In a day that celebrated all things art, the 2016 Fine Arts Festival showcased incredible student talent and raised funds for a variety of worthy causes. The six hour day, beginning at 9 a.m., presented a mix of singing, acting and dance performances, pottery, paintings and photography exhibitions as well as club tables, games and raffles.
Each acting class performed a piece in the Studio Theater, which remained full all day. The Acting V class performed a dramatic scene from Jon Jory’s “Cameras,” discussing the modern obsession with taking photos and not actively participating in life. The Acting I class performed a piece by Alan Haehnel and the Acting III class presented scene work from “Everyman” and “Hamlet.” The Musical Theater class exhibited three scenes from their upcoming production, “Rapped Up,” a self written, composed and performed rap musical.
“It teaches you a lot about working together and discovering the creative process as you go along,” senior Felicia Reich, who performed in the piece, said.
The walls of the 3000 building were decorated with student artwork, from grades k-12. While musical performances occurred in the Black Box theater, the chorus room and dance studio were filled with pottery works, photographs, architectural projects and paintings. There was roughly one piece for each student currently enrolled in an art class.
“Everybody thinks it’s wonderful… Amazing students, amazing talent; amazing all the way around,” pottery teacher Mrs. Shannon Wade said.
Everything from lower school singing performances to dance acts to Critic’s Choice musical numbers took place on the Main Stage, captivating large crowds. The small group musical theater piece selected to represent the entirety of District 13 at the State Thespian Competition also performed toward the end of the day.
Outside, colorful booths lined the blacktop. The Pre-Law Society hosted a bean bag toss, Best Buddies made friendship bracelets and the Multicultural Club designed Henna tattoos. Students and parents alike drifted through booths while music filled the background, bringing smiles to everyone’s faces.
The National Honor Society hosted “A Day at the Races” game, where winners and losers alike took home prizes, and funds went towards Pencils for Promise, an organization that builds schools in Africa. “The loser still gets candy because we support people,” senior and NHS member Nicole Garcia said.
The Art Honor Society offered a unique product to attendees — student drawn caricatures. For ten dollars and fifteen minutes, AHS students drew and framed portraits.
“People like getting themselves drawn, and if we can do it, why not offer it here? It’s going well,” club president and senior Sunny Li said.
One of the newest clubs on campus, Girl Up, also hosted a booth. The club offered photo booth pictures with amusing props as well as a candy bar to aid in fundraising for their causes.
“Girl Up fights for women’s rights and has a really big focus on women’s educational issues around the world, so it’s honestly just girls coming together to make a difference,” junior and club president Sofia Barreto said.
While stage makeup class members elaborately painted faces, food, drinks and even Heritage attire were also sold throughout the day. However, the majority of the money raised came from the gift baskets raffled off and silent auctions. Planning for the raffles began in mid-November, headed by Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) member Rhonda Lewis.
“I have been doing it for seven years, so basically I send out donation letters at the beginning of the year, I wait for the donations to come in and I solicit people and organizations. I decide anything [worth] under $100 goes to a raffle and anything over [$100] goes to a silent auction,” Lewis said.
Many of the prizes come from the school, such as parking spaces and summer camp spots. Each year there are at least 75 raffles, 65 silent auctions and 25-35 baskets. While last year $40,000 was raised through the auctions, Lewis aimed to raise $45,000 this year. All of the funds go towards events funded by the school such as Spirit Day, student field trips and author visits.
The back fields hosted an array of bounce houses, a rock wall and inflated slides to entertain younger guests. The marching band performed midday and led a crowd of followers into the carnival area to listen to them play over ten different songs, rehearsed since the beginning of the school year. The band also raised money by selling water balloons to throw via slingshot at band members.
“We’re going to Give Kids the World. The kids in Make A Wish who wish to go to Disney… we donate money to them,” drum major and junior Estelle In’t Zandt said. “It’s been a success — we’re almost out of water balloons.”
As safety is always important, nurse and 20 year heritage employee Candy Mize manned an outdoor clinic tent. While no major accidents occurred, she did treat many minor scratches and burns from the plastic carnival rides.
“This is a beautiful way to spend the day. I would love to have the clinic outside all the time,” Mize said.
For the 33rd year in a row, the Spring Fling was a huge success. The festival celebrated and shared every art form with students, guests and friends.
“I’m with the most amazingly talented students, and I’m just in awe. I’m so honored to be able to be here to watch them perform today,” upper school principal Mrs. Elise Blum said.
