Summer Camp
**SOME DETAILS HAVE CHANGED! PLEASE DOUBLE CHECK CAMP INFORMATION BEFORE REGISTERING**
Performing Arts Academy offers 1-week and 2-week Theatre Summer Camps for Pre-K, elementary, middle, and high school age groups in the South Denver area.
All Summer Camps occur during the months of June and July.
Please note that Summer Camps fill up quickly, and several have audition dates that fall before the camp starts.
Summer Camps by Age Group
Please use the student's grade in the 2020/2021 school year
Early Elementary
Grades Pre-K – 2
For our youngest students (ages 3 – 2nd Grade), PAA provides week long, 1/2 day programs (9am-12pm) that are filled with fun activities including theatre, crafts, snack and outdoor time (weather permitting). The emphasis is on learning, engagement and social development through fun and playful exploration of a weekly theme. The week concludes with a Shareformance where students can show what they learned during the week.
JUNE 1-5
JUNE 15-19
JULY 6-10
Elementary
Grades 3-6
2nd graders with prior PAA production experience are welcome. Please contact producer@paacolorado.org.
Elementary summer camps start the day with a morning conversation around a positive, enriching value or theme for the day, such as compassion. leadership and communication. There is also wrap up time at the end of the day, to conclude the day with reflection on the day’s value or theme.
Students embark on a journey of putting on a fully-staged 30 minute musical. These programs are two weeks long, and run from 9 am- 4 pm, including a lunch time (campers bring a lunch). These are action-packed and challenging weeks, fully of learning, fun and friends! The first week has classes in acting, music and dance, along with lots of rehearsal time. The second week moves into tech, where the technical elements of lights, sound, set, costumes, props, and projections are added. These programs end with two, fully-staged performances!
Elementary Audition Information
Students audition prior to the start of the program, however, upon enrollment, every student has a place in the cast (or technical team). The auditions allow the teaching artists to find the best role for each student.
Auditions are 45 minutes long in small groups, have music, dance, and acting sections, and are structured to provide a supportive atmosphere where students are encouraged to be brave and show the team engagement, willingness to learn, and a positive, collaborative spirit. No previous experience is needed.
JUNE 1-12
JUNE 15-26
JULY 6-17
Middle School
Grades 6-8
Middle School camps start the day with a morning conversation around a positive, enriching value or theme for the day, such as compassion. leadership and communication. There is also wrap up time at the end of the day, which concludes the day with reflection on the day’s value or theme.
Students embark on a journey of putting on a fully-staged 60 minute musical. These programs are two weeks long, and run from 9 am – 4 pm, including a lunch time (campers bring a lunch). These are action-packed and challenging weeks, fully of learning, fun and friends! The first week has classes in acting, music and dance, along with lots of rehearsal time. The second week moves into tech, where the technical elements of lights, sound, set, costumes, props, and projections are added. These programs end with two, fully-staged performances!
Middle School Audition Information
Students audition prior to the start of the program, however, upon enrollment, every student has a place in the cast (or technical team). The auditions allow the teaching artists to find the best role for each student.
Auditions are 45 minutes long in small groups, have music, dance, and acting sections, and are structured to provide a supportive atmosphere where students are encouraged to be brave and show the team engagement, willingness to learn, and a positive, collaborative spirit. No previous experience is needed.
JUNE 1-12
JUNE 15-26
June 22-26
July 6-17
High School
Grades 9-12
High School camps start the day with a morning conversation around a positive, enriching value or theme for the day, such as compassion. leadership and communication. There is also wrap up time at the end of the day, which concludes the day with reflection on the day’s value or theme.
Students embark on a journey of putting on a fully-staged 60 minute musical. These programs are two weeks long, and run from 9 am – 4 pm, including a lunch time (campers bring a lunch). These are action-packed and challenging weeks, fully of learning, fun and friends! The first week has classes in acting, music and dance, along with lots of rehearsal time. The second week moves into tech, where the technical elements of lights, sound, set, costumes, props, and projections are added. These programs end with two, fully-staged performances!
High School Audition Information
Students audition prior to the start of the program, however, upon enrollment, every student has a place in the cast (or technical team). The auditions allow the teaching artists to find the best role for each student. **The conservatory program Big Fish has a different audition policy**
Auditions are 45 minutes long in small groups, have music, dance, and acting sections, and are structured to provide a supportive atmosphere where students are encouraged to be brave and show the team engagement, willingness to learn, and a positive, collaborative spirit. No previous experience is needed.
JUNE 1-12
June 22 – 26
July 6-17
JULY 13-24
Conservatory
Grades 9-12*
*7 & 8 grade with prior PAA production experience are welcome. Please contact producer@paacolorado.org.
The Conservatory Theatre program at PAA is our top level program, appropriate for serious, experienced high-school students who want to take their acting, singing, and dancing to the next level.
The Conservatory Theatre program is different from our standard high school theatre programs. Students are required to participate in a rigorous audition process . The directors for PAA conservatory theatre programs are all current industry professionals with a vast amount of experience in their field. We expect Conservatory Theatre students to bring a professional level of effort and dedication to each rehearsal.
No classes. No distractions. A higher degree of learning and technical application to performance.
Through the PAA Conservatory Theatre program, students will gain a level of experience that will prepare them for college theatre programs and beyond.
Conservatory Audition Information
Big Fish High School Edition is an advanced level, conservatory program and students are required to audition for a part. Between 25 & 30 students will be accepted into this program. Previous fully staged production theatre experience is required.
The auditions are modeled after professional auditions with acting, music, and dance sections. Please come prepared with a 16 bars music selection showing vocal range, a short (1 minute monologue), and be prepared to dance.
Auditions will take place on a single day for three hours (date TBD). Students are requested to stay for the entirety of the audition time.
Due to the audition requirements, tuition refunds will be made for students who are not assigned a part. For voluntary cancellations, our cancelation policy will apply.
July 13-24
Summer Camp Details and Descriptions
Early Elementary
Ages 3 – Kindergarten
Dates:
June 1 – 5, 2020
Monday – Friday
9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Auditions:
None
Shareformance:
Friday, 6/5 at 11:30 AM
Location:
St. Lukes UMC
8817 S Broadway
Highlands Ranch, CO 80129
Animals with Attitude
Oh those animals with attitude! In this week-long theatrical adventure, campers have fun creating and sharing stories about animals that aren’t doing exactly what they are supposed to.
Inspired by stories like the chicken who keeps interrupting, the duck who determinedly drives a tractor, and the high flying penguin who takes off to take on his big dreams, our youngest students delight in bringing these tales alive through movement, crafts, song and embodied storytelling. Campers have lots of fun and make new friends, while learning to collaborate and play together. Join us for this animal stories filled week!
Each day includes drama, dance/movement, story, crafts, play time outside (weather permitting) and snack time (students bring a snack).
The week ends with a celebratory shareformance on Friday at 11:30 AM.
No experience necessary.
Students must be able to clearly communicate their needs, sit and listen to directions for short periods of time, and maintain personal space boundaries.
Students must be potty trained.
Early Elementary
Kindergarten – 2nd Grade
Dates:
June 15 – 19, 2020
Monday – Friday
9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Auditions:
None
Shareformance:
Friday, 6/19 at 11:30 AM
Location:
St. Lukes UMC
8817 S Broadway
Highlands Ranch, CO 80129
The Little Red Hen (A 15-minute musical)
This exciting new program is for K-2nd graders who are new to putting on a musical.
Once upon a time there was a Little Red Hen who lived on a Big Farm.
She had several fluffy yellow chicks and, as you see, lots of animal friends!
One morning, as the Little Red Hen was scratching around the barn, she uncovered some grains of wheat.
Excited at her big discovery, she called out to her friends and neighbors saying:
If we plant these lovely seeds, we’ll have more grain than we need!
And so the classic tale begins of the hen who works hard to make bread from seed, and her lazy friends who won’t help, but want to eat the result of all her solo endeavoring- and the important lesson learned about how the coming to the aid of a friend benefits all.
Using a recognizable story already familiar to many younger students, and an achievable 15 minutes of script and score created specifically for early elementary kids, this program is designed to set up beginning actors for a fun, artistic adventure where they learn through applied creativity.
As a bridge between the Discovery one-week camps for ages 3-K and the 30 minute musical theatre programs, this camp takes the students on a creative journey which adds a more structured rehearsal element to the day, and teaches the campers how to take a script to performance, including spoken lines, songs and movement.
The focus is on the basics of what a musical is, and how theatre is created to share with an audience. The production elements are kept simple to keep the focus on the learning. Camp T-shirts will serve as costume (and campers take them home to remember their fun week!), and there will be craft elements created by students and used in storytelling.
Some of the week’s skills and experiences:
- How to read a script – identifying stage directions, character, spoken lines, music, lyrics and scenic descriptions
- Speaking lines to convey meaning
- Expressing feelings in character
- Memorizing spoken lines, music, lyrics, blocking (where you move on stage) and movement Learning the beginning elements of choreography through story-based movement expression
- Telling a collective story
- Collaborating by supporting other cast members, showing leadership, and earning positive ways to resolve differences
- Identifying major points of a story
- Gaining confidence in speaking and singing in front of others, and on a stage
- Celebrating a collective success and individual growth
- Creating story-based crafts for use in the performance
- Making friends and having fun!
Each day includes drama, dance/movement, story, crafts, play time outside (weather permitting) and snack time (students bring a snack).
The week ends with a celebratory shareformance on Friday at 11:30 AM.
No experience necessary.
Students must be able to clearly communicate their needs, sit and listen to directions for short periods of time, and maintain personal space boundaries.
Students must be potty trained.
Early Elementary
Ages 3 – Kindergarten
Dates:
July 6 – 10, 2020
Monday – Friday
9:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Auditions:
None
Shareformance:
Friday, 7/10 at 11:30 AM
Location:
St. Lukes UMC
8817 S Broadway
Highlands Ranch, CO 80129
Stories from the Sea
Join us for a week-long adventure as we explore Stories from the Sea! What creatures live in our oceans? Using inspiration from fantastic fishy tales like Pout Pout Fish, Mister Seahorse, Commotion in the Ocean and Clark the Shark, students use movement, crafts, song, and embodied storytelling to create and share wonderful watery-world stories. Campers collaborate artistically, while having lots of expressive fun and making new friends. Swim, sail, dive, explore – shark and fishy tales come alive through theatrical play! Join us for a week of Stories from the Sea!
The week ends with a celebratory shareformance on Friday at 11:30 AM.
No experience necessary.
Students must be able to clearly communicate their needs, sit and listen to directions for short periods of time, and maintain personal space boundaries.
Students must be potty trained.
Elementary
Grades 3-6
Dates:
June 1 – 12, 2020
Monday – Friday
9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
**On performance days, camp is
9:00 AM – 2:00 PM, with 5:00 PM call time.
Auditions:
Friday May 1, 2020
or
Saturday May 2, 2020
Performances:
Thursday, June 11 at 6:00 PM
Friday, June 12 at 6:00 PM
Location:
St. Lukes UMC
8817 S Broadway
Highlands Ranch, CO 80129
Description:
The jungle is jumpin’ with a jazzy beat in Disney’s The Jungle Book KIDS!
Banished by the ferocious tiger, Shere Khan, a human boy named Mowgli and his panther friend, Bagheera, are on the run in the deepest parts of the jungle. On their journey, the two meet a sinister snake named Kaa, a herd of elephants and a giant bear named Baloo, who teaches them the swingin’ musical rhythms of the jungle. After surviving a dangerous encounter with a band of monkeys led by King Louie, Mowgli and Bagheera are forced to run for their lives. When Shere Khan returns, our heroes must rally their fellow animals into battle and restore peace throughout the jungle.
Elementary
Grades 3-6
Dates:
June 15 – 26, 2020
Monday – Friday
9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
**On performance days, camp is
9:00 AM – 2:00 PM, with 5:00 PM call time.
Auditions:
Friday May 15, 2020
or
Saturday May 16, 2020
Performances:
Thursday, June 25 at 6:00 PM
Friday, June 26 at 6:00 PM
Location:
WEEK 1:
St. Lukes UMC
8817 S Broadway
Highlands Ranch, CO 80129
WEEK2:
Rock Canyon HS
5810 McArthur Ranch Rd.
Highlands Ranch, CO 80124
Description:
“Oh, the thinks you can think” when Dr. Seuss’ best-loved characters collide and cavort in an unforgettable musical caper!
Horton the Elephant, the Cat in the Hat and all of your favorite Dr. Seuss characters spring to life onstage in Seussical KIDS, a fantastical musical extravaganza.
Transporting audiences from the Jungle of Nool to the Circus McGurkus, the Cat in the Hat, our narrator, tells the story of Horton, an elephant who discovers a speck of dust containing tiny people called the Whos, including Jojo, a Who child, who gets in trouble for thinking too many “thinks.” Horton’s challenge is twofold — not only must he protect the Whos from a world of naysayers and dangers, but he must also guard an abandoned egg that’s been left in his care by the irresponsible Mayzie La Bird. Although Horton faces ridicule, danger, kidnapping and a trial, the intrepid Gertrude McFuzz never loses faith in him. Ultimately, the powers of friendship, loyalty, family and community are challenged and emerge triumphant!
Elementary
Grades 3-6
Dates:
July 6-17, 2020
Monday – Friday
9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
**On performance days, camp is
9:00 AM – 2:00 PM, with 5:00 PM call time.
Auditions:
Friday May 29, 2020
or
Saturday May 30, 2020
Performances:
Thursday, July 16 at 6:00 PM
Friday, July 17 at 6:00 PM
Location:
St. Lukes UMC
8817 S Broadway
Highlands Ranch, CO 80129
Description:
Everybody wants to be a cat in Disney’s stage adaptation of the animated classic motion picture.
Based on the beloved Disney animated film, and featuring a jazzy, upbeat score, Disney’s The Aristocats KIDS is a non-stop thrill ride of feline fun, complete with unbelievable twists and turns.
In the heart of Paris, a kind and eccentric millionairess wills her entire estate to Duchess, her high-society cat, and her three little kittens. Laughs and adventure ensue as the greedy, bumbling butler pulls off the ultimate catnap caper. Now it’s up to the rough-and-tumble alley cat, Thomas O’Malley, and his band of swingin’ jazz cats to save the day.
Middle School
& High School
Grades 7-12
Dates:
June 1 – 12, 2020
Monday – Friday
9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
**On performance days, camp is
9:00 AM – 2:00 PM, with 5:00 PM call time.
Auditions:
Friday May 1, 2020
or
Saturday May 2, 2020
Performances:
Thursday, June 11 at 7:00 PM
Friday, June 12 at 7:00 PM
Location:
St. Lukes UMC
8817 S Broadway
Highlands Ranch, CO 80129
Description:
We are SO EXCITED to announce this mystery show!! Registration will open for this thrilling and heartwarming coming-of-age story for the stage on January 23! Sign up for our mailing list to be notified.
Due to the timing of the announcement for the Mystery Show on January 23rd, PAA will extend the loyalty discount for this show until January 31st.
Middle School
Grades 6-8
Dates:
June 15 – 26, 2020
Monday – Friday
9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
**On performance days, camp is
9:00 AM – 2:00 PM, with 5:00 PM call time.
Auditions:
Friday May 15, 2020
or
Saturday May 16, 2020
Performances:
Thursday, June 25 at 7:00 PM
Friday, June 26 at 7:00 PM
Location:
WEEK 1:
St. Lukes UMC
8817 S Broadway
Highlands Ranch, CO 80129
WEEK2:
Rock Canyon HS
5810 McArthur Ranch Rd.
Highlands Ranch, CO 80124
Description:
Filled with fun flappers, dashing leading men and a villainess audiences will love to hate, Thoroughly Modern Millie JR. is a clever adaptation of the six-time-Tony-Award-winning Best Musical and the Academy Award-winning film. Thoroughly Modern Millie JR., is the high-spirited musical romp that has all of New York dancing the Charleston!
It’s 1922 in New York City, and a young Millie Dillmount has just moved to the Big Apple in search of a new life. Her grand plan is to find a job as a secretary for a wealthy man and then marry him. However, her plan goes completely awry. Millie’s wealthy boss is slow in proposing marriage, and the man she actually falls in love with doesn’t have a dime to his name — or so he tells her. What’s a small town girl to do?
Middle School
& High School
Grades 7-12
Dates:
July 6 – 17, 2020
Monday – Friday
9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
**On performance days, camp is
9:00 AM – 2:00 PM, with 5:00 PM call time.
Auditions:
Friday May 29, 2020
or
Saturday May 30, 2020
Performances:
Thursday, July 16 at 7:00 PM
Friday, July 17 at 7:00 PM
Location:
St. Lukes UMC
8817 S. Broadway
Highlands Ranch, CO 80129
Description:
Based on the beloved holiday film, this hilarious fish-out-of-water comedy follows Buddy the Elf in his quest to find his true identity.
Buddy, a young orphan, mistakenly crawls into Santa’s bag of gifts and is transported to the North Pole. The would-be elf is raised, unaware that he is actually a human, until his enormous size and poor toy-making abilities cause him to face the truth. With Santa’s permission, Buddy embarks on a journey to New York City to find his birth father and discover his true identity. Faced with the harsh reality that his father is on the naughty list and that his half-brother doesn’t even believe in Santa, Buddy is determined to win over his new family and help New York remember the true meaning of Christmas.
Middle School
& High School
Grades 7-12
Dates:
Jun3 22 – 26, 2020
Monday – Friday
9:00 AM – 2:00 PM
Auditions:
None
Shareformances:
TBD
Location:
Rock Canyon HS
5810 McArthur Ranch Rd.
Highlands Ranch, CO 80124
Description:
We’re excited to offer an acting camp for grades 7-12 this summer! Sign up for our mailing list to be notified when details are available.
High School Conservatory
Grades 9-12*
*7 & 8 grade with prior PAA production experience are welcome. Please contact producer@paacolorado.org.
Dates:
July 13 – 24, 2020
Monday – Friday
9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
**On performance days, camp is
9:00 AM – 2:00 PM, with a call time approximately 1 hour before show time.
Auditions:
TBD
Performances:
Thursday, July 23 at 6:00 PM
Friday, July 24 at 6:00 PM
Location:
Mountain Vista HS
10585 Mountain Vista Ridge
Highlands Ranch, CO 80126
Description:
Based on the celebrated novel by Daniel Wallace and the acclaimed film directed by Tim Burton, BIG FISH centers on Edward Bloom, a traveling salesman who lives life to its fullest… and then some! Edward’s incredible, larger-than-life stories thrill everyone around him – most of all, his devoted wife Sandra. But their son Will, about to have a child of his own, is determined to find the truth behind his father’s epic tales. Overflowing with heart, humor and spectacular stagecraft, BIG FISH is an extraordinary new Broadway musical that reminds us why we love going to the theatre – for an experience that’s richer, funnier and BIGGER than life itself.
BIG FISH School Edition is a slightly reworked version of the original Broadway script. The School Edition has been carefully edited to make the show more producible for high school groups.
Conservatory Audition Information
Big Fish High School Edition is an advanced level, conservatory program and students are required to audition for a part. Between 25 & 30 students will be accepted into this program. Previous fully staged production theatre experience is required.
The auditions are modeled after professional auditions with acting, music, and dance sections. Please come prepared with a 16 bars music selection showing vocal range, a short (1 minute monologue), and be prepared to dance.
Auditions will take place on a single day for three hours (date TBD). Students are requested to stay for the entirety of the audition time.
Due to the audition requirements, tuition refunds will be made for students who are not assigned a part. For voluntary cancellations, our cancelation policy will apply.
Summer Camp Registration
**SOME DETAILS HAVE CHANGED! **
PLEASE DOUBLE CHECK CAMP INFORMATION BEFORE REGISTERING
Space is limited and registrations are taken on a first come, first served basis. No registration is complete without payment.
PAA offers 1, 2, 3, or 4 installment Payment Plans to help you with your family budget. You can read more about available payment options here. After completing your registration form you will be directed to pay online with a credit or debit card. To pay by cash or check please enter the code ccpp into the promo code box. PAA’s Financial Manager will contact you for payment.
Please see our Cancellation Policy for details on cancellations and refunds.
Financial assistance is available. Please see our Financial Aid page for more information. Financial Aid Applications for Summer are due by February 1st.
Please review our Policies page for a full list of PAA policies.
Please review our Policies page for a full list of PAA policies.
Space is limited and registrations are taken on a first come, first served basis. No registration is complete without payment.
PAA offers 1, 2, 3, or 4 installment Payment Plans to help you with your family budget. You can read more about available payment options here. After completing your registration form you will be directed to pay online with a credit or debit card. To pay by cash or check please enter the code ccpp into the promo code box. PAA’s Financial Manager will contact you for payment.
Please see our Cancellation Policy for details on cancellations and refunds.
Financial assistance is available. Please see our Financial Aid page for more information. Financial Aid Applications for Summer are due by February 1st.
Step 1 – Selecting A Program
In the program registration window click on the program you want to sign up for.
Step 2
Click Register.
Step 3 – Logging In
If you are not logged in you will be prompted to enter your email and Password.
- If you have a account please click the login link.
- If you have not created a account please enter your email and a password. This will create a account from which you can add/edit your registrations from. You can also view your payments, past classes, and view a calendar of your child’s class’s / show’s.
Step 4
Click Register once more now that you are logged in.
Step 5
Click Add To Cart Button.
Step 6 – Adding your Child
If you are setting up an account for the first time you will be prompted to enter your child’s name and birth date.
Step 7 – Assigning your Child to a Program
Once you add a child to your account you can then add more children to your account. You can then select witch child you want to take that program. If you want more then one child in the program you will have to do that one at a time. So follow the next step and click continue shopping.
Step 8 – Checking Out
If you have selected all the programs you wanted go ahead and click Checkout. If you want to add more programs to your Cart please click Keep Shopping. You can view your order at anytime by clicking the cart icon in the upper right hand corner.
You may also enter any Promo Codes you may have in this window. Please enter the Promo code and click Apply BEFORE you click checkout or the code will NOT be applied.
Step 9 – Forms
Once you have clicked checkout you will be asked to fill out this form. Once you have done this once your information will auto-fill in the future.
Step 10 – Payment Review
Review your payment information. Read our Policies/Terms &. Waviers then check the box. Then you can place the order.
Step 11 – User Profile
Once you have placed your order you can click on you name in the upper right corner of the screen which will let you manage your account.
Step 12 – Your Account
From this window you can manage your and your children’s profiles. You can review your orders and review any of your payment plans.
Payment in full is required in order to complete registration, however, PAA does offer additional payment options. During the registration process, you can select the desired payment plan of 2, 3 or 4 months before completing registration of all items in your cart. Payments occur automatically each month following registration. A receipt is generated and sent to you via email after each transaction for your records. See Payment Policies for more information.