About Us

The Performing Arts Department believes that an arts education is fundamental to the intellectual, aesthetic, and personal development of our students.

Through a diverse program of curricular and extra-curricular offerings, the department seeks to continuously expose new students to the world of performing arts while expanding the education and training of students already involved. A cycle of meaningful engagement and reflection in student performance - both for the individual and the ensemble - is at the core of our approach.

Preparation for demanding college programs in music, dance, and theater is an important part of our mission. However, we fundamentally seek to help students become skilled and playful young artists in their chosen mediums.

The department has a variety of resources available to support students in their arts endeavors. Our facilities at both ARMS and ARHS contain dedicated rooms for choral, instrumental, and music tech classes along with a full-size auditorium; ARHS adds a dance studio, a digital music lab, and a 40-seat black box theater. Rental programs for wind and string instruments are available to all students in ARHS ensembles. Making the arts accessible to all students is a priority of the department in our classes and performances.

The arts have always been tremendous catalysts for community building and strong partnerships. To this end, we seek to work both within and beyond the school walls to create new work and meet new people through performances and projects of many kinds. Internships, cross-disciplinary work and connections with local arts programs and institutions are regularly supported.

We welcome members of the ARPS community and beyond to get know us better. Please be in touch with us if you have questions or interests at any time.

Our Faculty

Our faculty is comprised of practicing artists and teachers with strong backgrounds in their area of expertise as state-certified educators. They often can be found performing their own work around the Valley.

John Bechtold - Theater (ARHS); Department Head

Todd Fruth - Chorus (ARHS)

Nate Mondschein - Chorus (ARMS)

Kara Nye - Bands (ARMS/ARHS)

Ben Peterson - Orchestra (ARMS/ARHS)

Nick Shaw - Bomba (Dance Program, ARHS)

Tracy Vernon - Dance (ARMS/ARHS)