MORE than 100 children from Cockenzie Primary School staged a 30-minute opera about a Chinese Emperor alongside classically trained singers.

The pupils from P5 and P6 spent weeks practising their lines for the one-off performance in front of family and friends last week.

The school was one of three East Lothian primaries taking part in this year’s Scottish Opera tour.

Wallyford Primary School and Windygoul Primary, in Tranent, both received visits in May, and last Thursday it was the turn of 114 Cockenzie pupils to show off the songs they had learned.

Three Scottish Opera singers arrived at the school to work with the youngsters, who had been split into three groups.

And despite only learning their stage moves on the day, the show was hailed a huge success.

Teacher Mark Woods said: “The children had learnt the songs over recent weeks and impressed with their singing.

“What was more remarkable was that they did not know what would be happening on stage until the day, and they were superb.

“Scottish Opera provided beautiful costumes for them and they performed alongside their singers.” The opera, Warriors! The Emperor’s Incredible Army, told the true story of Qin Shi Huang – the first Emperor of China, who was desperate to rule forever.

Over many years, Qin Shi Huang assembled an army of 8,000 soldiers, horses and chariots to watch over him in the afterlife. All 8,000 were armoured and armed to the teeth. But they were all made entirely of clay.

As well as giving pupils experience of opera, the show provided an opportunity to learn about China, its history and languages.

Jane Davidson, Scottish Opera’s director of education and outreach, said: “Our annual primary schools tour is one of the longest-established programmes at Scottish Opera – every year abour 10,000 children see and take part in these performances.

“This year, we worked with the Scottish Confucius Institutes to bring the story of the terracotta warriors to classrooms and to introduce some basic Mandarin to the classroom, which has been identified as a priority language by the Scottish Government.

“It is a production that gives pupils not just the chance to perform, but also to learn more about the work needed to put on an opera or theatre performance.

“The aim is to get their creative juices flowing, and – of course – the added confidence and enjoyment that comes from standing up and performing in front of their peers is something that will help pupils down the line, whatever they decide to become passionate about.”