The Festival of the Arts at Maryvale Prep

Maryvale Preparatory Academy observed its third-annual Festival of the Arts on May 1^st, 2024. This was an active and engaging day both indoors and out. At Maryvale Prep, we believe in cultivating a love of the fine and performing arts alongside the rich and rigorous core curriculum in a manner befitting the wholeness and well-roundedness of the student.

The Festival of the Arts is a time for all prep to join in edifying fellowship around the True, Good, and Beautiful. Events include: a Latin scavenger hunt, choreographed dance lessons, high school French versus Spanish competitions, junior drama dress rehearsal for this year’s Much Ado About Nothing, choral sing-offs, and en plein air observational art sessions in the Marley Center Plaza.

Scholars moved from event to event led by their group leaders, the graduating class of 2024. Groups 1 and 2, led by Frank Torres and Ivan Escobar, attended the fine art event first. Students chose their station from various mediums and subjects: watercolor, oil pastel, charcoal, graphite, toned paper, and illustration board. Stations also included sculptural studies, anatomical sketching, a portrait station, William Blake-inspired poetry illustration, and John Ruskin-inspired architectural and botanical sketching. Senior Juan Salcido, the self-appointed Captain of the Arts, says about the event: “I enjoyed the opportunity to listen to classical music and watercolor my visual interpretation of “Oranges” by Gary Soto, a poem I’ve loved since ninth grade. It’s so rich in imagery, I could hardly decide what to paint.”

“The Festival of the Arts is easily one of the most rewarding experiences of the year for me as a Studio Art teacher – our students were so engaged and joyful throughout the day to get to create and perform. I saw incredible works of art from charcoal skulls to pastel Venetian landscapes and it really brought together all of the most beautiful disciplines. Watching juniors run back-and-forth in Elizabethan garb while we listened to Handel and Bach in the plaza and sketched a Winged Victory or a Wedgewood vase is a memory I am already treasuring,” said Miss Anaïs Wolpert about the event.

In the gym, middle and high school students gathered to learn a choreographed dance mob with instructor Ms. Susan Campa. “I didn’t see one student decline to dance – by the end of it, almost everyone had mastered the moves. We thank Ms. Campa for coming out and teaching dance to our upperclassmen throughout third quarter and for sharing her passion and expertise with us,” reflected Dr. Max Huemer.

The French versus Spanish modern languages competition was a new addition this year, led by Madame Margaret Byrne and Miss Perla Gutierrez. Students competed in cognate-matching, Pictionary, charades, and their own bespoke form of “Bananagrams.” Senior Carol Leon Estrada noted “I loved getting to see all the similarities between Spanish and French, and realized that we could communicate in either language more fluently than I thought.”

Much Ado About Nothing stars junior Camden McCoy as an irreverent, dynamic Benedick. Mr. McCoy had the audience roaring as he “hid” behind a tree in character and soliloquized pensively onstage. Junior Aylin Ximena reflects on playing Leonata: “The best part of performing in Much Ado About Nothing was an encouraging audience. Though it was very difficult to speak in Shakespearean idiom, it was so fun, and Ms. Vaughn worked hard to coach us all the way through performance night.” Junior Calissa Chagnon played a witty Beatrice; among some quippy improvisation, she enjoyed delivering the classic line “I had rather hear my dog bark at a crow, than a man swear he loves me.”

The Maryvale Prep student body eagerly looks forward to innovating even more activities for next year’s Festival of the Arts. We can’t wait to see what’s next!

This article was submitted by Anaïs Wolpert, Dean of Academics and Studio Art teacher at Maryvale Preparatory Academy.

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