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EP9: Spotlight On The Papasavva Family | The Select Podcast

• Select School of Performing Arts

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⭐ Episode 9 of The Select Podcast is here! ⭐

This month, Lauren sits down for a truly special and heartwarming conversation with The Papasavva Family.

In this episode, we explore the beautiful reality of being a "Select Family," diving into the shared journey of parenting, performing, and the lifelong bonds created through the arts.

In this episode, Lauren chats with the Papasavvas about:

  • The Family Journey: How the Papasavva family first joined the Select community and what the performing arts journey has looked like for them from day one.
  • The Power of Shared Passion: Why engaging in the arts together strengthens family dynamics and builds a unique support system at home.
  • Balancing Act: Practical insights into managing rehearsals, performances, and everyday life while keeping the joy of creativity alive.
  • Growth Beyond the Stage: A look at the confidence, resilience, and life skills the children have gained through their time in the spotlight.
  • Memorable Milestones: The family shares their favourite "Select moments" and the impact these experiences have had on their lives.
  • Neurodiversity: Dipti discusses the benefits that the performing arts offer to neurodivergent children and kids with SEN.
  • A Brand New Segment: "The Student Becomes the Teacher" 🎤 Role reversal alert! In this episode’s game segment, Luka and Lara take the lead as they put Mum and Dad through their paces, teaching them a professional singing warm-up. It’s a fun, candid look at the skills our students bring home!

Whether you’re a parent navigating the world of performing arts or a family looking for ways to grow closer through creativity, this episode is a beautiful testament to the community we build together.

🎙️ New Episodes Every Month! — be inspired, dream big, and celebrate the power of performance!

Each episode features conversations with teachers, facilitators, and industry professionals, offering insights into the creative process, performance tips, and the journey from how they started to where they are now! Discover how you can support your child’s growth at home, build their confidence, and nurture their creativity. Whether you’re an aspiring performer, a proud parent, or simply a lover of the arts, this is your all-access pass to stories and the heart of people at the centre of the entertainment industry! 🎭

SPEAKER_03

Hello and welcome back to the Select Podcast. And this is a really, really special episode today because I am here and I'm joined with the wonderful Papasava family. Hello everyone. Hello, hello. Hello.

SPEAKER_07

Fantastic, thank you. How are you?

SPEAKER_03

Good. Are we excited? Yeah. How does it feel having the microphone there, Laura? Is it quite matching? What microphone? Vicky, what about you? Uh I enjoy it.

SPEAKER_02

You enjoy it? You're used to it from the YouTube, right? No. Your YouTube channel. I I don't use my one really because I don't really post videos with me. That's fine.

SPEAKER_03

You'll get you'll get used to it, and I'm sure by the end of it you'll be posting all over YouTube. So, how long, Lara, can you remember? How long have you been part of Select for? Or an easier question, when did you start? How old were you? Three and a half, four. And how old are you now?

SPEAKER_02

Nine. Wow. And what about you, Luca? Uh I started when I was in year one. So six? Yeah, yeah, six. No, no, no, no.

SPEAKER_03

It was about five, six when you started. Five and six. And can you remember your first class, Luca?

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, I guess. What was it? Yeah, what was it like? I was quite cheeky. Really? I don't think so. Does that look as a surprise?

SPEAKER_07

A different child.

SPEAKER_02

Uh can you remember? Was it a drama class? Dance class? No, it was in Witch Hurt, so I think it was the dance class.

SPEAKER_03

And what about you, Lara?

SPEAKER_04

Um I think my first one was probably Dance at Witch Hurt. Yeah?

SPEAKER_03

And was that a ballet class? A Mills Dance. A dance class. Oh, amazing. So, Chris, I'm gonna come to you.

SPEAKER_07

You're gonna pick on me.

SPEAKER_03

I'm gonna pick on you. So before you started obviously coming to Select, both of you were looking for performing arts classes. And what was the reason, not necessarily for Select, but what was the reason you looked for performing arts classes for Lara and Luca?

SPEAKER_07

It's basically living out my dreams on behalf of our kids.

SPEAKER_03

Really? We've got a question here that comes to hidden talent. So just just wait.

SPEAKER_07

I think obviously you've got education, which is really good, really important school. Sport is very important to the kids as well. Physical activity, but also it's something a way for them to express themselves. They're always very expressive at home, they're quite dramatic of theatrical, Lara. Um we love that. So it's a really it's a really good way for them to kind of express themselves and be creative. And um, what better way to do it than through select?

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, amazing. And did you do that as a child? Did you have that outlet as for performing arts?

SPEAKER_07

Oh, I wish I did. I I did drama up until GCC and I stopped, but I was kind of harbour dreams of yeah, maybe continuing it at some stage.

SPEAKER_03

And did you have a favourite part that you played? Can you remember that?

SPEAKER_07

The the Joker, the comedian.

SPEAKER_03

Maybe no one know where my jeans are from.

SPEAKER_05

That's right.

SPEAKER_03

Oh, amazing. And for you, Dipty, you said that Lara started with us when she was three and a half. And was it ballet that you necessarily wanted her to start with, or it was just that was the class that was available for her and her age?

SPEAKER_01

I wanted her to start with ballet, so I'd always heard heard that uh ballet was the foundation of all dance, and um I loved dancing as a child, and I wanted her to love it too. So um we started her with ballet, that was her first class. It was actually the one in Avanti, and she was only three and a half, she was tiny, she cried through her first class. I should remember this. I guess I was teaching. You were teaching, and you'd allowed me, you'd allowed me to come in with her because it was her first class, and uh I was I was at the back with her, and she was just in tears throughout the whole thing, and I thought, oh my god, this is gonna be so hard. But uh, I mean, look at her now, performing on stage and everything. So it's been a it's been an amazing journey for her, I think. But yeah, I mean we we started with ballet, then we did obviously dance uh when you moved to Whitchurch, street dance, yeah, yeah, yeah, more modern dance, yeah. Yeah, and then uh luckily dance moved to Saturday as well, which meant that we could just get everything done on Saturday, which was great, and then she's joined a bunch of other classes, so uh yeah.

SPEAKER_03

Oh, that's so good to hear. And I think that's really important because I'm sure there's lots of parents that might be bringing their child for the first time to a class, and their child, just like Lara, is there crying. How did that make you feel in that moment?

SPEAKER_01

To be honest, I'm quite thick skinned. So when she was crying, I was just like, this will pass and she'll love it. And I think it's just believing that that when a child starts something new, it's it's always a possibility that they're going to be scared, they're not gonna love it, they're not going to know what to do. And so, how do they express themselves? They cry, right? And I think for me, I just knew that she would get through that barrier with the right support, which I think she has had all throughout. And you know, I I knew she'd love it once she'd get into it, and it didn't take long. I think by the second class I was sitting outside, not inside the class, and by the third class, I was I wasn't there anymore, so it didn't take long at all.

SPEAKER_03

And I think that's exactly it. It's sometimes they just need that time to get used to it, and they are so little, three and a half. Only been on this planet three and a half years to suddenly go into a brand new environment and be able to jump jump straight in. Some some kids can do that, but I think it's just having that that patience with them that they will be ready when when they're ready, and I think that's that's exactly what happened with Lara. And Lara, so what classes do you do now?

SPEAKER_04

I do singing, lambda, ballet, um, jazz, and another ballet and ballet technique. Do you have a favourite?

SPEAKER_03

Um don't worry, all the teach all the teachers won't mind. Singing and dance. Singing and dance. Yeah. And is there have you got a favourite memory? Favourite from from a performance or a favourite song that you have? I like all my songs and dances. Amazing. So, Luca, over to you, Mr. YouTube. Do you want do you want to say it now? Yes. The plug!

SPEAKER_02

Go on. Please subscribe to my YouTube channel, Luca Pafasava. Don't you have to do like this or something?

SPEAKER_03

Like, doesn't it come up on the screen? Well, yeah, but I don't know. Oh, okay. Well, don't write it. Mr. David can add that in. So you started with us with drama with drama and lambda and street dance. So you started with dance actually.

SPEAKER_07

It was only two years ago.

SPEAKER_02

Six years ago. No, you didn't. Not now with seven years ago because I'll I'm new, I'm turning 12 in.

SPEAKER_07

He did street dance.

SPEAKER_01

He started street dance at Whitchurch.

SPEAKER_07

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01

And then he moved into doing Lambda and he stopped street dance. So he did Lambda the longest. And then a couple of years ago, he had uh a refound passion for dancing and he started the Saturday dancing classes again. Yes. So he did the Saturday dancing classes for about a term or two terms, and then he stopped again, and then he just stuck to lambda.

SPEAKER_02

I I also thought it was partly getting out and not doing my homework.

SPEAKER_00

Oh yeah, there we go.

SPEAKER_03

So do you still have that now? Can you still get out of doing your homework? No? I was going to. Unfortunately. Unfortunately not. I was gonna ask you the same as Lara. I know you've performed in quite a few of our different shows, but it could be one of our shows, or it could be at school. Have you got a favourite performance or a favourite character that you played?

SPEAKER_02

Uh it wasn't it with Select. Um when I did my year six production, I was had quite a big role and it was like a partnership where I was like quite clumsy and the guy was just like and my best friend was just like dragging me along. And it was called Pirates of the Curry Bean, and I had something like 82 lines. 82? Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

And how long did it take you to learn all of those? A week or two. Wow, that's really impressive. And did you have a a special technique or a way that you learnt those lines?

SPEAKER_02

I just remember. I don't know how I do. I just I I I I I read to remember and just just just say. Read, remember, say.

SPEAKER_01

I remember that from his Lambda c exams when he sits for his exams. He never knows his piece up until about two weeks before the exam. And I'm I'm always drumming in, going, come on, we need to learn this piece, we need to learn this piece. And then he'll disappear for a couple of days and come back. And he knows it. And no idea how he does it.

SPEAKER_03

But again, everyone's different. I mean, I would have to have spent time highlighting, underlining, annotating. But I think however you however you learn and you absorb information, so that's great. So year seven production, you might have 102 lines. Don't mind. Great. So we're gonna move on to the grown-ups a little bit now. We'll come back we'll come back to you, Lara and Luca. So I guess it's about confidence, that's what we all want. I I don't have children yet, but potentially in the future. But it was just to hear from your perspective as parents, what do you want them to gain, not only from say performing arts classes, but what skills do you want them to have as they grow up, as they're going through their teenage years, as they're becoming adults? Is there anything that you think, for example, I want them to be confident, I want them to be secure in themselves, they want them to be able to express themselves. Is there anything that you feel is most important?

SPEAKER_07

I think the story that Dip T told about Lara going into ballet in her first ballet class and like kind of crying and being stuck to Diptee and looking at the difference from then and the timeline to where she is now and what she's been through is testament because it gives her the confidence to stand up in class and talk, to to call you know, to all the skills that you need when you're when you're in school, but also school assemblies, all the other extracurricular things that you do, the confidence to speak your mind, and that's only going to stand her in good stead when it comes to job job opportunities, university or college, or whatever she decides to do. There's so many different strings to her bone out, both of them. Um and and select has played a massive part in that.

SPEAKER_03

Thank you. And that that that wasn't there to plug select. Honestly, it was just it's such a big part of our lives, true. No, that's no, that that's great. That's obviously that's that's really touching to me. But it's more I I can see how important children being able to express themselves and the performing arts gives them that platform to be able to do that, that they might not realize that when they're becoming a character, then when they go home or out of school or in school, they have that confidence because they've been used to having to stand up and sing or play someone that they wouldn't be used to playing.

SPEAKER_01

Would you would you agree with that? Absolutely. I think uh, like you were saying, you know, what skills do you want your children to have, performing arts or not? I think, you know, I'd want them to be kind, I'd want them to be resilient, yeah, and I would want them to be empathetic to the situations and people around them. And um, even if we're not saying, you know, um, how are they linked to performing arts, I think they actually are. I think performing arts in every way uh equips a child or or an adult with skills that help you throughout your lives. You know, they they learn teamwork, they learn being kind to each other, but at the same time, they learn how to stand up on stage by themselves. They learn the confidence. They they learn that actually if a performance doesn't go well or if they fail an exam or don't get such a great grade, you know, they learn resilience from it, they grow. So actually, all the skills that you would want your children to have in life can all be tied back to performing arts. And I think that's for us so important.

SPEAKER_03

Absolutely. And talking about confidence within school and obviously outside of school, I know the Papa Sava family. You have, I can't even imagine your timetable. Is is is it crazy? Do you have a crazy timetable on the wall and it's highlighted with everyone's roles?

SPEAKER_07

I'm practically an Uber driver. We do have a free Uber driver. I'll get my payback later on in life. Um we do have a whiteboard, we have a whiteboard with a lot going on to give an example with Luca. He plays football three times a week. He's a taekwondo black belt. In addition to that, he has um He does swimming. Chess Chess Table tennis.

SPEAKER_02

Table tennis. Um it's a it's at least one club a day.

SPEAKER_07

And at the weekend.

SPEAKER_01

Tuition. Yep. So it's uh one club a day apart from Thursdays, where he has two clubs. And actually this I thought you wanted to break, but no, it's two. So Thursdays. Thursdays, so I only have one club. Thursdays you have table tennis in the morning, and then you have swimming in the afternoon. So he does a number of clubs at school, which are actually quite easy because they get incorporated into the timetable and you don't have to worry about them. But then outside of school, he does a club Monday to Saturday, and then during football season he has a game on Sunday. So literally every day we are somewhere. Wow. And then you compound that with Lara's. Luckily, Lara's three of her c four of her classes are on a Saturday, so that's quite nice. Um, but again, every weekday apart from Tuesday, she's at a class.

SPEAKER_04

So how Sunday I'm not?

SPEAKER_01

And Sunday, yes.

SPEAKER_04

Yeah, because you're Sunday's homework day.

SPEAKER_03

Sunday might be your podcast day. Who knows? Maybe yeah, so how how do you manage that, mum and dad, with with the these crazy schedules? They don't, they just do.

SPEAKER_07

But you get told to go somewhere and do it.

SPEAKER_01

I mean, we both work full-time, yeah. So that makes it harder. We try and obviously get as many classes as we can outside of those hours. So, you know, where possible, classes, we do classes that start after 5:30, 5:45, uh, and try and cram as much as we can in the weekends. But you know, we have conversations with the kids every term in terms of okay, these are all the classes you're doing, which ones shall we cut? You know, because we need to focus on homework as you get older, and there's never any they want to cut. And if anything, they just want to do more, and it's like can't fit anymore, so let's not have that conversation.

SPEAKER_07

I think that's an important point because we're trying to give them as much as exposure as possible to as much as possible. Um, and they can figure out what they like and what they don't like. And at the moment they kind of pretty much like everything, so yeah, we we are there to to to help them find what they like.

SPEAKER_03

And I think that's really important to if you're able to, which you two are, and you're amazing parents, that you're able to give them exactly that a range of different activities, different ideas that exactly that they can then form their own ideas of what they want to do. So, does any Luca, Lara, do you have any aspirations, any dream, jobs, anything in the future you want to do? Oh, Lara's lodging, tell us, will you tell us?

SPEAKER_04

Um, I want to be a therapist in school.

SPEAKER_03

Really? Wow, that's amazing. Earlier, um, on a previous episode, shall I say, not earlier today, because we didn't batch record, um, there was um a therapist on there who works within schools. So that'll be really interesting for you to listen to. Um, can you tell me why? Why would you want to do that?

SPEAKER_04

Um, because one of my favourite teachers at school is a therapist, and she's really kind and I like to help people.

SPEAKER_03

That's amazing. And do you know when you say help people, how do you how would you want to help people with that? If they're sad, I like to talk to people about it. That's amazing. That's so nice. And do you I feel like you do that with your I I've known you for a long time and you're such such a kind girl. Do you do that already for your friends? Outside of her outside of the house. Luca, we're coming to you in a minute. Let Lara have her smile. Are you are you kind of like the friend therapist with your group of friends? And from your the select classes, have you made any new friends? Yeah. Isabel, Sophie, Laura.

SPEAKER_07

I think most most classes she has friends in, and particularly that ballet street ballet technique run that she has. Yes, she's they've got this little group.

SPEAKER_03

Do you do anything outside of classes with those friends or I suppose you're so busy? Maybe birthday parties, I think. Wow, well, a therapist, that's gonna be amazing. Well, thank you for sharing that. That's real I'm really excited for you. And Luca, what about you? Any ideas?

SPEAKER_02

Uh I want to be a Formula One driver, of course. Uh basically travel the world and you get to race cars.

SPEAKER_03

So I guess you you've got a countdown until you can take your um first your your driving test. Pretty much. Yeah? Yeah. Wow. And you've got a particular car that you want. I mean, I'm looking.

SPEAKER_07

You keep sending me links from AutoTrono.

SPEAKER_02

Which kind of um For for my first car, I would probably just want like a small like like car and then tune it so it's like loud and noisy.

SPEAKER_03

Oh, so you put the you put the extra, I don't know what it is, in there. The is it tub? That's it. Okay. Well, that's exciting as well. Do you have anyone that you really like? One of the any of the Formula One drivers? Is that right?

SPEAKER_02

I like Lando Norris. Yeah. Mm-hmm. You don't know who he is. No, I don't know. I don't know anything about Formula One. I'm just I'm just nodding. Oh, he he drives for McLaren. Yeah, well, they won the Constructors' Championship in 2024 and 2025, and they also won the drivers in 2025, Lando Norris. I don't know about that, but that does sound very exciting and very cool.

SPEAKER_01

He was saying earlier in the car that his Lambda uh classes will help him with his marketing campaigns when he wins the races.

SPEAKER_02

Yes, and how how will that help? You know, uh when you win races, you have to go to interviews, and then when you do the interviews, you you have to show lots of confidence because there's hundreds of thousands of fans watching.

SPEAKER_03

Absolutely. So you can transfer everything you've learned in your drama for when you're winning that. Did you win a trophy? I think you do, don't you?

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, you do.

SPEAKER_03

But we'll be we'll be cheering you on when when you win that. So another one back to the grown-ups. So we were talking about confidence, and I think sometimes we want our children, and with the same for us with our students, we want them to be confident, we want them to achieve, we want them to do the best they can. But there can sometimes be elements of pressure with that. So I guess my question to both of you is how do you support your children to do as well as they possibly can without putting too much pressure on them?

SPEAKER_01

I think it's such a balance, isn't it? A difficult balance to strike. Um I think children are are all individuals, and so I think as a parent, you need to gauge what they're good at, what they're not so great at, what do they get joy out of, and what they don't uh don't like. And um I think you need to support them in those right paths for them. Um I mean Chris will tell you as well, we're not uh we're not one of those competitive parents where you know my child has to be the best at everything. For us, it's really important that it's things that they enjoy doing, it's things that they are naturally into. Um once once they know that, once we know that, then it's important to to to help them in that path. So for example, with uh Luca, he he openly says he doesn't like school, he doesn't like academics, and we didn't want to pressurize him into sitting the 11th plus and having to study the whole time. His passion is sports, and um you know that's that's where he wants to spend his time, and we've allowed him to to do that. With Lara, it's it's slightly different. She loves dancing, she loves singing. Uh, and initially they b both of those classes started off as something she did for fun. But as soon as we realized that actually she was pretty good, she won't, she liked it, she wanted, she enjoyed it, we took her down the grading path, obviously, with with Select. And when she does her grading, she does get nervous, she does worry about it, and and we support her the best we can with practices, with you know, watching her do it, recording it, playing it back, and you know, touch wood. She's done, she's done really well. So I think once they know which way they want to go, I think it's then important to help them go through the grading or or the structure of moving ahead. But if it's not something that they're not into, there's no point in pushing them to do it.

SPEAKER_03

So it's letting them lead and then kind of embracing what their likes are and supporting them through that.

SPEAKER_00

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_03

So nerves, I think you've just mentioned that, and I think that is something that we all get. I'm I was nervous. I'm okay now, but I was nervous to sit here and and host this podcast, and I think even as a child, as you grow up as an adult, we still get nervous as well. So I think that's important that children realise that nerves are not always a bad thing. Lara, do you get nervous about anything?

SPEAKER_04

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

Anything in particular? Exams. Exams? Yeah. And is that something that you is just before you say go into the exam or or before? Like earlier before before?

SPEAKER_04

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03

And how d how do you make yourself feel better about that?

SPEAKER_04

Um I practice a lot. Mm-hmm. And at home the days before the exam, we pretend that I'm in the exam and I do all of like the dances and the warm ups. No, that's that's really, really good.

SPEAKER_03

That's something that we would say. What about you, Luca? Do you get nervous?

SPEAKER_06

If you were doing a select performance on stage, do you feel nervous before that? How do you feel?

SPEAKER_02

I just feel normal. Yeah.

SPEAKER_06

And then when you're on stage, how do you feel?

SPEAKER_02

Normal.

SPEAKER_03

He's so in the character. He's in his own. He's in his own. Yeah. Yeah. Exactly. But Laura, that's really good to hear because there's going to be lots of people listening that feel nervous as well. And remember, for an exam, say a performer, a dance exam or a singing exam or a drama exam, or any exam you go into, the person that's watching and marking you, they just want you to do the best that you can do. And that's what you need to remember to be yourself. Go in there and just show them what you can do. If that's in a maths exam, it's slightly different, or a singing exam. That's all you need to remember because everyone gets it. And even that examiner is probably sitting there, and they might have to do an exam for an examiner or something, and they'll be feeling nervous. So it's just remembering that you can use that to drive your performance or drive your your maths or English exam. I won't pretend to know about that because that was that was a long time ago. And grown-ups, is there a particular time, again, it doesn't have to be to do with select where you have felt extremely proud of Lara and Luca? I'm sure you have thousands, millions, but is there one standout moment?

SPEAKER_01

There is for me. For Lara with Lara. So I'm not a crier, like I don't cry. And um when Lara performed Birds and Feather on stage, oh my god, that there was this bit where she did the solo, and that almost brought a tear to my eye. That was incredible. Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. Yeah. So for Lara, I think that was definitely my favorite. But I mean, it's always so nice to see her on stage. Um, and actually, even her ballet, like she's just so graceful, and you know, at home she can be really energetic and uh she's basically the opposite.

SPEAKER_02

So but uh so at home she's a devil at uh Luca. Luca. And then when she as soon as she steps foot outside that house, she's she's just maybe we should just change the.

SPEAKER_03

Are you the other way round then? Are you the angel at home and then you step out joking? No, no, no, no, it's true. Oh, that's lovely.

SPEAKER_07

I agree. I I I feel the same. I feel that that performance for me stood out because it was it was beautiful. But I think when these two have been on stage together is a really special moment. So Luca played Mr. Stink, and Lara was uh I can't remember who you were.

SPEAKER_04

Someone there's a great picture, and Lara's like pairs stripey dressed, and also that was really good as well.

SPEAKER_07

Oh, for me, another really proud moment was when Luca got his black belt. Wow because that was a really you know, to to do it at the age of 10, I think it was or 11, I think it was still 10.

SPEAKER_03

How many people do it? That's really young, isn't it?

SPEAKER_07

For that, it is young, yeah. So that was really that was a real stand-up moment for me as well.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, just so you know, Dipty. So Miss Joanna was at the side of the stage for that song, and she was me and her were crying as well. We were I think it's such an emotional song, and I think as well, it was the girls that we especially that have you been with us since three and a half, and then it was suddenly like a really grown-up piece. Yeah, like I just the weather dress, the weather yeah, no, yeah, it was just they were seemed really grown up, really together, and just on there and just performing. And and I think that was for me as well. I was looking, thinking, wow, how far they've come and to be able to it's a really hard song. You had different harmonies, didn't you? All different things that Miss Joanna is amazing to do. So no, that's that was that was a lovely, a lovely moment for me to see as well. When you said that you did a bit of acting when you were younger.

SPEAKER_07

Only at school, only kind of it w wasn't anywhere near as kind of No, don't don't put no No no, I'm not putting it down. Just stuff in drama and that kind of thing. But I was I was kind of like harbour, you know, what what I I wish I continue doing it because I I I do I think I'm quite dramatic at home. I really enjoy kind of we have a little banter with the kids and stuff like that, and we kind of I know we m maybe do stuff in a theatrical way at home.

SPEAKER_02

That's great. You choose her around the house, and she's and then dad's like so.

SPEAKER_03

Do you think then that you stopped it because you felt like you had to?

SPEAKER_07

Yeah, it was different when I was at school, which is quite a while ago. Um I think if I had an avenue like the kids do, I think it may have been slightly different. But we're talking about confidence and that kind of thing, and I I feel like I'm quite a confident person, but I do feel anxious at times when I'm doing kind of presentations at work and that kind of thing. And I don't think Luca and Laura would have the same issues because they also it's almost ingrained into them now where they feel that level of confidence and how to how to automatically click into almost autopilot and and and and kind of do something on on stage or or in public. Um so I think that would have benefited maybe as I was growing up. How about you, Dip T?

SPEAKER_03

No, I was just going before before you. I was just going to say that it's I think that's what's really great, the world that we live in now, that performing arts in the school day, even in parts of English, they have to be able to do acting and they they have that that chance to even if they're not coming to performing arts class, it's much more accessible. And therefore, regardless if you want to be a performer or not, those skills, like you said, for a presentation for a job interview, are being ingrained, like you said, from when they start school all the way up. So, um, well, maybe you could start an adult, you know, you could go to an adult drama class. You could you could try the I'm not promising anybody.

SPEAKER_07

Your name is Dad.

SPEAKER_02

Your name is Dow. It'll be good to get him out of the house for a couple for a little while. Lovely things. He might have to be walk.

SPEAKER_07

I'm under Lucas P all the time, apparently.

SPEAKER_03

Don't think it's the other way around. No, no, no, not at all. So, yeah, so Dipty, did you I I I heard you say that you loved dance when you were younger, and did you have did you carry on or did you have to stop that?

SPEAKER_01

So um I didn't do any actual classes in in dance, uh, but um I I'm Hindu and uh I was part of the Hindu community back in Portugal where I grew up, and uh they'd do a Duali show once a year, every year, and so um I'd participate in that. So I'd I'd get kind of my dance outlet once a year, and we'd practice for like 12 weeks or so and then perform, and I used to love it. Um and I did that for years, and then when I came here for uni, um I I didn't really find a community to join or an Indian to be honest, an Indian dance class, even like there wasn't really much around when when or maybe I just didn't know where to look. Um but I did the the university did a couple of fashion shows and things which are like Indian Bollywood style fashion shows, which I participated in. Um and then it just kind of fizzled out, I think. I stopped uni, went to work full-time, and kind of lost touch with with the dancing and a lot of things.

SPEAKER_07

Dance at weddings.

SPEAKER_02

Yeah, yeah, I do. Oh yeah, maybe, maybe so so uh you need uh adult drama and adult dance. Yes, okay, look it can be my can do the promotion.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, I can do the pressure. And would you say the skills that you obviously from performing, from dancing, that you feel more confident in say more life situations because you have done that? Yeah, I think definitely.

SPEAKER_01

I think um once you go through that process of okay, uh I'm going to go on stage, which means I need to learn a choreography, and then you put time into learning that choreography, and I guess the mindset that you need for, you know, I need to do this in order to do a good job on stage, and then like you say, that those nerves and the butterflies in your tummy and how you get over that, and you know, and like you were saying, nerves are are actually a good thing because I think also it means it shows that you care. Um, and you know, to be able to go past that and you know, actually get on stage and then perform. I think all of those skills, for example, that I've just described in getting ready for a performance are so similar to getting up uh, you know, in front of um a C-suite to do a presentation. You know, I still have the same method, I will prepare for a presentation, I will have butterflies in my tummy before I present, and I still need to get up there and and project my voice and present. So I think you know, that skill set that you learn as a part of performing arts, you could pretty much apply to any situation in life. Yeah. Um, so yeah, I I I love dancing and um I miss it, and uh I like it that the kids are.

SPEAKER_03

Yeah, you can see them doing that. Absolutely. So we're coming nearly coming to the end. I'm going through my notes. So shall we do, did we want to do a bit of a fun segment? Yes. Okay, so Luca, did you want to try and teach the grown-ups? I say try and teach, teach the grown-ups one of your tricky tongue twisters that you have to do for a warm-up in your drama class. Daddy's got a head like a ping pong. Okay, should we go with that one then? Lara, do you want to start? Or should we do the if we all know the chicken teaker one, we could do that one. Or Lara, would you like to do the um ping pong go, come on. Okay. Yes. Can I start up? On me? Okay, you're gonna be you could be your best teacher now.

SPEAKER_04

I can't remember, is it daddy or is it papa? Mummy. Oh, you could do either.

SPEAKER_05

Mummy's got a head.

SPEAKER_07

A ping on me.

SPEAKER_04

Okay.

SPEAKER_03

Um we'll see, we'll see. We'll have a practice all together first.

SPEAKER_04

So, Lara, off you go. Papa's got a head like a ping pong pull, Papa's got a head like a ping pong ball, Papa's got a head like a ping pong ball, like a ping. Like a ping pong, like a ping pong ping pong.

SPEAKER_02

Papa's got a phone.

SPEAKER_04

Daddy's got a head like a ping pong bull. Mummy's got a head like a ping pong bull. Like a ping. Like a ping. Like a ping-pong-bull. Like a ping-pong-ball. Like a ping-pong ping-pong ping-pong ping-pong ping-pong. Like a ping.

SPEAKER_02

Like a ping pong. Daddy's got a head like a ping-pong boo. Mummy's got a head like a ping-pong boo. Ping pong ping pong ping pong ping pong ping pong. Quite right. Well done, Luca. Well done, Lara.

SPEAKER_03

Um, so yeah, thank you so much for coming on. Thank you for coming back. Is there anything else that you that I didn't ask that maybe I sent you before and you haven't said? Want to give you the platform to to say anything?

SPEAKER_01

Um, I think um obviously parents are going to be listening to this podcast. And um, we we had talked about it earlier. Uh, that um so Luca has ADHD. He's been diagnosed with impulsivity and um compulsivity and um hyperactivity, sorry, hyperactivity and impulsivity. So he has a lot of energy, and obviously when he started Lambda with Select, we we didn't know that that was the case. And um we noticed that he used to love his Lambda classes, um, and um that was great, you know, fine. And I think over the years we've learned obviously that he's got all this pent-up energy that isn't just about it, you know, it's not just about him being a boy with lots of energy, there's obviously a lot behind it as well. And um, we were just saying how we think that something like Lambda has really helped him with two things um focusing his energy when when he's in an environment where he needs to achieve something, but also um letting out that pent of demand. And I think the teachers, this was the other thing we were saying that I don't think we quite got to say in the podcast earlier, but the teachers are so great because um in in Lucas specific um example, I think the teachers really allowed him to um express himself and be energetic both physically and vocally in his classes. And then once that was kind of out of the way, it focused his energy on on the learning, which which is incredible, but then that's got us kind of talking about the teachers and how like every single teacher, Lauren, I think every single teacher, and and I think it all I think I've said this to you before, but I think it all just ties back to you. I think it's obviously you were the first teacher at Select, and that's what we knew. We knew you as the ballet teacher, and I think you've gone to to grow this business, and every teacher you've recruited has you in them, like your skills, your nurturing, the way you are with the kids. I mean, they are all exactly the same, and they're so amazing. Like every single teacher, it's the consistency is just incredible. I mean, they're they're so great with the children, they really help them grow, they let them have a good time, but they teach them. I mean, yeah, and I think that's yeah, 100% agree. Yes, and so I think it's it's a I think two things that I think we just wanted to get across is that you know, where if your child is neurodivergent, I think performing arts is such a great way to help them um help help them steady, help them be themselves yet, you know, help them focus. Um and the second thing was just you've got amazing teachers.

SPEAKER_03

Thank you so much. That's not a binder. No, that's really, really obviously that's uh the best thing I could possibly hear. But I think going back to Luca and other parents and children that might be in the same place or or dealing with the same things, is that with performing arts and with these classes, it's not a set way, it's not a set way of being or way of doing, even if they are learning a particular acting script or monologue or a particular dance or a song. It's all done, it can all be done in different ways, and I think that's exactly what we want to do at Select and is make sure that every single child is able to do it in their own way. Yes, with the structure and with the help of how we know we can do things and teach, but but give them that space to to be themselves. And yes, I I adore all my teachers as well, they are amazing, so that means that means a lot. So thank you, and thank you for being on here today. And yeah, maybe we can bring you back for another one at at some another time. Would you like that, Lara? Yeah, got more got more comfortable with the mic, yeah. Anything you want to say to the audience?

SPEAKER_02

Uh no, you're not shy. No, I'm not shy. No, I'm not shy. Uh uh, yeah, just subscribe to my YouTube channel, please. And the select podcast.

SPEAKER_03

Chris, anything you want to say to the listeners at the time?

SPEAKER_07

Thank you very much everyone for watching and listening to just having an insight into the PapSabba family.

SPEAKER_03

And maybe Rom Mesh is listening. Imagine if Romesh.

SPEAKER_07

Maybe, yeah.

SPEAKER_03

That would be great. I'm a big fan as well. Maybe we can we can get on his podcast. Yeah, or free tickets to his shows or yeah, either either all, either all. Gifty, anything you want to say to the listeners to the parents?

SPEAKER_01

Um, thank you for listening. And uh, if you are considering um performing arts for your child, seriously go ahead. It's it's the best thing we've done for ours.

SPEAKER_04

Laura, you can look straight. Select is amazing.

SPEAKER_01

Thank you, Katie.