LEXINGTON, Ky.—Some 225 of Kentucky’s best young artists from 46 counties will assemble on Transylvania’s campus on Sunday, June 20, to begin the three-week 2010 session of the Governor’s School for the Arts.
The latest GSA class is comprised of rising juniors and seniors from all regions of the Commonwealth who will receive top-level training through daily seminars, master classes, lectures, hands-on workshops and field trips to various arts attractions in central Kentucky.
The student-artists will receive instruction in a total of nine areas. Those disciplines are architecture, creative writing, dance, drama, instrumental music, musical theatre, new media, visual arts and vocal music.
Over 4,200 of the state’s most talented high school artists from all 120 counties have attended the 23-year-old GSA summer program following a rigorous selection process. Each year since the program’s inception in 1987, over 1,500 students have applied annually for one of the available scholarships, valued at more than $3,000. Currently, 18 colleges and universities, including Transylvania, offer scholarships to GSA alumni.
The program will culminate on Saturday, July 10, with an all-day festival at Transy that celebrates the achievements of the young artists through performances that are open to family, friends and the public. Graduation ceremonies are held at approximately 5 p.m.
Transylvania and Lexington have hosted the GSA program annually since 2000 and recently announced an agreement to keep the program on campus at least through 2011.
“The presence of the Governor’s School for the Arts on our campus each summer is an eagerly anticipated event,” said Transylvania president Charles L. Shearer. “Those talented young people have really become focal points of our summer activities and camps. Our long relationship with the GSA has demonstrated that our arts and performance facilities are a perfect match for their unique and varied needs. And the presence of the students each summer, rehearsing and performing, adds an element of richness to our campus through their daily rehearsals and performances.”
Program highlights in 2010 include performances by Henry Pickens and Jeff Jamner, Frank X Walker, Reginald D. Betts, and Randall, Horton and Angelique Clay. The session will also include presentations by the EKU Brass Quintet, Flamenco Louisville and filmmaker Peter Byck.
The GSA will also travel to Louisville for a backstage tour of the Kentucky Center for the Arts, viewing the Kentucky Show, on June 26.
The GSA is a public and private partnership inaugurated in 1987 by The Kentucky Center for the Arts, the Commonwealth of Kentucky and several private supporters. State funding for the program is provided by the Governor’s Office and the Tourism, Arts, and Heritage Cabinet with further support from The Kentucky Center Endowment Fund, Toyota Motor Manufacturing and over 200 corporations, parents, educators, alumni and friends of GSA.
Media members are encouraged to attend daily sessions of the Governor’s School for the Arts as well as opening day and final day performances. Instructional days begin with morning announcements in Haggin Auditorium in the Mitchell Fine Arts Building at 9 a.m. Monday through Friday. For additional information about the program, contact GSA executive director Heather Weston Bell at (859) 281-3509 or www.kentuckygsa.com.