The Theatre Lab and Levine Music Announce Exciting New Partnership

Collaboration Expands Access to High-Quality Musical Theatre Training 

Washington (August 9, 2018) – The Theatre Lab School of the Dramatic Arts, Washington, DC’s largest and most comprehensive independent, nonprofit school for the dramatic arts and Levine Music, Washington DC region’s preeminent center for music education, announce an exciting new partnership to expand musical theatre training to high school students and adults.

“Levine Music and The Theatre Lab share the belief that rigorous arts training is for everyone,” said Deb Gottesman, Co-Executive Director of The Theatre Lab. “We’re thrilled to combine forces with one of the area’s most distinguished community arts schools to be able to provide exceptional musical theatre training and unique educational opportunities to a broad cross-section of the Metro DC area.”  

Beginning today, The Theatre Lab will partner with Levine’s Act Two Pre-Professional music theater program for high school students.  During the school-year long training program, students are immersed in the art of music theater, participating in a public cabaret performance at Levine’s Silver Spring campus and two mainstage productions at the distinguished Kogod Cradle at Arena Stage. More importantly, students gain valuable experience working as a team, building confidence, and collaborating with others. The program is currently auditioning students for the 2018-2019 program and will host a meet and greet on August 23.

“This new partnership represents Levine’s focus on providing superb music instruction, and complementing our strengths with the talents of other leaders in the theater community to enhance and enrich the experience of our students,” said Peter Jablow, Levine Music’s CEO. “The Theatre Lab’s outstanding faculty and leadership make them an ideal partner as we envision expanding the reach of our music theater program and providing new opportunities to serve a wider community.”

The Theatre Lab’s faculty and directors will provide acting workshops and master class opportunities to members of the program.  Students enrolled in The Theatre Lab’s Summer Institutes for Teens will now be able to participate in the Levine program at reduced tuition, and both organizations will expand their efforts, individually and jointly, to increase scholarships for students who lack financial means to pursue their music theater goals.

Levine’s Pre-Professional program is led by Director Tracy Lynn Olivera and Music Director Bobby McCoy, under the leadership of Managing Artistic Director Carolyn Agan.  Ms. Olivera, one of the area’s most acclaimed musical theatre performers, has appeared on Broadway (Ragtime) and is a two-time Helen Hayes Award Winner. Mr. McCoy is also well known to Washington theatre audiences, having won the Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Musical Direction in 2018.  Both Ms. Olivera and Mr. McCoy are longtime faculty members at The Theatre Lab.

The organizations are in the planning stages of offering new musical theatre classes for adults at Levine and Theatre Lab campuses and are exploring expanding their collaborative program over time to Levine’s campus in Southeast DC at Town Hall Education Arts Recreation Campus (THEARC).

About the Theatre Lab

The Theatre Lab is Washington, DC’s largest and most comprehensive independent, nonprofit school for the dramatic arts. The Theatre Lab’s mission is to transform lives through theatre. Since its founding in 1992, The Theatre Lab has worked to make the real-life benefits of theatre training accessible to all regardless of age, income, or experience level. Program highlights include a conservatory to prepare actors for a profession in the arts, year-round multi-week courses for youth and adults, summer drama camps for kids and teens, and the nationally recognized Life Stories program. Learn more at theatrelab.org

About Levine Music

Levine Music, the Washington DC region’s preeminent center for music education, is a welcoming community where children and adults find lifelong inspiration and joy through learning, performing, listening to, and participating with others in music.

Levine’s core values, excellence and opportunity, infuse everything we do. Our distinguished faculty offers a broad and well-rounded curriculum that provides a strong musical foundation for students of different ages, abilities, and interests. We strive to make Levine education available to everyone. Hundreds of our students receive substantial scholarship assistance; many hundreds more receive free instruction through outreach programs. Learn more at levinemusic.org.