JACKSONVILLE, Fla — A Jacksonville nonprofit studio is now enrolling teens for its free after-school arts program.
The Performers Academy has 10 spots open for teens age 14 to 19 for Squad Goals Teen Studio, a program that runs Monday through Friday from 2:30 to 6 p.m. at the arts academy located in the St. Nicholas area at 3674 Beach Blvd.
Students can learn the ropes of eight different arts areas: fashion design, lyricism, theater, visual arts, music, dance, songwriting and recording arts, TPA said in a news release. This fall, the teens in the program will collaborate to create an original short film.
"At a time when teen suicide and violence are simultaneously on the rise, TPA offers a free after-school initiative that interrupts cycles of trauma through performing arts," Executive Director and Art Influencer Ebony Payne-English said in the release.
The program is limited to 30 students, divided into groups of five, with social distancing enforced in order to limit the risk of spreading COVID-19.
The arts areas will include the following, according to the TPA website:
- Lyricism: Creative Storytelling, Poetry, Rap
- Theater: Improv, Performance Art, Playwriting
- Recording Arts: Music Production, Recording Engineering, Studio Mixing
- Singing & Songwriting: Poetry, Vocals, Songwriting
- Music: Piano, Guitar, Singing, Composition
- Visual Arts: Drawing, Painting, Crafting
- Dance: HipHop & Ballet
TPA was established in 2008 by Community Activist and Philanthropist Kathryn McAvoy. In 2020, Payne-English became the organization's first Black executive director.
Enrollment is open through Oct. 1 for the program, which begins Oct. 4, the release says. For more information and to register online, visit TPA's website by clicking here.
