The New Jersey Performing Arts Center’s Arts Education Department is currently registering students after-school and Saturday classes, open to young people ages 10 to 18. Classes are offered in hip-hop, dance, jazz, musical theater, band and Arts Education’s newest class, filmmaking.
NJPAC’s Arts Education program also offers a musical theater workshop which this fall will focus on the musical Seussical Jr. Performances will be held on February 2 and 3, 2017 in the Horizon Black Box Theater in NJPAC’s Center for Arts Education, located at 24 Rector Street, Newark.
Alison Scott-Williams, Vice President of Arts Education, says “NJPAC’s Arts Education Department offers a variety of unique performance and education classes for students ages 10 to 18. Whether you are a beginner or aspiring Broadway star, by working with NJPAC faculty students will build technique and develop their own style of creative expression in the performing arts, all while having fun.”
Students who are enrolled in NJPAC’s Performing Arts Training programs are offered a unique opportunity to engage in activities at the Arts Center, ranging from open rehearsal to meet-and-greets to workshops with professional companies, as well as receiving tickets to select NJPAC performances, and even chances to perform before NJPAC audiences.
NJPAC FILMMAKERS
(ages 14-18 (High School), Tuesday, 5 PM to 8 PM, Saturdays, 10 AM to 5 PM)
NJPAC announces its new program in collaboration with Downtown Community TV, NJPAC Filmmakers, a year-long filmmaking arts training program. Through weekly classes, students will learn the fundamentals of filmmaking with an emphasis on creating their own original films. Students will attain artistic and technical skills in camera, audio, and editing systems; practice the art of storytelling using design, lighting, sound and image; and create documentaries, music videos, and/or public service announcements. Students will attain skills in media literacy and analysis; view and deconstruct films in roundtable discussions with media professionals. The program will host an end-of-the-year film sharing, where the students will showcase their work.
JAZZ
Wells Fargo Jazz for Teens (ages 13-18, Saturdays 10 AM-5 PM) offers music students from diverse communities mentoring and instruction by leading jazz artists. This integrative jazz program gives students who plan future careers in music a competitive edge for college admissions. Private lessons are available.
Brick City Jazz Orchestra (ages 13-18, Saturdays from 9 AM-11 AM) is the hallmark ensemble comprised of aspiring teenage jazz players from the Greater Newark area. The program offers master classes with jazz professionals and the opportunity to perform throughout the tri-state region.
DANCE
Contemporary Modern Dance with Carolyn Dorfman Dance
(ages 10-18, Wednesdays from 6 PM – 8 PM)
Study with members of the acclaimed Carolyn Dorfman Dance, a company that has been hailed as “ingenious” (The Star-Ledger) and “emotionally resonant” (The New York Times). Students will be challenged physically and intellectually as fine-tune technique and learn the art of communicating through movement.
Dorfman Technique and the Creative Process: The Art of Specificity with company member Justin Dominic
NJPAC and Carolyn Dorfman Dance offer a fall workshop for intermediate and advanced dancers. Each two-hour workshop will embrace the company’s contemporary modern technique, repertory and process of creation.
The workshops, which will be held on Saturdays throughout October from 11 AM -1 PM, are led by Justin Dominic, a proud Newark resident who began his dance training at Newark Arts High School, received the NJPAC Star-Ledger Scholarship in 2006, and was a fellowship student at the Ailey School.
MUSIC
Hip Hop Intensive (ages 12-16, Tuesdays and Thursdays, 6 PM-8 PM, plus one Saturday per month)
Young people learn the four major elements of hip-hop: spoken word (MCing), dance(breaking, popping and locking), music (DJing and beat boxing) and visual art (graffiti). Students will explore issues that are important to them and their community. Students enhance their performance and writing skills and share their original work with confidence and style.
MANY
(Music Advancement for Newark Area Youth)
MANY is a partnership designed to provide students in the Greater Newark-area with high quality instrumental music instruction. Initiated by two of New Jersey’s premier performing arts organizations, NJPAC and the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra (NJSO), MANY offers programs for beginner and experienced students alike. Participants can study string, woodwind, brass and percussion instruments with the goal of developing musical and instrumental proficiency while building leadership skills.
The program is open to students in grades 5-10 (ages 10-15) in the following communities: Bayonne, Belleville, Bloomfield, East Orange, Elizabeth, Harrison, Hillside, Irvington, Jersey City, Kearny, Maplewood, Newark, Orange, Paterson and South Orange.
NJPAC Symphonic Band (Tuesdays and Thursdays 6 PM-8 PM)
The NJPAC Symphonic Band is designed for students with little or no prior instrumental experience and provides a musical foundation in woodwinds, brass and percussion.
Jazz Band (Tuesdays and Thursdays 6 PM-8 PM)
Intermediate level students will have the opportunity to focus on jazz. The Jazz Band will build individual style and develop listening skills through improvisation, ensemble balance and teamwork.
NJSO Training Ensemble (Saturdays 12-2pm)
The NJSO Training Ensemble provides intensive musical instruction and leadership development to beginner and intermediate students of all orchestral instruments.
Generous support for Performing Arts Training programs at NJPAC , provided, in part, by: Women’s Association of NJPAC, Merck Foundation, ADP, Prudential Financial, Victoria Foundation, PSEG Foundation, and New Jersey State Council on the Arts.
For more information and to register for After-School and Saturday classes at NJPAC, visit njpac.org/getacceptd, email artseducaton@njpac.org or call (973) 353-7058.
