Local Teen Artist to attend Interlochen Arts Academy

Lara Allison, 15, of Arlington Heights,IL has been accepted and will attend Interlochen Arts Academy, the world's premier fine arts boarding high school. Lara, the daughter of Tom and Liana Allison, will study theater at the Academy. Previously, Lara was a freshman at Rolling Meadows High School (RMHS).

As a freshman, Lara was recognized as the 2016 Chicagoland Showcase female vocal soloist champion. She earned a varsity letter for music and was a member of the RMHS Symphonic Band, Marching Band, Orchestra and Leading Ladies show choir. She also studied Opera and Musical Theater and was a member of the Conservatory Choir at Merit School of

Music in Chicago, where she earned top honors in the Conservatory's annual vocal soloist scholarship competition.

She has studied voice with John Komasa, Dr. Anne Sinclair and Elizabeth Gray, acting with coach Stef Tovar and flute with Lesley Swanson. Lara has performed with Metropolis Center for the Performing Arts, Big Deal Productions, Theater on the Move and at the Sandwich Opera House. She attended Interlochen's musical theater summer camp program for the last four years.

Interlochen Arts Academy attracts more than 500 young artists from 40 countries and all 50 states. Together, they study music, theatre, dance, visual arts, creative writing, comparative arts, and motion picture arts in a college-like setting. While producing more than 250 artistic presentations in the school year, Academy students also master rigorous college-preparatory academics that prepare them to take prominent roles in any professional endeavor.

The Arts Academy was founded in 1962 to provide year-round training in the arts coupled with challenging and comprehensive college-preparatory academics. This combination has resulted in sustained achievement in arts and academics. Since the school was established, it has produced 43 Presidential Scholars, a record unmatched by any school in the United States, public or private. Alumni include singer-songwriter Jewel, actress Felicity Huffman, jazz drummer Peter Erskine and car designer Bill Zheng. More than ten percent of the nation's

orchestral musicians claim roots at either Interlochen Arts Academy or Camp. Since 1958, more

than 90 Grammy Awards have been presented to Interlochen alumni of the Academy and Camp.