2019 Upper School Fall Play: The Madwoman of Chaillot
Arts
Upper School studio art class
Upper School ceramics class
2020 Upper School Winter One-Acts
2019 Upper School Pops Concert
SPA student artists are perennial award-winners in the Minnesota Scholastic Art Awards (MSAA), a state-wide arts competition.
2019 Middle and Upper School Spring Jazz Concert
2019 Upper School Spring Vocal/Orchestral and Community Chorale Concert
2019 Senior Art Seminar Exhibit in the Harry M. Drake Gallery
2019 Upper School Spring Musical: Into the Woods.
The arts are an essential piece of the Upper School curriculum and community life. Students are required to take at least three semesters in the fine arts, choosing from a robust selection of electives in the visual arts, music, and theater. Student artwork is showcased in the Harry M. Drake Gallery, and the Upper School's two concerts and three theatrical productions are highly-anticipated community events, all of which take place in the Huss Center for Performing Arts, the school's state-of-the-art, 650-seat auditorium.
Music
Upper School music courses are ensemble-based and include two orchestral ensembles, two choral ensembles, a jazz ensemble, and the Honors Music Seminar. All ensembles perform in two concerts every year, and the extracurricular a cappella singing group also performs at school events. Private music lessons are also available through the school, with instructors who specialize in teaching high school students.
Visual Arts
Visual arts coursework is offered in ceramics, drawing, painting, photography, printmaking, and the video arts. The Honors Art Seminar is designed for the most advanced students, who exhibit their work in a dedicated show in the Harry M. Drake Gallery at the end of the year.
Theater
Topic-based theater courses focus on Theatrical Arts, Acting, Design, Directing, and Production. Three audition-based theatrical performances each year include the Fall Play, the Winter One-Acts, and the Spring Musical.
2021-22 Upper School Arts Calendar
We look forward to welcoming live performances back to the Upper School! Please note that all dates and performances below are subject to change.
November 19-20, 2021: Upper School Fall Play
December 3-4, 2021: Pops Concert
January 28, 2022: Upper School Winter One-Acts
April 23, 2022: Vocal/Orchestral Spring Concert & Community Chorale
April 30, 2022: Middle/Upper School Jazz Band Cabaret
May 13-15, 2022: Upper School Spring Musical
See below for links to recordings of the livestreams from the fantastic Upper School performances and art events during 2020-21.
For a full list of performances and art events, click here!
June 11, 2021: Upper School Musical
Friday, June 11 was the livestream debut of Song, Dance, and Taking a Chance, this year's Upper School Spring Musical. The show is a musical theater experience that follows the structure of a typical musical, but is populated with exciting numbers from 17 different shows. It’s a love letter to musical theater in video form! View the program. The show is available for on-demand viewing beginning on Saturday, June 12. The trailer for the show, featuring a takeoff of "Hello" from The Book of Mormon, is below. Enjoy the show!
Upper School Arts 2020-21 Archive: Due to the pandemic there were no live performances in 2020-21. All performances were held virtually and recorded; please enjoy all these recordings below!
May 21, 2021: upper school spring showcase
Friday, May 21, 2021 was the livestream debut of the 2021 Upper School Spring Showcase, featuring performances by the Academy Symphony, Honors Sinfonia, Summit Singers, Academy Chorale, Jazz Band, Orchestra Winds, and the Community Chorale. View the performance program or view the livestream. Congratulations to all our Upper School musicians and singers!
2021 Upper School One-Acts
On Friday, April 16, 2021, SPA livestreamed this year's Upper School One-Acts. View the program from the performance.
2021 Senior Art Seminar Exhibition
The 2021 Senior Art Seminar Exhibition is the creation of students enrolled in the Honors Art Seminar, the Upper School's most advanced art seminar. This year, seminar students worked hard to curate two exhibitions of their work. "The Observer Effect" is on display in the Harry M. Drake Gallery on the Randolph Campus through June 6, 2021; and "Atmospheric Pressure," a virtual exhibition, is accessible online here.
2020 Winter Music Showcase
In December 2020, in lieu of the annual Pops Concert, this year's Upper School Winter Music Showcase featured all of our Grade 9-12 music students in virtual performances. You may view the Showcase at any time via on-demand streaming, or view the Winter Showcase program.
Fall Play: Under Milk Wood
In Fall 2020, the Upper School presented Under Milk Wood, a 1954 radio drama by Welsh poet Dylan Thomas that was commissioned by the BBC and later adapted for the stage. Due to in-person performance limitations, the fall play was shared digitally with the SPA community on December 11-12, 2020.
View a performance slideshow on the right or see more photos of the performance on SmugMug.
CHOIR AND INSTRUMENTAL PERFORMANCES
Upper School Jazz Band: "A Nightingale Sang In Berkeley Square"
Upper School Orchestra Winds: "March" by Bach
Honors Sinfonia: "All I Want for Christmas"
December 2020
Upper School Jazz Band: "Ain't Misbehavin'"
October 2020
Summit Singers: "Let the Mystery Be"
September 2020
Academy Symphony: "Hallelujah"
December 2020
Academy Chorale: "Wonderwall"
September 2020
Upper School Orchestras: "Neesun Dorma"
Spring 2020
Summit Singers: "Like A Girl"
October 2020
Academy Chorale: "When the Party's Over"
October 2020