Daly City's Westlake School for the Performing Arts
A performing arts training center founded by Karen Dycaico and Malu Rivera-Peoples, Westlake School for the Performing Arts offers education in music, dance and theater. Based in Daly City, California, the school currently has 6 studios encompassing a 14,000 square feet land. It surrounds a courtyard at the Doelger Arts Center.
During its foundation in 1991, the founders collaborated with the Daly City Parks and Recreation Department to build a dance studio for a summer dance program with 3 instructors and 35 students. The first studio of the academy was located in the Larcombe Clubhouse.
Westlake School for the Performing Arts has various programs for young people ranging in ages from 5 to 21. Its performance program was formed in 1994. Its students are sorted into different program levels that include the Junior level, Junior Apprentice, the Apprentice level and Company. It has programs in ballet, hula, hip hop, jazz and musical theater. It has diverse dance programs that range from contemporary ballets to the folk dances of Filipino and Polynesians.
Generally, Westlake School for Performing Arts has categorized its programs into three, namely: The General School, the Performance Program and Musical Theater Program.
In the General School program, classes are held one or twice a week. The program offers different classes to children who desire to take dance as a form of exercise and body coordination.
Students auditioned in the Performance Program may be required to be present in a number of classes in a week including rehearsals. The program focuses in providing intense training that would involve several hours of rehearsals in preparation for performances and competitions.
Students that apply in the program offered by the Westlake School for Performing Arts are accepted for placement in different levels. The Junior level is for students ages 5 to 10. The Junior Apprentice level is filled in by students of the program that are 8 to 11 years old. 10 to16 is the admittance age bracket in the Apprentice level. Meanwhile, teens from 12 and up are auditioned for the Company level.
Interpretation of music, dramatization and characterization are the fields that would involve in musical theatre program. Students hone not only their talents in singing and dancing but also in acting, facial and body expressions. For students of Westlake School for Performing Arts, you may have to enroll in a dance class in order to join in this program.
Westlake School for Performing Arts is a recognized school in performing arts in California. Students enrolled WSPA has received various honors and accolades.
More information about the school can be found on its website.
