A mobile phone salesman at Macclesfield\u2019s Grosvenor Centre, who was tormented by bullies at high school, will be singing his heart out tonight at a concert to raise awareness about cyber bullying.<\/p>\n
Paul Capper, who works at Phones 4 U at the centre, had no hesitation in accepting when asked to perform at the concert, one of a number of events around Europe this spring to highlight the increasing problem of bullying via the internet, social media and phone text messages.<\/p>\n
The cause has a personal significance after Paul was persecuted by bullies over two years while at school.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was when the likes of Facebook and Twitter weren’t around, but I know what it feels like to be cruelly intimidated,\u201d said Paul, now 25, who was forced to give away his school dinner money to thugs.<\/p>\n
He said: \u201cIn many ways cyber-bullying is even worse because these are faceless tormentors who hide behind digital technology, unseen. It\u2019s insidious and can make the lives of innocent schoolchildren a misery, but it\u2019s not just younger ages affected, older teenagers and adults are also among the victims.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s wicked and has got to be stamped out,\u201d added Paul, who devotes as much spare time as he can to music when not doing his day job as a sales consultant at Phones 4U store in the Grosvenor Centre.<\/p>\n
Caroline Kirton-Darling from the Grosvenor Centre said: \u201cPaul is taking an admirable stance over the issue of cyber bulling. I like to wish Paul every success with this concert, and with his other musical activities later this year.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m always fascinated by the many different interest of the staff who work here at the Grosvenor Centre, it\u2019s why there\u2019s such a great community spirit here.\u201d<\/p>\n
At the concert on May 9 at Winsford Academy, Paul will deliver the emotional number This Is The Moment from hit musical Jekyll and Hyde, followed by Puccini\u2018s Nessum Dorma from Turandot.<\/p>\n
He said: \u201cThis Is The Moment is a real stirring song. When I sing the line about sending\u00a0 all doubts and demons on their way it means a lot to me and I hope it will help people overcome their demons too.<\/p>\n
\u201cI will come on stage, very shyly, \u00a0with projected comments on my Facebook and Twitter pages behind me, showing messages like “You are rubbish, you should never be on stage!” during the first song.<\/p>\n
\u201cThen at the end of the song the images will go away and I will come to the front of the stage in just one spotlight and I will do Sweet Transvestite from the Rocky Horror Show, which is kind of like a breaking out of my shell moment. I will have the costume underneath and then there\u2019s a complete juxtaposition when I sing Nessun Dorma to finish of the set. I’m hoping it goes down well.\u201d<\/p>\n
Today Paul offers an example of how people can successfully triumph over bullies. Before joining Phones 4U last October, he was an entertainer with Park Resorts at its venues in Scotland, Cumbria and South Wales. Earlier this month he performed live on Radio Canalside.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat was great fun. One of our customers who came in the shop had connections with the station and my colleague was talking to them about some of the charity performances I do. Next minute I was there in the studio.<\/p>\n
\u201cI sang Music Of The Night from Phantom of the Opera. It was nerve-wracking but I really enjoyed it,\u201d said Paul, a keen supporter of local charities, including Age Concern. He often does concerts at local residential homes, sometimes taking requests.<\/p>\n
He started his musical training at school, unusually playing the tuba, the largest and lowest pitched of the brass instruments.<\/p>\n
He said: \u201cOur teacher gathered together a group of pupils and asked us all to try out various brass instruments so he could judge who would be best at playing what. It turned out I was the only one who could get a sound out of a rusty dented old\u00a0 tuba, so I took up lessons on that and played it for years. I reached grade eight and performed with concert bands around Cheshire.\u201d<\/p>\n
It was not until high school he discovered he could sing.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was taking the mickey out of opera singers one day and started to sing a song made up in my head about a maths teacher going out in the snow. The music teacher heard me and said I hadn\u2019t got a bad voice and should take up lessons. I don\u2019t know where it came from, no one else in my family is the slightest bit musical,\u201d said Paul, whose mum, Judy, lives in Northwich and dad, David, lives in London. He has an older sister, Laura, 29.<\/p>\n
He is delighted that he has several concert dates booked for this year, including performing the National Anthem for the Mayor of Winsford at the annual Bun Fair in September.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Mayor hasn\u2018t heard me sing before but she heard about me from a friend and asked me to perform.\u00a0 It\u2018s quite an honour, so I\u2018m very nervous about it, especially as there will be lots of dignitaries there. But I\u2018ve also got to learn the second verse of the National Anthem which I didn\u2018t know the words for until now,\u201d\u00a0 he laughed.<\/p>\n
On September 20 and 21 he will also perform at Winsford Salt Fair.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ll be doing half an hour on the Saturday night, for a younger age audience, then on the Sunday I\u2019ll do another half hour, this time of music for the more mature ages,\u201d said Paul who rehearses every week at the Band Edge Resurrected premises in Winsford.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a great place, they have a basement where I can sing to my heart\u2019s content,\u201d he said. \u201cIf I tried practising at home I think I\u2019d get thrown out.\u201d<\/p>\n
Paul grew up in Northwich, attending Cuddington Primary School and Weaverham High School, before going on to graduate with a degree in Performance and Events Management from Cumbria University in Carlisle.<\/p>\n
On returning to Cheshire he moved to Macclesfield where he had many friends from his days in the local Scouts.<\/p>\n
\u201cI love it here in Macc,\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s a great community and since I\u2019ve worked in Grosvenor Shopping Precinct I\u2019ve had lots of support from Phones 4U. They\u2019ve been really good at supporting my charity performances and helping get my name out there. I can\u2019t thank them enough.\u201d<\/p>\n
He is now toying with the idea of entering television\u2019s Britain\u2019s Got Talent competition, but wants to get some more performing experience first.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think I need to sing in front of bigger audiences before I put myself through the auditions for that,\u201d he said. \u201cSo I\u2019m looking to get on stage as much as possible over the coming months. Bring it on!\u201d<\/p>\n