www.bearnstow.org 

Bearnstow Announces its Young Artist Residency Program 2020

Schedule: June 19 to August 23, 2020

Benefits: World-class instruction in dance, choreography, and creative process, multiple performance opportunities, experience working with children, organizational skills and teamwork, possible college credit, and a modest stipend

To Apply: Please send a professional résumé, a letter of recommendation, portrait color photo, contact information for two references (one personal, one professional), up to two working links to online videos showing choreographic or performance work, and a personal statement expressing why Bearnstow specifically appeals to you (no more than 250 words) to admin@bearnstow.org. Application deadline: January 31, 2020.

Organization: A unique and historic summer arts retreat dedicated to the preservation and appreciation of our natural environment, Bearnstow lies on 65 acres of pristine woodland, with 12 rustic buildings, most nearly a century old, nestled along the 2,400 feet of rocky shoreline on Parker Pond. With a commitment to understanding how one’s sense of place is essential to the creative process, Bearnstow’s summer season begins with a week devoted to the natural sciences, and is followed by workshops in movement and performance for professional and pre-professional artists and students, taught by an international faculty. Day camp sessions for children of school age are offered for two weeks in late June­­­–early July, running concurrently with the first workshops of the season. See https://bearnstow.org for more information.

Intern/Residency Position: Bearnstow’s Young Artist Residency Program (https://bearnstow.org/interns2020.htm) is an intensive 10-week summer program of dance, creative process, performance and teamwork for a select group of hardworking individuals, who show genuine promise and commitment to the art of dance. Chosen Residents receive the following:

• Eight weeks of workshops, including approximately 240 hours of instruction and mentoring by a superlative international faculty of professional artists
• One week of natural history lectures, hands-on instruction and trail walks
• Opportunity to perform in weekly informal showings throughout the summer
• Opportunity to lead movement session(s) for our youth Day Camp
• Rich opportunity to meet, study with, and create original work with other artists and students attending each workshop
• Personalized attention due to small class sizes, and invaluable insight into the aesthetic and process of each instructor
• Chance to be part of a close-knit company of artists who collaborate on a program of their own choreographic work in a shared concert at summer’s end
• Shared room and board throughout the season, and a nominal honorarium

In exchange, the Residents work as a team of capable assistants who can “put their hand to anything.” In addition to collaborating on food preparation and camp facility maintenance throughout the summer, Residents may be involved with designing programs and other promotional material, conducting research, or assisting with other administrative duties at camp. Throughout the season it is not unusual for Residents to go from devising exotic recipes and serving incredible meals, to improvising on the shore of the pond, composing sound scores, creating original dance videos, and planning performance projects together at other venues nationally and internationally. Living together and making art together are central to the Bearnstow experience.

Qualifications: Bearnstow’s Young Artist Residents come from a wide range of experiences, from college freshmen to nature lovers to professional dancers seeking new inspiration. The best qualifications are a deep desire to dance, an ability to think creatively and work with flexibility, and the willingness to apply oneself with rigor while working cooperatively with others.