Fine Arts at SMA
W
hy should students participate in fine arts at San Marcos Academy? If you give Dr. Arlis Hiebert a few hours, he can give you a few hundred answers to that question.
As Chairman of the Fine Arts Department, Dr. Hiebert knows that exposing a student to various means of artistic expression gives that student a better understanding of the world around him or her. Experiences in the arts can open creative avenues that may have been previously undiscovered in a student and may help spark that student to excel in other areas as well. At the Academy, where we welcome students from many different countries and cultures, the arts are languages that all can speak—they cut through racial, social, educational, and economic barriers and ultimately enhance cultural appreciation and awareness. The Fine Arts Department at the Academy provides opportunities to study the Visual Arts, Music, Theatre and Dance. One credit in fine arts is required for graduation. In the visual arts, high school students can take up to four years of traditional art classes along with courses in ceramics and digital photography. Middle School students may also study art as an elective course. Theatre study for high school students includes a course in theatre, which can be repeated for elective credit, as well as a history of cinema course. Among the courses in music are Applied Music, which includes the study of voice, piano or other instruments; Middle School Band; Marching Band, which can be used as a substitute for physical education; Concert Band; and the Academy Singers, a vocal ensemble. Many non-credit opportunities in the fine arts are also offered at the Academy. In visual arts, these include district and state TAPPS competitions; VASE (Visual Arts Scholastic Events) competitions; the Empty Bowls service project for ceramics students; and various exhibitions of work in the community and on campus. In theatre, students may participate in fall semester drama productions; the Academy Talent Show; musical theatre or dinner theatre productions; and TAPPS competitions in categories such as solo acting, duet acting, poetry interpretation and prose interpretation. Instruction in various forms of dance is offered on campus as an after-school activity. A variety of opportunities are available for those who want to perform music, including the Jazz Band; Musical Theatre Productions; individual and ensemble TAPPS competitions in both vocal and instrumental categories; Piano Guild Auditions and Festivals; Private lessons (after school) for piano, voice, guitar and most wind and stringed instruments; special music trips and competitions; field trips to attend performances in Austin, San
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