Letter from the Headmaster
Dear Cistercian Families, Friends, and Alumni, Since our last issue much has happened at Cistercian — too much, in fact, to be included in this issue. A number of wonderful arts programs warrant a mention here and more indepth coverage in a future edition of The Continuum. Photo by Jim Reisch
Let’s start with the dramas. Middle School students presented a challenging production of Sleep of Prisoners, a serious drama interpreting the situation of several WW II prisoners in the light of Genesis. Hoping to exploit the students’ familiarity with Hamlet, the director of the Upper School drama chose to produce Rosenkrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead for the Spring Drama.
Then, on the last weekend in February, we combined the traditions of BookFair and BraveArt into the Cistercian Arts Festival. It began on a Thursday with Upper School students touring the Bass Performance Hall in Fort Worth, the permanent collection at the Kimball Art Museum, and a special exhibit at the Fort Worth Museum of Modern Art. On campus the next day, they chose from more than 10 workshops ranging from hip hop dance to digital video production, from the composition of lyric poems to the creation of visual images of nature. Our special invited speaker Dr. Thomas Howard entertained and enlightened parents and faculty at the new ArtsFeast dinner Friday night. Dr. Howard conducted workshops for the boys on Friday and for the faculty on Saturday. Finally, Saturday brought the new format of BookFair along with the event’s familiar opportunities to browse used books, to donate new books to the library, and to meet with present, past, and future members of the Prep School. In all of its components, the new Cistercian Arts Festival proved a great success. Meanwhile, many of our students recently competed in conference tournaments in soccer, basketball, and swimming. This issue focuses in on Cistercian athletics. You will meet our coaches, skilled and committed to the overall education of our students, who continue Cistercian’s longstanding tradition of fielding teams that play with heart, smarts, and class. We also will introduce you to three student-athletes. Their stories illustrate how athletics complement the academic, artistic, and spiritual elements of a Cistercian education.
Fr. Peter Verhalen ‘73 Headmaster
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The CONTINUUM
