Stone Oak Youth Theatre Reaches New "Heights"

SAN ANTONIO, TX, December 05, 2010 (Press-News.org) WHO:
Stone Oak Youth Theatre & Dance Company (S.O.Y.T.)

WHAT:
Film and Commercial Training with Nikki Young:
"Tweens On Screen", "Teens On Screen", and "The Business of Show"

WHEN:
"Tweens On Screen": Thursdays, 4:30-6:00pm, January 6-February 4, 2011
"Teens On Screen": Thursdays, 6:30-8:00pm, January 6-February 4, 2011
Class showcase: Friday, February 5, 2011

"The Business of Show": Tuesdays, 6:30-7:30pm , January 4-February 9, 2011

WHERE:
Stone Oak Youth Theatre
21518 Blanco Rd, Suite 101
San Antonio, TX 78260

Stone Oak Youth Theatre & Dance Company (S.O.Y.T.) is proud to announce that award-winning stage and screen actress Nikki Young will join its faculty in January 2011.

Young will teach three classes in the performing arts program. For young actors, she will lead, "Tweens On Screen" (for ages 7-12) and "Teens On Screen" (for ages 13-18), two classes in film and commercial acting, auditions, and scene study; both classes will run for five weeks, culminating in a showcase for friends, family and a panel of noted industry professionals on Friday, February 5. For parents, she will teach "The Business of Show", an introduction to the entertainment industry.

"Most of our classes are focused on the stage - drama, dance, musical theater, improv," says Maryclaire Becan, Owner/Director of S.O.Y.T. "We've had parents and kids asking if we could offer classes for acting on camera, and I can't think of a better instructor than Nikki. She understands acting as an art and as a business, and I think our students, and their parents, will learn a lot from her. I'm looking forward to learning a thing or two myself!"

Young, an Alamo Heights native, holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Southwest Texas State University (where she specialized in Child Drama). As an actress, she has been featured in over 20 films - including the multi-award winning "Four Minutes Till The End", an official selection of the 2009 Cannes Film Festival - nearly 50 plays, and numerous print and television campaigns; as an acting coach, she has been coaching kids from stage to screen since the summer of 2000, and has worked with hundreds of kids through camps, churches, film sets, and private sessions through PrimaDonna Productions, Inc., the company she launched with Chadd Green in 2000. Young's students have included actors Gabi Walker (star of "Four Minutes Till The End" and the award-winning feature film "Dream Healing"), Cambell Westmoreland (featured in Robert Rodriguez's "Shorts"), and Shane Graham (featured in Richard Linklater's "Boyhood").

"We recently hosted a 'Black Friday' acting workshop, and filled every seat," says Young. "We've had so many parents and so many kids asking for information about other classes, so it was definitely time to expand. I've known Maryclaire for years, and we've been trying to find a project we can work on together. Now, we've finally found that perfect fit, and I'm thrilled to be working with such a great group of instructors."

Sharon Felan, whose children have attended both Young's classes and S.O.Y.T.'s, says, "My kids have learned so much from their sessions with Nikki, and their classes at Stone Oak Youth Theatre. Nikki and Maryclaire give so much time and attention to their students. I highly recommend them to anyone who is interested in learning more about acting and the entertainment industry."

COST:
"Tweens on Screen" and "Teens on Screen": $200 per student
(Class size is limited to a minimum of 6 and a maximum of 14 students.)
"The Business of Show": $100 per parent

FOR MORE INFORMATION:
For more information and to register for S.O.Y.T.'s classes, please call 210.481.2400 or visit http://www.soyt.org.

BACKGROUND:
Stone Oak Youth Theatre & Dance Company (S.O.Y.T.) is an educational theatre and performing arts experience for kids and teens, located in the Stone Oak area of San Antonio, Texas. Offering year-round classes in acting for the stage, acting for the camera, musical theater, improvisation, ballet, jazz, tap, hip hop, and private drama, voice and piano lessons, as well as continual performance opportunities for ages 4-17, Stone Oak Youth Theatre hopes to leave a lasting impression on the next generation of performers.