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Grease is the word for one Wirral school

Sky1's all-singing, all-dancing School Musical series is back, and now a school in Wirral will be fighting it out to be famous.

Following on from the success of last year's "Hairspray: The School Musical,"  the series is set to return to Sky1 with new host Duncan James taking on the challenge of staging hit West End musical Grease. Will this year's school be able to pull off the production of their lives?

Last year's show saw ordinary secondary school pupils spend their summer holidays working with some of the best names in musical theatre to become Hairspray's Nicest Kids In Town at London's Apollo Theatre.  Now, another set of students will be given the chance to tread the boards as they perform their version of the smash hit musical Grease.

Over 500 schools applied to take part and the series opens with presenter Duncan James, choreographer Stacey Haynes and vocal coach Zoe Tyler whittling down six short-listed schools to just three. Travelling the country, the judges visit Southend-on-Sea, Worcestershire, Birmingham, The Wirral, Newport and Leeds, to discover the talents hidden in the classrooms. Some of the singers and dancers blow them away, while others leave them stunned with disbelief.

Wallasey School, situated in Moreton, Wirral, is one of the lucky schools to be featured in the series. We asked the producers of the TV programme to describe the school: "There's a lot of raw talent and the students are honest, cheeky and energetic. There is a strong Art and Drama department with a strong history of putting on musicals."

Duncan James commented: "I'm really excited to be involved in the show as I've always loved musicals. It's a fantastic opportunity for the kids, as well as a massive challenge. I'll be pulling out all the stops to make sure they succeed!"

Having seen all the short-listed schools strut their stuff, the School Musical team must choose three to perform in a sing-off for the chance to win their right to perform in London's West End. With a decision made, Duncan, Stacey and Zoe must both make and break hearts as they reveal who the chosen schools are. The three schools must then show they're hopelessly devoted to winning the opportunity of a lifetime and work as hard as they can in preparation for the sing-off.

The winning school will have their work cut out as they spend their summer holidays putting together a West End worthy show which will eventually be performed on stage at the Novello Theatre in Aldwych. Along the way they'll receive masterclass tuition from a range of famous faces including Destiny's Child member Michelle Williams, who is currently starring in Chicago in the West End; former Strictly Come Dancing judge and choreographer of Grease the musical in the UK, Arlene Phillips and the West End's current Danny Zuko, X Factor runner-up Ray Quinn.

To see how the Wallasey School team get on, watch "Grease: The School Musical" on Sky1 and Sky1 HD from August 30 at 7pm.

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