Students at the new Rising Stars Performing Arts Academy in Deal study their scripts during a trial acting workshop. Education director Anthony Greco, standing, is at the head of the table.
Photo courtesy Ruth Hyman JCC
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January 6, 2009
Young performers will have a new venue in Deal, when the Rising Stars Performing Arts Academy begins classes on Feb. 1.
Rising Stars’ classes and live performances will take place at the Axelrod Performing Arts Center, a 550-seat theater at the Ruth Hyman Jewish Community Center. The curriculum will include workshops in theater, dance, and vocals for students in grades one through eight.
An open house for the academy will take place at the Axelrod PAC from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 11. Faculty and students from Rising Stars will be on hand to discuss the academy’s various programs and areas of study.
Although several trial workshops are scheduled to take place this month, the final class schedule is still under development. Classes will be conducted several times each week simultaneously. While some students will be rehearsing dialogue on stage with their director, others will practice musical selections near the academy’s baby grand piano, or polish their moves in ballet and Broadway dance in the dance studio.
“Rising Stars will provide an excellent opportunity for kids to explore and refine their talents,” said education director Anthony Greco. “The academy will give students individualized attention in the artistic discipline of their choice in a way that just being in a play does not.”
In addition to providing a creative environment, academy programs will enhance personal growth, he added.
“It’s really the first time there is an opportunity for young people who don’t have an outlet through sports activities or private lessons to concentrate on theater, dance, performing, and music,” said Greco, an Ocean Township resident. “The kids can meet at a central location in the community, and the academy will help them increase their self-confidence and self-esteem while helping them to mature on personal and professional levels.”
Besides Greco, who is resident director at Monmouth Regional High School in Tinton Falls and has costumed, directed, and appeared in several productions at the Axelrod PAC, academy personnel will include instructors from the Academy of Dance Arts in Red Bank, along with instructors from various community theater programs in the Monmouth County area.
“Rising Stars’ outstanding faculty and the Axelrod PAC’s great facilities will make this program the premier performing arts academy for youth in our county,” said Jess Levy, the Deal JCC’s former chief executive officer, who is now in charge of programming and endowments at the PAC. “We’re thrilled to have these faculty members on board.”
Rising Stars is part of the growth and expansion of the Axelrod center, which opened in 2005. The new academy was created in response to requests from area students and parents for additional professional programs for young people, Levy said.
For Sarah Chrem of Deal, whose daughter, Janet, a sixth-grade student at Hillel Yeshiva in Ocean, will be among the Rising Stars students, the academy will provide a professional setting for children to explore creative pursuits.
“My daughter has been in a lot of plays and has worked with great choreographers and directors,” said Chrem. “But Rising Stars will provide exceptional individualized instruction. The faculty is especially gifted with children, and I’m amazed at how engaged and excited the prospective students are.”
Additional information about the arts academy is available at 732-531-9100.
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