YoungArts recognizes Interlochen students and alumni in national competition

These young artists were honored for their artistic achievements in music, visual arts, creative writing, dance, and theater.

December 4, 2020

Twenty current Arts Academy students and 26 Interlochen alumni are among the 649 winners in the 2021 YoungArts Awards.

Of the 45 Interlochen-affiliated winners, 13 were named Finalists, nine are Honorable Mentions, and 23 received Merit awards. Awards were given to these students for their artistic accomplishments in music, visual arts, creative writing, dance, and theater. Two of this year’s writing Finalists include creative writing majors Madelyn Dietz (IAA 20-) and Maia Siegel (IAA 19-). Both recently received notable international honors, with Dietz being appointed a 2020 National Student Poet and Siegal being named a Foyle Young Poets of the Year.

YoungArts winners must be students between 15 and 18 years old or in grades 10-12. Students are selected by a panel of accomplished artists through a blind adjudication process. This year, YoungArts award winners at all levels will receive cash prizes between $100 and $10,000 and the opportunity to learn from leading artists such as Wynton Marsalis, Salman Rushdie, and Mickalene Thomas.

YoungArts award winners at the Finalist level are invited to participate in National YoungArts Week + in January 2021 featuring virtual classes, workshops, and mentorship from leading artists in their fields as well as virtual performances and an exhibition for the public.

The YoungArts Competition is also the sole nominating agency for the U.S. Presidential Scholars in the Arts, one of the nation’s highest honors for high school artists. Sixty of the YoungArts Finalists will be selected as nominees for the designation, with 20 receiving the honor. Since 1965, 46 Interlochen Arts Academy students have been selected as Presidential Scholars in the Arts—more than any other high school in the nation.

You can learn more about the National YoungArts Foundation, the YoungArts Competition, and the 2021 winners at youngarts.org.

*= Current Arts Academy student

Finalists

Classical Music

Allison Park (IAC Ins 19) | Viola
*Zosia Los Leznicka (IAC 19, IAA 19-) | Flute
Joseph Karz (IAC 17-18) | Classical Music/Composition

Jazz

Andre Perlman (IAC 18-19) | Trombone

Dance

Wyatt Florin (IAC 17) | Dance/Jazz

Visual Arts

*Yuqi Bian (IAC 17, IAA 18-)
*Rabecca Bohanan (IAA 17-18, 19-)
*Quoc Bui (IAC 16-17, IAA 18-)
Is Perlman (IAC 15-17)

Voice

Elizabeth Hanje (IAA 19-20) | Classical Voice/Soprano
*Calvin Hinds (IAC 19, IAA 19-) | Singer-Songwriter
Christopher Leimgruber (IAC 20) | Classical Voice/Tenor

Writing

*Madelyn Dietz (IAA 20-) | Short Story
*Maia Siegel (IAA 19-) | Creative Nonfiction

Honorable Mention

Classical Music

Kyra Lombard (IAC 16) | Piano
*Kaleb Zhu (IAC 19, IAA 20-) | Oboe
Giovanna Gioscia (IAC Ins 19) | Saxophone

Jazz

Oliver Koenig (IAC 19) | Saxophone/Alto
Satchel Peterson (IAC 18) | Guitar

Theater

*Noah Lash (IAC 17, IAA 17-)
*Mia McManamy (IAC 16, 19, IAA 20-)

Writing

*Nazani Cassidy (IAA 20-) | Spoken Word
Is Perlman (IAC 15-17) | Spoken Word
*Zoe Reay-Ellers (IAA 20-) | Spoken Word

Merit

Music

*Andrew Burhans (IAC 19, IAA 19-) | French Horn
*Sarah Goldberg (IAA 20-) | Trombone
*Lydia Hanje (IAC 19, IAA 20-) | Trumpet
Lila Hasenstab (IAC 17) | Singer-Songwriter
Brian Lin (IAC Ins 19) | Saxophone
*Taki Salameh (IAC Ins 19, IAA 19-) | Composition
*Jessica Detor (IAC 19, IAA 19-) | Singer-Songwriter
Guinevere Draut (IAC 19) | Singer-Songwriter
William Schwartzman (IAC 17-18) | Jazz/Piano
Aidan Taylor (IAC 18) | Jazz/Double Bass
Sophie Garrigus (IAC 19) | Singer-Songwriter
Erin Yu (IAC 19) | Classical Music/Piano

Voice

*Ava Goldfarb (IAA 17-) | Singer-Songwriter
*Lauren Howard (IAA 18-) | Singer-Songwriter
*Emma Kirsch (IAC 15, IAA 17-) | Singer-Songwriter
Paige Klemenhagen (IAC 20) | Classical Voice/Soprano
Emily Mulva (IA 16-19) | Mezzo Soprano

Writing/Short Story

Hannah Bambach (IAC 20) | Writing/Play or Script
Jordan Ferdman (IAC 20) | Writing/Creative Nonfiction
Emma Kerkman (IAC 17) | Writing/Short Story
Artemisio Romero y Carver (IAC 18) | Spoken Word
Jennifer Xiang (IAC 18) | Writing/Poetry

Theater

Sadie Shea (IAC 16-19) | Theater