Audition Information
Applications for the 2025-26 school year are now available!
(As of 4/1/25) Our next audition dates will be on May 2, 2025 for students applying to the 2025-26 school year. For students to be guaranteed a spot in the May auditions, applications must be received by April 25, 2025.
Applying students will be contacted via email after their application is received. All other applications will be processed as they are received and individually scheduled to audition. Transportation to the May auditions will not be provided.
Students who are new to York County can apply at the time of their YCSD application or enrollment. Auditions will be scheduled as needed.
Applications for all grade levels are accepted throughout the year. Interviews and auditions take place during the winter, spring, and summer. Applicants will be contacted when the application has been received.
Students seeking admission to the School of the Arts must complete this application and notify their school counselor that they are submitting an application for SOA.
- Apply online using this link: SOA Application or download a hard copy here.
- Send this *Teacher Recommendation Form to three of your current teachers (Or download a hard copy here. The teachers will mail or email the form directly to SOA after completion.)
- At least one recommendation must be from a current core teacher – students who apply to the Literary Arts pathway should have at least one English teacher recommendation.
- Recommendations from private instructors are accepted.
- Contact lmaney@ycsd.york.va.us with questions.
- Check your email for further instructions.
Preparing Your Audition
For SOA auditions, all students will take a reading comprehension test and interview with an instructor for your specific pathway(s). In addition to these, each pathway also has the individual requirements listed below. A complete SOA course listing for each pathway follows at the bottom of this page.
Literary Arts Pathway
Students will submit a typed 300 to 500-word autobiography.
Theatre Arts Pathway
Students will prepare and perform a memorized monologue from the selections provided and perform a short improvisation.
Music Arts Pathway
Students will play two prepared excerpts, scales, and sight-reading.
Technical Theatre Pathway
Students should submit samples of visual art or photographs of costumes, props, and/or scenery you have created, although this is not a required component for acceptance. See examples.
Dance Arts Pathway
Students will be taught and asked to perform a portion of a ballet and modern class, a contemporary combination, and a short group improvisation. The improvisation portion should be a time where the student gets to show off his or her personal talents or strong suits within any genre of dance. Ballet shoes or bare feet are preferred; any other dance shoes could be brought and worn if needed for a specific skill set the student wants to perform during the improvisation. Please wear as professional a dance attire as you are able (ex. leotard); fitted athletic clothes are preferred otherwise.
The SOA Program, in Brief
For complete course offerings and full course descriptions, please refer to the Program of Studies, Secondary Registration and Information Guide. (Please note the year of publication, as the newest handbook may not yet be posted.)
Beginning with the 2025-26 school year, SOA students will take two courses at BHS - either two SOA courses or one SOA course and another universally required class such as Health/PE or English.
A complete list of SOA courses grouped in their pathway is below:
Jubilee Dance Concert 2024
Dance Arts Pathway
- Dance Arts 1
- Dance Arts 2
- Dance Arts 3
- Dance Arts 4
Theatre Arts Pathway
- Theatre Arts 1
- Theatre Arts 2
- Theatre Arts 3
- Theatre Arts 4
- Improvisation Comedy/Sketch Comedy (no audition required)
Literary Arts Pathway
- Writers Workshop 1
- Writers Workshop 2
- Script Writing for Stage and Screen (10-12th grades)
- Creative Writing A (semester course)
- Creative Writing B (semester course)
Technical Theater Pathway
- Technical Theatre 1
- Technical Theatre 2
- Technical Theatre 3
- Technical Theatre 4
Music Arts Pathway
- Music Performance Lab
Various Pathways
- SOA Workplace Experience (12th grade only)