Nice to meet you

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It's hard to believe we are at the halfway point in our school year! It's been so rewarding to see our students fully participating in the arts in person once again.

It's our pleasure to connect with all of you and share updates from our arts departments. This fall, the high school welcomed Andrew Lease as the new Theater Teacher and Auditorium Manager. Mr. Lease is hard at work, updating and revamping the Ferrini Dramatics Center. He oversees about 10 different spaces/nooks and closets around the school that are dedicated specifically to the theatre. This includes everything from going through each item in the different rooms and then re-imagining the spaces to best serve the students and community. For example, he moved 100's of books and boxes that were on bookshelves stage left and then re-imagined the space to include the history of the program, props, and make-up tables for his tech theatre classes (pictured below).

He is also working with the administration on revamping the lighting system in the space and hopes to make headway with this for the fall of 2022. More updates to come, especially on how parents, alumni, and volunteers can join the efforts to revitalize the space or even get involved with other aspects of the HWRHS theatre program (community involvement and integration is one of Mr. Lease's passions).
To keep up to date on all things HWRHS theater check out:

HWRHS Theater Website

HWRHS Theater Twitter

For more FOTA updates, see our latest newsletter here.

The arts are back!

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We missed you! It’s been so wonderful to see our students perform once again. Congratulations to our middle and high school band and chorus on their fantastic winter concerts! Thanks to the A/V team and HWCAM, both concerts can be viewed online.

  • High school concert can be viewed here.

  • Middle school concert can be viewed here.

We love supporting the arts in our district. Read more about what we’ve been up to in our latest newsletter!

25th Annual Melody Miles Fundraiser May 26 - 31, 2021

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Welcome the 25th Annual Melody Miles fundraiser! This year the Hamilton-Wenham Friends of the Arts is taking our race virtual, allowing you six days in May to run, walk, or dance your way through any 5k or 5mi route in your neighborhood (or on your treadmill). Invite your friends, bring the dog, or push the kids in the stroller. We have always been about fun, family, and music, and hope this year will still be the same. In order to keep you inspired during your race, we are putting together a playlist of all the singers and musicians you have come to love and enjoy during our live race. We will release this playlist on YouTube the first official day of the race for you to enjoy. Additionally, the first 100 registrants will get our coveted Melody Miles t-shirts, and we encourage everyone to wear them the day they do their race*. Show your support for the arts in our schools and join us for Melody Miles!

#HWFOTA #25MM #RunfortheArts

*We will offer a local t-shirt pick-up option for those within 30 minutes of Hamilton/Wenham. For those outside this area, we will ship you your t-shirt.

Register Here   

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Matilda Art.jpg

Roald Dahl's Matilda The Musical Presented by Miles River Middle School 

Inspired by the twisted genius of Roald Dahl, the Tony Award-winning Roald Dahl's Matilda The Musical is the captivating masterpiece from the Royal Shakespeare Company that revels in the anarchy of childhood, the power of imagination and the inspiring story of a girl who dreams of a better life. With book by Dennis Kelly and original songs by Tim Minchin, Matilda has won 47 international awards and continues to thrill sold-out audiences of all ages around the world.

Matilda is a little girl with astonishing wit, intelligence and psychokinetic powers. She's unloved by her cruel parents but impresses her schoolteacher, the highly loveable Miss Honey. Over the course of her first term at school, Matilda and Miss Honey have a profound effect on each other's lives, as Miss Honey begins not only to recognize but also appreciate Matilda's extraordinary personality. Matilda's school life isn't completely smooth sailing, however – the school's mean headmistress, Miss Trunchbull, hates children and just loves thinking up new punishments for those who don't abide by her rules. But Matilda has courage and cleverness in equal amounts, and could be the school pupils' saving grace.

Performances will be held in the Ferrini Dramatics Center at Hamilton-Wenham Regional High School:

Thursday, January 16th @ 7:00pm
Friday, January 17th @ 7:00pm
Saturday, January 18th @ 2:00pm

Purchase your tickets in advance for $10 (students & seniors) and $12 (adults): https://mrmsmatilda.brownpapertickets.com