East Bay Center for the Performing Arts

Professional Staff: Sixty highly diverse and professional artist/faculty members, fifteen staff and more than 50 volunteers annually carry out the work of the Center across three interconnected program areas:1.Main Site Training and Performance:In 2021/22, we served approximately 300 students at our main site. This included a full return to in-person instruction in January. We averaged 60 group classes, 65 private lessons, and 7 resident ensemble rehearsals per week, and produced over 20 performances. Our school year and summer programming included cross-cultural and cross-disciplinary training, as well as technical instruction in music, dance, and contemporary theater forms.From July June 2022, instruction for all 100 Young Artist Diploma Students (youth 12-18 years old) averaged 6-8 hours per week of instruction, consisting of lessons, classes, and ensembles based on both specific repertoire traditions and East Bay Centers Deep Roots Wide World Curriculum. Students participated in recitals and performances throughout the year. The Centers program leadership team is working alongside faculty to articulate learning goals for all eight program pathways, with a focus on clear, explicit youth development outcomes and strategies that are the foundation of our students success. 2.School Partnerships Program:Offsite, we served 3,500 students in the school program in 13 schools, teaching music, dance and theater. Our school partnerships program provides hands-on access to high quality instruction and exploration with professional faculty in culturally diverse forms of instrumental music, dance, and theater to K-12 public school students. Programs take place during the academic year and in summer schools with an emphasis on underserved student populations.3.Community Partnerships:The Center leads 20 local neighborhood performances and events annually in partnership with sister and brother community agencies, involving hundreds of youth performers and faculty. In addition, the Center partners closely with a wide variety of key civic, educational, social and youth serving entities to implement long-term projects related to social justice and community determined priorities: partnerships like the Iron Triangle Legacy Project, the Boys and Young Men of Color Theater Initiative, and Growing Great Families which provides intensive 15-week workshops for families facing significant life challenges. These programs illustrate the range of the Centers commitment to engaging diverse youth, community members and artists in making the arts an essential part of life in Richmond.

Main stage and recital seasons feature up to 20 performance events annually, including world premieres of theater, dance and music attended by thousands of public audiences from Richmond and the greater S.F. Bay Area. Signature commissioned and co-produced works emphasize underheard voices and stories by, for, and about our community and play a significant role in the cultural and economic vibrancy of Richmonds historic Iron Triangle neighborhood. The main site training and performance program includes and important student support services component helping to provide age appropriate services to its students. Trained professional staff members provide student counseling, academic support, and referrals to family resources. For our college bound Young Artist Diploma students, we help research and identify schools, programs, grants, scholarships, and financial aid opportunities. We also help with writing and editing student personal statements and preparing audition tapes/artistic documentation or other admission materials.Together these programs identify and engage passionate and committed individual young artists, providing them with the long-term and rigorous training necessary to achieve their academic, professional, and artistic goals.School Partnerships: In 21/22, East Bay Center, in partnership with West Contra Costa Unified School District, delivered programs to approximately 3,500 students. The programs offer a unique approach to teaching fundamental music skills about global traditions while increasing equitable access to arts education and positively impacting school culture and climate.The curriculum and content for our in-school arts program focused on music fundamentals, hands-on instruction, global music repertoire, and ensemble performance techniques at Grant, King, Obama, Nystrom, Peres, and Stege Elementary Schools. Across these six campuses: -Students on average receive 30 weeks of class instruction, which includes access to appropriate musical instruments and supplies. -Kindergarten through 3rd grade receive weekly music classes of 30 minutes each.-4th through 5th grade receive 45 minutes of class per week.-Students perform in at least two presentations each year at each school.-Community performances happen throughout the year in alignment with the school calendar (i.e., Back to School Night, holiday festivals, Cinco de Mayo, Etc.).