College Report by Sheffield College Students

Victoria-Jayne, aged 17, an A level student at Dronfield Henry Fanshawe School, takes her guitar and sings covers and her own music on The Moor in Sheffield most Saturdays.

And one day she hopes to swap street singing for sell-out world tours.

“I’d love to perform at the O2, because it’s huge, she said. “If you get there you know you’ve made it.”

She said she busked in Sheffield because it was the easiest platform for performing, adding: “Earning money for doing what I love is an amazing feeling.”

She intends to start using social media for her music but right now she’s concentrating on building her profile as an artist.

Victoria-Jayne started singing when she was 10, writing her own music when she was 12, but she says those songs are very different compared to what she writes now.

Her voice is soft and melodic with a hint of rasp, which adds an edgy sound and a unique style.

She said: “My music is a sort of pop-country hybrid, but it changes depending on what I’m listening to at the time.”

Victoria-Jayne has been accepted into The Institute of Contemporary Music Performance which is an independent provider of music education in London. She’s also applying for The British and Irish Modern Music Institute.

She says her music idols are Taylor Swift, Carrie Underwood and Ed Sheeran – who mix talent with a strong public image.

“You’ve got to have the image but I think it should be more about talent. Currently you need that image to get in the mainstream,” she added.

* by Paige Wykes

Transgender- how does it work?

By Jade Dunn

Throughout the last decade talk about gender has been introduced to the public more widely by the media and by the way people are living.

As a society we’ve grown to accept and encourage people to talk about their gender identity.

As part of the LGBT+ community, I wanted to ask someone who was part of the transgender community, or even just someone who identifies as LGBT+, about some of their experiences.

I spoke to one of my friends, Oliver, a trans guy aged 18, about what his experience was like coming out as transgender. He said it was “interesting” and it took him a long time to come to terms with his self identification.

He said: “I had this idea that maybe it was just a phase and that I’d get over it. But once I had come out it was amazing.

“The community and my friends accepted me, I haven’t had a negative response from anyone I’ve told to be honest.”

“Gender is just a social construct that we’re taught since birth, it’s hardwired into us and it’s hard to break”

He found out about the term transgender mainly through social media platforms.

“I had read stories about people’s different gender orientation and ended up researching into it more, there are so many gender terms that people can identify with it can get rather confusing.”

About the different gender identities, Oliver said “There are terms for people who don’t identify with either gender or both genders or no genders.”

So what would he say to someone currently questioning their gender?

“I would say the main things you need to do is research all the different gender identities, see which one you think fits you as a person.”

Dreams are important

By Liam Rogerson

Dreams are important. One thing I hate about growing up is that you’re expected to follow the norm.

From a young age you’re taught that you must follow a system of education and work. Which is fine if that’s your thing. We all needs jobs and money.

But my problem with this system is the lack of individuality.

How many people do you think there are who could have done great things had they been given the financial support and encouragement? Probably a lot more.

But that’s how life works. Some of us are just dealt a harsher hand than others. A lot of us get told our dreams are stupid. It’s kind of sad really.

Dreams are a way of escaping the norm and believing that you can do great things the way that you want to do them. What’s so stupid about that?

I’ve got a clothing brand called GoldeN Clothing. I’m trying to make my dream become a reality.

It’s the thing that makes the whole process of trying to balance a part time job, education and life worthwhile. Because I know that every day that passes I’m one day closer to achieving my dream.

What if I don’t succeed? I don’t know. I don’t really think about that… I don’t see the point.

Never let anyone tell you your dreams are stupid. Do something that makes you happy.

After all, what’s the point in riches if you don’t have happiness?

Behind the scenes at City Hall pantomime

ByAbigail Akers

What is it like to be part of one of the largest amateur theatre companies within the UK?

Bethany Jo-Cutforth has been part of the cast since she was 15 years old and is now 20.

Chosen by her dance teacher, she has performed on stage happily with the society for six years.

After all these years she still gets nervous when waiting to go on stage, but says when she hears the audience, that’s when the adrenaline really kicks in and that “it is all part of the excitement”.

Bethany said: “Backstage is so much fun but can get very stressful at times when the stage crew are having to move things and make sure everything is in the correct place.”

Although it is a Christmas production rehearsals start during summer with cast and crew ready to put on the best show possible, every single year.

Backstage is very much like what you see on stage, full of fun, but they’re not the ones who get to sit and watch.

The society itself was formed in the 1950s on Sheffield’s Manor estate and they came to perform their first pantomime at the Montgomery Theatre in 1970.

By 1986 the audience demand had got so high that the society had to move to the Sheffield City Hall in order to keep up with the amount of people wanting to see their shows.

This year’s pantomime is Jack and the Beanstalk running from December 27 to January 8.

If you are interested in seeing the show then you can book online at

http://hospitality.sheffieldcityhall.co.uk/events/Barnum or call Sheffield City Hall at 0114 278 9789. 789789