To ensure that all children in Baltimore City have access to the arts, BSA created TWIGS (To Work In Gaining Skills), a free after-school program for 2nd-8th grade Baltimore City children. The program serves up to 550 students each year.
TWIGS brings students together with professional artists in a multi-year curriculum designed to build understanding and skill in one of five art disciplines: Dance, Music (Vocal or Instrumental), Theatre (Acting or Stage Design & Production), Visual Arts, or Film & Visual Storytelling. Classes run for 20 to 34 weeks during the school year, culminating in year-end student performances, recitals, and exhibitions. TWIGS serves as a stepping stone for admission to the high school or a similar pre-professional art program; each year roughly 50 percent of the incoming freshman class at BSA have been trained through TWIGS.
Auditions
Applications for TWIGS Auditions for the 2024-25 School Year will open in March/April 2024. Auditions will take place May 28-June 3, 2024. To be considered for the TWIGS program, you must first apply for an audition. If you’d like to be added to the TWIGS email list to receive updates, please email us
You can view or download the 2022-23 TWIGS audition brochure below. Please note audition requirements may change. An updated 2024-25 brochure will be uploaded here and sent out to our email list
What You’ll Learn
Collaboration
Discipline
Artistry
Special Programs
In addition to TWIGS, Baltimore School for the Arts reaches thousands of young people through free matinee performances and gallery tours for city schools, as well as special performances for families and children throughout the year.
Featured Alumni
Kennard Henson
Kennard Henson entered our TWIGS program in late elementary, having never danced ballet before. Upon graduating from TWIGS in eighth grade, he was offered a full scholarship by the School of American Ballet. He’s now a dancer with the New York City Ballet.
NAME: Kennard Henson
DISCIPLINE: Dance
CLASS YEAR: Twigs Class of 2013
CURRENT GIG: Dancer with the New York City Ballet
Best Lesson Learned at BSA: You have to be willing to learn just as much as your teacher is willing to teach you.
Most Awkward BSA Moment: Showing up to my ballet audition in oversized basketball shorts, a white t-shirt, and no ballet shoes while everyone else was in actual ballet attire, neat hair, socks, and a tucked-in shirt. Obviously I had no experience and was very intimidated by the others.
Funniest BSA memory: One time when I was performing the role of Fritz in The Nutcracker, I slipped and fell. I jumped up so fast and kept going. It wasn’t funny back then, but I laugh looking back at it now.
Proudest Moment: Officially graduating from the TWIGS progra