@ Our Lady of Good Counsel High School, OLNEY, MD


Learn more about our award-winning program below. Click on an icon for more information.


Musical Theatre Refinement & Execution

The Senior ACADEMY is our DAYTIME musical theatre intensive for the highly disciplined student seeking classes focused on artistic process PLUS the applied training of a full musical theatre production!

Open to rising 9th-12th graders and rising college freshmen.


All programming in summer 2023 will be in-person with health & safety as our upmost priority!

  • Each weekday morning will be spent in classes studying Acting, Dance, Voice, and Music Theory.

  • Afternoon, evenings, and weekends will be devoted to the musical theatre production:

    • staging rehearsals

    • choreography

    • music rehearsals

  • The culminating event will be a LIVE musical theatre production, featuring:

    • Faculty-led stage direction, music direction, and choreography

    • Live in-person audience (as health guidelines allow)

    • Video of production will be captured and made available to friends and family.


  • DEADLINES:

    • Registration for the Senior Academy is due no later than July 1, 2023 at 11:59pm EDT.

  • PROGRAM DATES: SENIOR ACADEMY

    • Sunday July 16 - Friday, July 28, 2023

      • Daily Monday thru Sunday from 8:30am-8:30pm.

      • includes all classes, rehearsals, and production


Senior Academy students will spend their mornings receiving combined Musical Theatre training in voice, acting, dance, and music theory with leading teachers in each discipline.

Classes may include:

  • MUSICAL THEATRE

    • Acting — improvisation, character development, and scene study

    • Dance — ballet, jazz, tap, modern, and hip-hop techniques

    • Voice — vocal technique, interpretation, music theory, and acting/movement for singers

    • Music Theory — introductory through advanced levels

Class sizes will remain small (14-16 students per class) to ensure personalized attention between teacher and students.


Afternoon, evenings and weekends will be devoted to the stage production, including:

  • staging rehearsals

  • choreography

  • music rehearsals

Casting auditions for the production will take place in-person on the first day of the program.


MAINSTAGE PRODUCTION: JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR
by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice



All listed times are Eastern Daylight Time (EDT).

Dates and times are subject to change as below is only a sample schedule.


WEEKDAYS (Monday-Friday)

  • MORNING:

    • 8:30am: Morning Meeting (ALL)

    • 8:45am: Class 1

      • Voice, Acting, Dance, Theory

    • 9:45am: Class 2

      • Voice, Acting, Dance, Theory

    • 10:45am: Class 3

      • Voice, Acting, Dance, Theory

    • 11:45am: Class 4

      • Voice, Acting, Dance, Theory

    • 12:45pm: Lunch Break (brown bag)

  • AFTERNOON / EVENING:

    • 1:30pm: Music Rehearsal for Production

    • 2:45pm: Staging for Production

    • 3:45pm: Afternoon Meeting (ALL)

    • 4:00pm: Break

    • 4:30pm: Choreography for Production

    • 5:30pm: Dinner Break (brown bag)

    • 6:30pm: Rehearsal for Production

    • 8:30pm: Dismissal



WEEKENDS (Sat-Sun)

  • MORNING:

    • 8:30am: Morning Meeting

    • 9:00am-12:30pm: Rehearsals for Production

    • 12:30pm: Lunch Break (brown bag)

  • AFTERNOON / EVENING:

    • 1:30pm: Music Rehearsal for Production

    • 2:45pm: Staging for Production

    • 3:45pm: Afternoon Meeting

    • 4:00pm: Break

    • 4:30pm: Choreography for Production

    • 5:30pm: Dinner Break (brown bag)

    • 6:30pm: Rehearsal for Production

    • 8:30pm: Dismissal



YAA will continue this summer with strict health & safety protocols in place to provide the safest possible environment for students and staff during our in-person programming.

CLICK HERE to learn more about YAA’s Health & Safety Protocols.


We are so excited in 2023 to be returning to our Academy campus at Our Lady of Good Counsel High School in Olney, MD.


The Performing Arts Center @ Good Counsel is located on the campus of the Our Lady of Good Counsel High School in Olney, MD.

The Good Counsel campus is conveniently located right of MD-200, and within 30 minutes from most of the DC/Baltimore metro areas.

The three-story, 26,000 square-foot, state-of-the-art Performing Arts Center includes multiple performance and rehearsal spaces, including:

a 650-seat proscenium theatre, set design and construction shop, dressing rooms, fully equipped orchestra pit, costume and properties shops, black box theatre, dance studio, and arts education classroom:

ERWIN MEMORIAL THEATRE @ Good Counsel

ERWIN MEMORIAL THEATRE @ Good Counsel

  • Erwin Memorial Theatre

    • 650-seat, Broadway-quality proscenium theatre

    • Main performance space for YAA productions

    • Professional theatrical lighting, audio, fly system, & set design and construction scene shop

    • Dressing rooms

    • Costume & Props shops

    • Fully equipped orchestra pit


 

DANCE STUDIO @ Good Counsel

  • Rehearsal Spaces

    • Multipurpose black box studio with theatrical lighting, sprung floor, and various seating configurations

    • Dance Studio with sprung floor

    • Large Chorus and Instrumental music rehearsal rooms

 


When not in class or rehearsing for the production, Academy students will have the opportunity to participate in extracurricular recreational activities which may include:

  • Theatre field trip to a local theater to see a professional production

  • Outdoor activities

  • ...and more


Artistic Faculty & Staff

Click here to read more about our Summer Intensives Faculty & Staff.

Terry Eberhardt, Director of SPAI

Paul Heinemann, Assistant Director of SPAI, Junior Music Director

Karen Collins BlakeCamp Mom, SPAI

Kristina Friedgen, Artistic Administrator, Stage Director

Carole Graham Lehan, Stage Director & Acting: Senior

Jackie Bautista, Production Stage Manager & COVID Compliance Officer

Kathryn Bailey,  Assistant Vocal Director

Wayne Allen  Lead Counselor

Colleen Daly, Voice

Madeline Rodrigue, Director of Dance

Julia Rippon, Dance: Junior

Alex Palting, Acting: Junior

Luke Spence, Director of Trumpet Academy

Malcolm Washington, Music Theory

Rolando SanzProducing Artistic Director


All students are automatically accepted into the Academy program upon registration.

Students should register by May 1, 2023 at 11:59pm EDT to guarantee a spot in the program.


VIDEO AUDITIONS (FOR PLACEMENT):

All students are accepted into the program upon completion of registration. A video audition will be required after registration for class placement purposes only. Students who do not submit placement videos will be considered novices and placed accordingly.

  • Please prepare two contrasting selections.

    • This may be 2 songs, 2 monologues, or 1 song and 1 monologue.

    • Material selected should show your range and reflect the material you are interested in.

IN-PERSON CASTING AUDITIONS (FOR PRODUCTIONS):

Casting auditions for roles in the Production will take place separately during the first day of each session.

If you are interested in learning more about our OVERNIGHT Senior Conservatory program (which includes full production in 2023), click here.


TBA Date

  • MANDATORY Virtual Orientation for all students and families

    • Zoom link forthcoming to registered families


Senior Academy

  • Early-Bird Discount: ($100 discount)

    • $2,595 (automatically applied at registration through March 1, 2023)

  • Regular Tuition:

    • $2,695 per two-week fully in-person session

 

Payment:

  • A deposit of $500 is due upon registration

  • 2nd payment of half of the remaining balance is due by May 1, 2023 (non-refundable).

  • Final balance due on June 1, 2023 (non-refundable).

  • Alternative payment plans can be arranged by contacting info@yaa.org.

Tuition Includes:

  • Participation in the Senior Academy's in-person production: JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR

  • All morning classes, PLUS all afternoon, evening, and weekend rehearsals and social activities

  • Extended recreational activities, which may include:

    • Outdoor activities

    • Field trip to a professional theatre to see a show

    • ...and more

  • A two-week summer daytime intensive experience that you won't soon forget!

Cancellation Policy: Should you need to withdraw from the program for any reason, please inform us in writing. If you have any funds due to you based on the above policy, we will return them immediately to the credit card on file in your account.

  • PLEASE NOTE FOR JUNIOR AND SENIOR ACADEMIES: Should we need to cease in-person programming for health and safety reasons, YAA will replace the cancelled in-person sessions with similar virtual ones and there will be no tuition refunds or adjustments for this change.


  • Those who wish to be considered for a scholarship or financial aid need to submit an application to us no later than June 1, 2023.

  • Please contact Lisa Larragoite at lisa@yaa.org for more information.

  • Tuition Assistance is limited.



+ What is the difference between Senior Academy and Senior Conservatory?

The main difference is that Senior Academy is a DAYTIME program, while Senior Conservatory is an all-inclusive OVERNIGHT program. Both programs run for two weeks.

Senior Academy students are on campus daily from 8:30am-8:30pm at the Performing Arts Center @ Our Lady of Good Counsel High School in Olney, MD. The 2023 production for Senior Academy is JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR.

Senior Conservatory students are in residence at the The Clarice @ University of Maryland, Colllege Park 24/7 for the full duration of the two weeks with full room and board, recreational activities, plus a field trip to see a professional production included in the tuition. The 2023 production for Senior Conservatory is GYPSY.

Both programs feature similar immersive musical theatre training, with classes in voice, acting, dance, and music theory during the day and rehearsals for a mainstage production in the afternoons, evenings, and weekends.

Both the Senior Academy and Senior Conservatory will be fully in-person programs in 2023.


+ How exactly will we pull off off a full live stage production of a full musical in two weeks?

As always, we will have a blueprint for success. Staging, music, and choreography rehearsals will take place in-person at the same intensive pace that students are used to from SPAI. We will always set every student up for success! This is an INTENSIVE after all!


+ How will the final performances work?

The Erwin Theatre at Good Counsel has a capacity of 650 in the audience, so we will be able to accommodate more of your friends and family that in the past.

The performances of JESUS CHRIST SUPERSTAR will take place on Thursday, July 27, 2023 at 7:00pm and Friday, July 28, 2023 at 7:00pm in the Performing Arts Center @ Good Counsel. Tickets will be made available to participants first about a week before the performances, followed by opening them to the public.