The grand prize finalists have been announced in the Music Center’s Spotlight program. (photo courtesy of The Music Center)

The Music Center has announced 14 grand prize finalists from more than 1,300 applicants in The Music Center’s 35th Annual Spotlight program, a free nationally acclaimed performing arts competition, scholarship and artistic development program for teens.

A program of The Music Center’s programming arm TMC Arts, Spotlight offers Southern California teens expert advice, coaching, audition experience and mastery classes taught by professional artists and arts administrators in seven categories: acting, ballet, dance, classical voice, non-classical voice, classical instrumental and jazz instrumental. The program recognizes and rewards all participants throughout the competition with a range of benefits, such as individual feedback from industry professionals, performance opportunities and more than $100,000 in cash awards through three rounds of auditions. To date, The Music Center has given over $2.7 million in scholarships.

Held for the first time in The Music Center’s Dorothy Chandler Pavilion since 2014, this year’s Spotlight Grand Finale performance will be held on Thursday, June 8 at 7:00 p.m.; the finale will showcase the finalists’ incredible performances and offer a look into each of their lives with behind-the-scenes footage detailing their artistic journey and Spotlight experience and how they persevered through multiple rounds of auditions, improved their technical skills based on feedback by industry experts and further honed their craft by attending classes with world-renowned experts in their discipline.

The 14 Spotlight Grand Prize finalists are comprised of two young artists in each of the seven categories. In addition to performing in the finale event, each student will receive a $5,000 scholarship.

“Congratulations to this year’s 14 Music Center Spotlight finalists for a phenomenal achievement,” said Rachel S. Moore, president and CEO of The Music Center. “From the time they applied to the program to the grand finale, their yearlong journey was not easy; it included countless hours of auditions and rehearsals met with anticipation, perseverance and passion. I know they, and all of this year’s applicants, have learned a great deal from our professional artists and arts administrators and will be able to apply the invaluable feedback they received to guide them toward a successful future in the arts or wherever their career journeys take them.”

For information about The Music Center’s Spotlight program, visit musiccenter.org/spotlight. To RSVP for free tickets to this year’s Spotlight Grand Finale, visit musiccenter.org/spotlightfinale. The Music Center is located at 135 N. Grand Ave.