WINSTON-SALEM - The Open Dream Ensemble, a multi-disciplinary performing arts group sponsored by the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts at the North Carolina School of the Arts (NCSA), announces a major expansion in its fourth season with performances throughout North Carolina, as well as selected engagements in other parts of the Southeast.

Open Dream Ensemble, a professional outreach program of NCSA, brings the power of original live performances that integrate theatre, dance and music to students across the Southeast. Featuring the collaborative skills of professional artists trained at NCSA, Open Dream Ensemble connects the palpable experience of live performance with artist residencies and educational workshops that align with school curriculum. Having captured the imagination of more than 32,000 students, Open Dream Ensemble is a creative force of transformation, affirming that the arts are vital, enthralling and relevant to the well-being and enrichment of young people.

“Open Dream Ensemble provides the world of professional performing arts experiences for audiences of all ages who are young at heart,” says Dr. Margaret S. Mertz, Executive Director of the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts.  “By creating multi-disciplinary original works that touch on themes common to our human experience, Open Dream Ensemble electrifies the senses, invigorates the imaginations, and expands the minds of all who experience their work.”

The 2008 season opens July 29 with a week-long run at Roanoke Island Festival Park in Manteo, NC and the debut of its newest original show, The Red Planet.

In addition to performances in more than 15 venues throughout North Carolina, Open Dream Ensemble will take its innovative program to other venues in the Southeast, including Panama City, FL; Statesboro, GA; Atlanta, GA; Paducah, KY; Huntington, TN; Clemson, SC; Greenwood, SC; and Martinsville, VA.

The current schedule follows this press release, though additional performances will be added.

“The expansion of our season is a very significant step for us - Open Dream Ensemble has established a proven track record, “says General Manager Rebecca Nussbaum.  “We are now ready to take our shows to a broader audience, where we can continue to demonstrate the power and relevance of the arts.”

The Ensemble will present two original shows in 2008:

The Amazing Adventure of Anna Marie, for grades K-5, is a story that dramatizes the power of courage, determination and imagination.

The Red Planet, for grades 3-8, is Open Dream Ensemble's newest original show about Earth's first community on Mars in the year 2158, as they prepare for a broadcast home that celebrates the challenges of adapting to an unfamiliar environment. 

Open Dream Ensemble is a project of the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts, which provides strategic and financial support for creative projects that are associated with the North Carolina School of the Arts. For more information, visit www.kenanarts.org.

The North Carolina School of the Arts (www.ncarts.edu) is the University of

North Carolina's conservatory for the arts, dedicated entirely to the professional training of students possessing exceptional talents in the performing, visual and moving image arts. NCSA offers students a focused, intense, professional training at the high school, baccalaureate, and masters levels in its schools of Dance, Design and Production, Drama, Filmmaking and Music.

For more information, visit www.opendreamensemble.com.

Open Dream Ensemble Schedule:

July 2008
29-August 1, Roanoke Island Festival Park, (Debut of Red Planet), Manteo, NC

August 2008
4-8, Camp, 9 a.m.-12 noon, Children's Theatre, Winston-Salem, NC
7, Elliott Center, 6 p.m., (Red Planet), A+ Schools Program, UNCG, Greensboro, NC 

September 2008
15-19, Brunson Elementary School Residency, (Red Planet), Winston-Salem, NC  
22, Mariner Civic Center, 9:30, 11:30 a.m., (Anna Marie), Panama City, FL
24, Averitt Center for the Arts, 10 a.m., (Anna Marie), Statesboro, GA
26, Performing Arts Exchange, 8 a.m. showcase, (Red Planet), Atlanta, GA
30, Eaton Johnson Elementary, 9:00 a.m., (Red Planet), Henderson, NC 

October 2008
2, The Carson Center, 9:30, 11:30 a.m., (Red Planet), Paducah, KY
6-10, ArtSpace Charter School, Residency, (Red Planet), Swannanoa, NC
13, Newton-Conover Civic and Performance Place, (Red Planet) Newton, NC
19-24, Pattillo A+ School, Residency, (Red Planet), Tarboro, NC
27-29, A.L. Brown High School, 9:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., (Red Planet), Concord, NC
30-31, Farthing Auditorium, 9:30 a.m., (Red Planet & Anna Marie), Boone, NC 

November 2008
3, Dixie Carter Center, 9, 11 a.m., (Red Planet), Huntington, TN
5, Brooks Center, 9:30 a.m., (Anna Marie), Clemson, SC
6, Lander University, 9:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., (Red Planet), Greenwood, SC
10, Broyhill Civic Center, 9:15 a.m., 12 noon, (Red Planet), Lenoir, NC
12-14, Dare County Elementary and Middle Schools (Red Planet), Manteo, NC
17, A. L. Brown High School, 9:45 a.m., & 11:45 a.m., (Red Planet), Concord, NC
18, Stevens Center, 10 a.m., 12 noon, (Red Planet), Winston-Salem, NC
19, Mary McArthur Elementary School, 1:00 p.m., (Anna Marie), Fayetteville, NC
20, Wilkes Community College, 9:30 a.m., 12:30 p.m., (Red Planet), Wilkesboro, NC
21, Piedmont Arts Association, 10 a.m., 1 p.m., (Red Planet), Martinsville, VA 

December 2008
1-5, Benton Heights Elementary School Residency, (Red Planet), Monroe, NC