Performing Arts
Theater enables students to take the words from a play and find facets of themselves to bring service of the character, which requires deep emotional connection and understanding.
Theater
Taught by professional actors, the Theater Department teaches a process based, multi-layered approach to the study of acting and its collaborative nature. Through acting classes, students learn to communicate and expand their imagination, creativity, thoughts, and emotions. The professional theater faculty is augmented by guest artists from Lovett’s deep connection into the theater community locally and nationally. Theater Arts enables students to take the words from a play and discover how to bring facets of themselves to service of the character, which requires discovering who they are, as well as deep emotional connection and understanding.
The Upper School Theater Arts program offers four levels of theater arts classes, as well as Honors Theater Arts. Acting students explore techniques and skills through exercises, improvisation, scene study, and performance. Each semester, students will study with guest theater professionals, enriching their overall experience. In addition, the Honors Theater program travels to New York to see plays, explore the culture of the city, and take part in Master Classes.
The Upper School produces plays both semesters, as well as a main-stage musical each year. In addition, multiple class-related workshops are presented. Students also receive instruction in on-camera acting.
Design and Production
Taught by three working professionals, the Design and Production program provides and helps develop the skills needed to succeed in the demanding world of theatrical design and production.
Offered to Upper School and eighth grade students, this program explores design and production from conceptual design work to the “nuts and bolts“ that help make a production happen. Utilizing both hands-on applications, as well as in-class projects, each student will be able to explore, expand, and realize their own creative potential. The program is a true makerspace, covering all aspects of backstage work, including stage, lighting, carpentry, scenery, lighting, and stage management. In addition, students may learn the fundamentals of sound design and engineering.
Dance
Dance is an expression through movement that challenges the student to examine how to focus their creative and expressive voice in new and challenging ways.
The dance program is designed to introduce many styles of dance to the beginning student, but with a focus on ballet as the foundation of all dances. Lower School students can begin exploring dance through extracurricular offering. In the seventh and eighth grade dance classes, students are introduced to ballet, hip hop, jazz, and contemporary dance.
In the Upper School dance class, students have the opportunity to focus on more detailed aspects of dance, concentrating on the fundamentals of technique (ballet, jazz, and contemporary), proper stretching form, strengthening exercises used in pilates and gyrotonics, and the choreographic process.
Program Highlights
Most theatrical performances and dance recitals are held in the 650-seat, state-of-the-art Hendrix-Chenault Theater.
Theater classes and smaller performances take place in the Woodward Black Box Theater, which is equipped as a full performance space. Additionally, the Middle School Drama Room serves as a rehearsal and performance space for various presentations.
Both the Woodward Black Box Theater and the Middle School Drama Room include a sprung floor, as well as professional lighting and sound systems.
Design and Production boasts a “Design Crafts” class that includes such woodworking techniques as joinery, metalwork, high-quality craftsmanship–all of which stem from artistic concepts.
The Design and Production curriculum includes stage management, lighting, sound, costuming, and the building of sets for theater productions. Thus giving students a well-rounded experience in all areas of theater production.
Lovett is home to a one-of-a kind dance program led by Rebecca Metzger, who was a dancer for the New York City Ballet and is currently a répétiteur for George Balanchine Trust.