Saratoga Performing Arts Center

Program Description

SPAC Artist-in-Residence programs bring distinguished professional artists and arts educators into schools to immerse students in a performing art form, allowing them to express themselves in new ways and achieve their fullest potentials. Students who participated in our residencies have shown incredible developments in self-esteem, self-confidence, a willingness to collaborate, and a desire to achieve success in other areas of their learning.

An example is SPAC’s Dance Residency program which brings dance instructors with Broadway resumes into elementary schools to teach 10 high-energy dance classes to children, instructing them in the fundamentals of movement and preparing them for a celebratory performance for their peers, teachers, and families. Teaching methods and curriculum utilized in our dance residencies are adopted from the teaching methods and pedagogy developed by National Dance Institute in New York City and their belief that “the arts have a unique power to engage all children—regardless of background, ability, or socio-economic status—and motivate them toward excellence.”