel to afrobeats to acoustic pop, to R&B and hip-hop, and tried to deliver our own spin on each of the songs to match the themes of the show and bring our visions to life.
We tied in our selection of music to fit the themes from the script such as religion, addiction, gang violence, the challenges of family life, the experience of moving to the UK from Africa and navigating London as an international student, and finding love.
- Natasha Wollen, St George's medical student and Music Director of Tooting Show 2024 -
"The show focussed on important experiences that linked directly to the charities we were supporting and I was very proud of the way our Presidents, Directors and Choreographers were able to collaborate together to bring this show to life in such a cohesive and thoughtful way.
"I had the pleasure of working alongside Acting Directors Vanessa Atunuvbare, and Giulia Kengne Fotso, Dance Directors Karina Trude, Iman Jalo-Waziri and Saoirse McSweeney, Presidents Joel Okolo-Hunter and Marehiko Kondo and joint Vice-President and Acting Director Torera Akinmoyede."
I feel that we created such a wholesome, supportive and successful family with the rest of the cast and crew which I will never forget.
- Natasha Wollen, St George's medical student and Music Director of Tooting Show 2024 -