In pictures: Carronshore pupils join Scottish Opera for Vikings! The Quest for the Dragon's Treasure

The organisation brought its newly created show, Vikings! The Quest for the Dragon’s Treasure, to the local school as part of its Primary Schools Tour.

Pupils in P5 and P6 enjoyed a day-long workshop with Scottish Opera’s team of experienced arts education animateurs and performers. The youngsters spent just four hours rehearsing then performing an all-singing, all-dancing 30 minute show in front of friends and family.

Vikings! took pupils on a journey of magic and mystery. An ancient prophecy sends the Viking Queen and her swashbuckling band of warriors off to steal gemstones from the legendary Ice Dragon, while the sneaky Sorcerer Supreme stays behind, planning to seize power. The wise Villagers foresee that stealing the gems is just the start of their troubles. Soon the Sorcerers, Vikings and Villagers must work together to restore balance to the land, for they’ve stolen treasure more precious than gold or silver, and the stakes are higher than they could possibly have imagined.

Jane Davidson MBE, Scottish Opera’s Director of Outreach and Education said: “In 2024 - the year of the Chinese Dragon - Scottish Opera Education is thrilled to welcome another magical flying beast into its repertoire. A tale inspired by Norse legends, our dragon is more closely related to the creatures who feature in Cressida Cowell’s ‘How to Train Your Dragon’ books, or the ones created by JK Rowling and J.R.R. Tolkien. We hope that pupils will delight in this original story, where the Vikings learn that not all treasure consists of gold and jewels, and that living in harmony with the land and the seasons is a lesson they’d be silly to ignore.”