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Fall Classes
in Elementary School Programs
Monday Musical Theatre Explorations (Code 111)
with Paul and Katrinah
Dates/Time: Mondays (September 16 to December 9; no class 11/4) from 4PM to 5PM
Location: In person at SPARC
Grades: 1st through 4th
All levels of experience are welcome! Teachers in this class will work with youth at all levels of experience to help them reach their goals.
Song and dance are front and center in Musical Theatre Explorations! Children who love to belt tunes in the car or follow along with the latest online dance trends will love this class. Young people will get new perspectives on songs from their favorite musicals and movies when they are paired with teaching artists’ original choreography. Students will also gain experience in acting by working with a script and learning popular improv games.
In addition to expanding confidence in musical theatre, students will also practice multi-tasking, taking artistic risks, and memorization. Teamwork is also emphasized as students learn how to work as an ensemble. At the end of this course, youth will share musical theatre songs for a small audience of friends and family. No two semesters are the same, and students often enjoy taking this course more than once!
Interested in scholarships? Read this page first
*Teachers subject to change.
Photo Credit: Liz Earnest
Tuesday Acting & Improv Explorations (Code 111)
with Laine W.
Dates/Time: Tuesdays (September 17 to December 10; no class 11/5) from 4PM to 5PM
Location: In person at SPARC
Grades: 1st to 4th
All levels of experience are welcome! Teachers in this class will work with youth at all levels of experience to help them reach their goals.
This collaborative, creative class is the perfect fit for young people with big ideas! Led by their teachers playing in-role beside them, students develop characters and embark on a new adventure in every class guided by their imaginations. This class builds theatrical skills like characterization, improvisation, and storytelling, as well as transferable skills like decision-making, teamwork, and mutual respect. Students will also learn elements of story structure and how to create a plot with multiple characters, conflict, and resolution. At the end of this course, students will share some of their favorite activities and adventures with a small audience of friends and family. Each course is a new discovery in creativity. As such, your child can take this course multiple times and learn something new each session.
Interested in scholarships? Read this page first
*Teachers subject to change.
Photo Credit: Liz Earnest
Tuesday Musical Theatre Explorations (Code 111)
with Heather and Laine
Dates/Time: Tuesdays (September 17 to December 10; no class 11/5) from 5:15PM to 6:15PM
Location: In person at SPARC
Grades: 1st through 4th
All levels of experience are welcome! Teachers in this class will work with youth at all levels of experience to help them reach their goals.
Song and dance are front and center in Musical Theatre Explorations! Children who love to belt tunes in the car or follow along with the latest online dance trends will love this class. Young people will get new perspectives on songs from their favorite musicals and movies when they are paired with teaching artists’ original choreography. Students will also gain experience in acting by working with a script and learning popular improv games.
In addition to expanding confidence in musical theatre, students will also practice multi-tasking, taking artistic risks, and memorization. Teamwork is also emphasized as students learn how to work as an ensemble. At the end of this course, youth will share musical theatre songs for a small audience of friends and family. No two semesters are the same, and students often enjoy taking this course more than once!
Interested in scholarships? Read this page first
*Teachers subject to change.
Photo Credit: Liz Earnest
Audition Prep Sessions (Code 111)
with Laine W.
Dates: September 17 to December 10; no class 11/5
Time: 7pm-8pm
Grades: 4th to 12th
Audition prep is a one-hour one on one session with a SPARC faculty member focused on preparing students for a successful audition experience. Students will work on audition materials of their choosing for auditions at SPARC, school, and community theaters in the Richmond area. If students are new to auditioning, they will receive guidance on how to select materials that are best suited for them for future audition opportunities.
Sessions will take place in-person at SPARC (2106 North Hamilton Street Richmond, VA 23230) and can be booked on a week by week basis. To book an Audition Prep Session, please follow this link to our calendar and payment page.
Sessions will consist of monologue review, improv practice, and other tools to assist your student in their theatre career. Sessions can include a music focus with enough lead time. You will be asked more specific details about your prep needs on the booking page.
Showstoppers Jr. Wednesday Session 2nd-3rd Grade - London Cast (Code 111)
with Paul and Katrinah
Dates/Time: Wednesdays, starting September 18; no class 11/27, from 4:30PM to 6:00 PM, with 2 performance dates (December 14 and December 18). Please see detailed schedule below.
Location: In person at SPARC
Grades: 2nd and 3rd Grade
Showstoppers Jr. is a semester-long program for young people grades who are ready to commit to a rehearsal and performance process without the stress of an audition. Students in this class will meet for an hour and thirty minutes once a week. During that time, the cast of Showstoppers Jr. will learn skills like audition preparation, rehearsal etiquette, collaboration, and – of course – they’ll learn their show!
This fall, Showstoppers Jr. presents Neverland Adventures, a series of Peter Pan inspired scripts from Drama Notebook.
Performance Dates: December 14 and December 18
Interested in scholarships? Read this page first.
*Teaching artists subject to change.
Showstoppers Jr. Wednesday Session 2nd-3rd Grade - Neverland Cast (Code 111)
with Heather and Trina
Dates/Time: Wednesdays, starting September 18; no class 11/27, from 4:30PM to 6:00 PM, with 2 performance dates (December 14 and December 18). Please see detailed schedule below.
Location: In person at SPARC
Grades: 2nd and 3rd Grade
Showstoppers Jr. is a semester-long program for young people grades who are ready to commit to a rehearsal and performance process without the stress of an audition. Students in this class will meet for an hour and thirty minutes once a week. During that time, the cast of Showstoppers Jr. will learn skills like audition preparation, rehearsal etiquette, collaboration, and – of course – they’ll learn their show!
This fall, Showstoppers Jr. presents Neverland Adventures, a series of Peter Pan inspired scripts from Drama Notebook.
Performance Dates: December 14 and December 18
Interested in scholarships? Read this page first.
*Teaching artists subject to change.
Intermediate Musical Theatre Explorations (Code 111)
with Paul and Katrinah
Dates/Time: Thursdays (September 19 to December 19; no class 10/3 and 11/28) from 4:00PM to 5:00PM
Location: In person at SPARC
Grades: 1st to 4th
Students must have completed at least 1 year of previous SPARC programming to enroll in this course. (Example: Two semesters of SPARC classes or one SPARC summer camp & one semester of SPARC class.)
This Intermediate Musical Theatre class is designed to support students who have excelled in their studies in Musical Theatre and would benefit from a more rigorous curriculum.
The focus of SPARC's intermediate classes will be to provide students with more advanced performance materials and guide them through an in-depth process in developing the performer's tool kit.
Interested in Scholarships? Read this page first!
*Teachers subject to change.
Photo Credit: Liz Earnest
Intermediate Acting & Improv Explorations (Code 111)
with Heather F.
Dates/Time: Thursdays (September 19 to December 19 no class 10/3 and 11/28) from 5:15PM to 6:15PM
Location: In person at SPARC
Grades: 1st to 4th
Students must have completed at least 1 year of previous SPARC programming to enroll in this course. (Example: Two semesters of SPARC classes or one SPARC summer camp & one semester of SPARC class.)
This Intermediate Acting & Improv class is designed to support students who have excelled in their studies in Acting & Improv and would benefit from a more rigorous curriculum.
The focus of SPARC's intermediate classes will be to provide students with more advanced performance materials and guide them through an in-depth process in developing the performer's tool kit.
Interested in scholarships? Read this page first
*Teachers subject to change.
Photo Credit: Liz Earnest