In honor and celebration of Black History Month, ChiArts Dance Conservatory debuted Journey of the Brown Tights last year showcasing the history of Black dance and its rightful place in the landscape of classical dance. This year, the Dance Conservatory scholar-artists and faculty will continue the journey by presenting RootED: The Next Chapter in the Journey. Dance Department Greer Reed shares, "This year, we continue the lesson by learning how African dance, Hip Hop, and Tap is inherently in our DNA; our breath. We use these particular dance techniques as a way to tell our unique stories." RootED will be premiering March 16, 17, and 20 in the ChiArts Dance Wing. All shows are open to the public, click here to purchase tickets.

ChiArts Creative Writing conservatory is expanding its reach through community collaborations. Second-year students are working on projects such as photo essays and redesigning album covers this semester. David R. Nelson, a working artist and alumni parent, has generously provided installation space in his art studio on California Ave. for students to present an incredible zine window installation for public viewing. This semester-long project challenged students to generate writing in new ways and use mediums outside the typical writer’s toolbox to further develop messages in their writing. While the topics range from mental health and slam poetry to the local punk scene and the shortcomings of capitalism, each zine is ultimately about the author’s identity as an artist. Creative Writing Department Head Kenyatta Rogers shares, â€śStorytelling doesn’t always have to be words. A project like this helps students use another part of their creative mind, letting them show a more personal side.” In addition to creating the zines, the process gave students curation power, insight into the life of a local artist, and networking opportunities.

We highly recommend stopping by the ChiArts Creative Writing Zine Installation at 1100 N. California Ave., up until the end of February.
Over the past seven years, ChiArts’ Annual Summer Camp has welcomed over 450 young artists to explore the artistic disciplines of Band, Creative Writing, Dance, Voice, Theatre, and Visual Arts thanks to generous support from the Caerus Foundation. Led by ChiArts teaching artists and alums, campers receive pre-professional training in the arts throughout July. Camp Coordinator and ChiArts Spanish Educator Chris Cashman shares, â€śAt ChiArts Summer Camp, middle schoolers from Chicago get a taste of what it is like to be a scholar-artist at ChiArts. They end up accumulating almost a semester's worth of classroom instruction, and the vast majority of students say the camp experience positively impacts their decision to pursue ChiArts as a student.” This year, ChiArts Summer Camp will offer programs for grades 6-8 from July 10-28 onsite at ChiArts.

The ChiArts production team is preparing for a tremendous spring season with new conservatory collaborations and tributes to Black culture through diverse artistic lenses. This March, look forward to three premieres from the Creative Writing, Dance, and Music Conservatories. The first-ever Dance and Creative Writing collaborative showcase will lead us into the spring season on March 2-3, where dancers become writers and creative writers grow through movement. On March 15, Music presents Tribute to Black Music. Vocal Educator Charles Taylor shares, "The performance will highlight the contribution African-Americans have made to the American and world music tapestry. This year’s subject is The Evolution of the Spiritual, and will take listeners from the birth of the Spiritual to its usage and form in current times." To close out March, Creative Writing will kick off National Poetry Month with a reading on March 30. 

ChiArts Foundation’s programming for alums has been highly engaged with our inaugural class of Alumni Ambassadors. Alongside the leadership of Programs Manager Karina Quintana, the six ambassadors have been strengthening programming by meeting with the Foundation’s Alumni Relations Board Committee, finalizing program logos, and ambassadors Daniel Gayden (Music '17) and Coda Marcus (Theatre '16) participated in an alum panel with current scholar-artists at ChiArts. In addition to program highlights, 2023 is starting on a high note as the 10th anniversary of ChiArts’ first graduation class! This February, alums have been making moves in their respective industries, and we are thrilled to highlight two powerful women from the Class of 2013.

Kyrie Courter (Theatre ’13) is making her Broadway debut on February 26 in the highly-anticipated revival of Sweeney Todd, directed by Tony Award–winning director Thomas Kail and starring Grammy nominee Josh Groban and Tony Award-winning Annaleigh Ashford! Read Kyrie’s production bio here.

Antoinette “Vi” Freeman (Dance ’13) brought her show-stopping energy to the Super Bowl LVII Halftime Show, dancing alongside Rihanna this past Sunday, February 12. Now based in Atlanta, Antoinette is a rising star making her name known in the dance and creative directing industries!
The Chicago High School for the Arts (ChiArts) is Chicago’s first public arts high school and the only pre-professional arts high school in the nation that actively recruits novice students. ChiArts Proud is the ChiArts Foundation's seasonal bulletin that celebrates scholar-artist and the ChiArts Community, and connects you to events and productions. To learn more about ChiArts, visit chiarts.org and follow @ChiArtsHS on social media. 

To learn more about the ChiArts Foundation and how you can support access to pre-professional training in the arts, visit chiartsfoundation.org.