A New School for the Performing Arts Opens in Old Town

A New School for the Performing Arts Opens in Old Town

BY JOANNA BRADY

“Starting a school for kids to discover and develop their artistic potential here in Key West is something I’ve wanted to do for a long time,” said Juliet Gray at her office in the Key West Theater, 512 Eaton Street.

Gray is the Artistic Director and co-founder—along with well known Key West film-maker, Mike Marrero—of the new non-profit School for the Performing Arts. The program will initially be directed at young people 14 to 18 years old, but they hope to expand its scope later on.

Their mission is to prepare the next generation of performers in Key West for a lifetime in the arts, be it as an artist, administrator, patron, or technician. This kind of overall training is not offered anywhere else in Key West and Gray and Marrero feel it will be a welcome addition to the community.

Gray, who worked for many years in New York, has a long time passion for the theater. She began as a performer over 20 years ago, and later started a theater company. She further ventured into writing, and educating young people with a desire for performing. To that end, she began the Performing Arts Project in New York, bringing in actors from Broadway to teach students of high school and college age.

“The program we are starting up here will do the same thing. We’ll bring in local professionals working in the industry in Key West, on Broadway, and regional theaters across the country to help students discover the talents within themselves,” said Gray. “Looking ahead, people we train now can teach other kids coming into the program.”

Classes and workshops in all aspects of theater will be offered: acting, singing, and dancing; and specialized fields like auditioning, directing, choreography, writing, stage management, songwriting, and other disciplines. The atmosphere will be relaxed and informal to foster creative artistic talents of kids and help them realize their potential without worrying about mistakes or failure.

“I really believe that this training is something everyone can learn from,” said Gray. “It’s important to be able to project with confidence, not just when you’re planning a career on the stage or in films, but in life situations when you must make presentations or speeches. This is great preparation for that, as well.”

First workshop begins Nov. 21 after school. For more information, contact Juliet Gray at juliet@the keywesttheater.com or 305 985-0433.

Joanna Brady is a Key West writer, author of the historical novel of Key West, The Woman at the Light published by St. Martin’s Press, 2012.

We are proud to present the Key West Theater’s School for the Performing Arts, an extension of our non-profit organization that will prepare the next generation by offering classes and workshops in all aspects of theater taught by artists currently working in the industry in Key West, on Broadway, and beyond.

We plan to provide classes in all three disciplines of acting, singing and dancing, as well as specialized fields including auditioning, directing, choreography, stage management, songwriting, writing, among many others.

Our mission for the school at the Key West Theater is to prepare the next generation of performers in Key West for a lifetime in the arts, be it as an artist, administrator, patron, or technician. This kind of overall training is not offered anywhere else in Key West and would be a welcome addition to the community.

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