TUTS’ HUMPHREYS SCHOOL OF MUSICAL THEATRE ANNOUNCES NEW SPRING CURRICULUM

HOUSTON, TEXAS…Get your New Year off to a great start when Theatre Under The Stars’ Humphreys School of Musical Theatre kicks off its exciting and new spring curriculum. Beginning in mid-January, TUTS’ Humphreys School of Musical Theatre will offer a variety of musical theatre classes through The Studio. Open to students ages 2-adult, The Studio will include highlights such as the return of “Broadway Babies,” “Musical Theatre Performance Workshops” and the newly anticipated classes “Acting Studio with Justin Doran” and “Swinging with TUTS.” All classes will be held in the TUTS Studios located at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts (800 Bagby at Walker).

Parents and children ages 2-4 will sing and dance together in “Broadway Babies,” an introductory musical theatre workshop for families. Colorful tactile props will increase children’s visual awareness and simple motor skills.

“Extra Play Acting,” open to children ages 2-4, offers an “extra” 45 minutes of creative playtime. Open to students who were previously enrolled in “Broadway Babies,” this course encourages students to use their own creativity to develop confidence and enhance physical coordination.

“Theatre Games for Groups,” open to ages 2 and up, offers students a chance to perform popular Broadway and Hollywood songs. Students will stage a different musical number at the end of each session.

Children ages 4-6 will study beloved Broadway and Hollywood songs, as well as rhyming dialogues that teach singing, dancing and acting in “Musical Theatre Performance Workshops.” Students will develop confidence, enhance physical coordination and expand social skills.

Youths ages 7-12 will rehearse a mini-musical once a week for ten weeks in “After-School Musical Theatre Performance Workshops.” This class will culminate in an end-of-session showcase for family and friends. A different musical will be saluted each week.

Sing and dance to favorite childhood Broadway and Hollywood songs in “After School Creative Drama and Dance.” Students ages 4-6 will learn rhyming dialogues and staging as they sing, dance and act to popular show tunes. This course will culminate in an end-of-session showcase for family and friends.

Learn the hottest new dance techniques taking the streets by storm in “X-Dancing with Alex Arizpe.” Students ages 11 and up will learn basic street and break dancing moves mixed with dance technique in this fast-paced class. A new combination will be introduced each week.

Open to youths ages 10-18, “Acting Studio with Justin Doran,” teaches students acting techniques from a Master, in this four-hour Workshop Intensive. Doran will teach techniques such as stage combat, audition skills, improvisation, diction, character analysis and creative writing.

Were you inspired by televisions latest dance sensation? Now, open to adults ages 18 and up, professional dancers/choreographers will teach a variety of ballroom dances in “Swinging with TUTS.” Learn the basic elements of musical theatre specialty dancing including Disco, Country Western, Jitterbug, Waltz and Tango. Sign up with a partner or come on your own.

To register for classes, call TUTS’ Humphreys School of Musical Theatre at (713) 558-8801 or visit www.tuts.com to download a registration form. No audition is required and class cost, days and dates may vary.

Since 1972, the Humphreys School of Musical Theatre, the official training wing of Theatre Under The Stars, has provided a superb and thrilling forum for musical theatre training for children and adults. Housed in the TUTS Studios at the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, its year-round schedule is conducted by an outstanding professional faculty and renowned resident artists who inspire and train students in every aspect of musical theatre, from vocal technique and choreography to costume design and prop construction.

Theatre Under The Stars (TUTS) was founded in 1968 by Frank M. Young. TUTS was the first theatrical organization in Houston to perform free to the public at Miller Outdoor Theatre in Hermann Park, and is the only Houston arts organization that has performed there free to the public every year since the building opened. Since its founding, TUTS has produced more than 275 musicals including many local, national and world premieres and is currently represented on Broadway with Beauty and the Beast. TUTS is also noted for mounting many International tours, including Debbie Reynolds in The Unsinkable Molly Brown, Juliet Prowse in Mame, Robert Goulet in Man of La Mancha and the Tony Award-winning revival of Carousel. As a way to continue the tradition of musical theatre, TUTS’ Humphreys School of Musical Theatre provides instruction and stage experience for more than 1,700 students annually. Now housed in the new Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, TUTS also annually presents the Tommy Tune Awards, honoring the best and brightest in Houston’s high school musical theatre programs.

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