NORTH SHORE SUMMER THEATER WORKSHOP IS BACK!

Apply Today To Join A Great Tradition!

Sea Cliff, NY, January 15, 2015 - Revived after a decade-long hiatus, the North Shore Summer Theater Workshop is accepting applications from students in grades 7 through 12 for six weeks of intensive production-based instruction in all aspects of the dramatic arts.  The beloved program, which ran for 42 years before falling to budget cuts, was revived thanks to efforts of dedicated alumni, among them the district's most celebrated performers.

With space for up to 60 students, and a wait list for 6th graders,  the workshop will take place in the air-conditioned performing arts facilities of North Shore HS Mondays through Thursdays, June 29 to August 6 from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. (after summer school classes) with additional evening hours added for technical rehearsals in the final two weeks.  Performances will be July 31 and August 1, 7 and 8.  Two productions are envisioned, according to producer Julia Brennan of North Shore Arts Angels Inc., which is overseeing the program. A selection of one-act plays will be performed on the first weekend followed by a musical with a student orchestra on the second weekend.  Staff will be comprised of theater professionals and theater educators supported by paid college-age interns.

Thousands of North Shore students have participated in the Summer Theater Workshop which ran from the summer of 1962 to the summer of 2003, including one season when four musicals were staged (see poster).  Over 140 alumni returned to the NSHS stage in June of 2013 to participate in the Viking Masquers 50th Anniversary Gala, a musical revue that raised funds to revive the summer program as an entity independent of the school district, which had cut funding in 2004 after a rare school budget defeat.  

Actor Michael McKean NSHS '63 (on TV in "Laverne & Shirley," on film in "This Is Spinal Tap" and most recently on Broadway in "All the Way") sent a film (view it here) recalling his first audition for Summer Theater Workshop founder Bruce Mooney, and actress Kate McKinnon NSHS '02, a current cast member of "Saturday Night Live," also known for her work on the "Big Gay Sketch Comedy Show" and the Upright Citizens Brigade, performed a number with her sister, the actress and director Emily Berthold, NSHS '07.  

The alumni event raised over $45,000 to help keep tuition affordable.  The pay-one-price tuition of $1,800 includes over 120 hours of performance-based instructional time, a refundable $100 damages fee, two tickets to each performance, a souvenir t-shirt, program and poster, tech week meals, and all materials associated wtih the workshop.  Full and partial tuition assistance is available for qualified students.  

To learn more or to apply as a participant or intern, visit the program website:  www.summertheaterworkshop.org

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