Performing Arts Classes in Hollywood, Los Angeles, CA

The Los Angeles Academy of Performing Arts:
The Los Angeles Academy of Performing Arts (LAAPA) offers conservatory training to children and teens in the areas of drama, dance, and music. We are conveniently located on Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, Los Angeles, CA. We also offer open adult classes, workshops, performance camps, and school outreach programs. Our instructors are some of the leading professionals in the world of performing arts. Our Junior Academy students (ages 7-12 years) are exposed to the same material as the Academy students (ages 13-18 years). Workshops are included as part of the curriculum. No audition is required for admittance into the Junior Academy.

Performing Arts Training for Children & Teens in the Areas of Drama, Dance & Music:

Admittance into the Academy is by audition. There is no audition required for the Junior Academy. 

Junior Academy Classes:
Classes meet two nights a week, in addition to Saturday rehearsals. Each 12-week session culminates with student performances.

* Drama:

- Acting:  Training combines Meisner technique, theatre games, and acting exercises to help fuse the student’s voice, body, and imagination into a powerful tool of communication. After acquiring a solid acting foundation, the coursework progresses to the exploration and performance of classical text. Throughout the course, emphasis will be placed on group interaction and the development of social skills. Students will perform monologues and scenes from contemporary and classical plays.

Course Material:
- Acting technique
- Theatre Games
- Monologues
- Scene Study
- Shakespeare

- Musical Theatre:  Focus is on characterization, song interpretation, and scene study. The musical theatre course works in conjunction with the dance and music departments in training and preparing the students for performance. Students will perform scenes from new and established musical theatre works.

Course Material:
Acting technique
Song Interpretation
Scene Study and Performance
Audition technique

- Shakespeare for Kids:  This class is offered periodically throughout the school year and as part of the Summer Performance Camp program. Children are introduced to the poetry and language of William Shakespeare. Students will learn about metaphor, iambic pentameter, and the difference between prose and verse. Each child will be given a monologue or scene to be performed on the last day of class.

* Dance and Wellness:

- Ballet:  Ballet provides a solid foundation for all other styles of dance. Students receive training in classical and contemporary ballet while learning positions and terminology. Strong emphasis is placed on proper technique and the execution of movement. Classes include extensive barre and centre floor work. View a glossary of ballet terminology here.

- Jazz:  Jazz is an energetic style of dance with an emphasis on originality and individual style. Students learn a combination of jazz styles including authentic, modern, contemporary, and ethnic. Jazz dance combines improvisation with the rhythms of jazz music.

- Tap:  Highly percussive by nature, tap dance focuses on creating syncopated and intricate rhythms. Classes include learning basic steps and drills, and progressing to more advanced steps. Students learn and perform a combination in each class.

- Hip Hop:  Hip Hop incorporates various styles of old and new urban dance. Classes include a warm up and an introduction to the basics such as funk, popping, locking, breaking, and boogaloo. Combinations are broken down by the instructor and then performed in class.

- Yoga:  Yoga is an ideal low impact class that challenges the practitioner both in body and mind. Classes focus on developing balance, strength, alignment, and flexibility. Proper breathing and posture is emphasized throughout all poses.

- Pilates:  Based on the system developed by Joseph Pilates, mat classes emphasize the six main principles of concentration, control, centering, flow, precision, and breathing. These principles were designed to create progressive resistance, which helps build strength and stabilization in the core muscles of the body.

* Music:

- Singing:  Students will learn proper singing technique, vocal production, and song interpretation. Although classes provide individual attention, emphasis is placed on ensemble singing, learning basic harmonies and rhythms, and ear training. Classes begin with a warm up, and vocal exercises, and progress to song performance.

- Group Guitar:  Group guitar classes are structured to meet the needs of students at all levels of experience. Students will learn chords, rhythms, and beginning music theory, and will be playing their guitar on the first day of class. Individual songs will be assigned throughout the course. Students may bring their own acoustic guitar or purchase one from LAAPA.

- Piano:  Private piano lessons are open to Academy and Junior Academy students as well as the community, and are tailored to the student’s individual needs and goals. Lessons are either thirty minutes or one hour.

The Academy Classes:
The Academy is a pre-professional performing arts conservatory for students ages thirteen through eighteen. Classes are held three evenings a week from 4:00 – 8:00 pm, in addition to Saturday rehearsals. Individual sessions meet three times a year, twelve weeks each, and culminate in an evening of student performances. Academy students are also eligible to attend professional workshops as part of the curriculum.

Academy sessions follow the academic school year:
- Fall:  September – December
- Winter:  January – March
- Spring:  April – June

Students enrolled in the Academy and Junior Academy will receive training in the following areas:
- Drama
- Acting Technique
- Shakespeare / Classical Theatre
- Musical Theatre
- Voice and Speech
- Movement
- Dance
- Ballet
- Jazz
- Tap
- Hip-Hop
- Music
- Singing
- Group guitar

Due to the professional training aspect of the Academy and Junior Academy, the schedule is intense but extremely rewarding and fun. Students will receive training from some of the top professionals in the world of performing arts. The Academy training will help build a solid foundation for students interested in pursuing a performing arts career. Admission into the Academy is through audition.

Open Classes:
Open classes in acting, dancing, singing, yoga, pilates, and group guitar are available to adults and to children who are unable to enroll in Academy or Junior Academy sessions. Many classes run simultaneously so parents can attend one class while their children attend another. Acting, singing, and group guitar classes follow the same twelve-week schedule as Academy classes. Drop-in classes are available for dance, yoga, and pilates only.

We also offer workshops, performance camps and school outreach programs.

Outreach Programs:
LAAPA works side-by-side with educational institutions to provide students with classes and workshops in acting, Shakespeare, musical theatre, dance, and yoga. Our programs are tailored to address the learning needs of the students as well as the school’s budget. Outreach programs can either be held in school, during or after school hours, or at the Academy. LAAPA outreach instructors are all working professionals in their respective disciplines.