Encore Company &
Pre-Professional Program

Elevate Your Passion: Join Our Pre-Professional Theater Company
Are you a young artist ready to turn your passion for theater into a professional career? Or maybe you just want to take your favorite activity more seriously and hone your skills? Our Pre-Professional Theater Company is designed to be your launching pad. This comprehensive, three-year program offers immersive training across every aspect of the theatrical arts, from performance to production, and prepares participants for the professional world of theater and many other professional careers.
What We Offer:
Our mission is to unite aspiring artists like you in an environment that fosters creativity, skill-building, and real-world experience. Over the course of three years, you'll have the opportunity to explore and master the various disciplines that make theater come alive, including:
  • Acting: Sharpen your performance skills with expert guidance.
  • Dancing: Learn choreography and movement to complement your acting prowess.
  • Singing: Develop your vocal technique and performance skills.
  • Directing: Gain insights into the art of guiding a production from start to finish.
  • Choreographing: Create and direct movement for the stage.
  • Vocal Directing: Lead and arrange vocal performances for productions.
  • Lighting Design: Explore the technical side of theater with hands-on lighting design.
  • Sound Design and Engineering: Dive into the world of sound, from effects to live engineering.
  • Set Design and Building: Bring stories to life through imaginative and practical set construction.
  • Costume Design and Building: Learn to create costumes that define characters and time periods.
  • Makeup Design: Transform actors through the art of stage makeup.
  • Wig Design: Master the intricacies of wig creation and styling for theatrical productions.
  • Stage Management: Develop the organizational skills essential for running a successful production.
  • Theatrical Business Administration: Understand the business side of theater, from budgeting to marketing.
Program Structure:
  • Three-Year Commitment: Participants must be 11 years or older and start at the beginning of the program, regardless of age.
  • Flexible Completion: While the program spans three consecutive years, participants can complete the years at their own pace. Whether you take a break or jump straight through, our program accommodates your schedule.
  • Year-Round Engagement: Each program year runs from September 1st to August 31st, ensuring a full and immersive experience. Classes run September through May with opportunities for production participation and volunteer work in the summer.
Why Join Us?
This is more than just a training program; it's a gateway to your future through theater to build your skills for whatever your future may hold!! By the end of the three years, you will not only have developed a strong foundation in each theatrical discipline but will also have the experience of working in a collaborative, performance-driven environment. Graduates of our program will have built many foundational skills applied to whatever their future holds , professional theater or not. Are you ready to take the stage? Enroll today!!!
​​​Encore Pre-Professional Company Requirements
Requirements for participation: Participants must be ages 11 or older and will begin at the beginning of the program regardless of age. In order to be eligible for ongoing participation in the company, a participant must complete all three years of the training component, although participants do not have to complete the years in consecutive years. Program years run September 1st of a given calendar year to June 30th of the following calendar year.
Year 1
In year 1, participants will focus on the performance aspects of the theater. Participants must enroll in and complete the following:

  1. Participate as a cast member  in at least one mainstage or studio series production during the year. 
    1. Tuition and costume fee for one production included in the company fee. 
    2. Tuition and costume fees for additional mainstages or studio series productions not included. Company members eligible for discounted tuition. 
    3. Ticket packages required for all productions and are NOT included in the company fee.
  2. Take at least two class sessions per month from Encore from the areas listed below.
    1. Class fees for two class sessions per month included in the company fee. 
    2. Additional classes can be taken at a discounted rate .
    3. Classes are from the following areas: Acting, Vocal, Dance
  3. Participate as a cast member in at least one additional program from the following*. Cost of these productions is NOT included in the company fee but are discounted for company members:
    1. Mainstage production
    2. Studio series production
    3. Summer camp production
  4. Year 1 and year 2 company members MAY be invited to participate in the company production based on the needs of the show.

*Outside productions as approved by Encore staff (could include a school production as a cast member, or production at another theater company) can be substituted for an ENCORE production for this requirement. Must be approved IN ADVANCE by Encore.
Year 2
​In year 2, company members will continue to focus on the performance aspects of theater while also beginning to learn about the technical aspects of producing a theatrical production:

  1. Participate as a cast member  in at least one mainstage or studio series production during the year. 
    1. Tuition and costume fee for one production included in the company fee. 
    2. Tuition and costume fees for additional mainstages or studio series productions not included. Company members eligible for discounted tuition. 
    3. Ticket packages required for all productions and are NOT included in the company fee.
  2. Take at least two class sessions per month from Encore from the areas listed below.
    1. Class fees for two class sessions per month included in the company fee. 
    2. Additional classes can be taken at a discounted rate.
    3. Classes are from the following areas: Acting, Vocal, Dance
  3. Take at least one class series (3 or more sessions) from Encore in any of the following disciplines (cost of one 3-class series included in program cost, additional class series are at an additional cost): Lighting Design, Sound Design, Costume Design
  4. Participate as a cast member (or volunteer as noted below) in at least one additional program from the following*. Cost of these productions is not included in the company fee but Encore tuition costs are discounted for company members:
    1. Mainstage production
    2. Studio series production
    3. Summer camp production
    4. Volunteer as a camp or young players program counselor (ages 13 and up only)
  5. Year 1 and year 2 company members MAY be invited to participate in the company production based on the needs of the show.

*Outside productions as approved by Encore staff (could include a school production as a cast member, or production at another theater company) can be substituted for an ENCORE production for this requirement. Must be approved IN ADVANCE by Encore.


​Year 3
In year 3, participants will continue to focus on the performance aspects of theater while also adding additional training in the technical and business aspects of producing a theatrical production:
  1. Participate in a company musical production or play reserved for year 3 and elite company members and those who have graduated from the program. Year 1 and year 2 company members MAY be invited to participate in the company production based on the needs of the show.
  2. Participate as a cast member  in at least one mainstage or studio series production during the year other than the Company production. 
    1. Tuition and costume fee for one production included in the company fee. 
    2. Tuition and costume fees for additional mainstages or studio series productions not included. Company members eligible for discounted tuition. 
    3. Ticket packages required for all productions and are NOT included in the company fee.
  3. Take at least two class sessions per month from Encore from the disciplines listed below.
    1. Class fees for two class sessions per month included in the company fee. Additional classes can be taken at a discounted rate. 
    2. Classes are from the following disciplines: Acting,  Vocal, Dance
  4. Take at least one class series (3 or more sessions) from Encore in any of the following disciplines (cost of one 3-class series included in program cost, additional class series are at an additional cost): Lighting Design, Sound Design, Costume Design, Makeup Design, Wig Design, Set Design, Marketing, Stage Management (ages 15 and up only)
  5. Participate as a cast member or volunteer in at least one additional program from the following*. Cost of these productions is not included in the company fee but Encore tuition costs are discounted for company members:
    1. Mainstage production
    2. Studio series production
    3. Summer camp production
    4. Volunteer as a camp or young players program counselor (ages 13 and up only)
    5. Volunteer for a mainstage production on the technical side for at least 20 hours. Could include:
      1. Prop creation and sourcing (ages 13 and up only)
      2. Set construction and painting (ages 13 and up only)
      3. Lobby assistance during the production (concessions or gram sales, ticket scanning, gram creation, will call) ages 16 and up only
      4. Spotlight operator (young players/summer camp - ages 15 and up)​
*Outside productions as approved by Encore staff (could include a school production as a cast member, or production at another theater company) can be substituted for an ENCORE production for this requirement. Must be approved IN ADVANCE by Encore.
2024-2025 Pre-Professional Company Pricing
  • Year 1                $3,000
  • Year 2                $3,500
  • Year 3                $4,000
  • Elite                   $3,000
  • Graduate          $1,500
Policies:
  • See what is included in the pricing under the guidelines for each year above
  • Participants in Company (except “Graduate”) must be at least 11 years old or in 6th grade through 12th grade by September 1, 2024
  • New applicants to Company join in the Year 1 program regardless of age or experience.
    • For the 2024 launch year ONLY all applicants will be evaluated by ENCORE creative staff and may be invited to place into Year 2 or Year 3 of the program.
  • Company commitment is September 2024 through June 2025 with the company show (for year 3 and up) performing in summer 2025 (likely August)
  • Company applications will be accepted through November 1, 2024 but there are no prorations of the fees.
​
Enrollment
Please enroll in the program below - we will follow up with you and move you into the properly designated year and assess the proper charges minus any current enrollments.