Westlake School for the Performing Arts
christmas_candles.jpg Greetings!

Happy Holidays to all!  Please join us during this time of reflection as we give thanks for our many blessings we have received this last year.  WSPA is grateful for all the talents in our school.  We are committed to nurturing these talents so they can continue to bring incomparable joy to people's lives.  We are thankful for the continuous love and support of our parents and families who make everything possible.  Without each and everyone of you, we could not do what we do everyday, so Thank You!  From all the staff and faculty of WSPA, we hope you have a blessed and very Happy Holidays and a very Happy and prosperous New Year!

Sincerely,
Jessica C. M. Angeles
OLM Simbang Gabi - WSPA joins together in prayer and worship tonight

Join us at Our Lady of Mercy Church for mass tonight (Friday, December 19) at 7:15pm as part of the Simbang Gabi novena.  WSPA will do a special nativity liturgical presentation prior to the mass and will also host the after-mass reception in the church hall.  Please join us during this special time of prayer, reflection and thanksgiving.
 
Articles in this Issue:

NEW Winter Classes

Staying Healthy

Holiday Show

Nutcracker Recap

2015 Recital Prep

Halloween Recap


 
Important Dates  
UPCOMING SHOWS
"Holiday Show" at Skyline Theater - Rehearsal: Sat, Dec 20 & Performance: Sun, Dec 21  
Disney's "Beauty and the Beast, Jr." at Skyline College Theater - Jan 24 @ 2pm and 7pm

SCHOOL CLOSED
Christmas Holiday: December 22 - January 4

CLASSES RESUME
Monday, January 5, 2015

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Enroll your youngest dancer in a new class or bring a friend to join the WSPA family.  New classes begin in January. 

***ATTENTION CURRENT WSPA FAMILIES*** 

Bring in a new student and be sure they mention your name upon registration and receive a $30 credit towards your account  

NewClasses
Winter Classes:
B&T 1B (3-4) Tues 3:45
B&T 3B (5-6) Fri 6:15
Ballet 1B (4-6) Thur 3:15
Poly 1B (4-6) Thur 3:30
Hip Hip 1B (7-9) Tue 5:45

Registration is taken in the WSPA office.  Call (650) 757-1244 for more details.
 
HealthyStaying Healthy During the Winter

The damp weather and nippy breeze remind us that winter is here.  This is the time to keep our children especially warm before and after their classes.  If taking immunization shots keeps your family healthy, let this be a reminder to have them
soon.  Don't let the wintry weather and the seasonal flu sneak up on you.  We want them healthy and happy for dance, especially for the upcoming shows they are preparing for.    
 
 Here are a few practices your little dancer can do to keep the winter 'colds' out where they belong - wash hands before and after dance class; stay warm while waiting outside for class and make sure to cover up when moving from one class to another; no sharing drinks; eat healthy fresh salads and fruits, make sure to have carbs for energy and protein for muscle strength, avoid greasy food, and drink lots of water.  

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 HolidayShow WSPA'S HOLIDAY SHOW - December 21, 2014

Featuring the musical the
ater program and the beginning students ages 3-7 in a holiday revue!

  The holiday shows remind us teachers and advanced students that dance is fun.  We get excited to watch the performances of our pre-schoolers and kindergarteners.  Our teachers enjoy preparing our students to perform a simple song and dance without inhibitions and fear.

They bring so much joy and laughter on the stage with their unpredictable display of innate talent.  They remind us of how we once were, a beginner with an innate love for dance. In this very competitive world  where perfection is key to success, the joy in dance is sometimes lost as dancers, teachers, and choreographers focus on self expression and technique.    Preparing the very young brings back the joy in what we do.  Through the holiday show, we are given a chance to give and receive.

Our very strong musical theater program will be leading the shows with their powerful voices filling our hearts with the Christmas spirit.

Join us and be delightfully surprised!   
  • Performances will be on Sunday, December 21 at 10:00am, 12:30pm and 2:00pm at Skyline College Theater. 
  • Click HERE for the Holiday Show rehearsal schedule for Saturday, December 20.
  • For help with how to prepare your child's hair in a bun for the show, click HERE to view our WSPA "How to Make a Bun" video.

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NutcrackerNUTCRACKER RECAP

Another year of Nutcracker preparations, rehearsals, fundraising and performances is in the books.  This year's performances were truly remarkable with our youngest cast of leads to date.  Audiences were left mesmerized and awestruck from the sheer talent as our dancers graced the Palace of Fine Arts stage.  The addition of our guest artist Rudolph Capongcol from the Philippines was not only a treat for the audience, but also for our dancers.  His humbleness and work-ethic were great models for our dancers as they saw a true professional at work. 

Many, many thanks to all the parents who supported all our dancers - from driving them to rehearsal, to preparing costumes, to feeding them backstage and supporting them with applause from the audience.  To all our parent volunteers who dedicated themselves to countless hours of fundraising and backstage help, we applaud you!  Our show is noteworthy because of our young cast, and we truly cannot have done all this without you.  

To all our hundreds of dancers who participated in this year's Nutcracker, BRAVO and congratulations!  A spectacular performance from all of you.  A special thanks to all those students who took the time out to perform for our Student Matinee on Monday as well.  Thank you for taking the time to share your talents with those students from all over the Bay Area.  We hop you enjoyed performing for them as much as they enjoyed seeing you on stage.

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Recital2015 RECITAL PREPARATIONS


"We will assume all the students in a routine class will be participating in the recital and therefore will be ordered a costume." 

Our office manager, Debbie Knutson along with Brigette Guldbech, Morgan Chang, and Barbara Rozzano-Keefe have taken measurements for costumes in November & December.  Hip Hop students will not be measured as they will be asked to purchase their costume on their own.  A Hip Hop costume is usually color-coordinated street clothes.  Your teacher will let you know what colors to buy.

We are currently in the process of ordering costumes.  We will assume all the students will be participating in the recital and therefore will be ordered a costume for each child.  If you have not done so already, you must let the office know now if your child will not participate in the recital because of vacation plans. 

A $50 down payment for each costume has been collected together with your November tuition. The balance of the payment may be paid after the holidays in January.
 
Keep in mind that costumes are NOT REFUNDABLE once ordered. Late orders are nearly impossible to receive by recital time and may cost you expensive shipping fees. A costume book showing a picture of your child's costume will be displayed in the office in January.

For more information on WSPA's Recital Policy, refer to our Parent/Student Handbook.

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Halloween2014 Halloween Carnival Recap -
by Trudy Mar (AIMBA Officeer and Parent Volunteer)
 
On Saturday October 24th, the WSPA courtyard was transformed into a bustling, fun-filled Halloween Carnival.  Mother Nature cooperated and gave us some rain in the morning but the skies cleared in plenty of time for the kids to enjoy nine game booths with fun and delicious prizes!  This year there were two inflatable large size jumpers which provided hours of jumping fun and endless smiles and squeals of joy from kids of all ages.  All of the kids and some fun parents too looked wonderful in their Halloween costumes - we saw such a great array of costumes from sweet princesses, scary monsters, rock stars, evil witches, a ghost dancing at the barre and even a beautiful bulldog dressed as Little Bo Peep in a tutu.  There is no better place to see great Halloween costumes than a Performing Arts School!

MTC Performance and Haunted House
With the leadership and inspiration of our Musical Theatre Program Director, Ms. Katie Gielniak, our MTC students dazzled the crowd as usual with a fun and spooky medley of songs from The Addams Family. Then, MTC performers frightened everyone with their annual Haunted House, this year with the theme of Haunted Hollywood.  

Costume Contest / Pet Parade
 
Lots of participants walked the runway in the Costume Contest. Two adorable sisters, Kayla and Trisha Yee who dressed as Audrey Hepburn won the costume contest. Congratulations to the girls, and of course wonderful job to all of the contestants! The pets got to have fun too, showing off the costumes their loving owners put together. 

Many, many thanks to all of our Performance Program families for all of of the volunteer hours sponsoring the booths. To our Food Committee Chair, Cylyn Montero and our Halloween Event Chair, Barbara Rozzano-Keefe who coordinated all the games and organized the entire event.  A big shout out and thanks to DJ Ricky who kept the tunes spinning and the party going all day long, his energy and great music can't be beat!

This has truly become a wonderful tradition of our non-profit organization, AIM Bay Area who sponsors the event to help support the Performance Program of WSPA.  Students, families, and friends look forward to this celebration every year!
 
Many thanks to those who took part in this event!  You can check out and download the photos posted at our AIMBA Facebook account. 
  
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EAT AT RED ROBIN ON SUNDAY, 21, 2014

Help raise funds for our Musical Theater department by enjoying a meal at Red Robins.  A portion of all proceeds from all meals purchased at Red Robin restaurant will be donated to AIMBA an MTC when you present this flyer (or bring a print out) with your check.  The flyer will be honored all day.

Red Robin Gourmet Burgers
1274 El Camino Real, San Bruno CA
(650) 588-4600

For the full flyer to present, click HERE.