SHE made her way through seven kilometres of thread just to make the costumes for the Dorcan Performing Arts Group’s recent production of Beauty and the Beast.

She even managed to construct a wardrobe without the aid of any cardboard boxes.

And now Gina Musty has found herself in the running for a Pride of Swindon award having put in 16 years of service to helping youngsters find their feet on the stage as the guiding light of the group.

After finding out that she had made the judging panel’s shortlist she said it felt rather surreal, but praised her team of fellow volunteers who helped her.

“This is just something that I love doing,” she said.

“DPAG is my life – well, that’s what people tell me. There are so many other people that do good things for the people of Swindon. I just do this because I want young people to go and tread the boards.”

She added that DPAG did not audition aspiring actors, and she was keen to give everyone the chance to perform on the stage, even if it did mean she had even more costumes to make.

“This year I made all of the costumes for Beauty and the Beast – I hadn’t planned to do all of them – but I was up until one, two in the morning trying to figure out how to make a wardrobe,” she said. “I was determined not to make it out of cardboard boxes, even though everyone was telling me I should. In the end I made what I had wanted in my head – even though it took four days to make. So if anyone needs a wardrobe costume, we have one now!”

The former Swindon Advertiser reporter found herself at the very first meeting of the soon-to-be-formed dramatics group more than 16 years ago where she had been dragged along to help with some PR work.

But it wasn’t long before she found herself running the show, although she said she couldn’t do so without the support of fellow volunteers, and the support from the school as well, which allowed them the facilities to rehearse and perform.

Her efforts to get everything just right for the night even saw her sewing machine pack up the day before opening night, before Tom Dilley came to her rescue and got her back on her feet. Refusing to accept payment for the repair, he was given tickets to the performance.

Putting her forward for an award, Gina’s nominator said: “Gina’s aim is to keep the kids off the street and give them a drive and something to focus on and aspire to.

“She tells me she will never quit, even when times are tough. She won’t let the members down. It’s lovely to go and watch a show and see all the lovely, happy smiles on stage. It is about giving opportunities, giving chances and giving children fun and enjoyment. It’s also somewhere for them to feel safe and something to be part of. It is about time this amazing, hard-working lady was given an award. She just keeps going and changing lives.”

Gina will have to wait until the award ceremony at STEAM on March 17 to find out if she has won an award.