Usdan Center Hosts First Open House of 2014 Season Today

Usdan Center for the Creative and Performing Arts (www.usdan.com), the nationally acclaimed summer arts day camp which has just finished its 46th successful season, announces the first of its Open Houses for the 2014 season. It will take place today, October 27 from 11AM to 2PM.

In addition to the Center's frequent Open House dates, Usdan also offers individual weekend guided tours available by appointment. Weekday self-guided walks are also available on the Center's magnificent 200-acre woodland campus at 185 Colonial Springs Road, Wheatley Heights (Huntington), New York 11798 (for directions to the Center, visit www.usdan.com).

There will be many new and expanded programs for 2014, shortly to be announced, in the Jazz, Theater and Fashion Design departments.

OPEN HOUSES: Visitors will be greeted at the Center's Administration Building by Faculty and Staff on October 27th, and at subsequent Open Houses as well. The Staff will introduce prospective students and parents to course options at Usdan, and will also review the application process. These greeting sessions will be followed by self-guided tours. Open House dates are: Sunday, October 27th, and Sunday, December 8th, 2013; Sunday January 26, Wednesday, February 19, Sunday, March 16, Wednesday, April 16, and Sunday May 18t, 2014. Hours are: 11:00 AM until 2:00 PM for all open houses. For an appointment, call 631-643-7900. (Visitors must be 21 years of age or accompanied by a parent.) Families who cannot attend an Open House may make individual appointments for visits on weekends or weekdays throughout the Fall and Winter.

Usdan Center offers more than 40 programs in music, dance, theater, visual arts, creative writing, nature and ecology and chess, annually hosting more than 1,600 students from towns throughout the Tri-State New York area. No audition is needed for most courses, and transportation is provided in air-conditioned buses that depart from most New York-area neighborhoods. One-third of Usdan's students receive scholarship assistance based on family need.

Video from many of Usdan's programs and special events, may now be viewed on the Center's website,http://www.usdan.com as well as on YouTube. Also, families can check out Usdan's Facebook site, where additional information and late-breaking news is featured.

Usdan Center for the Creative and Performing Arts, whose alumni include actors Natalie Portman and Olivia Thirlby and singers Jane Monheit and Mariah Carey, has introduced the arts to more than 60,000 Tri-State Area children since its founding in 1968. The Center is open to all young people from age 6 to 18. Usdan's program features more than 40 four and seven-week programs (as well as new, special three-week sessions) in music, dance, theater, visual arts, writing, nature & ecology, and chess. No audition is needed for most programs - rather, admission is based on an expression of interest in the arts. Each summer, 1,600 students are transported to the Center in air-conditioned buses each day. One-third of Usdan's students attend on scholarship. Although the mission of the Center is for every child to establish a relationship with the arts, the unique stimulation of the Center has caused many to go on to arts careers. Alumni include members of Broadway shows and major music, theater, and dance ensembles such as the Boston Pops and the New York City Ballet.

In addition to its regular programs, Usdan offers special opportunities for advanced high school- age performing and visual artists. These include Music Staff Internships, a Summer Ballet Intensive. Usdan Center is an agency of the UJA-Federation of New York.

Usdan's 47th season begins June 30, 2014. For more information, write to info@usdan.com, Call (212) 772-6060 or (631) 643-7900, or visit www.usdan.com

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