{"alias":"blogEntry","byline":"Alanah Reid, Creative Content Producer","standfirst":"Maxwell went from teaching his fellow Cubs dance moves on a Zoom call, to performing in a West End musical in London.","content":{"layouts":[{"type":"singleColumn","areas":[{"items":[{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Cp\u003EAs well as starting \u003Ca href=\u0022/beavers/\u0022 title=\u0022Beavers\u0022\u003EBeavers\u003C/a\u003E at the age of 5 and a half, Maxwell joined his local dance and drama school. He\u2019s eagerly taken part local hikes, camps, and other Scouts events, while winning \u2018Popping\u2019 dance competitions.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ENow, aged 11, Maxwell has spent the last year performing as \u2018Young Bob\u2019 in the new musical, \u003Ca rel=\u0022noopener\u0022 href=\u0022https://getupstandupthemusical.com/\u0022 target=\u0022_blank\u0022\u003E\u2018Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical\u2019\u003C/a\u003E at the Lyric Theatre on Shaftsbury Avenue in London.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EWe met up with Maxwell, his mum, and his Cub leader, Pete, to find out about Maxwell\u2019s exciting experience on stage.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"gtmId","gtmClass":"gtmClass","image":"/media/19279/_dsc2727.jpg","width":1280,"height":960,"altText":"A Cub wearing uniform and a red necker is sat on a brown sofa smiling at the camera","caption":"Maxwell spent a year performing as \u2018Young Bob\u2019 in \u2018Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical\u2019 in London\u2019s West End","link":null},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch4\u003ETeaching Cubs his dance moves\u003C/h4\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EUnfortunately, during the COVID-19 restrictions, Maxwell\u2019s usual dance and drama lessons and Cub meetings had come to a halt. Maxwell wondered how he could keep doing the two things he loved most.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EWhen his \u003Ca href=\u0022/cubs/\u0022 title=\u0022Cubs\u0022\u003ECub Pack\u003C/a\u003E announced the beginning of weekly Zoom meetings, Maxwell decided to combine his love of Scouts and dance by leading an online dance session for his fellow Cubs. Maxwell confidently shared his talents when teaching them the routines he learned at his dance and drama school in Hatfield.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EMaxwell\u2019s Zoom dance sessions went brilliantly. The Cubs were desperate to keep the classes going once restrictions were lifted and they came back to their meeting place. They loved following along with Maxwell and tried their best to learn the routines perfectly.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EAfter working towards his \u003Ca href=\u0022/cubs/activity-badges/entertainer/\u0022 title=\u0022Entertainer\u0022\u003ECubs Entertainer badge\u003C/a\u003E, leading a Cub session was a great warm-up for Maxwell\u2019s next adventure.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"quoteText":"Scouts has really helped Maxwell with his confidence, especially when he taught his routines. His Cub leader, Pete, has always put 110% into every Cub session and Maxwell has enjoyed everything he\u0027s done in Cubs and that\u2019s thanks to Pete.","attribution":"Maxwell\u0027s mum","gridType":"quote","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch4\u003EGetting the part\u003C/h4\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EMaxwell auditioned for the part of Young Bob, but he knew competition would be high. He put it to the back of his mind and continued with school, Scouts, and his dance and drama lessons.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EA few days after his audition, it was just an ordinary afternoon when Maxwell\u2019s agent (who\u2019s also his singing teacher) text his mum to arrange a singing lesson for that evening.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u2018We both thought that\u2019s just what it was,\u2019 said his mum. \u2018We had no idea what was about to happen.\u2019\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EHis agent asked Maxwell how he thought his audition went. He replied, \u2018I think it went very well, I think they liked me.\u2019 Then, his agent announced that Maxwell got the part!\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u2018It was SO exciting,\u2019 said Maxwell. \u2018My mum and I were jumping up and down and I was so excited. I was ready to start a new chapter in my life by acting, too. It was really fun.\u2019\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EEven though Maxwell was already a dancer, he\u2019d never acted before. The audition (and the show) gave him the chance to try something new.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"gtmId","gtmClass":"gtmClass","image":"/media/19278/_dsc2658.jpg","width":1300,"height":975,"altText":"A Cub leader wearing uniform and a red necker is holding a poster of the musical \u0027Get Up, Stand Up\u0027 in a black frame. To the right of the poster is Cub, Maxwell, in uniform and a red necker. They\u0027re both smiling at the camera.","caption":"Maxwell (right) with his Cub leader, Pete (left)","link":null},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch4\u003ETaking the stage\u003C/h4\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EIn the Olivier award-winning musical, Maxwell was over the moon to play \u2018Young Bob\u2019 (Bob Marley as a child) to sell-out audiences. The musical tells the story of Bob Marley\u2019s extraordinary life, beginning with his early life in Jamaica and featuring Bob Marley\u2019s most-loved songs.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EFor the 12 months Maxwell was part of the musical, he\u2019d travel to London to perform three to four times a week with his mum. Sometimes they\u2019d get home at 11pm, but Maxwell would still be up bright and early for school. The only downside for Maxwell was missing some of his Cub sessions when they clashed with his shows.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EMaxwell\u2019s mum said \u2018It was tiring, but Maxwell loved it and always gave his best performance.\u2019\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EThere were four boys playing Young Bob and they took it in turns. Gradually, the other boys left the show, and Maxwell became the actor who played Young Bob the longest.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EFrom beginning to end, Maxwell loved every single show he performed. \u2018Hearing the audience erupt when I came on at the end for my bow was amazing,\u2019 he said.\u003C/p\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003EMaxwell also loved working with Clint Dyer (the musical\u2019s director), as well as Arinz\u00E9 Kene and Michael Duke (who both played \u2018Big Bob\u2019) and Julene Robinson (who played \u2018Mama\u2019).\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"quoteText":"I enjoyed every single part of the show. My favourite part was doing Jamming and most of the dancing. I loved dancing with the cast.","attribution":"Maxwell","gridType":"quote","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"gridImageBlock","gtmId":"gtmId","gtmClass":"gtmClass","image":"/media/19305/maxwell-and-leader-pete.jpg","width":1000,"height":686,"altText":"Maxwell and Cub leader Pete stand outside at night while smiling for the camera.","caption":"Maxwell was over the moon to see his Cub leader, Pete, surprise him at the stage door one evening","link":null},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch4\u003ESupport from his leader\u003C/h4\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003E\u2018When I told Pete why Maxwell couldn\u2019t go to the Cub camp, he was speechless and SO proud,\u2019 said his mum. \u2018He asked me if it would be OK to see Maxwell in the show one evening. We decided it\u2019d be a great idea to surprise Maxwell one evening when exiting the stage door.\u2019\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"gridType":"RichTextBlock","content":"\u003Ch4\u003EClosing the curtains\u003C/h4\u003E\n\u003Cp\u003ENow Maxwell\u2019s West End experience has come to an end, he said he\u2019d love the chance to perform in the theatre again. One of his dreams was to go from Scouts Cub Pack to the Cub Pack in The Lion King Musical, but sadly, he\u2019s now grown too tall.\u003C/p\u003E","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""},{"type":"Promo","cta":"","body":"\u003Cp\u003EWe\u2019re wishing you the best for the future, Maxwell. We hope you enjoy your time in your new Scout Troop and keep on dancing! \u00A0\u003C/p\u003E","link":null,"colour":"#490499","title":"","image":null,"imageFocus":"","imageId":0,"imageKey":"00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000","imageCrop":"","gridType":"card","gtmId":"","gtmClass":""}]}],"config":null}]},"searchDescription":null,"pageType":null,"location":null,"versionDate":"07 December 2022","reviewDate":null,"furtherReading":[{"caption":"","title":"Cubs Entertainer Badge","url":"/cubs/activity-badges/entertainer/","newWindow":false},{"caption":"","title":"Learn more about Cubs","url":"/cubs/","newWindow":false}],"relatedLinks":[{"caption":"","title":"Get Up, Stand Up! The Bob Marley Musical","url":"https://getupstandupthemusical.com/","newWindow":true}],"id":48722,"nodeName":"Lights, curtains, action: One Cub takes the stage in London\u2019s West End","title":"Lights, curtains, action: Cub takes the stage in London\u2019s West End","type":"blogEntry","image":{"url":"/media/19279/_dsc2727.jpg?width=800\u0026height=450\u0026v=1d9becd24af9480","caption":"DSC2727","type":"jpg","size":452381,"width":1280,"height":960,"altText":""},"assets":null,"headerOptions":{"headerTitle":"Lights, curtains, action: Cub takes the stage in London\u2019s West End","headerSubTitle":null,"headerCta":null,"headerCtaText":null,"headerCtaLink":null,"headerBackgroundColour":null,"showSEOImage":false,"headerBackgroundImage":null,"quickLinks":null},"subHeader":"Maxwell had the experience of a lifetime when he performed in a new West End musical. 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