Press Release: Saratoga Performing Arts Center Announces the Sixth Annual “Adirondack Trust Company Festival of Young Artists”
May 4, 2023
Saratoga Performing Arts Center
Announces the Sixth Annual
“Adirondack Trust Company Festival of Young Artists”
Free community festival to showcase hundreds of the Capital Region’s brightest young dancers, musicians, singers, poets and visual artists
Performances by Empire State Youth Orchestra, Northeast Ballet Company, Capital District Youth Chorale, the SPAC School of the Arts and local school ensembles
Sunday, June 4 at 2 p.m.
Saratoga Springs, NY (May 4, 2023) – Saratoga Performing Arts Center today announces the sixth annual Adirondack Trust Company Festival of Young Artists on Sunday, June 4 from 2 – 5:30 p.m. Following the theme Earth – an inspirational thread woven throughout SPAC’s 2023 season – the festival will celebrate the collaborative creativity of more than 700 of the Capital Region’s brightest young dancers, musicians, singers, poets, and visual artists all in support of SPAC’s mission to provide free access to enriching arts programs for local youth.
Featuring students from local schools and organizations such as Empire State Youth Orchestra, Northeast Ballet Company, Capital District Youth Chorale and the SPAC School of the Arts, the afternoon will include individual performances and art displays, culminating in a large-scale, coordinated production on SPAC’s stage. SPAC also revealed the online student gallery, showcasing the accepted submissions for the upcoming festival, which can be viewed at www.spacfoya.org.
“Our annual Festival of Young Artists embodies all that SPAC stands for in its commitment to the arts, nature, and the community. As stewards of the Earth and preservers of art, it is especially poignant that we gather this year to celebrate hundreds of local young artists while also honoring our planet and its awe-inspiring beauty,” says Elizabeth Sobol, President and CEO of Saratoga Performing Arts Center. “We are grateful to The Adirondack Trust Company for their continued support of this landmark event and the thousands of young artists that it has represented over the past six years.”
Starting at 2 p.m., SPAC’s grounds will be transformed into a festive celebration and will feature pop-up performances throughout the afternoon by student ensembles from the Capital Region, fine art displays, poetry slams, food stands, immersive workshops and activities, plus free ice cream provided by Stewart’s Shops. At 4:45pm, hundreds of young artists will gather to present a celebratory concert on SPAC’s main stage, featuring large-scale productions that combine music, song, poetry, visual art, and dance.
“Nearly 300 student works were submitted for this year’s festival, and the collection of Earth-inspired pieces is an eye-opening representation of this generation’s deep admiration of our planet as well as their concern for its future. It is a breathtaking display that we hope will inspire other generations to take note and act,” says Dennis Moench, VP of Education.
This event is free to the community; however, registration is required for admission. Visit spacfoya.org for details.
###
Saratoga Performing Arts Center
The Saratoga Performing Arts Center (SPAC), located in the historic resort town of Saratoga Springs in upstate New York, is one of America’s most prestigious summer festivals. Its tranquil setting in a 2,400-acre park preserve surrounded by hiking trails, geysers, and natural mineral springs draws vacation crowds and arts connoisseurs each year for immersive experiences of performances by resident companies New York City Ballet, The Philadelphia Orchestra, the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, the Freihofer’s Saratoga Jazz Festival, and concerts by Live Nation. SPAC embraces an ever-expanding definition of the Arts, including not only performing arts, but also visual arts, literary arts, culinary arts, healing arts and beyond, featuring guest artists and speakers within a year-round calendar of programming.
SPAC Education
Each year, Saratoga Performing Arts Center’s education programs reach more than 50,000 individuals, offer more than 1,500 classes, presentations, performances, and events, and partner with more than 115 schools and non-profit organizations across the greater Capital Region. SPAC’s flagship educational offerings include the in-school “Classical Kids” music and dance program; in-school dance residencies with SPAC teaching artists; “Summer Nights at SPAC” program which provides transportation, meals, and free performance tickets to families from under-resourced communities; and its annual signature event “The Adirondack Trust Company Festival of Young Artists,” which celebrates hundreds of student dancers, singers, musicians, poets and visual artists. In 2020, SPAC’s education program created free online content for students, families and educators. The continuing virtual platforms include “The Festival of Young Artists Online Gallery” and “The SPAC Learning Library.” And in 2021, SPAC opened the SPAC School of the Arts – a year-round facility dedicated to providing music, theatre, and dance enrichment classes to students of all ages while furthering SPAC’s mission to facilitate inclusion, equity, and access in arts education. The SPAC School of the Arts operates out of the Lewis A. Swyer Studios on the National Museum of Dance campus.