Arts

Dance and Drama are offered as a combined elective in the elementary school beginning in kindergarten.  Students learn how to use their voices, bodies, minds and hearts—to express emotions, ideas and experiences in performance. They are also learning about awareness, respect, trust, observation, specificity, perspective/point of view and how to communicate honestly, clearly and openly with each other. The skills of drama are integrated and developed through storytelling and gently taught through exercises that become more complex as children move through the grade levels.  Through dance students learn to understand and value their bodies and develop kinesthetic awareness. Students explore movement concepts—level, shape, quality and rhythm—and develop movement vocabulary, learning to vary, control and direct the force and energy of their movements. They use improvisation to discover new and original movement possibilities based on specific parameters.

The Visual Art curriculum places a strong emphasis on igniting the curiosity in each young artist to explore ideas, materials, collaborations and imaginative problem solving.  We believe in utilizing available resources as much as possible in addition to traditional media. 

Investigation of historical and contemporary art and artists provide context and framework for the creation of meaningful work. Our Elementary School art program has been likened over the years to a “college foundational art program in kindergarten” because of the focus on application of the elements and principles of art and design. Our young artists are able to explore and further develop their own unique voice through the world of visual storytelling.

Music is a universal form of expression. Students benefit from studying music because it uniquely develops forms of intelligence and experiences unlike any other art. Music is taught by engaging students' minds through a mixture of playing musical instruments, singing, dancing, and participating in performance based events. We encourage students to be authentic and spontaneous which gives them room to explore, play and engage creatively without judgment. All elementary students take modern band, which is taught with an interdisciplinary curriculum that includes history, political and social events, poetry, and singer-songwriters. Fourth and fifth graders may choose to learn brass, wind or string instruments as well. We make music accessible to ALL children at any ability or level, taking into account various needs and learning styles. Lessons are differentiated for all musical levels giving students the opportunity to play together in a group or a band.  

New Roads Upper School music classes reflect our philosophical commitment to the value of the nonlinear creative process and the full development of each unique individual. Acknowledging that not everyone learns best in the same way, New Roads has developed a diverse music program in which students from all backgrounds and abilities have the opportunity to follow their interests through performance and creation. Students are taught to play by ear, to read notated music, to work with digital audio technology, and to improvise. Students will find their own creative voice and explore how our common humanity and cultural differences are expressed in artistic freedom. Upper School Music can be explored through a variety of bands like World Music and Jazz, or students can continue their journey of musical creation in Music Theory, Music Production, and Songwriting.

The Upper School Dance Program offers a diverse range of styles, techniques and methods to enable students of all levels to expand their understanding of dance as a global art form. In addition to the physical practice, all courses include dance history, encouraging students to learn about the cultural background, origin and social impact of each technique and approach. We offer training in Hip Hop, Jazz, Modern, Contemporary, Improvisation and Composition/Choreography. Throughout the year local LA dance artists are brought in to teach additional genres such as Salsa, Waacking, Broadway, Bollywood & more. Beginning students can learn fundamentals and deepen their movement skills, while more experienced students can create their own projects and challenge themselves according to their interests. 10th - 12th graders can audition for Dance Company, our most advanced dance ensemble that explores student choreography and the art of performing. All Upper School classes have the opportunity to perform at school wide events and are featured in the annual MS/US Spring Dance Concert.

Current dance offerings include Dance Technique: Jazz/Modern, Dance Technique: Hip Hop, Dance Studio (Guest Artist Series) and Dance Company (Audition Only).

The central focus of our Upper School Drama program is to tell stories that matter on stage and to help students develop the tools they need in order to tell those stories. Our coursework includes classes in scene study, improvisation, directing, playwriting and technical theater. These, along with mainstage performances, offer students a wide range of opportunity and experience.  Students are taught to approach their work with the understanding that an actor is their own instrument, and so it is essential to train both physically and vocally. Emphasis is placed on listening, presence, and preparation. They learn a common vocabulary of theatrical concepts and are given specific tools for the creation of subtext and effective use of the imagination. Students are exposed to both classical and contemporary dramatic  literature including works by Euripides, Shakespeare, Martin McDonagh, Anna Deavere Smith, Branden Jacobs Jenkins, and Sarah Ruhl. Learning to be an active, engaged part of an ensemble is also a key component to our program. The goal is for our students to be their most authentic and dynamic selves on stage and to understand the power and potency of art.