Photo credit: Charlie Gorrill

All AHA students know that sports are a big part of school culture here, but fine arts is an underrated program that deserves to have a little more light shed on it, especially considering the success it has had this year. Starting with AHA’s theater program, Starlight Productions’ one-act rendition of Shakespeare’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” advanced to section finals for Section 6AA, where they placed second out of eight teams. This kind of theater production combines the competitive aspect of sports with the creativity of fine arts, adding thrill and a competitive drive to each performance. Landon Stenger ‘24, a junior who’s been involved in both sports and theater, says, “Mr. Sawyer helped create this competition way back when, and I think it’s fun to bring the competitive spirit of sports into the arts. But even with the competitive spirit, it remains a very tight-knit supportive community.” Stenger had been involved in the technical aspect of theater, but recently made his performance debut this fall, starring in AHA’s production of ‘You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown.’ Whether one has an interest in sound management, set construction, costume design, lighting, or acting, there is definitely a role for everyone, and the theater department is always looking for new people to join. This year’s one-act brought two new seniors to the stage who had never participated in the program before – Evan Stensland ‘23 and Ryan McGuire ‘23 – proving that it is never too late to join. 

Moving away from performing arts and into studio arts, AHA has mandatory art credits as a graduation requirement. This integrates art into the curriculum, pushing students out of their comfort zone and allowing them to explore new means of expression and creation they might have never discovered otherwise. AHA offers a wide variety of art classes, including Digital Photography, Woodworking I and II, Computer Art, 3D Model Building, Yearbook Production, AP Art & Design, Intro and Studio Ceramics, Painting, and Drawing, among others. The variation of these classes allows students to explore different mediums and find what they like to do. These classes are taught by an array of different teachers, which allows students to learn from mentors with varying perspectives. Art allows students to express themselves and is often therapeutic. For teenagers struggling with mental health or issues as simple as everyday stress, making art can be an extremely useful and supportive outlet. Often without even realizing it, art reveals hidden meanings and emotions that students did not even know they needed to express. By requiring students to take four art credits while at AHA, the administration brings art into academics. Although the minimum requirement of art credits may appear unappealing to some, it allows students to have a break during the day and exercise creativity in many different ways. 

January 30th, 2023 presented an amazing opportunity for all students regularly engaged in fine arts. This was the annual Tri-Metro Fine Arts Festival, where students from over five schools joined together to celebrate the arts. This year’s festival was hosted by AHA. This included workshops such as 3D soldering, linoleum carving, and book-making in the studios, as well as choir performances and medleys in the chapel, while the band performed in the gym. This gave students from different schools the chance to try new things and meet new people while experimenting with new mediums they might not have had access to before. Outside professional artists Patrick Price and Jamie Kubat came in and worked with the art students, teaching them new ways to create art using all sorts of materials and techniques.