San Francisco Shakespeare Festival - Upstart Crows
An audition-required summer teen intensive at San Francisco Shakespeare Festival for actors ages 14-18 with prior acting experience, focused on Shakespearean text, voice, and movement work, culminating in a performance; need-based scholarships are available.
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Cal Shakes Summer Shakespeare Conservatory
A multi-week teen Shakespeare training conservatory (named Best Teen Camp by Alameda Magazine) held at Saint Mary's College and partner high school campuses in Lafayette and Oakland, offering morning classes in acting, voice, movement, and stage combat that culminate in a fully-produced public Shakespeare performance.
Berkeley Playhouse TeenStage
Berkeley Playhouse's audition-based youth theater training track for grades 8-12, in which students rehearse and perform in full-scale musical productions (2026 season includes Cats) alongside stagecraft and assistant-stage-manager tracks, with financial aid available.
Sara Bareilles Awards (Northern California Regional High School Musical Theatre Awards)
The Northern California regional program of the National High School Musical Theatre Awards (the Jimmy Awards), presented by BroadwaySF/ATG, recognizing outstanding high school musical theater performers from 31 counties spanning San Francisco to the North Coast and Sacramento; top student representatives advance to the Jimmy Awards in New York City.
Contra Costa Ballet Summer Intensive
A 2-4 week ballet summer intensive for dancers ages 8-18 at Contra Costa Ballet Centre in Walnut Creek, requiring in-person or video audition for ages 9+, with daily technique, pointe, jazz, character, and repertoire training for intermediate/advanced levels.
Brave New Voices International Youth Poetry Slam Festival
Brave New Voices is an annual international youth poetry slam festival founded and produced by Youth Speaks, a San Francisco spoken-word organization. Teen poetry teams from across the world compete in spoken-word slam rounds alongside workshops and community events; the 2026 festival (its 29th year) will be held in the San Francisco Bay Area in July.
Camp Kala Teen Studio: Digital Photography
Kala Art Institute in Berkeley runs Camp Kala, a summer arts program with week-long small-group sessions; its Teen Studio: Digital Photography session teaches teens ages 11-17 digital photography fundamentals and techniques in a hands-on studio setting. The 2026 camp runs weekly sessions from June through early August, with reduced tuition and financial assistance available.