Auditions Scheduled for Budding Artists

Auditions are scheduled this month for an array of free classes to be offered this year for budding teen-age artists and entertainers.

The classes, which will start Oct. 11 for the fall semester and Jan. 31 for the spring, will be offered by the Academy of Performing and Visual Arts at five locations, including one in Glendale.

Unlike the Los Angeles County High School for the Arts, which opened last year at California State University, Los Angeles, and offers a full-time program, the academy classes will meet on Saturday mornings. Some classes will meet one evening a week.

Founded in 1984

The academy was organized in 1984 by UCLA Extension and a consortium of 41 Los Angeles County school districts to help restore arts education programs eliminated in public schools after enactment of Proposition 13, the property-tax limitation initiative approved in 1978.

The program provides instruction and guidance by arts professionals for students with talent and interest in the arts, consultant Sharon Levin said.

The program is open to students in grades 9 through 12 who live and attend school in Los Angeles County, she said. It is open to public and private school students, but most participants have come from public schools, she said.

There will be about 200 openings at each of the five schools--Glendale High School, Beverly Hills High, Redondo Union High in Redondo Beach, Excelsior High in Norwalk and Foshay Junior High in Los Angeles.

Audition Sites

Auditions will be held in the auditorium at each of those schools starting at 8:30 a.m. Sept. 27.

Students will be asked to perform for dance, voice and drama classes. A portfolio of recent artwork will be required of those interested in visual arts. Those who wish to participate may contact the academy at (213) 825-5242.

The academy’s classes and locations may change as the curriculum is modified to meet the needs of students each year, officials said.

Financing of the program is by the state, unified school districts, private donations and grants, Levin said.

The first year, the academy received $498,000 in state funds; last year funding was reduced to $329,000, she said. The academy has applied for third-year funding, and is beginning this year’s program by drawing on reserve funds, she said.