The girls did not know each other well, but once they stood together on the stage, one could sense a natural cohesion. This is how Stageworx performing arts coach Jemma Donnelly describes Eleni Tsoubmris, Tylo Venter and Asante Kupe who have recently formed an all-girl band, called ETA. Tsoubmris (Grade Five) and Venter (Grade Four) both go to Maragron Private School in Ruimsig, and the third member, Kupe, attends Trinity Prep.
“I love singing but I get very nervous on stage. I enjoy the studio,” said Tsoumbris, who is a great fan of Johnny Clegg. “I like his song ‘I’m sitting on the top of Kilimanjaro'”. Venter, who loves Taylor Swift, reckons the girls’ music is “very fifties”. This could well be, since their first music video was a cover of Connie Francis’ 1958 hit “Stupid Cupid”. “When I’m in the studio everything is cool. I feel truly professional,” said Venter “I want to give our students a feel for what it is like to be part of a band. I want them to experience the challenges as we as all the fun elements, like filming a music video and performing a song,” said Donnelly, who runs Stageworx School of Performing Arts in Weltevreden Park. “At Stageworx we want to give children the best experiences to help pave the way for a career in the arts.
For ETA, the next step after their music video will be live performances.” The first will take place at the Holiday Inn Express Singer/Songwriter of the year competition, taking place on 26 July. The judging panel will consist of celebrities from the music industry. After this the girls will be entering SA’s Got Talent. Donnelly says the girls are currently working on their next music video. And the next step: writing original material.
