As about 90 kids hit the Bathurst Street Theatre stage last night to dazzle a packed house of family members, it soon became clear that the range of performances was as diverse as the performers.

Children ranging between the ages of seven and 14 and hailing from Cabbagetown, St.James Town and Regent Park - from a multitude of different cultural and social backgrounds - unveiled the fruits of their labour in the seventh annual Cabbagetown Youth Centre (CYC) Performing Arts Showcase following a summer’s worth of preparations and rehearsals at the CYC’s Performing Arts Summer Camp.

Entitled “Iconic”, the show featured a broad mix of performances paying tribute to a variety of influences in contemporary pop culture and history. From Leonardo Da Vinci to the Greek gods and even superheroes, the all-original cast showed no limit to creativity with performances of songs, dances and drama routines.

“It’s good to be diverse in your program and offer the kids different options, so it’s not so narrow minded,” explained Monique Caine, program coordinator for the showcase. “This way, they can experience all these different things that they may not have been able to experience otherwise.”

While the event was certainly diverse from an artistic perspective, it also featured an eclectic mix of cultures. Traditional Tamil, Chinese, and Native American dances were represented in addition to North American song and dance portrayals.

St.James Town and Regent Park are some of the most ethnically diverse areas in Toronto, with an over 70 per cent visible minority population, compared to 41.2 per cent in Toronto overall.

“Our diversity is what makes us who we are,” said Christina de la Cruz, a senior dance instructor for the CYC. “Not just in the performance aspect, but because we have kids from such different cultural backgrounds with such different viewpoints, it really opens your mind and broadens your horizons.”

In addition to the children learning about other cultures by being exposed to them, de la Cruz feels the cultural education also has a positive effect on the nearby community.

“It has this amazing trickle down effect,” de la Cruz said. “These kids learn it’s not okay to pull on this girl’s hijab, it’s not okay to make fun of a kid’s (ethnic differences) and they go home and tell that to their friends, siblings and parents.”

As the evening came to a close, the children paid tribute to perhaps the most well known pop culture icon, Michael Jackson. The performance ended fittingly with a dance rendition of Jackson’s classic song “Black or White.”