YADA, the Youth Academy of Dramatic Arts, has put roughly forty thousand kids through full musical productions since 1997, by its own count, from its home in the historic Dupree building at Third and Crescent Heights. This is production-based training: children rehearse an actual junior musical every session and mount it fully staged, learning craft inside the process.
The level ladder runs from Minis and Tots (ages 0 to 5 with grown-ups) through Primary and numbered levels to an audition-only Jr. Master and Master tier, capped by The Company for high schoolers and an application-based apprenticeship for ages 12 to 18. A year-round improv program in three age bands, musical improv and sketch-writing camps, private lessons in voice, dance, and acting, and birthday programming round out one of the busiest youth operations in this directory. Fall 2026 brings Mary Poppins Jr.
Tuition is not published, but two things stand out ethically: tuition awards for families in need are offered every single session, and payment plans carry no interest. Open enrollment covers everything below the audition-gated tiers. For Westside and Mid-City families, YADA is the production-theatre counterpart to a technique school, and the two pair well.
Techniques taught
- Improv and sketch: Improvisation and sketch training: agreement, spontaneity, and ensemble play.
- Eclectic / multi-technique: Schools that draw on several lineages and fit the tools to the actor, not the reverse.
Class types
Enrollment and schedule
Open enrollment through Level 3; Jr. Master and Master by audition only; Company by audition with Master prerequisite; Apprenticeship by application; level progression requires completing prior level. Schedule: Fall/Winter/Spring sessions (age cutoffs Oct 1 / Feb 1 / May 1) plus Summer Camp 2026; Fall 2026 show: Mary Poppins Jr.; office open 7 days during school year. Duration: Tots is a 10-week program with final show; production classes run per session culminating in full musicals.
Published pricing
This school does not publish tuition on its website. Contact the school directly for current rates. We never estimate or invent prices.
Instructors
- Lani Shipman Walrod, Founder / Co-owner
- Kim Harrigan, Co-owner. co-owner ~24 years per staff page
- Carrie-ann Pishnak, Executive Director. also Improv Program Artistic Director
- Dan Graul, COO / Technical Director
- Rebecca Graul, Musical Supervisor / Director
Practical notes
Scholarships: Tuition awards offered every session for families in financial need (YADATuitionAwards@yada.org, yada.org/tuition-awards); flexible no-interest payment plans
Location
Questions actors ask
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Sources and verification
- YADA, Youth Academy of Dramatic Arts, accessed 2026-07-16
- YADA, Our Classes, accessed 2026-07-16
- YADA, Contact, accessed 2026-07-16
- YADA, Our Staff, accessed 2026-07-16
- YADA, Programs, accessed 2026-07-16
Researched 2026-07-16, last verified 2026-07-16. Facts above come only from these sources. Anything we could not confirm is simply not shown. Report incorrect information or claim this listing if you represent the school.
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