What is the age range for campers?

Our young performers range is age from 9 to 20 years old. For class purposes, we break them into age groups.

How much does Shining Stars cost and what’s included?

The cost of Shining Stars is $695. This includes 6 nights accommodations at the beautiful Camp Swamp as well as three meals a day for the length of their stay. Camp Swamp has many fun activities to offer like swimming, nature walks, dodgeball, ping pong and more. What makes Shining Stars unique is that in addition to the wonderful facilities, we offer a full performing arts curriculum and incredible performance opportunities for our young performers. We are able to combine all of the fun elements of a sleep-away camp with world-class performing arts instruction and performance opportunities. At the end of week, parents will be invited for a special viewing of the work the students have done.

When does registration open and when are payments due?

Registration opens February 1st and a $100 deposit is due at the time of registration to hold your spot. Payments can be made at your convenience when the remaining balance being due 1 week prior to camp.

What’s does a typical day at Shining Stars look like?

Every day is different and exciting for our performers depending on what material we are doing that year. The first three days of camp typically start with a morning devotional followed by a hot breakfast and a 3-class rotation of singing, acting and dancing. After lunch, students have some free time to rest or explore the 30 acre property. Then they can work on a variety of things including, group rehearsals, individual coaching, vocal recording, scene practice, learning choreography, filming, make-up techniques and much more. After dinner, we do a fun activity like musical chairs, dodgeball, laser tap or water balloon fights, just to name a few. We close the day with some more rehearsal time and an evening devotional.

What do students learn in their vocal, acting and dancing classes?

Students are broken up into 3 groups by age and rotate through singing, acting, and dancing classes. Our vocal classes teach everyone to sing! We cover basic training in breathing- using our diaphragm, reading music and expanding their vocal ranges. Every child is given the opportunity to audition for solos or to be part of the ensemble. Individual instruction is available to help with solos or in learning their music for the ensemble. It is amazing what a little direction in singing can do for one’s confidence on stage as well as off stage.

Our acting classes cover a broad range of the essential skills every actor needs: working in an ensemble- through games and scene work, honing our physical instrument with voice and diction training and movement practice, auditioning for both stage and camera, and understanding a script- breaking it down to discover motivations, actions, and character. In acting class we practice discovering how we operate as humans, and we get to know ourselves better.

Our dancing classes briefly introduce students to a variety of dance techniques including ballet, jazz and modern. We also focus on getting them in touch with their movement abilities through extensive warm ups and strength training. Learning how to motivate and manipulate their bodies in essential to learning more complex dance techniques.

Are their opportunities for my child to learn about backstage and production aspects?

Yes! While we all students do participate in our class rotation, we are able to offer interested students specialized instruction based on their interests. These area can include audio recording and editing, film editing, instrumental, make up design and more. If your student is interested in production, please email us to discuss these special opportunities.

What should students bring with them?

Click here for a PDF of our general packing list. Every year, we work on new and exciting material which sometimes requires specific props and costumes. A few weeks before camp, you will receive an email with an updated Packing List with specifics for your child’s session.