Steve Silver Foundation & 'Beach Blanket Babylon' Announce 2015 'Scholarship for the Arts' Finalists

Jo Schuman Silver, producer of Steve Silver's Beach Blanket Babylon, announced today the nine Bay Area seniors selected as finalists for the Steve Silver Foundation and Beach Blanket Babylon "Scholarship for the Arts." Each of the finalists will perform live in front of friends, family and a panel of celebrity judges on Monday, June 1. One winner in each category will be presented with a check for $10,000 towards their college education. The nine high school seniors who will perform are:

ACTING

GABRIEL COWGER - Novato High School, Novato

RYAN SHEROD - Mountain View High School, Mountain View

MEGAN WINNETT - Marin School of the Arts, Novato

DANCING

ABBY ALTER - Castilleja School, Palo Alto

JESSICA FRY - Menlo School, Atherton

CHRISTOPHER HILDUM - The Harker School, San Jose

SINGING

GABRIELLE FILLOUX - Woodside Priory High School, Portola Valley

NICOLE KOH - Ruth Asawa San Francisco School of Arts, San Francisco

RACHEL WIRTZ - Berean Christian High School, Walnut Creek

"I am really impressed by the quality of the performances that we've received and the dedication of the students to their craft," said Schuman Silver. "We look forward to having the nine finalists perform in front of our panel of celebrity judges and their family and friends on June1. It is guaranteed to be a great night!"

The celebrity panel of judges scheduled to appear include: choreographer Val Caniparoli, actor Patrick Cassidy, Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter Tracy Chapman, composer Gordon Getty, San Francisco Opera's General Director David Gockley, SFJAZZ Center's Founder and Executive Artistic Director Randall Kline, California Shakespeare Theater's Artistic Director Jonathan Moscone, American Conservatory Theater's Artistic Director Carey Perloff, KRON4/KCBS Radio's Jan Wahl, and jazz and cabaret singer Paula West. Master of Ceremonies for the evening is Don Bleu from 103.7 "The Greatest Hits of All Time".