Winter Arts Festival

The 2023 Winter Arts Festival burst out of the Klein Arts Center on Friday and into spaces across campus. More than 100 student artists were represented in all!

This winter celebration of the arts featured live theater, classical music, and multiple venue exhibitions of ceramics, paintings, drawings, photography, soundscape and film created throughout the school year.

The Elizabeth Gatchell Klein Arts Center was festooned with art made by students in Hallmark Art Intensive, Independent Projects in Art, Studio Art II/III, and Hallmark History of Art classes, and included a sound installation by Malena Carraro ’24 and Naomi Hopkins ’24. In the Woods Theater shop, Lilith Ladouceur-Murray ’26 and Jaimie Corpuz ’26 recreated a scene from Between Daylight and Boonville, by Matt Williams, and in the hyphen between theater and studio art spaces, Wenna Nielsen ’26 and Grey Carmel ’23 performed a scene from the play Graceland, by Ellen Byron.

Meanwhile, in Linn Hall, musical and theater performances wowed audiences. In one second-floor alcove, Tati Kheyfets ’23 and Assia Rassulkyzy ’25 performed a scene from Proof, by David Auburn. In the other, Emilie Coziol-Desy ’25, and Fiona Clary ’26 performed a scene from Antigone, by Jean Anouilh. In the Linn Common Room, Aurora Song '26 and Lizzy Jutras ’26 performed a scene from Laundry and Bourbon, a comedy by James McClure.

For their part, the MHS Chamber Ensemble — violinists Cora Ma ’24, Zadie Juska ’24, Lily Yao ’24, Tyler Norman ’25, and Fernanda Morais Laroca ’23; violist Hypnos Perri ’24; and cellists Ginamarie Bocchino ’25, Mae Bergstresser ’26, and Vicky Li ’25 performed “Boil Cabbage Down,” “Old Joe Clark,” and “Swallowtail Jig,” followed by violinists Phuong Huynh ’25, Zadie, Fer, and String Instructor Bing Liu, with “Morning Has Broken.” Ginamarie then offered a solo performance of the Prelude to the Third Suite, by Johann Sebastian Bach.

In Centennial Hall, community members enjoyed solo and duet musical performances, as well as a theater performance. Aurora Song ’26 opened by singing two 17th century pieces, “Have You Seen But a White Lily Grow” and “My Lovely Celia,” followed by Trinity Ren ’26 performing “Waltz,” by Eric Satie, on piano. Bianca Kerr '23 sang the Welsh folk song, “The Ash Grove,” followed by flutist Ayako Ogawa ’24, who performed Gabriel Fauré’s “Sicilienne,” accompanied by Director of Music Debbie Duff on piano. 

Cellist Catherine Yang ’26 offered a solo performance of “Tune for Mairead and Anna Ni Mhaonaigh,” a traditional Irish reel by Dáithí Sproule, followed by Mendelssohn’s “On Wings of Song,” accompanied by Yolanda Zhang ’23 on piano. The show closed with EA Peña ’25 performing a monologue from John Patrick Shanley’s Savage in Limbo, from the Centennial Hall balcony.

Visual arts of all kinds was on display throughout Main as well! An original film by Ollie Walter ’23 ran in the Student Center, while the Ferguson Sun Room and nearby hallways showcased work from students in Photography I and Studio Art I. The Barbara Humes Euston Hall Library spotlighted work from the Ceramics I & II classes.

Thank you to all our amazing student artists and Expressive Arts faculty for this campus-wide celebration of boldness and creativity!