‘Sing your way to Paris’ back

Registration to enter the singing contest closes today.
The competition is organised by the French Embassy’s cultural arm, Alliance Française (AF), and supermarket chain, Bon Marche, as part of the Francophone Week, which is scheduled to begin on the 19th and ends on the 24th of this month.
The contest is open to all Zimbabweans who possess a singing talent and are within the 14-25 age range.
All you need to do is pick any original French song, sing it and you could win yourself a two-week all-expenses-paid trip to Paris.
The AF director, Charles Houdart, is ecstatic that this year’s event is going to be as interesting and successful as last year’s.
He said: “We seek to reach a different audience, one which is unaware of the Francophone culture and to introduce young Zimbabwean students to experience a real intercultural exchange, in a fun, exciting, enjoyable and entertaining manner,” he said. “The competition aims to select the best amateur singer in French and encourage a wide participation among young people and subsequently expose them to the Francophone world and future opportunities.”
The competitor does not have to be a French language speaker to participate.
“However, the participant will select a French song from a given repertoire or any other original French song. Participants will work with a language instructor and a vocal coach,” Houdart said.
The grand finale will be held on March 24 in Harare in an afternoon “filled with music and entertainment with an unrestricted audience at the Alliance Française marking the end of the Francophone Week celebrations”.