Upper School Students Perform The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

Under the guidance of Director Paul Fleming, the Upper School Play Production and Stagecraft classes presented The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee on November 18, 19, and 20. Performed by a cast of 10 highly talented singers, dancers, and actors, the well-conceived script and score incorporated elements of improvisation that the performers played with great skill. All scenic elements were designed and executed by the creative Stagecraft class students, who also ran crew for the production.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Middle School Students Stage the Uninvited 
 

In December, the Middle School Theatre program returned to the Founders Hall stage with The Uninvited, dramatized by Tim Kelly. In the show, Pam and Roddy Fitzgerald buy Cliff End, an old house with a commanding view of the Irish Sea that comes with two ghosts. Pam and Roddy, their friends Wendy and Max, and a young woman named Stella Meredith confront mysterious music, haunting scents, a weeping woman, icy cold, and a menacing presence as they unravel the mystery of The Uninvited. The impressive set, created by the Stagecraft class (with some terrific assistance from the Upper School Stagecraft crew), included a beautiful sitting room, banging doors, ghostly music, and a tinkling music box. 

 

 

 

 

 

Upper School Winter Concert and Visual Arts Showcase

On December 10, students from Visual Art I, Mixed Media, Sculpture, and Photography shared work from a wide variety of projects and artistic media that they had created during the fall semester. The art show was the first in-person visual arts event since 2019, with more than 60 students displaying their favorite pieces. The Chamber Orchestra performed the Winter Concert, which was also livestreamed, in Founders Hall. Four pieces were featured on the program: "Trepak" from Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite; "Sarabande" from Grieg's Holberg Suite; Patapan/Sing We Now, with guest harpist Sonya Carter (8th grade), arranged by Dr. Lisa Michele Lewis; and Bach's Brandenburg Concerto No 5. with soloists Elinor Assadi (10th grade), violin; Tuesday Sohn (11th grade) and Jennifer Bou (10th grade), flutes; and Dr. Lisa Michele Lewis, harpsichord. Seattle Symphony Principal Violinist Susan Gulkis Assadi joined the students in rehearsal and played an essential role in coaching the group to its highest potential. The Intermediate Jazz Ensemble has been hard at work learning many different jazz styles. They played the hard-bop classic "Moanin'" from Art Blakely, Miles Davis' modal masterpiece "So What," Herbie Hancock's funky bluesy "Cantaloupe Island," and "Blues in the Closet" by Oscar Pettiford. The Varsity Jazz Ensemble played songs spanning the history of jazz, including the new standard that is Roy Hargrove's "Strasbourg St. Denis," Duke Ellington's 1930 classic "Mood Indigo," and 2003's rocking "Brooklyn" by the Youngblood Brass Band. Everyone in the band is an improvisor, and all got the chance to shine during the performance.

 

 

 

 

Middle School Visual Arts Showcase and Winter Concert

Seventh and 8th grade artists diligently dissected the elements of art during the fall semester. In Art Foundations, they analyzed and exercised the visual components or art and dove deeply into its history and contemporary context. For the Visual Arts Showcase on December 13, the artists picked artworks from their portfolio that exhibit some of their most refined and exemplary creations. Our Middle School Instrumental Music program presented its Winter Concert in Founders Hall; the event was also livestreamed. Orchestra and Band I strings performed familiar traditional tunes and holiday pieces in a highly disciplined display, followed by the winds and brass playing selections by Mozart and Bach. Orchestra and Band II (OBII) presented three divisions. The brass and wind portion featured "Hooked on a Feeling" and "Raiders March," while the strings and rhythm segment included "Rock On" by Soon Hee Newbold and an improvisation on a traditional Ghanaian tune, "Obwisana." The third division of OBII featured the traditional jazz combo in "Doxy" by Sonny Rollins, a traditional New Orleans piece made famous by Louis Armstrong and Cab Calloway called "St. James Infirmary," and "Cold Duck Time" by Eddie Harris. The Middle School Orchestra completed the evening with performances of "Hornpipe" from Water Music by Handel, an arrangement of Patapan/Sing We Now by Dr. Lisa Michele Lewis, Vivaldi's Concerto for Two Cellos in D minor, and "Trepak" from Tchaikovsky's Nutcracker Suite.