When Cope Makechnie ‘17 of Andover; Jay Pier ‘17 of South Freeport, Maine; Carl Hubbard ‘17 of Andover; and Cros Thoms ‘17 of Wakefield, Rhode Island began singing A Prayer for the Children during this fall’s end-of-term vocal music ensemble recital, it felt as though someone pressed the Pause button on life. Their impassioned voices carried the words off the page and into the hearts of the 75 parents and community members in attendance.

“Can you feel the hearts of the children?

Aching for home, for something of their very own

Reaching hands, with nothing to hold on to,

But hope for a better day, a better day.”

The three days of arts performances at the end of the Fall Term provided a much needed opportunity to reflect on the richness the arts bring to the Proctor community. We experience this same feeling at the end of every term, and understand the educational value of taking arts courses.

We love to see almost every Proctor student engaged in the arts each term, but this final weekend brought to light more than just the educational value of the performing and visual arts. It allowed us to see how the arts provide our students with a calm in the midst of their far-too-often stormy worlds.

Whether it was:

Cope, Carl, Jacqui Morris ‘17, Nelson Makechnie ‘19, or Ryelle Jenifer ‘20 singing in the vocal ensemble;

Tori Braley ‘20 taking the Proctor stage alongside Jacqui for the first time in a student-directed rendition of the Laramie Project and then later as a member of the dance team with Ryelle;

Carl on keyboard in the Jazz/Rock Ensemble with Keith Barrett running the soundboard for the Jazz/Rock concert;

or Finn ‘18 and Sofia Weber’s ‘19 artwork on display at the art show,

the power of Proctor’s arts programs are impacting Andover students in many ways.

We all needed this weekend in the arts before Fall Term exams. Watching students step into the spotlight, share their talents, take pride in their hard work, and risk vulnerability in pursuit of art is a centering experience.

Thank you to all of the artists for putting your talents on display, and to all the faculty in the Art Department for committing your lives to helping pull out the best in each of your students. We hope members of the Andover community join us for the end-of-Winter Term arts performances in February!