<p>My son, who is 12 years old and in the 6th grade, has been heavily involved in community musical theatre since the second grade. He's had numerous lead roles - Oliver Twist in Oliver!; Gavroche in Les Mis; Young Tarzan in Tarzan; Jojo in Suessical Jr.; Jack in Into the Woods Jr and more. He is a soprano with an unchanged voice, and he takes voice lessons. He also has taken tap dance lessons for several years and is just beginning ballet. I'm considering sending him to a summer program in New York and am looking specifically at either Destination Broadway or Broadway Artists Alliance. Does anyone have experience with these programs for kids as young as mine? Does anyone have any other summer intensive programs to recommend for a middle schooler? We are looking for a program where he improve his performance skills and also see how he stacks up against top talent from around the country. I would appreciate any information on programs that your older kids might have attended back when they were in middle school. Thanks!</p>
<p>Our D went to Destination Broadway at that age and absolutely loved it. It was a great introduction to NYC and the type of training MT professionals do. Michael Rafter is one of the most kind, caring and talented people on Broadway. And he gets amazing people to,work with the kids. The accommodations and transportation are great. We would highly recommend it as a wonderful experience.
Other programs you might want to consider are OCUs junior high camp, Stagedoor Manor and French Woods.</p>
<p>I have personal experience with Stagedoor Manor (one D attended for 8 summers starting at age 9 all the way up to entering college) and with French Woods Festival of the Performing Arts (one D attended for 4 summers starting at age 11). Both were great. It may be late to obtain a spot at Stagedoor Manor for this coming summer but do inquire and they have a waiting list. Keep it in mind for future summers too. My D who attended Stagedoor went on to obtain a BFA in MT and is now a professional in the field. </p>
<p>delete</p>
<p>Have you looked into Usdan on Long Island? It is a performing arts program that is M - F with bus transportation daily from NYC. Many of the students who went there have pursued the arts professionally and have studied at many of the top music, art and theatre programs for college. Older D who is now 25 and younger D at 20 are still in touch with students who attended who are now studying or working in various capacities in the arts. Some are beginning to have successful film and theatre careers. Others are still in school attending NYU, Ithaca, Boston Conservatory, Emerson and Carnegie Mellon to name a few top schools. Older is working for a top talent agency in their theatre department after graduating as a vocal performance major at NYU (MT). Younger D is a studio art major at NYU (she studied art, dance and MT at Usdan) and is studying voice and acting at NYU as well. </p>
<p>My daughter did two summers at Broadway Artists Alliance and loved it. She got to work with Broadway casting directors, choreographers, and actors, and they have a showcase at the end for agents and casting directors. She also did a one-day BAA workshop at which she sang and got feedback from Megan Hilty, which was a big thrill for her. I know BAA does have some famous alumni, such as Ariana Grande. </p>
<p>These programs are not in the NYC area but they all draw from across the nation:</p>
<p>Oklahoma City University Junior High Music Theatre Program
<a href=“http://www.okcu.edu/music/performing-arts-academy/programs/summer/junior-high/”>http://www.okcu.edu/music/performing-arts-academy/programs/summer/junior-high/</a></p>
<p>Perry-Mansfield Performing Arts School in Steamboat Springs
<a href=“http://perry-mansfield.org/”>http://perry-mansfield.org/</a></p>
<p>Interlochen Arts Camp
<a href=“http://camp.interlochen.org/”>http://camp.interlochen.org/</a></p>
<p>My D attended several summer sessions at Broadway Artists Alliance while in middle school. She enjoyed it and got a lot out of the experience, as did her friends who also attended. For the middle school age, it is a great introduction to NY/national level talent and the kids find it very exciting to have master classes with big name folks in the industry. We thought that the session that culminated in an industry panel with personalized feedback was the most helpful. Several kids my D met at BAA have been in Broadway shows since that time. The BAA program is very appropriate for the younger age group that your son is in. Please feel free to PM me if you would like more detailed information.</p>
<p>You may also want to look at Open Jar (I’ve heard good things), Broadway Dreams, and I also saw that ArtsBridge has a new summer program for younger performers. Camps such as StageDoor, Interlochen, and French Woods are great suggestions, too, although very different kinds of experiences. I would also suggest you consider what is available in your home area. Regional theaters, local theaters, and local arts organizations often offer some great summer training for middle schoolers. They do not offer the comparison to the national talent pool, but the training can be excellent and can lead to professional casting opportunities in your local area.</p>
<p>For that age child, I’d highly recommend Stage Door Manor. I have no tie there, other than numerous actor friends who attended starting as middle schoolers. One such actor, recently had a reunion with friends he met there who were all in one particular SDM production. The photos on FB were interesting, as was the list of names and the large number who are known working professionals in the theatre community. Having said that, I think it’s important, as it is with every EC for kids, to find an option that will work well for your kid and one that your kid will enjoy, without too much of a focus on what may happen in 5 - 10 years in college or in a career. I’m a big believer in not everything being done as something to add to the resume. Most ‘top talent’ will not have revealed itself in a summer program by age 12. Closer to college auditions, for that purpose, would be more worthwhile.</p>
<p>Just to chime in here, My D attended Long Lake Camp for the Arts in Upstate NY and absolutely adored it. It allows the kids to arrange their own schedule according to their interests( in a safe environment of course). As far as a student In middle school, the benefits to discovering their own path within the arts is incredible. D got private voice, dance classes daily, was cast in a show, and had the opportunity to participate in the normal “Summer Camp” Festivities. </p>
<p>Could not speak more Highly of my D’s 3 summers at LLCA</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I soooooo much agree with this statement!! Back when my kids chose their EC activities and also when they chose their summer programs at a young age, there was no thought whatsoever as to their resume for college or eventual career, etc. They chose these out of pure interest and enjoyment in the experience itself. </p>
<p>That said, though my daughter chose to attend Stagedoor Manor (and yes, we let our kids pick and actually my other D picked French Woods) at age 9, she ended up quite enamored with the place and continued there for 8 summers up until she entered college. We never chose a summer program with college in mind. </p>
<p>Like alwaysamom relates, however, it so happens that there were many (but not all) kids who attended Stagedoor who did end up pursuing college theater programs and professional careers in this field. I look back to even my D’s first cast she was in there of The Boyfriend (she was the youngest in the cast and most were ages 9 to 13) and how so many of the kids in that very talented cast (we were overwhelmed by the talent there upon viewing our first production of many over the years) ended up to have very successful careers so far in theater, music, and TV/film. Same with future productions she was in there, as well as their select cabaret troupe. She made lifelong friends and has maintained strong bonds with her fellow alums in the industry and they often work and perform together today. </p>
<p>I will “warn” you that if your son ends up attending Stagedoor at a young age, he may be hooked for the remainder of his summers prior to college, as many are. For my kid, it was a very significant part of her development to where she is today at age 26. Obviously, you have to find the right fit for your child. This was for my child and I can’t say enough about the place!</p>
<p>Both BTP (Broadway Theatre Project) and TPAP (The Performing Arts Project) offer middle school programs - but both are “day only” camp options… which makes them more attractive to locals in Florida and North Carolina… but with creativity (working from Hotel WiFi, etc.) it could be an option… so for that reason it may be worth looking into these two programs. If you search Google on the program names, you will be able to find their websites and research their middle school offerings. (My D attended both of these programs in High School - at which point they include housing)</p>
<p>I have no idea about timeline on other programs- but I thought I should mention that stagedoor is very probably full for this coming summer. It is not audition, but 1st come 1sr served (with preference to repeat campers). Registration opens in the fall, and I thought it was generally full before xmas</p>
<p>Yes, toowonderful, Soozie mentioned that above but that it was a good idea to check and that they also have a waitlist.</p>
<p>I think the choices for the middle school age child fall into 3 categories, and which you choose is individual to your child and family: 1) residential summer camp that focuses on performing arts, such as Stagedoor, French Woods, Interlochen, Long Lake, Bucks Rock; 2) 1-2 week intensive program in NY or elsewhere, where child stays with you or a relative in a hotel or home nearby, such as BAA, Open Jar, etc.; 3) 1-6 week regional/local summer theater programs, where child lives at home. All 3 of these types of options can provide great training and a fun experience, and can also open your child’s eyes to the wider world of performing beyond their local youth theater. Some of these options are more focused on workshops and classes, and other of these options focus more on staging full productions. Some are residential and some are not. Some are many weeks and some are much shorter. There are many individual fit factors to consider.</p>
<p>When your child is in high school, there will be a 4th category of pre-college and college audition prep programs.</p>
<p>Wow! Thank you all for your responses and suggestions. Now to figure out which one might be the best fit for my son. The goal now is not so much to build a resume or open doors for career building, as it is to allow him to see if theatre really is something he wants to pursue long term. To decide that, at some point he’s got to leave the local community theatre bubble, and I’m thinking now is the time to do that. His other love is baseball, a sport at which he excels, and we are fast approaching the point where he can’t continue to do both. Participating in a program that draws serious theatre kids from all over the country will be something of a reality check for him. He won’t be the star. There will be kids there who have just as much or more talent than him. I figure that will either inspire him to up his game on stage or make him think twice about giving up baseball. He doesn’t need to decide yet whether he wants to be a theatre major in college, but he does have to decide soon whether he’s serious enough about theatre to let baseball go. So thank you all so much! We’ve met so many nice folks through theatre, so it’s great to find a yet another supportive theatre community here on CC. There’s no people like show people! Right? And for all of you who have kids going through the college application process now, best of luck! </p>
Love your name, @MrsWeasley! Best of luck… Community theatre is a wonderful place to ‘cut your teeth’… but a good summer program will tell your son if he can hang with the big boys. Best of luck!
My daughter who is currently in her sophomore year of a BFA MT program, attended French Woods for 9 years and loved it. (Disclosure: I was a camper there too as a kid and worked in the office while my kids were there). When comparing French Woods to other programs, consider this key difference of the French Woods experience. While your S could choose to immerse himself in theater only, there are also so many other areas for him to select from. There is a full sports program, a full fitness gym, fine arts, the largest children’s circus in the world (?), music, dance, skateboarding, video, rock music, lake waterfront, Olympic pool, etc. There are 3 majors (they stay the same throughout the whole session), and 3 minors that can change daily so your son can try out different things. I am sure anyone in the French Woods office would be happy to answer all your questions!
@MrsWeasley, I had the same feelings as you before sending my daughter to Stagedoor Manor when she was in middle school. She was getting to be a big fish in our little pond here, and I wanted her to face some stiff competition and total immersion and see if she still liked it. As I was driving her home from that first year there, I couldn’t tell how she liked it. She was utterly exhausted and sick (it was the swine flu year). But after sleeping for a few days she said that yes, she wanted to go back. And go back she did, for 4 more years. The kids work REALLY hard there, there is not a lot of leisure time, and it is truly a full immersion in theater experience. In spite of its fame, it is not a fancy place. By that I mean, it’s not a resort. The focus is almost completely on learning theater and on collaboration to put on some awesome shows in less than 3 weeks. It is very hard work. The less-interested may not like it. I DO recommend it as a place for a kid to figure out if this is a life they are really interested in.