A select number of young residents of Pahrump now have the opportunity to drum their way into a live performance at the House of Blues in the Mandalay Bay.

WestCare Prevention's Positive Action program and the International House of Blues foundation have teamed up to bring a drum circle workshop to Pahrump.

The workshop will hold classes until spring and features four classes that will be taught by special guest instructors Kurt Rasmussen and Boujou.

Boujou is a native of Senegal who will teach the Senegal "Cora" style of drumming.

Rasmussen is a percussionist for the Cirque du Soleil show "O" at the Bellagio in Las Vegas, who during the course of his long career has also toured with Paul Anka and Quincy Jones.

The guest instructors are just the icing on the cake, however.

All other sessions will be taught by Raneff Winters, the lead drummer of the Shao Lin Lion Dancer team (for you movie buffs out there, the group was featured in "Rush Hour 2").

And thanks to a United Way grant, WestCare will have 25 different types of percussion instruments for participants to practice with.

Although the drum circle is open to all ages, youths from 12- to 18-years-old will be given preference.

Due to the size of the drums that will be used however, space is limited and only 12 to 15 people will be selected to participate.

Youths that are selected, however, are required to also participate in the Positive Action program and attend seven sessions, no exceptions or excuses accepted.

The Positive Action program focuses on building self-esteem, peer-pressure resistance, and prevention of substance abuse.

Francine Winters, director of Westcare, said the drumming circle could be the perfect compliment to the life skills Positive Action attempts to teach youths.

"I think it's great because a lot of right-brained kids have trouble in the school system, and this gives them an opportunity to be creative where they can really shine and raise their self-esteem and awareness," Winters said.

She added that drumming has also been shown to reduce stress and help with anger management.

Furthermore, because the classes will involve individual drumming techniques as well as jam sessions to be played together, youths can learn to harmonize their individuality with team work.

"The message is that we don't all have to be alike, but if we listen to each other we can really get a synchronicity going," Winters said.

The drum circle sessions will begin Oct. 25 and be held at the WestCare office, located on 2280 E. Calvada Blvd., Suite 101.

They will continue until the IHOBF's spring concert. The date is to be announced.

Participation is free for kids in the Positive Action program.

For registration information, contact Winters at (775) 537-6555.