WINONA LAKE - Hundreds of musicians, singers, dancers and theater students from around the world will converge at Grace College beginning this weekend for a four-week performing arts training festival.
The 12th annual MasterWorks Festival will be Sunday through July 19 at Grace College. The festival is being sponsored by Grace College and the Village at Winona.
New to this year is a Faculty Chamber Recital open to the public. The recital is Friday, Saturday and Sunday at 7:30 p.m. at Rodeheaver Auditorium, and is free of charge.
MasterWorks student performances begin June 27 at 7:30 p.m. at Rodeheaver Auditorium in Winona Lake, unless otherwise noted, and are free to the public.
The MasterWorks Festival is a classical performing arts training program that offers students of music, dance, opera and theater the opportunity to learn from professional Christian performing artists with scheduled performances open to the public.A total of 55 students attended the first MasterWorks in Houghton, N.Y., in 1997. In 2002, the festival was moved to Winona Lake.
There are 240 students who will participate in this year's festival. Last year, there were 250 students who participated in the festival. There are approximately 95 to 100 faculty who will teach the students.
The audition process to qualify for the festival begins in December and ends in May.
There are three categories of students who participate in the festival, including high school, college and post-college students. Students range from 14 to 28 years old.
The festival draws musicians, dancers, theater students and singers from all around the world. Students are from Romania, Italy, Australia, Japan, England and throughout the United States.
Dr. Patrick Kavanaugh, who has served as Masterworks Festival artistic director since 1997, said he is excited for another MasterWorks festival to begin.
Kavanaugh also serves as dean of the school of music at Grace College.
"The festival has grown over the last 12 years, and it is unique in that we try to incorporate a broad range of the performing arts," Kavanaugh said.
"The students are phenomenal and there is nothing like turning kids on to music at a young age," he said.
Kavanaugh will direct a Patriotic Pops Concert July 4 at the Hillside Amphitheater at 7:30 p.m. in Winona Lake. The concert will include Sousa Marches and Broadway Songs.
Notable instructors this year include theatrical producer Ken Wales; Ann Schein, piano recording artist; and Stephan Clapp, violinist and dean of the Julliard School.
There are nine programs, including an orchestra/chamber music program, string intensive study program, wind intensive study program, classical guitar program, opera program, dance program, theater program and a summer internship program.
Concerts are performed each Friday and Saturday night at Rodeheaver Auditorium in Winona lake to the public free of charge through July 19. There also will be impromptu performances on the shop porches in the Village at Winona.
For more information about the festival, call 574-327-5111 or visit www.masterworksfestival.org
