CITYSunTimes Online Extras February 2010
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YOUTH & EDUCATION

Ballet Arizona Hosts Auditions For Premier Ballet Academy

Phoenix-area ballet students are invited to audition for the School of American Ballet’s (SAB) 2010 Summer Course on Sunday, February 7 from 1-4pm. The auditions will be held at Ballet Arizona, 3645 East Indian School Road, Phoenix.
Audition times are as follows:
1-2:30pm for 12-14-year-olds
2:30-4pm for 15-18-year-olds
Students should arrive one hour in advance of their audition time to register. Optional pre-registration for the audition is also currently available on SAB’s web site at sab.org/summercourse. The application fee is $35. Auditions are for intermediate and advanced ballet students, 12 to 18 years old as of June 30, 2010. All students should bring a copy of their birth certificates to the audition. Girls must bring pointe shoes to the audition. Contact Ballet Arizona at 602.381.0188.
During the next two months, more than 2,000 aspiring ballet dancers in 20 cities will vie for approximately 200 coveted spots in SAB’s five-week summer program. Students invited to SAB’s Summer Course will attend classes in New York City from June 28 to July 30. 
The School of American Ballet, founded 76 years ago by legendary choreographer George Balanchine and Lincoln Kirstein, is the premier ballet academy in the United States and trains more students who become professional ballet dancers than any other American school. For additional information, call 212.769.6600 or visit sab.org

Girls For A Change

Girls for a Change is a national organization that promotes social change among teens and young adults. The goal of the group is to help create positive change in their surrounding communities. There are several Valley teams that meet each week for a couple hours at a designated school or community center, such as the Paiute Neighborhood Center. The girls are educated on what Social Change is, and are given the tools to help identify problems in their community such as teen pregnancy and drug abuse.
The group at Paiute, which is comprised of the Paiute Teen Center and the Boys & Girls Club, has identified teen drug and alcohol abuse as their topic. They are taking their “Be Yourself” campaign out into the community to help others find the confidence resist peer pressure to try drugs and alcohol in order to “fit in.”
The Paiute Neighborhood Center is located at 6535 East Osborn Road in Scottsdale. For information, call 480.312.2529 or visit scottsdaleaz.gov/parks/paiute. For more information about the Girls for a Change program, visit girlsforachange.org.

YOUTH & EDUCATION Online Extras | CITYSunTimes February 2010