Songbook Academy Final Concert
See tomorrow’s stage and screen stars in the making Saturday, July 28, when talented high school-age vocalists from across the nation perform and compete in the annual Songbook Academy® Finals at the Center for the Performing Arts.
Culmination of a week of work
The evening concert in the Center’s Palladium concert hall is the culmination of the Great American Songbook Foundation’s weeklong academy, the only high school intensive in the United States focused on the timeless jazz, pop, Broadway, and Hollywood standards known as the Great American Songbook.
Feinstein to lead
Forty finalists – hailing from New York, California, Indiana, and 16 other states – have been selected from among hundreds of applicants to spend a rigorous, life-changing week this summer at the Center for the Performing Arts. From July 21 to 28, they will experience workshops, master classes, and mentoring from performing arts professionals and respected university educators, led by five-time Grammy® nominee and Foundation founder Michael Feinstein. The Academy is sponsored nationally by the Efroymson Family Fund, a fund of the Central Indiana Community Foundation.
Final concert
During the closing concert at 7 p.m. July 28, all 40 participants perform, and the Top 10 compete for awards before a panel of judges and a live audience. Only one is chosen Songbook Youth Ambassador for the coming year, a title that comes with career-boosting opportunities to perform at such venues as Carnegie Hall and the Kennedy Center. The Songbook Academy Finals concert is sponsored by Salon 01, Aquage haircare products, and Current Publishing LLC, and is part of the Center’s 2018-19 Season sponsored by Allied Solutions.
Tickets and information
Tickets starting at $25 go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday, June 15, available by phone at (317) 843-3800, online at TheCenterPresents.org, and at the Palladium Box Office, 1 Center Green, Carmel.
Free performances
Two other performance events during Songbook Academy week are open to the public free of charge, although tickets are required. Tickets can be reserved at (317) 843-3800 or obtained in person at the Box Office.
- Public Masterclass, 2-5 p.m. Wednesday, July 25, at the Palladium – Ten randomly selected participants undergo critiques from Michael Feinstein and guest mentors.
- Songbook Showcase, 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 2-4:30 p.m. Thursday, July 26, at the Palladium – All 40 participants perform solo, with 10 chosen to compete in the Saturday finals.