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STAGE DOOR CONSERVATORY
Offers four popular summer camp programs in musical theater and the performing arts to children in the 3rd through 12th grade. Based in Berkeley, our programs are in close proximity to Albany, Richmond, Oakland, Piedmont, Alameda and other East Bay and Contra Costa communities. Acclaimed artistically, our day camps provide an enriched, supportive and often profoundly memorable experience for children interested in developing and expressing themselves as young actors and theater artists.
GENERAL ORIENTATION FOR PARTICIPANTS AND THEIR FAMILIES
Meeting for Families with Children in ON BROADWAY or TEENS ON STAGE
As an orientation to new and continuing families with children in either ON BROADWAY or TEENS ON STAGE, we will convene a pre-camp meeting at Epworth Community Methodist Church at 1953 Hopkins Street at a date to be announced. Please plan to be present. You and your child will learn more about our summer plans during this meeting.
Tuition and Registration Fees
Tuition and registration fees must be paid in full by May 1 unless prior plans have been made. We do offer refunds within the following parameters: A full refund (excluding registration fees) will be offered to any family who withdraws from our program prior to April 15. A 50% refund will be offered between the dates of May 1 and June 5. After June 5, no refunds will be offered.
Volunteer Program for Families of Children in ON BROADWAY and TEENS ON STAGE!
Each family with a child in either ON BROADWAY or TEENS ON STAGE will be asked to volunteer 4 hours prior to the conclusion of our summer programs. As a volunteer, you will be asked to pledge to help in one or more areas. Possibilities include: helping with costuming and set and prop development, promoting our plays, selling ticket, assisting with out annual raffle, fundraising benefit or cast appreciation party or with backstage, ushering, box office or load-in or strike duties during our production weekends. To indicate how you would like to help, please complete and turn in the Volunteer Pledge Form if you have not already completed and returned one.
Financial Aid
Although we are committed to serving our entire community, and will respond to requests for financial aid to the extent we are able, please consider other resources for financing your child's summer camp experience as either an alternative or adjunct to our financial aid program. To apply, please download a Financial Aid Application in the Forms Library of this site and submit it with your registration form as soon as possible. If you wish to apply for financial assistance, please complete our Financial Aid Application and submit it with a registration form, indicating which program you wish your child to attend. Please send a deposit of a minimum of $50 or more with your application. You will be notified by April 16 if your request has been approved and the amount of aid that you have been granted. If you do not receive enough financial assistance to meet your needs, you are under no obligation to continue the enrollment process and your deposit will be refunded to you in full, minus a $50 processing fee. If you choose to enroll your child, the full(or adjusted) tuition amount and any other required fees will be due by May 15. Extended payment plans are also available by request.
SPECIAL NOTE: In order to help defray the costs of our financial aid program, we require families receiving assistance to participate in a tuition exchange program and volunteer a minimum of one two-hour shift for each $100 they receive in aid.
Location
The EPWORTH COMMUNITY METHODIST CHURCH is located at 1953 Hopkins Street in North Berkeley. The last week of ON BROADWAY (the week of August 9) will be held at the The Performing Arts Center at El Cerrito High School, 540 Ashbury Avenue, El Cerrito. The last week of TEENS ON STAGE (the week of July 26) will be at JULIA MORGAN CENTER FOR THE ARTS at 2640 College Avenue, also in Berkeley.
Summer Hours
Our summer camps are held from 9:00 a.m. - 3:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. Unfortunately, we cannot provide supervision to children before 8:50 a.m. or after 3:40 p.m. unless a family arranges pre-care or after-care.
Pre-Care and After-care Arrangements
This year, we will be offering an on-site pre-care and after-care option at the Epworth Community Methodist Church for families wishing and needing to provide care for their child between the hours of 8:00 and 9:00 a.m. and 3:30 and 6:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. This service must be reserved and paid for by May 15 and is available at a rate of $10 per day for pre-care and $25 per day for after-care for a minimum of two days per week. Activities will include art, crafts, visits to the local park and library and games. Currently the pre-care option is not listed in our registration form. Please call us at 510-521-6250 for more information about this service.
Directions, Travel and Car-pooling to our Main Camp Site
Several buses travel in close proximity to the Epworth Community Methodist Church on Martin Luther King Jr. Way, The Alameda and Gilman, Hopkins, Solano, Shattuck and Henry Streets including the 7, 9, 15, and 43 lines. We also encourage you to consider car-pooling if it is convenient for you, and will email you a preliminary contact roster in May so you can assess whether or not any other families will be driving to and from the camp each day. If your child is carpooling, please indicate which other parents have permission to sign your child in or out on the forms that are attached. Information about travel to and from the Julia Morgan Center for the Arts and Piedmont High School will be distributed later in the camp season prior to our performance weekend. Carpooling coordination will also be provided for the last weeks of ON BROADWAy and TEENS ON STAGE, especially for Berkeley families during the last week of TEENS ON STAGE.
Communication
Please call us at 510-521-6250 for non-urgent business matters. This is our phone and message line and is based in Alameda, where our offices are located. Messages at this number will be checked ONCE a day, generally in the afternoon at 3:00 p.m.
For more practical camp related matters, please call our camp cell-phone at 510-325-9996, especially if you need to relay a message to your child, or wish to tell us that your child will be absent or late or must leave prior to the end of camp. We cannot answer the phone during program hours however we will check it for messages TWICE daily, at 8:45 a.m. and 3:25 p.m. (Please be sure to call us before the 8:45 check if your child is planning to be absent, or will be late!) In a dire EMERGENCY, you may call the office of the Epworth Community Methodist Church at 510-524-2921 or the cell phone of our General Manager at 415-533-9724! If your child has a personal cell-phone, you may also call them directly; however we will ask children to refrain from using their phones except during designated break times.
Attire
We encourage campers to wear socks and shoes during camp, except when they are swimming. Any clothes which bear offensive or explicit logos or graphics, or which expose a child’s midriff, will not be permitted. Please remember that your child will be routinely engaged in painting and other related activities and should not wear clothing that are so valuable they cannot be stained. Aprons can be brought to camp and worn to protect clothing. We are not responsible for lost, stolen or damaged personal items, however will maintain a LOST and FOUND for items that are left at the camp site.
Anxiety
Some campers may experience anxiety the first day of camp. Our staff will be prepared to assist any child experiencing some initial nervousness to help them in acclimating to the camp. If you suspect that your child is likely to experience homesickness or anxiety on the first day of camp, there are steps you can take to address this concern.
- Emphasize that your child is “going to camp,” highlighting the positive aspects of the experience, rather than his or her separation from you.
- Speak directly and honestly about anxiety with your child. Make it clear that it is a natural and normal feeling. Discuss coping strategies your child can use if he or she feels anxious at camp.
- Avoid saying -- “If you don’t like camp, you can come home.” When campers know that parents are willing to pull them out of camp, they are less likely to give camp a fair chance.
Children with Special Needs
If there is anything we should know to help make your child’s after-school or camp experience more positive and rewarding, or if he or she has any special needs, we would appreciate speaking with you. You can arrange to speak with us by sending us an email requesting a call by the director of your child’s program, by calling our office directly and leaving a message. The designated person will contact you.
Fostering a Safe, Welcoming and Nurturing Environment
To create a harmonious setting for learning, we have also adopted the following guidelines for our camp.
- We will regard each child equally regardless of their past experience.
- We will honor and respect each child’s abilities, regardless of their past experience and create an environment where their particular skills and talents can be expressed.
- We will encourage and expect our campers to interact with one another respectfully and to cooperate with our staff.
- We will emphasize the importance of cooperation among the members of our “ensembles,” affirming the broad range of talents and experience among our performers and the importance of each person’s unique contributions to our camp and productions.
- Our instructors will attempt to mediate conflicts between members of the camp if necessary.
- If a child becomes physically aggressive or violent, they will be counseled immediately. If a physical altercation has occurred, their parents will be contacted immediately. Either a temporary, or more prolonged, suspension may be necessary, unless a realistic plan that ensures that another altercation will not occur can be negotiated and adapted.
- Our staff will function as “ambassadors” and model the behaviors we seek in our child participants.
Food
We will provide a snack twice daily for your child during our program, consisting primarily of crackers and juice. Cookies or a more dessert-like treat will be offered once a week. For safety purposes, we do not permit campers to share or trade their food with one another. Campers will also not be permitted to go to the store on their own during our session, since we cannot provide supervision to children off-site.
Swimming
Once a week, participants of KIDS ON STAGE and ON BROADWAY participate in swimming at the KING SWIM CENTER at 1700 Hopkins, at Colusa Street. The Center’s telephone number is (510) 644-8518. KIDS ON STAGE participants swim on Wednesdays and ON BROADWAY participants swim on Fridays. No child is required to engage in our planned swimming activities. You will be asked to sign a consent form to permit them to participate in swimming on the first day of camp.
Each child who is permitted to participate will be required to undergo a swimming test administered by pool staff to swim in the deep end of the pool. A minimum of three STAGE DOOR staff and counselors will supervise the children in the pool, including staff with CPR certification. PLEASE arrange for your child to bring a swim suit, flip flops, a towel and goggles if needed to each assigned swimming day if he or she is planning to participate.
Insurance
All registered campers are covered by excess coverage accident insurance while at camp; however your personal medical insurance should be considered your child’s primary source of coverage.
Sign-In and Sign-Out of Your Child
Please provide us with the names of anyone who will be accompanying your child to camp in the morning and/or picking him or her up at the end of the day on the enclosed form. Please also indicate if you wish to have your child travel independently to and from camp! (Without explicit written consent, we cannot allow anyone to leave on his or her own!) An adult must sign each child in and out. When you either arrive or leave with your child, please be sure to complete the designated daily arrival and departure forms. If your child travels to and from camp independently, he or she must also ask an adult to sign him or her in or out! PLEASE NOTE: Families will be fined $5 for failing to sign-in/out their child(ren).
Camper Health Forms
Health forms must be completed, signed by a parent/guardian and returned to Stage Door Conservatory by June 1, 2010. Campers will not be permitted to attend camp without this form.
Health and Safety
The camp takes every precaution to provide a safe and healthy environment for all campers. Persons certified in CPR are on-site at all time while camp is in session. Campers in need of further medical assistance will be transported to the hospital designated on their health care form.
Medical Screenings
Please notify us if your child has any special needs which will require specific attention on the part of our staff. Examples of these needs might include a hearing impairment, recent traumatic events, language barriers and learning disabilities, recent changes in medications, or situations at home which could impact your child’s experience.
Medication Arrangement
If it is necessary for your child to receive any medication while at camp, please adhere to the following guidelines.
- No medications will be given to campers unless they have been granted permission by one or more of their parents to do so on our Camper Health Form
- The parent/guardian or the child’s physician must provide clear instructions regarding the use of prescription medications on the health form.
- All medication, prescription or over-the-counter, including inhalers, must be packaged in their original containers and labeled correctly. Medications will not be dispensed without expiration dates.
- All children on prescription medication will be instructed on the first day of camp about the schedule for dispensing medications. Emphasize with your child the importance of taking responsibility with this schedule. Our Camp Assistant will be responsible for administering medications.
- No camper is permitted to have any medications, (prescription or over-the-counter) including vitamins, ointments or lotions of any kind (excluding insect repellents and sunscreen) without the express permission of the Camp Director.
- We will have a supply of the following over-the-counter medications, including Tylenol, Ibuprofen, Robitussin, Pepto-Bismol, Children’s Mylanta and Benadryl. Please complete the appropriate section on the health form, authorizing use of these medications, as needed. Our staff will not administer these medications without your signature.
What to Bring
Please LABEL EVERYTHING and pack it in an easy-to-carry duffel bag or backpack. Occasionally campers will leave their belongings at camp. Having your property labeled helps to ensure that you will be able to claim your items from our LOST and FOUND. We reserve the right to inspect any belongings on camp properly.
Items to bring include:
- A bag lunch
- A swimsuit, towel, flip flops and goggles (on designated days for Kids on Stage and On Broadway)
- A backpack if needed
- An apron if desired
The Camp Director may suggest additional items to bring to camp, depending on the particular activities scheduled for your child's camp session. If additional materials are expected, the Camp Director will supply you with a list at the beginning of your child's camp. PLEASE NOTE: We will expect parents to supply some costume items, including clothing for KIDS ON STAGE and clothing and shoes for ON BROADWAY and TEENS on STAGE.
If Your Child is a Counselor-in-Training or Apprentice through BACKSTAGE
By becoming a counselor-in-training, a child in the 9th - 12th grade is given the opportunity to engage in meaningful community service, acquire experience that could lead to summer employment in a camp setting and/or develop his or her resume. If your child has been selected as a counselors-in-training, he or she will be expected to assist our staff with the day-to-day operation of our programs and will also be responsible for a variety of tasks such as directing a song or scene or choreographing a dance, depending upon his or her area of focus based upon a preliminary agreement established between him or her and Stage Door Conservatory. Counselors are expected to remain for the full day, every day of the session to which they have been assigned and are considered camp participants, subject to the guidelines noted in this document.
If your child wishes to provide independent childcare or after-care support to families with younger children in our program, please advise us ASAP via email at stagedoor2005@yahoo.com and we will send you the necessary paperwork.
Tax Identification Information
We include our federal tax identification number on all our receipts. It is 94-3320-679! Please keep this!
For administration, registration and ticket/show related matters:
Tel: 510-521-6250
Fax: 510-217-2253
Web: stagedoorconservatory.org (Can be used for purchase of tickets)
To report absences
After 3:25 p.m. for the following day or before 8:15 a.m. to report same day absences of needs
Tel: 510-325-9996 (During camp – Simon’s cell phone)
To reach us during camp hour or for emergencies:
Tel: 510-325-9996 Simon Kaplan (Camp Director)
Tel: 510-524-2921 Epworth Community Methodist Church Office
Tel: 510-845-8542 Julia Morgan Center for the Arts Office
Tel: 415-533-9724 Rawna Romero (General Manager)
LINKS:
General Orientation PDF
Audition Form
Biography Form
Consent Form
Camp Pick-Up & Drop-Off Form
Counselor-in-Training Agreement Form
Staff Emergency Form
Family Emergency and Health Form
Evaluation Form for Parents
Photo Waiver Form
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