A TEENAGE singing star hopes to tread the boards in the West End one day after storming through the finals of a national competition. Kathryn Kitchener, 16, of Aragon Drive, Hainault, beat four other finalists singing As Long As He Needs Me from Oliver! a

A TEENAGE singing star hopes to tread the boards in the West End one day after storming through the finals of a national competition.

Kathryn Kitchener, 16, of Aragon Drive, Hainault, beat four other finalists singing As Long As He Needs Me from Oliver! and In His Eyes from Jeckyll & Hyde in the musical performance category of UK Unsigned at the Hackney Empire.

One of the competition's judges, George Ure, from Wicked, feels she is perfect for musicals and she has racked up a tally of stage achievements, winning the Festival for Stars, a Euro Disney competition and a rising star gong at last year's Redbridge Community Awards.

Kathryn said: "When I finish my A-levels, I'm hoping to go to a performing arts university and hopefully be in the West End.

"I'm really happy. It was really nice to perform in the Hackney Empire and winning was a bonus.