YouthArts Fest Showcases Student Performances

Student art, music, dance and more will take over Five Points on Saturday.

The Arts and Cultural Alliance invites the public to attend YouthArts Fest from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30p.m. Saturday, April 6 at Five Points Park in downtown Sarasota. This event is free and open to the public. 

More than 500 students will showcase their talents in various performances throughout the day. This year, thefestival will expand to two performance spaces comprising 28 groups from local schools and arts organizations. 

The outdoor stage (Showmobile Stage) will feature 18 performances, and the Selby Library Geldbart Auditorium will serve as a second performance space for 10 additional groups.  

The YouthArts Fest features a student art show in the Rotunda of the Selby Library. There are five elementary, five middle and four high schools exhibiting. The public will feast their eyes on a large variety of different artistic mediums from a wide range of ages. 

Students and teachers of the high schools will sell their artwork. All proceeds will go to the art department to enhance the art programs. 

YouthArts Fest will feature hands-on arts & crafts area with many varied activities including:

• trying out the various instruments in the Sarasota Orchestra at the “Petting Zoo,”
• experiencing participation in the “Flying Objects” activity and learning what  G-WIZ 2.0 has in-store for you soon and
• trying your hand at many art activities provided by the Ringling Museum, Art Center, Selby Library and art teachers and teaching artists.

Local arts and cultural organizations will be exhibiting to offer information on the summer and after-school programs, workshops and scholarship opportunities they offer to students. Organizations participating are listed on the YouthArts Fest map.

“One of the top priorities of the Alliance is to build support for arts education programs in our schools,” says Artsand Cultural Alliance Executive Director, Jim Shirley. “We hope this showcase of the amazing artistic talents in our schools will inspire the community to ensure the arts remain an essential part of a complete education for our students.”

This event is a collaboration of the Arts and Cultural Alliance, Women’s Exchange, Herald-Tribune Media Group, Sarasota County Schools, and Selby Library.

YouthArts Fest Performance Schedule (Showmobile Stage):

9:30     Booker Middle School Jazz Band - Booker Middle School will present their jazz band for the enjoyment of the audience.

9:55     Lamarque Jazz Band - Lamarque Elementary will present their jazz band for the enjoyment of the audience.

10:10   Lakeview Elementary Chorus - The Lakeview Elementary Chorus is composed of 3rd, 4th and 5th graders who love to sing.  They rehearse once a week after the school day is over.

10:30   Youth Musical Theatre at Florida Studio Theatre - The Youth Musical Theatre of FST will perform numbers from the musical, Immigrant Children.  10 youngsters find themselves on a boat in the early 1900’s heading towards America.

10:50  Emma E. Booker Chorus - The Emma E. Booker Chorus will entertain the audience by sharing variety of musical styles they have studied through the selections they are presenting.  Every year the chorus grows in interest and enthusiasm. 

11:05   Sarasota Ballet School - The Sarasota Ballet School will perform a variety of solo and group dances of various genres.

11:30   Phillippi Shores IB World School Chorus - Phillippi Shores IB World School Chorus will present upbeat, contemporary songs performed in a lively musical style with vocalists, movements and a drum accompaniment.

11:50   Sarasota Arts & Science Dance - Sarasota School of Arts and Sciences traditional dance group want to show their cultural background through dance. The program will include dances from Mexico, Colombia, and Bolivia among others.

12:05   Sarasota High School Drama - The musical theatre group of Sarasota High School will present songs from the musical they are performing this year "Les Miserables."            

12:35   Booker High School Dance - Booker High School’s S2 is an outreach program in conjunction with the Moving Ethos Dance Company that highlights student dancers. The program will feature ninth through twelfth-grade students.

12:50   Booker High School Chorus - The VPA Concert Choir at Booker High School studies musical works from a variety of musical genres with an emphasis on Western art music. Today, they will present three works that demonstrate the range of repertoire that they’ve studied over the course of the academic year.               

1:05     Booker Middle School - Booker Middle School will showcase more than 60 of its most talented students from the Visual and Performing Arts program through music, dance, and the spoken word. The performance shows the diversity and talent of the VPA program.

1:35     Gocio Song & Dance Team - Gocio Elementary School’s cast of “Annie, Jr.” will be performing two song and dance selections from the show.

1:55     Pine View Madrigal Group - The Pine View Madrigal Group recently performed at the inaugural celebration of Barack Obama, where they were recognized for their program that they will present to the community.

2:10     Teen Musical Theatre at Florida Studio Theatre - FST’s Teen Musical Theatre will be performing numbers from the original musical “What Carlee Knows.” Seven teens are excited to begin the first day of school where they discover Carlee, the new girl, who seems to have uncanny ESP.

2:40     West Coast Civic Ballet - West Coast Civic Ballet will present ballet and modern dances including Cecchetti Syllabus Exam dances, an excerpt from a new Schubert ballet choreographed by Deborah Vinton, and selections from Alice in Wonderland.

3:00     The Players Theatre Kids - The Players Kids will be performing Broadway song and dance numbers including excerpts from their upcoming productions of Disney’s “Little Mermaid, Jr.”

3:30     McIntosh Jazz Band – McIntosh Middle School will present their jazz band for the enjoyment of the audience.

YouthArts Fest Performance Schedule (Geldbart Auditorium):

10:30   Booker Middle Improv Group - The Booker Middle School Improvisational Group will present an education and prevention performance that engages the audience with the importance of bully prevention.

11:00   McIntosh Screaming Eagles Chorus and Strings - The McIntosh Middle School Screaming Eagles Chorus and Strings have performed in various concerts in our area including the Holiday Splendor at the Ca d’Zan. The chorus will perform some of their pop favorites and the strings will give a sampling of music from barnyard to Bach.

11:45   Sarasota Youth Opera - Celebrating 28 years, the Sarasota Youth Opera provides the opportunity to explore the amazing world of opera.  Members are presenting selections in English, Italian and German from a variety of operas.

12:20   Waldorf International Folk Dance - Waldorf School students will share songs and dances from around the world. Music and art are central components in Waldorf School education.

12:40   New Gate Flash Mob Dance - New Gate School, an International Montessori School will perform a dance choreographed by the Fuzion dance team. The dance “flash mob” uses the music “Do, Re, Mi” from “The Sound of Music.”

1:00     Emma E. Booker Motown - The Emma E. Booker Motown group will present a group of selections from the great Motown label.  This young energetic group is very enthusiastic and entertaining.

1:15     Southside Hula Dancers

1:30     Booker Middle Music – More than 60 of Booker Middle School’s talented students will perform dance, musical theatre, poetry, and instrumental music selections covering a wide range of styles. The performance showcases the diversity of the Booker Middle VPA program.

2:00     Pine View Drama “Who Returned My Soul” - The Pine View Drama Department will present scenes from the play “Who Returned My Soul,” which is formed by individual stories of Holocaust survivors.