The White Hart Festival recently took place, and you might be wondering: what was that? Due to Covid the popular Country and Americana festival Black Deer was cancelled for the second year in a row, and as a result the SupaJam family weren’t able to go. Therefore Supajam CEOs David Court and Nick Stillwell, along with all the staff, came up with the idea of having our very own mini festival at SupaJam: the White Hart was born.

 

 

The festival offered students and staff the opportunity to perform and showcase the talent we have, as well as delicious food from Chop N Chip, popcorn from Sugarpuf and ice cream courtesy of Tonibell, all completely free! The food went down a treat with Chop N Chip being completely sold out by 3 o’clock and the 3-meter queue for ice cream. I can’t forget the popcorn stall which I visited a few times and I’m sure I wasn’t alone! Staff and students who are vegan were beyond happy that there were vegan options available too and if all this food talk is making you wonder about drinks don’t fret as there were refreshments on hand too, cranberry and orange mocktails were available as well as a selection of fizzy drinks.

 

As for the entertainment, there was a rodeo bull which was enjoyed by students and even more surprisingly David and Nick both had a go which was caused fits of laughter by witnesses. Horseshoe ring toss and the tin can were a hit, with many attendees going over to have a go in breaks from the performances. The main attraction was the music which was performed by staff, students and visiting bands. We had performances by the incredible Jamie Garland, Simone Elisha, Sabrina Hiliare, Tom Johnston (THOMA) and Leo. All that was just on the acoustic stage. On the main stage students who were supposed to have been performing at Black Deer instead got to let their talents shine on the SupaJam stage. We got to hear; Charlotte and Saul, Beau-dead, the Canterbury band, Ella and Kym and Lewis. Not only that Jazz sang a whole set for us and special guest Hannah White played. We can’t forget The Heavenly Harmonies, SupaJam’s own choir, doing two sets which went down a treat and ended in everyone getting involved. As the evening drew to a close the incredible bands that are The Wandering Hearts and The Orange Circus Band headlined. Both have sold out tours and have album launches coming in Autumn 2021 so to have them at White Hart caused quite the buzz, they were so kind and giving offering time afterwards to the students for questions and pictures.

 

Overall White Hart festival was a show stopping end to SupaJam’s school year and a high note for the start of summer. Thank you to David Court and Nick Stillwell and everyone else who helped plan and put together this incredible event and to all the wonderful performers. Here’s to hoping we see the return of White Hart and Black Deer in 2022!

 

An article by Emilia Pound