School of American Ballet Auditions for Summer Course

            Santa Monica-area ballet students are invited to audition for the School of American Ballet’s 2013 Summer Course on Sunday, January 20,   from 10:30 a.m. to 6:30 p.m.  The auditions will be held at Westside School of Ballet, 1709 Stewart Street, Santa Monica (310-826-2018).  The times are as follows:

                                                10:30 – 11:30 a.m. for 10 year olds

                                                11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. for 11 year olds

                                                12:30 – 2:00 p.m. for 12 year olds

                                                2:00 – 3:30 p.m. for 13 year olds

                                                3:30 -- 5:00 p.m. for 14-15 year olds

                                                5:00 – 6:30 p.m. for 16-18 year olds

Students should arrive one hour in advance of their audition time to register.  Optional preregistration for the audition is also currently available on SAB’s web site at www.sab.org/summercourse.  The application fee is $35. Auditions are for intermediate and advanced ballet students, 12 to 18 years old as of July 31, 2013.  All students should bring a copy of their birth certificates to the audition.  Girls must bring pointe shoes to the audition.

            During the next month, more than 2,000 aspiring ballet dancers in 20 cities will vie for approximately 200 coveted spots in SAB’s five-week summer program in New York City.  Suzanne Farrell, Darci Kistler, Sara Mearns, Ethan Stiefel, Gelsey Kirland, Benjamin Millepied and Wendy Whelan are just a few of the notable dancers who attended the School of American Ballet as part of their formative training. 

            The School of American Ballet, founded 79 years ago by legendary choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein, is the premier ballet academy in the United States and trains more students who become professional ballet dancers than any other American school.  SAB’s former students fill the ranks of the New York City Ballet and other leading U.S. and international ballet companies.  Students invited to SAB’s Summer Course will attend classes at the School’s Lincoln Center headquarters from June 24 to July 27.  The 2013 National Audition Tour is sponsored by Freed of London. 

            For more information, visit www.sab.org or call the School of American Ballet at (212) 769-6600.