June 9, 2019
Sphinx Performance Academy participants were warmly welcomed by Curtis staff and faculty for their first day of the program. Throughout the morning, the lobby bustled with continuous activity as students were checked in and moved into their dorms. The room was filled with hugs and handshakes, hellos and goodbyes. After exchanging loving farewells with their families, some participants had lively reunions with old friends, while others cheerfully introduced themselves to fellow students.
The day continued with an orientation where students were able to meet members of both the faculty and staff and to get a brief overview of what this program is all about. Just after orientation, students were ready to put their bows to their strings in anticipation for their placement audition. Later in the evening, Sphinx student life manager Hector Hernandez taught a very interactive and important class on identity and diversity in the arts. The students then gathered in the Lenfest Hall student lounge for their last activity of the day– the first nightly check-in where staff reiterated the rules of the program and gave participants a run-down of the next day’s full and exciting schedule. Though students were exhausted from traveling and receiving an abundance of information, they were still noticeably excited for the upcoming events in scheduled for the program.
Altogether, it was an incredible start to the 2019 collaboration between Sphinx Performance and Curtis Summerfest. We very much look forward to all that is to come in the next two weeks for these talented students.
—Alia Wood
Princeton Intern
for Civic Service