By Olivia Clark
Registration for the 2026 summer camps and classes is now open at the Patel Conservatory, the accredited performing arts school at the Straz Center for the Performing Arts in downtown Tampa. The summer session runs Monday, June 1, through Friday, July 31, and the programs in dance, theater and music are carried out for students ages 3 through adult.
Each summer, the conservatory opens its doors to those who want their first experience in the arts and to those who desire more advanced, preprofessional training. Families from across the Tampa Bay area enroll in the programs, which offer both creative enrichment and more formalized skill development during the summer months. Classes are conducted by working artists and experienced instructors in a professional performing arts environment.
They can take dance courses in the Next Generation Ballet Summer Intensive, which has five, three and two-week sessions for ages 11 through college, and dorm housing is provided for older students. Younger dancers can join the Junior Intensive and other camps appropriate for their age, designed to enhance their technique, strength, and performance quality.
These students will get the chance to rehearse and perform in fully staged productions, like Seussical Jr. and Aladdin KIDS, in which they will get acting, singing and stage movement experience. There are other specialty camps for fundamental acting skills and Shakespeare, and older students have the chance to audition for the Broadway Intensive production of Catch Me If You Can.
Music offerings include jazz, choral and chamber intensives; a singer-songwriter camp; and a number of workshops focusing on particular instruments. Younger students also learn about composition, rhythm and collaboration through weekly camps, like The Science of Music and World Drumming and Storytelling.
Tuition rates differ for each program, with most weeklong camps costing $475 and multiweek intensive programs being charged at higher rates depending on the length of the program. Auditions or placements are required for some programs before registration, and early enrollment is recommended since enrollment is limited.
For families requiring extended hours, precamp and postcamp care are available five days a week, Monday through Friday. Each student pays a registration fee.
For a complete schedule or to register, go to https://patelconservatory.asapconnected.com/ or www.patelconservatory.org. For more information, call 813-222-1040 or email admissions@strazcenter.org.
