Dance is one of the disciplines studied at the CSU Summer Arts program coming to Fresno State for an 18th year this June. Photo contributed

The fine and performing arts program CSU Summer Arts returns to Fresno once again this year, offering students in the visual and performing arts an opportunity to expand their craft in two-week focused courses.

The sessions begin on June 26 and July 10.

CSU Summer Arts began as a summer dance program in 1985 on the campus of Cal State Long Beach. As student needs increased, courses were added to include various art genres.

Now the program features over a dozen courses ranging from digital creation in media to music, theater, writing and more.

“We do a little bit of everything when it comes to genres,” said Sonya Cabello, CSU Summer Arts program specialist. “We pull artists from all over the world that are big names in their field to teach these students, to network with these students. They help build up their talents and confidence.”

Cabello, who started her Summer Arts experience in 2012 as a student host at CSU Monterey, took overseas courses in Florence, Italy and Nice, France prior to working for the program.

This year, Summer Arts will continue its tradition of offering courses overseas. Of the 17 courses offered this summer, three will take place abroad including:

• Acting in Accents: British Isles Edition – London, England (7/11 – 8-1)
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• The Complete 21st Century Flutist: The Global Artist – Mondovi, Italy (6/5 – 6/25)
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• La Guitarra Espanola – Granada Spain (7/20 – 8/10)

 

Marian Liebowitz, course coordinator for the Summer Arts’ Contemporary Trends in Mexican Folklorico Dance and Mariachi course, said she first started with Summer Arts in 2013.

“The reason I wanted to get back into the Summer Arts program is because it’s such a unique opportunity to bring students together in a way that we can’t normally address certain things in the classroom during the school year,” she said.

Liebowitz said that during the regular semester, students do not get the chance to benefit as much from participating in fine arts at the same level as students that attend Summer Arts.

“In a 15-week semester you have class maybe once or twice a week in what you’re teaching,” she said. “This is an opportunity for them to focus completely on their craft.”

Additionally, Liebowitz said that many schools and colleges do not offer coursework for folklorico and mariachi. Even those that do offer it don’t provide the opportunity for students to focus solely on their craft.

Former Summer Arts participant Angel Lesnikowski, who attended art courses in 2021, now works as a student ambassador, and said her experience with Summer Arts was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to work with top-tier industry professionals from around the world.

“That’s an opportunity that’s rare,” Lesnikowski said, adding that it is rare for the industry to have that number of talented professionals in one location.

Lesnikowski, who assists students in scholarship opportunities, said that applying for a scholarship for the program is relatively simple. She said students simply need to provide reasons necessitating a scholarship to Summer Arts administrators.

According to the website, 80% of students receive scholarships.

The program also provides housing for students and travel from out of the area at an additional fee.

Summer Arts will also provide students and the public several concerts and performances throughout the sessions, featuring the show “Viva Mexico, Viva America” performing to open the program.

“The reason that’s important is because I believe we’re going to put it into one of the bigger theaters on campus, and it’s going to be made available to the entire Fresno community in addition to our own students,” Liebowitz said. “Our shows tend to sell out so I would encourage people to keep an eye on that.”

Last year, there were more than 31 live events associated with Summer Arts.

This is the 18th time CSU Summer Arts has been hosted at Fresno State. The campus served as host from 1999 through 2011, before moving to CSU Monterey Bay from 2012-16. It returned to Fresno State in 2017 (though it was not offered in 2020 during the pandemic).

CSU Summer Arts is accepting applications through May 22 (or April 17 for Italy courses) and is open to students from community colleges, CSU and University of California campuses and private colleges, or members of the community with the desire to master their craft. Students admitted to the program can earn up to six units of transferrable credit.

Costs range from $1,700 to $4,500 depending on number of units, California residency status and degree level.

More information, including dates, locations and ticket prices will be made available on the Summer Arts website, csusummerarts.org, as the events draw closer.