Young Luton dancer celebrates her birthday at Junior Eurovision contest
A Luton youngster celebrated her 12th birthday by walking down the red carpet at the Junior Eurovision Song Contest in Yerevan, Armenia.
Chalk Hills Academy Year 7 student Sorayiah Morgan was one of four dancers backing British entry Freya Skye singing Lose my Head.
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Hide AdMum Charmaine said: “She was so excited. It was her first professional job and she was celebrating her 12th birthday at the opening ceremony.”
And the proud mother recalled the whirlwind lead-up to her daughter’s appearance at the contest – won by Lissandro from France in front of a worldwide audience of 33 million: “Sorayiah was selected from more than 1,000 applicants.
"We were informed in October, when they had their first meeting and rehearsal. The next day they had to record the video and they then appeared live on BBC Children in Need on December 4.”
Sorayiah has been dancing since she was five and is a member of the Warriorz Performing Arts Academy.
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Hide AdAfter all the recent exhilaration and elation in Armenia, Sorayiah has her sights set on becoming a professional dancer. But in the meanwhile she’ll continue with her classes.
She comes from a talented family – big sister Shaylah Johnson, 17, is the World Streetdance Champion.
In August, Shaylah took the UDO World Streetdance championships by storm. The four day event was held in Blackpool with more than 15,000 people from 34 countries taking part.
She and Sorayiah, then 11, also came fifth as a twosome in the U18 Advanced Duo while Sorayiah was placed second in the U12 Advanced Solo.