Dance, theatre, and vocal music majors at Performing Arts, Vine Street Campus, participated in a masterclass with James T. Lane earlier this week. James, who is currently performing "Chicago" on Broadway, is a South Philadelphia native and started his career in Philly before heading to Broadway. Students went to New York to see James perform on Broadway the weekend before the masterclass, and had the opportunity to meet him after the show. This was not only a fantastic educational opportunity for our students, but also a truly inspiring experience. James was gracious enough to spend time after the class sitting with students and answering their questions about how he made it to Broadway and what advice he could offer them about a career as a performer. View news clips and photos of James and the students in this post.

On Friday, February 24th, String and Vocal Majors from Performing Arts, Vine Street Campus, performed on the Plaza Stage at the Kimmel Center to commemorate the one year anniversary of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. This concert was ahead of the Philadelphia Orchestra's matinee performance, which was also dedicated to Ukraine. Opening remarks where given by Matías Tarnopolsky, President and Chief Executive Officer of The Philadelphia Orchestra, Iryna Mazur, Honorary Consul of Ukraine in Philadelphia, and David Briel, Deputy Secretary of International Business Development for the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development.

The concert program featured two students from Ukraine, Olesia Skorets and David Kozyrkov. Listen above to the KYW interview with the students on their experiences in the United States so far and their thoughts on the one-year anniversary. 

By Mike DeNardo, KYW Newsradio. 

In this interview, Mike DeNardo speaks with Performing Arts, Vine Street Campus, school translator Kate Guns, ESL Teacher Daniel Betekhtin, ESL coordinator Damon Bennett, and Ukranian student Yurii Bohrebniuk.

You may also read the interview on KYW's website here.

Honorary Consul of Ukraine in Philadelphia, Iryna Mazur, hosted a benefit concert at the Vine Street Campus on Thursday, October 13th to raise funds for the Ukrainian Federation of America. Concert choir, concert orchestra, ballet majors, and three students from Ukraine provided the performances that evening.

Bob Kelly visited Philadelphia Performing Arts, Vine Street Campus to meet with high school students and learn about the new String Theory Aviation Academy. He interviewed students and course instructor, Brandon Tomasello, who shared with him their own flight experiences. Check out the clip to watch Bob take the school's flight simulator for a test flight!