These young dancers have been selected ahead of hundreds of hopefuls across Europe to dance on stage at EuroDisney.
The students from Stars Academy, a contemporary dance school in Shiremoor, will be performing side by side with the likes of Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Anna and Elsa from Frozen when they take to the main performance stage at EuroDisney in Paris later this year.
The school, which teaches more than 110 youngsters disciplines like contemporary, street, ballet, tap and theatre craft, will send 25 of its pupils to France to appear in a Disney entertainment extravaganza over the Easter break.
The young dancers first had to submit a two-minute film for their audition.
Their video, featuring a Mary Poppins medley, was shot outside the Spanish City Dome in Whitley Bay and can be seen above.
Additional films, highlighting different dance disciplines, then had to be submitted before the children were given the thumbs up.
Victoria Thompson, dance principal at Stars Academy, said: "I was as dumbstruck and as excited as the students when we received the email to say Stars Academy was the school they wanted to see perform on stage at EuroDisney.
"Competition to dance there is so fierce and hundreds of dance schools from all over Europe try to secure this slot.
"I'm so proud of each and every one of my students. They have put so much into this, but they know the hard work starts now. They're even more determined than I am to put on a show for Disney fans to remember."
The children will dance a 20-minute slot over the peak Easter period in April. The students will also undertake a once-in-a-lifetime dance workshop with the Disney choreographers while there.
Take us 2 The Magic, a specialist organisation that works with Disney to find talented performers across Europe, has praised Stars Academy’s achievements.
In its selection letter, it said: "The energy throughout their performances was fantastic and the joy all the group has to performing is really well illustrated throughout.
"The choreography was really well presented and was really well suited to all the different age groups. Their movements were powerfully executed and their timing and spacing was so neat."
Stars Academy was launched by Victoria Thompson in 2005 and is affiliated with the International Dance Teachers’ Association (IDTA). It recently expanded into its own dedicated dance studios in Shiremoor.
The school competes regularly in a range of competitions across the UK, and recently won the Under 16s BDO British Championships.
