Premiere Summer Musical Theatre Program Welcomes Younger Students

The Regional Emmy-Award Winning musical theatre training organization, Young Artists of America (YAA), is now welcoming 4th and 5th grade students into their Summer Performing Arts Intensives. Previously, the program, known to many as the premiere training ground for dedicated musical theatre students in the Mid-Atlantic, was only open to students in middle school and high school. Starting in June of 2020, elementary school students (ages 9+) will be welcomed into the new daytime program, Kids Academy, an introduction to musical theatre led by the region's top teaching artists.

YAA's Summer Performing Arts Intensive programs offer daytime and overnight experiences - all taking place on the bucolic 140-acre campus at Sandy Spring Friends School in Northern Montgomery County, Maryland. The campus features a state-of-the-art Performing Arts Center, fully-equipped 300-seat proscenium theatre, dance studio, and multiple rehearsal rooms.

High school students in the overnight program, The Conservatory, will venture off campus on a field trip to see a professional musical at The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC.

"The Conservatory is designed for highly disciplined high school students looking to focus on the artistic process as well as applied training on a full musical theatre production, which is the culmination of the two-week program," says Terry Eberhardt, Director of YAA's Summer Intensives.

Alumni of The Conservatory include Mateo Ferro who was consequently cast in The Kennedy Center's production of In the Heights after performing in YAA's Summer 2017 production. He has since gone on to work alongside Helen Hunt, Christopher Jackson, and Javier Munoz in Encores! Off Center presentation of Working: The Musical at New York City Center and was cast in NBC's hit show, Manifest.

For dedicated young performers at any level, YAA's Summer Performing Arts Intensives offer The Academies. These are daytime programs for students at any level of their Voice, Dance or Acting practice looking to hone their skills. The Academy program is divided by age with Senior Academy for high school students, Junior for middle schoolers, and the newest program, Kids Academy for 4th and 5th graders. All Academy programs (except Kids Academy) work toward a final musical performance.

A Day in the Life of a Voice Major

The Conservatory will perform Side Show (Session 1) and Urinetown (Session 2). Senior Academy will perform Make Me a Song: The Music of William Finn (Session 1) and An Oz Cabaret: Music from The Wiz, Wicked and The Wizard of Oz (Session 2). Junior Academy will perform Honk, Jr. (Session 1) and Shrek: The Musical, Jr. (Session 2).

A Day in the Life of a Dance Major

For more information about Young Artists of America's Summer Performing Arts Intensives, visit www.yaa.org/summer. And, for more on their academic-year programming, visit www.yaa.org.