“We want kids who love theater and are passionate about it to feel like they fit in and that this is a place where they can realize their potential and their dreams,” says Konnie Kittrell, production director at Stagedoor Manor, a performing arts training camp in the Catskills known for famous alums like Natalie Portman and Robert Downey, Jr. Founded in 1975 by Carl Samuelson and his wife Elsie, Stagedoor Manor offers three-week sessions filled with classes in acting, voice, television and dance for campers ages 10 to18 of all levels and experience.
Make no mistake—a summer at Stagedoor is a summer of hard work. However, Kittrell believes that children who are truly passionate about performing are ready and more than willing to work hard.
“For the true performer, the actual training—the process and the learning—is more exciting than the actual performance,” she says.
Kids interested in performing arts camp don’t necessarily have to look outside the city. Applause New York City, the popular year-round music and drama program based in the Upper East Side, offers week-long day camps in summer.
“We offer eight different weeks, and kids can take one week
or all eight,” says Audrey Kaplan, founder of Applause NYC. “A lot of our kids
go to sleepaway camp, but we felt there was a need for kids in the city who
don’t go away for a two-month period of time but want one or two weeks of
something specialized that they can focus on.”
At Camp Applause, kids participate in all different types of performing arts classes including acting, music, singing and dancing. Best of all, each week provides something new and different, with themes to match. “We might have an American Idol week, followed by a Western week,” Kaplan says.
In fact, at Camp Applause, one of the main objectives is to have fun, and any child with any level of interest or experience in the performing arts is welcome. “I don’t think you have to want it as a career. A lot of kids come in with friends and just think it will be fun,” Kaplan says. “That’s the best part of having it one week at a time—you don’t have to fill your whole summer with it.”
This year, however, Applause NYC will offer a sleepaway camp option for kids who do feel passionate about the performing arts and want to make them a substantial part of their summer. They’ll be running their performing arts programs for theater-loving campers at Camp Med-O-Lark in Washington, Maine, this summer.
“There are so many kids who want that feeling of being away, that independence and freedom, and that’s something we can’t necessarily offer in the city,” Kaplan says. “If you want to do theater for most of your day, but still want to be able to enjoy camp life, then this is a great fit.”
Young musicians looking to hone their skills may find Camp
Encore/Coda in Sweden, Maine, to be a great choice. The 62-year-old music camp combines
elements of a community music school and a summer camp, creating a musically
intense but fun environment.
“You have the full range of musical activities—band, orchestra, chorus, jazz band, rock band, musical theatre, private lessons—in combination with traditional camp activities like sports, swimming, building, hiking, campfires, cookouts and mosquitoes,” says camp director Jamie Saltman. “Our camp gets its flavor from the combination of these things.”
Campers at Encore/Coda can schedule their three- to six-and-a-half-week sessions according to their musical skills and preferences. While there is a range of interest and skill among campers, all kids who wish to attend the camp must have taken private lessons or received class instruction in music for at least one year before they can enroll in the summer program. They must also be participating in an ensemble in order to qualify as a good candidate. “Encore is not a place for someone who just likes to listen to music; they have to be playing it,” Saltman says.
According to Saltman, the study of music is a metaphor for how one approaches life.
“The issues we address when working with a child in a musical setting are absolutely applicable to life—the idea that you work at something a little bit every day and you get better at it,” he says. “The more you work at it, the more fun it is, and the better you get at it, the more you can share it with other people.”
All summer camps have the potential to positively influence the kids who attend them by allowing them to be independent, form tight social communities and build confidence in an environment away from home. But Kittrell maintains that, for the right kids, performing arts camps offer something extra special.
“Like in ‘High School Musical’ or ‘Glee,’ those kids who are interested in performance are a lot of times on the disadvantage because they’re misunderstood,” she says. “But when you’re at a camp where everyone believes in the same things you do, it validates your passion and helps you understand that you’re not different, you’re just part of a different group.”
Pictured: Camp Applause (top left); Stagedoor Manor (right); Encore/Coda (bottom left).
A Round-Up Of Performing Arts Summer Camps
Day Camps
Usdan Center for
the Creative and Performing Arts
Sleepaway Camps
Academy of Music
Festival, Nyack, NY
All Children’s Theatre, Parsippany, NJ
Appel Farm, Elmer, NJ
Beam Camp, Strafford, NH
Belvoir Terrace, Lenox, MA
Buck’s Rock Performing and Creative Arts Camp, The
Berkshires, New Milford, CT
Brant Lake Dance Camp, Brant Lake, NY
Csehy Summer School of Music, Houghton, NY
Encore/Coda, Sweden, ME
French Woods, Hancock, NY
Independent Lake Camp, Pocono Mountain, PA
Long Lake Camp for The Arts, Adirondack Park, NY
Luzerne Music Center, Adirondacks, NY
Med-O-Lark, Washington, ME
New Jersey School for Dramatic Arts, Bloomfield, NJ
New Jersey Youth Symphony, New
Providence, NJ
New York Summer Music Festival, Oneonta, NY
Stagedoor Manor, Loch Sheldrake, NY
good!
Great post, and great website. Thanks for the information!
<a href="http://www.renttobuyuk.net/">Rent To Buy</a>
Nike Air Max
Air Max
Air Max Pas Cher
Air Max France
Femme Air Max 95
Femme Air Max 90
Femme Air Max 2010
Femme Air Max LTD
Air Max 2010
Air Max 90
Air Max 95
Air Max LTD
Air Max Skyline
Air Max Tn
Air Max Classic BW
Femme Air Max Classic BW
Coach Outlet
Coach Outlet Stores
Coach Factory Store
Coach Factory Outlets
Coach Outlets Online
Coach Classic
Coach Alexandra
Coach Colette
Coach Kristin
Coach Leah
Coach Madison
Coach Poppy
Coach Classic Handbags
Coach Alexandra Tote
Coach Colette Tote
Coach Kristin Tote
Coach Leah Bags
Coach Madison Bags
Coach Poppy Bags
Chicago Blackhawks Jerseys
Blackhawks Jersey
Blackhawks Jerseys
Bobby Hull Jersey
Bobby Hull Jerseys
Duncan Keith Jersey
Duncan Keith Jerseys
Jonathan Toews Jersey
Jonathan Toews Jerseys
Patrick Kane Jersey
Patrick Kane Jerseys
Patrick Sharp Jersey
Patrick Sharp Jerseys
Stan Mikita Jersey
Stan Mikita Jerseys
Wholesale Jewelry
Wholesale Tiffany Jewelry
Wholesale Chanel Jewelry
Wholesale Pandora Jewelry
Wholesale Links Jewelry
Wholesale Bvlgari Jewelry
Wholesale Cartier Jewelry
Wholesale Coach Jewelry
Wholesale D&G Jewelry
Wholesale Dior Jewelry
Wholesale Gucci Jewelry
Wholesale Juicy Jewelry
Wholesale NFL Jewelry
Wholesale Thomas Jewelry
Wholesale LV Jewelry
Cheap Jewelry
Cheap Tiffany Jewelry
Cheap Chanel Jewelry
Cheap Pandora Jewelry
Cheap Links Jewelry
Cheap Bvlgari Jewelry
Cheap Cartier Jewelry
Cheap Coach Jewelry
Cheap D&G Jewelry
Cheap Dior Jewelry
Cheap Gucci Jewelry
Cheap Juicy Jewelry
Cheap NFL Jewelry
Cheap Thomas Jewelry
Cheap LV Jewelry
Wholesale Fashion Jewelry
Cheap Silver Jewelry
Wholesale Vivien
Wholesale Vivien bracelet
Wholesale Vivien brooch
Wholesale Vivien earring
Wholesale Vivien necklace
Wholesale Vivien ring
Air Max Pas Cher
Tory Burch Shoes
Tory Burch Flats
Tory Burch Heels
Tory Burch Sandals
#10 Vernon Wells Jersey
Toronto Blue Jays Jersey
Nike Air Max
Air Max Schoenen
Air Max Winkel
Air Max Premium
Femme Nike Air Max 180
Femme Nike Air Max 2009
Femme Nike Air Max 2010
Femme Nike Air Max 2011
Femme Nike Air Max 24-7
Femme Nike Air Max 360
Femme Nike Air Max 87
Femme Nike Air Max 90
Femme Nike Air Max 93
Femme Nike Air Max 95
Femme Nike Air Max Classic BW
Femme Nike Air Max LTD
Homme Nike Air Max 180
Homme Nike Air Max 2009
Homme Nike Air Max 2010
Homme Nike Air Max 2011
Homme Nike Air Max 24-7
Homme Nike Air Max 360
Homme Nike Air Max 87
Homme Nike Air Max 88
Homme Nike Air Max 89
Homme Nike Air Max 90
Homme Nike Air Max 91
Homme Nike Air Max 92
Homme Nike Air Max 95
Homme Nike Air Max Classic BW
Homme Nike Air Max LTD
Homme Nike Air Max Preview EU
Homme Nike Air Max Skyline
Homme Nike Air Max Tn
Homme Nike Air Max Zenyth
Nike Air Max 90 Boots
Nike Air Max 90 Kids
Nike Air Max ACG
swarovski crystals
swarovski outlet
Swarovski bracelet
Swarovski Bangles
Swarovski Earrings
Discount Sunglasses
Cheap Sunglasses
Versace Sunglasses
Designer Sunglasses
Wholesale Air Jordan
Air Jordan Retro
Nike Air Force
Nike Air Max
Sunglasses for Glasses
Sunglasses Online
Oakley Sunglasses
Polarized Sunglasses
Cheap Air Jordan
Air Jordan Shoes
Air Force Nike
Air Max Nike
Ray Ban Sunglasses
Best Sunglasses
People like the comfortable Men Nike Shox R2 ride and great stability Women Nike Shox R3 provided. You can feel less impact Men Nike Shox NZ while running and do not need to worry about Women Nike Shox OZ the stress when transferring force from the heel to the forefoot. I thought, “Oh well I’ll just tough Coach Sunglasses it out”…..Carrera Sunglasses for sale Yea I was born in Ray Ban Sunglasses outlet Minnesota, you could tough Dior Sunglasses for women out back there because they have countless Marc Jacobs Sunglasses cloudy days.