Ugh, I think I’m getting MORE frustrated by this process. We’ve spent the summer visiting schools and, though it’s been a positive experience overall, I’ve discovered what Twinsmama posted above is true of many schools. With the exception of St. Pauls (music groups seem to rehearse in the evenings so as not to conflict with sports or theatre) and Northfield Mount Herman (block scheduling would make it possible to fit multiple arts classes into the schedule) students have to pick between a performance group and taking an arts class. If I want my son to be able to get instruction in theatre or dance, he will not be able to participate in choir or orchestra. In extention, he would not be able to take part in the speciality groups like the a capella or percussion ensembles, as you are generally required to be part of the larger ensembles to participate in the smaller groups. That really defeats the purpose of looking outside the preprofessional arts schools.
I’m sure there are other schools like St. Pauls and NMH with schedules that allow students to take advantage of all arts programming so I’ll keep looking. We did like both those schools a great deal. Also, there are still some schools on my list (Hill, George, Peddie) that we won’t visit until the fall so I’m not familiar with their schedules yet. I read on this forum that this process is like having a part time job. Whoever posted that wasn’t kidding!