Sagemont Prep Conservatory

Summer Conservatory of the Arts

Discover your creative potential this summer at Sagemont Preparatory's state-of-the-art Visual and Performing Arts Center. Explore courses in improvisation, instrumental music, sculpture, theatre production, costuming, and more.

Open to incoming 6th through 12th-grade students, the Sagemont Prep Summer Conservatory is an intensive visual and performing arts program for middle and high students offering a fullday, two three-week program for students to explore all aspects of the art world. Each threeweek intensive will close with a showcase of visual and performing arts.

See below for the full day summer programming. Our artists will have the opportunity to explore multiple visual and performing arts avenues through our daily Conservatory Blocks. Our Conservatory Blocks allow our artists to explore two courses daily and select new offerings each week. The afternoon session is focused on one intensive program that students will engage in for the three-week programming.

2023 SAMPLE SUMMER SCHEDULE

CONSERVATORY OF THE ARTS

Tuition and Fees

Tuition and fees

Registration: $25 (non-refundable)

Conservatory Tuition (each three-week session): $1,700 $200 deposit due at the time of registration.

Session 1: June 19th- July 7th (No class on July 4th)

Session 2: July 10th - July 28th

Private lessons: At an additional cost from 3:30 p.m. -5:30 p.m.

Apply online at www.sagemont.com

Cancellation Policy: If you enroll in the Sagemont Prep Summer Conservatory and your plans change, you can receive a full refund/credit for tuition, less the registration fee. The program change request must be received two weeks prior to the enrolled week start date. Participants who do not attend their registered session, or who do not contact us to cancel two weeks prior to start date, will not receive a refund or credit. By submitting your payment, you are agreeing to the policy outlined above. A $200 tuition payment is due at the time of registration. Final payment is due prior to the first day of the registered session.

How does the schedule work? What does your tuition cover?

The goal of the Sagemont Prep Summer Conservatory is to expose students to a wide range of visual and performing arts, with the opportunity to concentrate in a specific area of interest. Upon enrolling in the summer conservatory, students will be able to select their morning rotation in the area of theatre, music, and visual arts. Students may change their selected choice/s during the second and third week if they wish to explore another art form. Students who remain in the same morning rotation for multiple weeks will progress to a higher level.

In the afternoon, students will choose an intensive course offering, which they will engage in for the full three weeks. Additionally, students who wish to enroll in additional individual lessons after schools will benefit from our private lessons at an additional cost.

The summer will be filled with learning, exploration, creativity, and of course fun.

CONSERVATORY OF THE ARTS

Theatre Course Offering Blocks

Costume Design and Construction – The goal of this exploratory course is to introduce the discipline of costume design, including character/script analysis, research, rendering, and production values. Students will conduct a play reading, select a character, and create a costume for the chosen character. This course is truly immersive and fun design experience.

Stage Make-up – The make-up application for a live audience is quite different than for a camera. Contrast is exaggerated in order to make features and facial expressions visible to audience members. In this course, students will learn and demonstrate the principles of makeup design and execution for the stage. The class focuses on both creating design ideas and learning technical skills for applying stage makeup. Students will learn to apply both two and three-dimensional makeup applications.

Theatre Production and Design – Students will focus on developing the tools and procedures for creating elements of technical theatre, including costumes, lighting, makeup, properties (props), publicity, scenery, and sound. Students will also learn the basics of standard conventions of design presentation and documentation, the organizational structure of theatre production and creative work in a collaborative environment, and the resulting artistic improvement.

Theatre Writers – This course introduces students to the art of crafting a dramatized narrative for a theater production. Students will learn how to write a one-act and work alongside our instructor on performing the crafted piece. The writing component will explore plot, character, mood, language, staging and spectacle.

Musical Theatre – Students' work will focus on, but is not limited to, acting, vocal performance, dance, non-dance movement, and staging. For this conservatory sampling, students will select a song from their chosen musical, which will need to be memorized. Work will include vocal preparation, movement, and acting. A final product will be showcased at the end of the program.

Sagemont Prep Summer Conservatory Music Course Offering Blocks

World Drumming: Students will explore historical, social, and theoretical principles of West African, Latino, and Caribbean drumming and songs. Students will have an amazing time in this historical and cultural approach to music education and application. The teaching methodology of this workshop includes interactive, creative, and fun activities. Students will build important life-skills such as communication, listening improvisation, teamwork, discipline and respect for cultural diversity.

Piano Ensemble: Students with little or advanced experience in keyboard will develop musicianship and ensemble performance skills through the study of basic, high-quality music in diverse styles. Student musicians focus on building foundational music techniques, music literacy, listening skills, and aesthetic awareness. Public performances will serve as a culmination of specific instructional goals.

Chorus: Students will be exposed to choral elements, such as ensemble singing, blend, and vocal techniques. This course is designed for students who want to learn how to sing or can already sing. Students participate by singing among a group, not individually.

Percussion Ensemble: Percussion ensemble focuses on the wide variety of percussion repertoire and styles for the diverse family of percussion instruments. Students will be introduced to Boomwhackers, bucket drumming, hand bells, claves, found objects and more.

Sagemont Prep Summer Conservatory Visual Arts Course Offering Blocks

Drawing: A course that will introduce students to the visual language of drawing through observation and rendering a realistic image. Students will experiment with different drawing tools, such as pencils, pens, and brushes. Through observation and use of various textures, light, and shadow, students will create forms of various objects and surfaces.

Painting: In this course, students are introduced to the basic principles and techniques of painting. Through a wide range of experiences, students learn about painting tools, basic color mixing, composition, form, and spatial relationships. Students will work with a variety of subjects for inspiration.

Sculpture: Students are introduced to the wonderful world of sculpture. They will explore how space, mass, balance, and form combine to create aesthetic forms or utilitarian products and structures. The instructional focus will be on ceramics and pottery. Student artists consider the relationship of scale through the use of positive and negative space or voids, volume, visual weight, and gravity.

Illustration: This course is designed to cover a range of topics in illustration. Students will be introduced to the various paths they can take within illustration, including editorial, publishing, advertising, visual development, surface design, and fashion. The wide breadth of content in this course will reinforce critical aspects of the illustration process, including conceptual thinking, expansive iteration, storytelling, and working within set project parameters.

Sagemont Prep Summer Conservatory Afternoon Intensive Offerings

Arts Portfolio: The Art Portfolio course is an advanced studio class that will further develop your artistic skills. Students will learn a variety of media and techniques and will enhance their ability to evaluate and critique their work as well as the work of others in an objective manner. Students will showcase their technical ability and create a resume of their work in a manner that incorporates meaning, conceptual thinking, complexity, and a narrative of one’s work.

Theatre Production: Role and character, relationships, situation, voice, movement, focus, tension, space, time, language, symbol, audience, mood, and atmosphere are the key components students will focus on. This intensive course is for students who want to truly understand all aspects of production and work towards a final product after the three-week session. Extend the roles of performer, director, writer, designer, dramaturg, musician, artist, or creative thinker in new and unexpected ways within a supportive atmosphere of discovery and innovation

Piano Lab: A music intensive for pianists with prior experience. This workshop allows students to focus and vastly improve their technique and performance skills over a short period. You will have performance opportunities, piano ensemble repertoire and coaching, and class discussions on various piano-related topics. Class needs will determine the daily schedule, students’ abilities, and readiness to do the work. Students must be self-motivated and prepared to practice individually after the course each day to master their assignments.

Chorus: Chorus intensive is our three-week afternoon summer program for highly focused vocal students. This course is a chance for young performers to explore their abilities as performers. The program is focused on strengthening students’ foundational and performance skills. breathing, theory, and sight-singing. The student will conclude this program more completely as an artist with stronger musicianship skills and more polished performance techniques. In addition, students will meet talented peers who share their passion for singing and music.

Instrumental Ensemble: This intensive is for students with instrumental experience and who want to focus on in-depth exploration of instrumental music. Students in this program are defined by their dedication, creativity, curiosity, and passion for excellence in music. Students will learn how to groove in a band, develop improvisational and reading skills, and improve their technique. This course incorporates a theory-led design of instruments and representations in learning analytics.

Meet our instructors on the following pages.

HELEDYS RODRIGUEZ CLASSICAL PIANIST

Heledys Rodriguez is an accomplished classically trained pianist. Ms. Rodriguez studied at Enrique Jose Varona University in Cuba. After completing three years of studies under virtuoso pianist Marylin Gessa in Cuba, Ms. Rodriguez moved to the United States. She continued her musical education at Florida International University, earning a Bachelor's Degree in Music Education and graduating Cum Laude. She continued her piano studies under Dr. Miguel Salvador and Dr. José Raul Lopez during those years. Ms. Rodriguez was also the accompanist for the Florida International University's choirs under conductor Dr. John Augenblick.

Ms. Rodriguez continued her education at FIU, earning her Master's in Music Production. While studying at FIU, Ms. Rodriguez established a private studio Ninetynine Music Academy. As an active member of the "National Guild of Piano Teachers" and "Florida Music Teachers Association," she has prepared numerous students for competitions, recitals, and examinations at a national level.

Her work also includes working with children's, youth and adult choirs. Leading ensembles and producing shows for elementary, middle and high schools in the Miami and Broward areas. She is currently working on the recording and release of her solo piano album "Seasons of a Soul."

Ms. Rodriguez's greatest passion is to be able to share the joy of making music and art with everyone around her and to inspire children and young adults to develop a love for music and art as they embark on the best journey anyone can ever take: "the journey of being able to communicate through an instrument or a brush what many others can only dream about."

THEATRE PERFORMANCE AXY CARRION

Axy Carrion has been a theatre professional for twenty years, with acting credits in Off Broadway and NYC theatre, makeup credits in NYC and Florida, and costuming credits in Florida.

Ms. Carrion has been a theatre professor for thirteen years, teaching all theatrical disciplines such as: acting, technical theatre, voice for stage, costuming, and makeup for stage. Professor Carrion's professional resume includes an extensive career in higher education at Miami Dade College, Broward College, University of Miami, Miami International University of Art and Design, and Nova Southeastern University. Professor Carrion's MFA training includes acting, dialects, voice, musical theatre, film, stage combat, classics, Alexander technique, business of acting, and theatre history.

In addition to being an acting teacher, Professor Carrion is also a trained actor. Her exceptional skills as an actor include singing, Spanish fluency, trained Spanish translator, Dialects, English Level 2, British RP, Cockney, Irish, Brooklyn, Southern, French, Russian, Spanish, and Hispanic, among others.

Ms. Carrion is passionate about teaching and helping her students develop artistically. Her experience is sharing her joy of theater, voice & speech, introducing students to various acting techniques, and creating a safe environment for students to explore results in truthful and emotionally full work. Professor Carrion's true enjoyment in teaching and her real-life acting, directing, and producing experience makes her stand out as a Performing Arts Professor.

JULIO CESAR BANASCO REGO FINE ARTS ARTIST

Julio Cesar Banasco Rego’s dream as a young boy was to be an artist. What started as a dream led him to a 12-year artistic training and a lifetime of devotion to art. Mr. Banasco graduated with a golden diploma from the ENA (National School of the Arts). He continued his studies, earning a Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts Education from the Enrique José Varona Pedagogical Institute of Havana.

Mr. Banasco has participated in collaborative and personal exhibits worldwide and has garnered many awards. Mr. Banasco is a trained art restorer, conservator, and independent artist. Mr. Banasco’s work can be found in private collections in Cuba, Argentina, Venezuela, Mexico, Puerto Rico, Costa Rica, Belgium, Holland, Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, England, the United States, and Canada.

Teaching is one of his biggest passions. Transforming what he has learned to others and seeing their progress is one of the best rewards in his professional career. Mr. Basnasco never stops learning and exploring new techniques and materials to work with, and he imparts this to his students. Mr. Banasco is a passionate student of his art and an extraordinary educator.

THEATRE PRODUCTION GUSTAVO LEON

Gustavo Francisco Leon is a theatre production specialist. Mr. Leon's expertise lies in theatre planning, lighting, sound design, infrastructure, rigging, system production, design layouts, and backof-house design.

Mr. Leon has explored most aspects of the theatre, including set design, technical director, scenic painting, costuming, special effects, editing, and carpentry. Mr. Leon brings his talents in various aspects of art into his role at Sagemont Prep Conservatory, such as photography, sculpting, drawing, and make-up.

With an immense range of production, Mr. Leon's resume includes Footloose the Musical, Rocky Horror Picture Show, Lion King, Berlin to Broadway, Wizard of Oz, Beauty and the Beast, Plantados, Theatre Problems, Sleep No More, Sister Act the Musical, Boiling People in my Coffee, Tarzan the Musical and so much more.

Mr. Leon employs a collaborative approach to all productions and utilizes all visual and performing arts in bringing his students' vision to life. Mr. Leon establishes and maintains a safe and harmonious work environment with colleagues and students throughout each production. He implements appropriate instructional programs in a learning environment that guides and encourages students to develop and fulfill their potential.

ALEJANDRA ALFONSO ARTIST & ILLUSTRATOR

Alejandra Alfonso's body of work is mainly oil paintings on stretched canvas. Surpassing the realm of reality and reason, her paintings aim to break the mold that encases art expectations in our contemporary world. Moved by her fascination for the classical and curiosity for the odd, her work reminisces romantic expressions and warm colors that have been somewhat lost in our modern society. The human form is used in almost all her paintings with efforts to celebrate our natural anatomy; she works from both the female and male body for references. She also incorporates different animals (mostly sea animals) to enhance the natural beauty of our existence. The mystery of oceanic creatures draws her, which is why she chooses to include a variety of fish in her work.

Ms. Alfonso taught herself to draw and paint. From a very young age, she could draw things from her imagination. Little by little, she started to improve as an artist, and her love for the arts grew. She enrolled to study medicine at FIU, but four years into her career, she switched to her true passion, Fine Arts studies.

As Ms. Alfonso started to explore, she discovered a love for illustration. She has a wide variety of illustrations and has printed and sold many copies. Ms. Alfonso has exhibited in many venues in Florida, including, The Spanish Monastery and The Milander Art Center.

Ms. Alfonso is currently working on her Master's Degree at the Artist Institute. Ms. Alfonso is a published author. She and her mother, Iris de la Rosa,” have published their book “Olivia, and her Yellow Boots.”

MARIA PRIETO SANCHEZ

ARTIST

Ms. Prieto Sanchez is an accomplished educator with over ten years of teaching experience. She graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in Fine Arts with a minor in Art History from Florida International University. Ms. Prieto Sanchez also studied abroad at the Lorenzo Medici School of Fine Arts in Florence, Italy, the birthplace of the Renaissance, focusing on art, specifically painting, mosaics, and marble sculpting, and studying the Italian language. She has participated in various exhibitions, including a juried City-Wide Art Show in Florance, Italy. Ms. Prieto Sanchez has also worked as a Technical Illustrator for five years producing reference drawings of footwear and accessories.

Ms. Prieto Sanchez was a lead vocalist for several bands and had a well-known holiday single on air. She did background vocals for a South Florida band's fourth major album, which sold over 130,000 copies in the US.

Ms. Prieto Sanchez has an immense focus on art and history. Her students do not merely focus on the art but always explore all artists' backgrounds and impact. Students, young and old, gravitate to Ms. Prieto Sanchez due to the nurturing environment that is present that allows all artists to explore and examine their full potential. Ms. Prieto Sanchez is excited to share her passion for art and teaching children.

GIOLY ENRIQUEZ ARTIST AND FLUTIST

Glioly Enriquez was born in Venezuela, and from an early age, she showed interest in music and the fine arts, making these two a big part of her life.

She made a career in the arts studying industrial design, graduating from the Caracas Design Institute in 2002. Her education includes Auto-CAD advanced modeling in 3-D, Deneba-CAD (Tridimensional drawing program), and specializations in painting and wood finishes, among others. She has worked with Carolina Rojas, building wire bases and modeling in clay. She has used concrete, iron, wood, fiberglass, resin, and silicon materials.

When Ms. Enriquez is not at her workshop working on an art project, she can be found playing the flute, and you can find her playing every Saturday at the Cauley Square Historic Village in Miami with her husband and stepdaughter.

MUSICAL THEATRE & VOICE NORA PANTOJA

Nora Pantoja is an accomplished artist. Ms. Pantoja received her BFA in Acting and is currently working on her MFA at The Julliard School.

Her resume is extensive and includes a wide range of work in the theatre. Ms. Pantojo’s work in the Amparo Experience, the award-winning immersive play that tells the story of the Arechabala family, the makers of the original Havana Club rum, who were forced into exile after the Cuban Revolution, was a true highlight of her career. Ms. Pantoja has range, and other productions include Pericles, Little Shop of Horrors, 7 Deadly Sins with Miami New Drama, and so much more.

When not on the stage, Ms. Pantaja is well-versed in all aspects of the theatre, including mask work, stage make-up, set design, movement, voice, and scene study. Nora is always a student and is always learning. She has participated in a study at the Royal Shakespeare Company and is a student of the Meisner technique.