Summer Arts Programs for High School

Aaron, from Morrow, Ohio, a little bit northeast of Cincinnati, going into my senior year of high school.

What inspired you to come to Ohio's Summer Arts Programs to study trumpet? 

This is my second year; last year I kind of was looking at summer camps, and I wanted to find something local.

How did you get started yourself in music?

I remember my parents bought me a little drum set for my fourth birthday. It kind of started there and then signed up for piano lessons.

That's actually the first instrument I started on, moved to drums, and then eventually got into trumpet at sixth grade for beginning band, and then have been playing ever since.

What stood out to you about this program?

I guess the fact that there's a lot of stuff that is offered, and that it's a very big music community here at Ohio University.

What's something you think you are learning from your professors, and then something you might be learning from your classmates?

I think to tie those two together, everyone starts at their own level, and everyone also plays an important role in the group, so everyone brings their own creativity, their own spark to the program.

Any advice you might have for future students attending?

I think this camp is definitely worth it because you experience campus life, like the dorm life, and then also to working with the professors, to kind of to see if this is something you want to do later on in life in college, too.

I'm Cadin from Grove City, and I'm going into my senior year of high school.

What brought you to OHIO’s summer program in musical theater?

Well, I always have liked to do acting and last year I did a musical theater camp so this year I wanted to do the same in a different university just so that I'm able to just get a bunch of acting tips and also go to a bunch of colleges so that I can see what they're like.

How did you get started in theater?

It probably started probably like my freshman year of high school when I took first took like an acting class. I really enjoyed it, but I didn't do any theater productions that high school year. The next high school year I remember last second, so I auditioned and got into my first role and I just loved it. I loved doing it, it was so much fun.

What would you say is something that you've learned from your professors?

Don’t marry yourself to one way of doing a scene or one way of talking. You always want to try to open yourself up to new ways to do a scene, new ways to pronounce this, new ways to be into your character. It’s better to diversify yourself; there is no right way until you're in front of people, and they've told you what they've liked what they don't like. You can just really just encompass that and just keep getting better and better.

What is something you may have learned or picked up from your fellow classmates as you're working together?

Oh yeah, they have been spectacular there have been so many good performances here it's just like it's really made me realize how little changes can really affect how good the performance is. It is so amazing to see like them do it one way and then have this little thing change and then there's like it's an entirely different thing and they're like so good at just picking up on things and just delivering. Really it's just an amazing thing that I hope I can learn to just like.

You feel like like they've raised your game a little bit?

Yes definitely.

If you had advice for somebody attending Ohio summer camps in the future what would it be?

Just go out there and just do what you love.  If you love acting don't be scared to present yourself in front of others and to just go for it. But this camp is also much more than just acting and dancing… it's also connecting with other people and those people who enjoy the same thing you do. I have not done that as much as I would have liked to so learn from my mistake reach out to your other people because honestly they're gonna make this experience so enjoyable and unforgettable. 

Christopher, I'm from Gahanna, Ohio, and I am in my junior year of high school.

What brought you to Ohio University's Summer Arts Program in film?

So, I am obviously interested in film, and I wanted to see if there was a program that could give me some more experience. And so, I scoured the internet, and this one seemed to be A) the most fun, but B) also the most into it with the experience.

How did you get started in film?

So, me and my grandfather have always been into film, and we've always talked about film, so I guess just doing something with him, and having fun in the process.

What do you think are some of the things that you've picked up from your professors, and something you've learned from your classmates while you were here?

So, the lectures have definitely taught me a lot about the practicality of how it is on set, and the specifics of lighting, sound, audio, visuals, and kind of using that and how to use it to better your films.

And from my classmates, it's just kind of learning through your mistakes and success, kind of like seeing how other people succeed and how other people fail, and kind of learning off of that, and taking that into consideration for your stuff.

Here you are making a bunch of films in a very short time period, getting a pretty experiential idea of what it's like to do the real thing. Did anything surprise you?

Yeah, definitely the heat. I feel like the heat is actually a good part of the program, because you're going to have days on set where you're going to have climates and experiences where you're not always going to have perfect temperature or perfect humidity or whatever.

And I feel like having this challenge and kind of pushing forward kind of gets us ready for what is to possibly come in the future.

If you were to give anybody advice who was thinking about coming to this program or had anything to offer, what would you say?

Definitely be prepared to make something that fits within a small enough time period, because people have a lot of really good ideas, and we all want to make the best short film that we want to make, and everybody has really big ideas.

But just with the time period we have, we only have a limited amount of time to work with. So just make sure to have a good idea that fits that crunch.

My name is Gwendolyn. I am from Athens, Ohio, and I'm going into my freshman year in high school.

What inspired you to come to Ohio Summer Programs to study trumpet?

The fact that I like music and my parents thought I'd like it.

What stood out to you about this program itself?

The fact that was a music related program and I don't see a lot of those, and the fact that was nearby meant that I could like have time at home while still doing it.

What got you started in music, in general?

My sisters joined marching band which made me want to do music, so in fifth grade I joined the band.

Did you start on trumpet, or something else?

I started on percussion and switched to trumpet.

What's something that you've learned from your professors and something that you think maybe you're learning from your classmates?

One thing that I've learned from professors is like kind of a few new techniques and warm-up kind of things. Like I didn't know that the little lip bend thingies existed until we did them as an exercise. And one thing from classmates is that, is that I kind of learned the growl technique recently.

The growl technique?

Yeah, it's kind of like you use it in music sometimes. It goes like, growl.

My name is Kayden. And I'm from Houston, Texas, and I'm about to be in 10th grade in high school.

What made you decide to come to Ohio University summer arts film program?

One of my friends suggested it to me. And I did like a little bit of research on what they have and like how long the program is and it seemed interesting to me

How did you get started in film in high school?

I've always wanted to kind of pursue film as a career, it's something that's always interested me. And I wanted to find like a good environment where I could do that, where I'd have like people to teach me and kind of introduce me to it. Because I've never done it by myself.

So, is this your first immersive experience in a film environment?

Yeah.

What do you think has been something you have learned from your professors and then something you may have picked up from your classmates?

From my professors, they've taught me like a lot of just like the overall knowledge…they've taught me like good time management and how if there's a situation where on set we're not able to necessarily do what we want to do, how to work around that. And then with my classmates, they've taught me just how to work with other people and how to communicate clearly to help execute our visions and make a good end goal.

You had a friend suggest this to you, so if you were going to suggest this program to someone else, what's something that you would let them know?

I would suggest for them to obviously pay attention when they're explaining how to use equipment and things like that and really to just like put their full focus and put all their effort into it because that's how they get better results. 

My name is Lily. I'm from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and I am going to my junior year of high school.

What brought you to this summer program?

So, I have a couple of friends, family members, and friends of family members who have gone [to OHIO], and it's just always been on my radar. It's a beautiful campus, and I've heard lots about their curriculum, and I kinda just wanted to check it out myself because I've heard amazing things about it.

How did you get started in theater?

So, it's funny, because the first show I saw was "Singing in the Rain," and as soon as I saw it, I basically fell in love with theater. It was so magical because they actually had rain on stage, and it was just gorgeous, and it was actually the school I go to now 'cause I go to a performing arts school… and I was like, I wanna do that, and that's how I fell in love with theater.

What would you say is something that you've learned from your professors?

Something that I've learned while I've been here is not to be so hard on myself and to actually find the fun in theater because while doing theater, I can definitely find with myself that I can take it too seriously, and I can just be so hard on myself, and I need to remember why I started this, and that I can actually have fun while doing it too.

How about something that you think you maybe are picking up from your fellow classmates?

Just to enjoy being with each other because that's what this camp's about. We're doing so many dance numbers, and so many group songs, and it's just like teamwork is one of the best parts of theater, just working with others, and also seeing how they take songs, and how they take monologues, and just different perspectives too.

And then if you were going to give anybody one piece of advice if they were thinking of coming here, what would it be?

Talk to the students, honestly. Everyone that I've talked to has really loved it here, and people who are coming here are super excited to come here, and some advice is, it's just, have fun. Like I said earlier, don't forget to have fun while you're doing theater 'cause when you keep working towards your goals, you can totally forget that it's theater. We're playing pretend on stage, so just have fun with it because then you're gonna be truly happy.

My name is Nia. I am from Princeton, West Virginia, and I am currently a junior in high school about to go to my senior year.

What inspired you to come to Ohio University for our summer programs?

So, I was at a dance festival, and they gave me a scholarship to come here, and I heard that Brother(hood) Dance was very creative and it was going to be fun. And Ohio University is one of my schools that I would like love to go to in the future, so it sounded like a good idea.

So how did you get started in dance?

I started dance when I was about three years old, and ever since I just really loved it. I started at Princeton Dance Studio and it was like tap, ballet, jazz.

What has stood out to you so far about the program?

It's very different from all the other dance styles that I've tried, and I really like it.  At my dance studio, we have the basic contemporary you see, the basic modern, so I’ve liked the different ways that they express like how you can use your freedom here, like earthing your dancing. It's very cool.

What's something you've learned from your professors and something you've learned from your classmates?

Well, I've learned that the earth and nature have a lot to do with your dancing, and breathing is very important, especially in your movement to flow through it and that you have a lot of freedom in what you do with dance.

And what about something you've learned from your classmates themselves, dancing with your fellow students?

My classmates here are very creative, and I love watching each of them because like I can learn something by watching other people.

And then if you had any advice for somebody thinking about coming here or considering it in the future, what would it be?

Honestly to just be brave and to get out of your comfort zone. And it's a good idea to come here. I love it.