TEENS ON BROADWAY Showcase Set for the Circle in the Square This Month

On Monday, May 18th at 7 p.m., performing arts high schools from four boroughs will present samples of their best work of the year at Circle in the Square Theatre. Book of Mormon cast member and Circle in the Square Theatre School alumnus Christian Dante White will welcome the performers and inspire them to keep their dream alive. This annual event is the centerpiece of Circle in the Square Theatre School's Teens on Broadway program.

Families of student performers, school community members, the general public, and representatives from City government and organizations that support youth career development will be on hand to cheer the work and aspirations of this next generation of local talent.

Participating schools (in order of appearance) will include:

- Humanities and the Arts High School (Brooklyn)

- Gotham Professional Arts Academy (Queens)

- Talent Unlimited High School (Manhattan)

- Urban Assembly School of the Performing Arts (Manhattan)

- Susan E. Wagner High School (Staten Island)

In 2012 Circle in the Square Theatre School piloted Teens on Broadway, a new initiative to celebrate, support and, for the first time, convene the community of NYC's public performing arts high schools. Eighteen schools from all five boroughs have participated in the past three years. Teens on Broadway welcomes and gives the collective community of public performing arts high schools access to experience the wonderful world of Broadway.

"With Teens on Broadway we celebrate achievements and encourage the desire of talented New York teens who dream of a career in the theater. We also support and acknowledge the many pre-professional public high school programs across the City that nurture new generations of theater-makers and theater-lovers," said Circle in the Square Theatre School Board President Paul Libin.

Principals report that up to 90 percent of their NYC public performing arts HS students do not pursue a career in theater after graduation. Teens on Broadway is designed to retain local talent and keep more students on track. Students attend Broadway League and American Theatre Wing career panels at Circle in the Square, where they learn about theater industry career and intern opportunities. And for the first time, this summer Teens on Broadway Scholarships will enable local teens to attend seven-week intensive workshops in acting or musical theater at Circle in the Square. Each recipient will be guided in creating a career plan for their first year out of high school. These scholarships are supported by grants from The Pinkerton Foundation and Blanche and Irving Laurie Foundation. Bread & Roses Integrated Arts High School is participating earlier in the day, with a performance at 3 p.m.

In addition to performing, each school selects two students to serve as Teens on Broadway Social Media Team representatives throughout the school year. An advisory group of Broadway marketing experts from AKA, Serino Coyne, SpotCo and Groupon have generously provided guidance to the group during monthly meetings and special tours of their company offices.

Teens on Broadway is a recent addition to other successful Outreach Programs the Theatre School has provided since 1995. Our two performance series, Three Plays for Grades K-6 and Festival of Theater, serve thousands of students and senior citizens who enjoy entertaining and educational productions on our Broadway stage each year. The Theatre School conducts a 22-day playwriting residency for the entire third grade at PS 11, during which each student writes a short play that is then performed at Circle in the Square by graduate actors. Through Arts Education for Actors, select Theatre School graduates are being trained to become teaching artists. This service to the field provides new young talents, who help schools and human service agencies achieve their goals.

Circle in the Square Theatre School, one of the country's premier schools of professional training for acting and musical theater is the only conservatory in a Broadway theater facility. The School features a comprehensive and eclectic mix of techniques that prepares performers for the diversity of demands they will encounter in the profession. Students receive individual attention in small classes, led by a faculty of accomplished professionals. Two-year Professional and Seven-week intensive Summer programs are provided to students, who come from across America and around the world. Established in 1961 and accredited by the National Association of Schools of Theatre, the Theatre School was created by Theodore Mann and developed since 1963 with his partner Paul Libin, who is now its President. Executive Director E. Colin O'Leary has led the Theatre School since 1981.

Among the Theatre School's distinguished alumni are: Kevin Bacon, Idina Menzel, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Nicole Ari Parker, Benicio Del Toro, Felicity Huffman, Jeremy Shamos, Molly Shannon, Matthew Lillard, Justin Kirk, Thomas Sadoski, Lady Gaga, Actor's Equity President Nicholas Wyman and other luminaries of stage and screen.

Teens On Broadway. Advance reservations requested (212) 307-0388 or admissions@circlesquare.org. Suggested donation $5 for adults and $3 for students. Free to participating students and their families. For more information about Circle in the Square Theatre School visit www.circlesquare.org.

TEENS ON BROADWAY STUDENTS PERFORMING ON MAY 18TH INCLUDE:

Gina Marie Berrios is a senior theatre major at Susan E. Wagner High School. She made her debut in Annie as Tessie. Her favorite roles include Lori in Brighton Beach Memoirs, Hope in Anything Goes, and most recently, Serena in Legally Blonde. Gina has also appeared in: In the Heights, Sweeney Todd, Little Women and several other productions. She is an advanced chorus member and has performed at numerous events including Sing, with the Show Choir in the International Festival and as a lead player in the Annual SI Spooktacular. Gina is an assistant lighting designer and assistant to Susan E. Wagner HS' theater director Mrs. Zerega. Gina returns to Circle in the Square after performing highlights from In the Heights in 2013 and she's delighted to meet other student performers who share her interest and passion for theatre.

Elishama Simmons, a senior at Humanities and the Arts High School, has been a member of the Theater Company since his sophomore year. Elishama started performing with a small role in Cheaper By The Dozen before playing the lead as Jack in The Importance of Being Ernest. He hopes to pursue acting as a career.

Jordan Mayo is a senior theatre major at Urban Assembly School for the Performing Arts. I her junior year she won an award for Outstanding Performance as Jerry in Edward Albee's The Zoo Story. Jordan has also written an original play entitled All of Me. As part of UASPA's partnership with the Epic Theatre Ensemble, Jordan played Verges in Much Ado About Nothing, Camillo in The Winter's Tale, and most recently, Ophelia in Hamlet, directed by Epic Co- Founder Melissa Friedman. Jordan was a New York City finalist in the English Speaking Union's National Shakespeare Competition and in the national poetry recitation contest Poetry Out Loud.

Chassidy David will also perform at Radio City Music Hall next spring. At Talent Unlimited High School Chassidy has learned many new techniques that help her live truthfully on stage. Chassidy has always been interested in both the performing and the visual arts. Her artwork was recently featured in MoMA and MoMI. Her first documentary film, Words are Stones, which explores the causes and prevention of verbal bullying, earned her a full scholarship this summer to NYSSSA for media arts at SUNY Oswego. She is extremely grateful to Mr. Nusbaum, Mrs. Peacock, and Mr. Agosto for helping her refine her skills, to her mother for always supporting her endeavors, and to God for opening doors that would've been impossible to open on her own.

Destiny Julbe is a junior at Gotham Professional Arts Academy with a deep commitment to theater. After taking five semesters of drama she decided this is her life calling. Destiny has taken on difficult roles such as Booth in Susan Lori Parks' Top Dog Underdog. She is a candidate for the Teens on Broadway Summer Scholarship.

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