Beauty and the Beast Auditions Scheduled At FSPA 8/11-12

Franklin School for the Performing Arts (FSPA's) 2011 SummerStage program gets underway with auditions for Disney's Beauty and the Beast, to be performed August 11 and 12 at the Thomas D. Mercer Auditorium, Horace Mann Middle School. Auditions for students in grades 5 and up will be held Saturday, May 7th or by appointment, at FSPA, 38 Main Street.

Based on the 1991 movie of the same name, Beauty and the Beast played on Broadway between 1994 and 2007, making it the eighth longest-running Broadway musical of all time. The lyrical score, written by Alan Menken, features many of the same musical numbers from the movie, including "Be Our Guest" and "Beauty and the Beast."
The auditions are for placement purposes only and all SummerStage students will be cast in the production. The audition schedule for May 7th is: grades 5 & 6, 1:30 p.m.; grades 7 & 8, 2:00 p.m.; and grades 9 and up, 2:30 p.m. Students should prepare 16 measures of a musical theater or pop song for the audition.

Some of Beauty and the Beast's lead roles include Beast/Young Prince, a prince transformed into a terrifying beast; Belle, a vibrant, intelligent young beauty; Gaston, the egotistical villain determined to marry Belle; Lumiere, a suave, debonair candelabra who is the valet of the castle; and Mrs. Potts, a maternal teapot who is the cook of the castle.

In addition to SummerStage, FSPA will hold an assortment of one-week camps for the school's 26th annual summer session. The menu of performing arts camps includes Camp GLEE, Rock and Jazz Instrumental Camps, Dance Camps, Voice, Acting and Musical Theater Camps and a Creative Kids Camp for young children.
Inspired by the popular Fox TV show, Camp GLEE will be held July 25 through 29. The FSPA staff will lead students in grades 5-12 in the staging of popular songs including "Jump," "Defying Gravity," from Wicked, "Hello/Goodbye," and Journey's "Don't Stop Believin.'" GLEEKS will be divided into glee club teams and learn choreography for the songs. The camp will conclude with a GLEE competition and celebration on the final camp day.

For the first time, FSPA will offer summer Instrumental Camps for musicians of all ages, during which students will have the opportunity to jam with talented area musicians and learn from several well-known Boston professionals. Rock Camp, to be held July 5-8, will be under the direction of bassist and arranger Mark Poniatowski of the Berklee School of Music and drummer Kenny Hadley. Jazz Camp will run August 1-5 under the direction of Hadley and saxophonist Arnie Krakowsky. Both instrumental camps will conclude with a performance.
For musical theater enthusiasts, FSPA will offer Broadway Camp, July 18-22

and /or August 15-19 for grades 1 - 6. Triple Threat Camp, geared toward musical theater students in grades 5-9 with performance experience, will take place August 16-18 and will focus on performance skills in a master class format. From August 16-18, high school students can hone their craft in a Musical Theater Audition Intensive, which provides valuable coaching and participation in mock vocal, dance and acting auditions. This program is geared toward students planning to audition for college musical theater degree programs.

For younger children, Creative Kids Camp will engage and entertain campers ages 5-7 with drama games, theater activities, singing, dancing and crafts from August 15-19. The youngest campers are invited to Little Music Camp sessions including Rattles and Rhythms (ages 1 and 2), Wee Play (ages 3 and 4) and Do Re Me! (ages 5 and 6) with FSPA's Little Music School Director Kim Rezendes during the weeks of July 18-22 and/or August 1-5.

Teen intermediate and advanced dancers in grades 7 - 12 will focus on various contemporary genres in Jazz Dance Styles Camp, July 11 - 15. Young beginner dancers are invited to a Dance Camp July 18-22 to be introduced to all dance disciplines. Young singers in Grades 3-8 (boys voices unchanged) are able to enjoy a one-week Voice Camp August 15 - 19 to develop technique and confidence. Voice Camp concludes with a recital.

Founded in 1985, FSPA brings all performing arts disciplines together under one roof, offering Music, Dance and Drama training to both students interested in serious study and those who enjoy the arts for recreation. Beginners are welcome in all programs.

To register for SummerStage, camps or any other summer program at FSPA, call The School at (508) 528-8668. For further information, visit online at www.fspaonline.com.

To post a comment, you must register and login.