Juilliard in Aiken Kickoff of 2012 Festival and Outreach Program in Aiken, South Carolina
Expanded Lineup for March 10-16, 2012 Festival Includes Daily Matinee and Evening Performances Plus School Programs for All Ages
(Aiken, South Carolina) - It’s the awe on the faces of a class of grade-schoolers at a Kidz Bop concert. The magic of experiencing world-class jazz in the warm ambiance of a historic inn. The thrill of being in the audience as a young cabaret singer holds her listeners spellbound not only with her voice, but with her own energy and excitement.
It’s the 2012 Performing Arts Festival and outreach program of the famed Juilliard School. And this is the only place in the world where you can participate in it.
Dr. Sandra Field, President of Juilliard in Aiken and an organizer of the festival, said that the lineup of March 2012 events for Aiken’s one-of-a-kind collaboration with the prestigious performing arts school is even more extensive than last year’s.
“For 2012 we’re offering daily matinee and evening performances, and two showcase concerts,” she said. “We’ve also expanded the outreach program to be able to reach children of all grade levels -- elementary, middle and high school students.”
She noted that the 35 Juilliard students and graduates who will come to Aiken in March to perform and teach are among the most talented young musicians and dancers in the world.
“These really are the rising stars,” she said. “Jennifer Sheehan, the cabaret singer who will perform during the festival and also emcee the showcase concerts, already is getting rave reviews in New York. So is Juilliard415, the School’s early music ensemble.”
Aiken’s collaboration with Juilliard dates to 2008, when Pulitzer Prize-winning authors Greg Smith and Steve Naifeh bequeathed their home, Joye Cottage, to the music conservatory. The 2012 season of performances will be the fourth since Juilliard in Aiken (the non-profit organization formed to oversee the festival and outreach program) was founded.
New to the festival this year, Field said, will be a multicultural percussion ensemble and the period instrument ensemble from the Historical Performance Department. Juilliard Dance and the School’s most advanced Jazz Artist Diploma Quintet, both popular last year, will be returning.
Also on the schedule are two lawn concerts at the Green Boundary Club (with the traditional tea following the afternoon performance), and a jazz evening called “After Hours” at the Willcox.
Field stressed that when the Juilliard artists aren’t giving concerts for the public during the festival, they’re teaching, inspiring and motivating students in regional schools. She said that during the past three years, the outreach program has reached about 8,000 students.
“Our focus is on trying to bring these world-class performers into the most disadvantaged schools,” she said. “The students really connect with them. The artists aren’t just giving them exposure to music or dance. They’re teaching, and they’re also serving as mentors and role models.”
To help support the outreach program, Field said this year Juilliard in Aiken is debuting a series of “Opening Acts” leading up to the festival: a themed event to be held each month from October to February. The fundraiser, titled “Feasts of the Festival,” will include dinners and cocktail parties at some of Aiken’s most spectacular homes. Tickets to each event will be $75 per person and will give attendees the opportunity to meet a secret “special guest” as well as to participate in a silent auction of five very select items.
The first “Opening Act” will be Wild Game and Fine Wines on Sun., Oct. 23, followed by Polo and Pims on Sun., Nov. 6 (an end-of-the-season celebration to be held at a home on the polo field during the last match), Fête Noel on Sat., Dec. 17 to celebrate Christmas, Festa Italiano on Sat., Jan. 21 (an Italian dinner), and Music Fills the Heart on Sat., Feb. 11 (a Valentine’s celebration).
Proceeds from “Feasts of the Festival” will be used to support the outreach programs and performances as well as to sponsor students at East Aiken Elementary School who would like to participate in the string program but who are unable to for economic reasons.
For further information and updates on “Feasts of the Festival” and the events schedule for Juilliard in Aiken and its outreach program taking place Saturday March 10 – Friday March 16, 2012, go to www.juilliardinaiken.com.
Press contact: Janice Jennings, (803) 649-5771 (home), (803) 640-6348 (cell)
