"Genesis," A Bed Stuy, Brooklyn-based dance group, performing at the Dec. 4th ASTSN show in East Harlem.

Over 325 young performers wearing brightly-colored costumes, and ranging in age from 5 to 25-years-old, performed for a combined audience of close to two thousand friends, family and community supporters during the afternoons of Saturday, November 20 and December 4, 2004 at the Manhattan Center for Science and Math High School in East Harlem. The events, sponsored by the All Stars Talent Show Network (ASTSN), were the first two of three talent shows, which, by the time of the final show, January 22, 2005 at Canarsie High School in Brooklyn, will have involved a total of 500 young performers from throughout New York City.

Harlem-based junior dance group "Some Kind of Wonderful" pose after the Dec. 4th ASTSN show in East Harlem.

Prior to the talent shows, each young dancer, singer, rapper and stepper took part in an audition (where they all “made it”) and a development workshop, where the young people began to learn, through improvisational exercises and performance games, more about each other and how to create a collective performance.

Soon to be in its 21st year, the ASTSN focuses on performance as an alternative to violence and destructive behavior and as a vehicle to ongoing emotional, personal and social growth. Each year thousands of inner city youth, from neighborhoods throughout New York City – and from six cities around the country – take part in dozens of All Star-sponsored activities including auditions, rehearsals, talent shows, community outreach, development workshops and special events. The ASTSN is sponsored by the non-profit All Stars Project, Inc., which creates and funds cultural and leadership development programs for urban youth.

The Brooklyn dance groups, "The Pretty Kitties" and "Ra-Ra's Angels" pose with their trophies after the Dec. 4th talent show.

For the first time in its history, the ASTSN held development workshops at the All Stars Project’s 42nd Street performing arts and education center – not in the school where the audition and show were staged. Over two Saturdays, October 16 and October 30, the almost 500 young performers came to 42nd Street where they were introduced to the broader universe of the All Stars Project, its programs, staff and facilities. Pamela Lewis, the All Stars’ Director of Youth Programs, said: “The ASTSN was created to give young people a chance to grow. Most of the young people in the ASTSN are in schools where growth and development are very hard – if not impossible – to come by. We are very proud of what we have built for the young people of this city – without any government support – right here on 42nd Street. This $12 million cultural and educational center is a fabulous resource for our young people. We want to make sure that every young person that gets involved with the ASTSN knows that this 31,000 square foot center for performance and development on 42nd Street belongs to them.”