Dean Poling
The Valdosta Daily Times
VALDOSTA
January 13, 2009 11:32 pm
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Young South Georgians will have the opportunity this February to hone their singing and performance talents by joining the Young Americans.
The Young Americans Outreach Tour is scheduled to stop Feb. 12-14 in Valdosta, said Rebecca Mullican, Valdosta High School choral director. Participation IN the group’s educational sessions and show is open to schools, individuals, and groups in fourth through 12th grades.
The Young Americans will lead classes, workshops and ensembles on the first two days. On the third day, the afternoon of Feb. 14, a Saturday, students will rehearse for Saturday night’s show.
The Young Americans is a non-profit educational organization founded in 1962. The group is credited with innovating the show choir movement, Mullican said. “They were the first choir to inventedly move to the music they sang.”
The Young Americans performers are 18-23 years old. Forty-four members of the group are coming to Valdosta, 38 performers and six staff members. Valdosta will house these members in local homes. Mullican said most have been placed for the stay, but a few more local homes are needed.
Through nearly 50 years, the Young Americans have performed with Frank Sinatra, Julie Andrews, Judy Garland, Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds, and Dean Martin.
In the 1970s and 1980s, the group traveled to spots around the Pacific: Japan, Thailand, the Philippines, Singapore, Hong Kong, Australia, and Korea. A documentary on the group won an Oscar.
In the 1990s, the group founded the National Music Outreach Tours, “in which they go into our nation’s schools and work directly with our youth,” Mullican said. The Valdosta stop follows this pattern.
Mullican’s persistence has made the Young Americans visit possible. She received information about the organization a couple of years ago and began communicating with the group. She was able to get Valdosta on the schedule as part of the Young Americans Southern tour.
Though Mullican is with Valdosta High School and the three days of classes and programs will be held in the school’s Performing Arts Center, participants do not have to be part of the city school system, she said.
The Young Americans is open to any young student, school or community organization in the region.
Spots remain open for most classes and workshops at a cost of $47 per student for the three days.
More information: Contact Rebecca Mullican (229) 333-8540, ext. 4091. Registration should be in advance of the February dates, though students will be registered at the door if space is available.
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