Opportunity Guide I Summer, Enrichment & Activities Guide

If your child loves singing, dancing, acting, playing an instrument, composing music or painting and designing, she will find a plethora of outstanding fun and instructional programs where she can develop her talents and meet people who love what she does. Check out extracurricular arts activities, including performance opportunities, at your child’s school or at local community centers. Specialized private weekend classes and summer programs for students of all levels are sponsored by various art institutes, music festivals, universities and professional music and dance companies.

To perform at the highest levels, many arts, especially music and dance, require private lessons and enrichment. If your child likes to perform, look for audition opportunities at local fairs, festivals, community orchestras and theaters. Many professional theaters and ballet companies sponsor summer intensive programs from talented youth. A child who enjoys competing may be interested in participating in arts contests where her work can earn recognition and win awards. The best students compete, at national arts contests that offer scholarship prizes.



  1. Situated on a lovely wooded 180-acre campus in western North Carolina, Brevard Music Center stands as one of this country's premier summer training programs and festivals. Under the artistic… Read more
  2. Duke Youth Programs is a part of Duke University Continuing Studies and has provided summer academic enrichment for academically motivated youth for over 35 years. Each summer approximately 650 youth… Read more
  3. The summer months in the School of Music are full of week-long camps, multiple-day workshops, seminars, and other special events for all ages, including: Summer Chamber Music Institute Violin, viola… Read more
  4. ECU hosts numerous programs and camps for youth both on and off campus. Here are a few camps being offered during past summers: Coastal Studies Summer Camps Campus Recreation and Wellness STEAM… Read more
  5. During the summer before your junior or senior year, explore a variety of careers in the fields of culinary arts, baking & pastry arts, criminal justice, science, hospitality or fashion at one of… Read more
  6. The School of Filmmaking offers exciting Summer Intensives for budding filmmakers in the areas of Animation and Filmmaking. Open to high school students and rising college freshmen, these programs… Read more
  7. UNCSA Summer Dance is comprised of four Intensives, three Professional Development programs and one Choreographic Residency, providing gifted emerging artists with the experience, knowledge, and… Read more
  8. In UNCSA's Visual Arts Summer Intensive, you will find a demanding and stimulating program designed to unlock your artistic talent and hone your skills in the visual arts. During studio classes in… Read more
  9. At UNCSA, summer offers aspiring musicians of all ages rich learning experiences and an abundance of opportunities to perform. As a SummerMusic student, you will be immersed in an intensive and… Read more
  10. In the School of Drama, the heat gets turned up in the summer. Grab a sword for the Stage Combat summer program or polish your acting technique with the Drama Summer Intensive. All of the summer… Read more