Cork Academy of Performing Arts is instilling the spirit of Les Miserables

There is, we are told, no business like show business, and every year brings more and more starry-eyed youngsters beating at the doors of success and fame.

Only an infinitesimal few will make it to the top, but still they keep coming. At Cork Academy of Performing Arts (CADA), director Catherine Mahon-Buckley makes sure her students are aware of the challenges ahead from the moment they come through the door.

“The trouble these days is that they see what they think is instant fame in TV contests, and on YouTube. They don’t realise how much work went into that for every performer. I tell them go for it, follow your dream, but if by the age of 30 you haven’t got a roof over your head, can’t afford transport, then look for another way of earning your living.”