The Arts at VVS

Verde Valley School has a long and distinguished history in arts education.  Arts have always been an integral part of our curriculum and essential to our program, as creative expression is one of the elements of the VVS mission statement.  Freshmen and sophomores are required to take a variety of visual and performing arts, choosing from theater arts, music and visual arts, in order to expose them to a wide range of media and styles, and a variety of experiences.

The Visual Arts are presented to freshmen and sophomores in introductory courses covering various media:  introduction to drawing, introduction to painting, ceramics, and photography.  The IB classes for juniors and seniors comprise a two year, team-taught sequence in visual arts and art history.  The focus of the course is to develop mastery of the critical vocabulary of visual arts and creative expression, across various forms and media, while also providing students the opportunity to concentrate, or “major” in a chosen medium. Students are encouraged to experience and interpret their environment through familiar and unfamiliar cultural “filters.” Verde Valley students benefit from a school program which exposes them to extensive intercultural experiences, both on and off-campus. These experiences provide excellent source material for the arts.

The Performing Arts have been an integral part of the Verde Valley School curriculum since its inception as well. Brady Hall, our performing arts center, houses a full theater, music recording studio, and a space for dance classes.  Students are encouraged to participate in all aspects of the creative process, learning the skills and crafts necessary to mount full-scale productions, whether it be through our dance and music concerts, or our theater productions.

Introduction to Theater Arts will expose freshmen and sophomores to all aspects of theater production.  IB Standard Level Theater Arts allows juniors and seniors the opportunity to concentrate their arts studies on the theater. Students have the opportunity to not only perform, but also to work on costumes, lighting, sound, set construction, stage management, and marketing. This intimate involvement with each production fosters a sense of pride, investment, self-esteem, and community.  The theater program mounts two main stage productions each year, including plays and musicals in the genres of both comedy and drama.

Freshmen and sophomores may elect to take the Introduction to Music course, and IB Standard Level Music offers to juniors and seniors concentrations in solo performance, group performance, and composition. The music program presents several performances during the year and allows students to concentrate on composition, or solo or group performance.  Depending on their interest and talents, students polish individual and group performance skills and learn the vocabulary and history of music, music theory, arranging, and structure.  Presentations vary, based on the students’ style and training.  Performances have featured singers, guitarists, drummers, pianists, and others.

While not an academic program, dance is offered as a sport/activity.  The dance program surveys jazz, modern, hip-hop, and ballet. Students study technique, experiment with improvisation, learn dances, and explore their own creativity by choreographing solos, duets, and small group numbers, in preparation for performance.  They are able both to improve individual technique and gain the experience of working in an ensemble.