We support local families in bringing the arts to our community

Community Alliance for Performance & Education

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Community Alliance for Performance & Education *

Dream it.

Our VISION is to create a prideful, safe and positive place for the community of Cape Elizabeth to study the arts, through private instruction, group classes, recitals and performance in Cape Elizabeth, South Portland, Portland and beyond.

Build it.

Our MISSION is enriching lives and changing the world by nurturing and building public appreciation of and participation in the arts by providing opportunities for public performances and community education through leadership and high-quality instruction.

Grow it.

Our GOAL is to support local families in bringing the arts to our community, to build confidence and creativity in the youth of Cape Elizabeth, to bring joy to all ages through the process of becoming an artist and having the professional support essential for the growth of our community.

Meet the Team

  • Candice Bellinger

    EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

    Candice Bellinger moved to Cape Elizabeth in 2022.  For nearly 25 years she has dedicated herself to empowering children and adults through the beauty of music and performance. 

    She attended the Hartt School of Music at the University of Hartford, graduating with a bachelor’s degree in music education. She studied early childhood music with Dr. John Feierabend and Leilani Miranda, clarinet with Tom LeGrand from the Houston Symphony as well as world renowned clarinetist; Richard Stoltzman.  She studied piano with pianist, composer and music historian; John Warthen Struble, and Dr. Carleen Graff at Plymouth State University in NH.  

    She has worked with thousands of children over the years, bringing music to life, the delicate art of learning how to play a new instrument, coaching young singer’s on how to find their own special voice, small ensemble work and directing large scale musicals. 

    She enjoyed serving as Music Minister for a small Episcopal church in NH for five years.  She was also commissioned to compose two pieces with lyrics written by Helen Fernald and her late brother; Charles S. Evans; “Unknown to the World’s Gaze” and “Sweet Baby Jesus.”  She was a faculty member at Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro, NH for 15 years, owner of the Wolfeboro Academy of Music for 20 years and Music Director and Director of Development for “Kingswood Children’s Summer Theater.” 

    In her free time, she enjoys going on adventures with her son and husband, biking and writing a music history column for The Cape Courier and Granite State News.