Cranford Arts


This month we celebrate 

Arts in Our Schools!

March 2023

Congratulations to this week's CHS PAW 

"Performing Arts Student of the Week" 

Sansa Kirby


Sansa Kirby, grade 12, is a choir student manager and the alto section leader.  She brings positive energy but also a sense of quiet humility, showing care and compassion for members of the Concert Choir and Madrigal Choir.  She is extremely creative and also an excellent pianist and enjoys playing Chopin and Debussy.  She will accompany the Concert Choir at the Spring Choral Concert.


Past CHS PAW's

Lindsey Stevens: Dance

Sydney Leung: Instrumental Music


         Upcoming Performances & Events

*Student tickets are $10 at the door with a Student ID. 

*Senior Citizens are invited to a free showing of the dress rehearsal on Thursday, March 9. 

*To access the accessible entrance and elevator for the performances please email atkinson@cranfordschools.org

Cranford High School

Spring


CHS Spring Musical

Friday, March 10 | 7:30pm

Saturday, March 11 | 7:30pm

Sunday, March 12 | 2:00pm


CHS Spring Choral Concert

Thursday, April 27 | 7:30pm


CHS Spring Band Concert

Thursday, May 4 | 7:30pm


CHS Spring Dance Concert

Friday, May 12 | 7:30pm


CHS Spring Acting Showcase

Thursday, May 18 | 7:30pm


CHS Senior Acting Showcase

Wednesday, May 24 | 7:30pm


Madrigal Spring Concert

Sunday, June 4 | 1:00pm

Location: Trinity Episcopal Church (Cranford, NJ)


CHS Orchestra & Masterworks Concert 

Thursday, June 8 | 7:30pm


CHS 12th Grade Performing Arts Showcase

Thursday, June 15 | 7:30pm


Cranford Middle Schools

Spring


Orange Avenue School Spring Musical

Friday, March 17 | 7:30pm

Saturday, March 18 | 7:30pm

Sunday, March 19 | 2:00pm


Hillside Avenue School Spring Musical

Friday, March 24| 7:00pm

Saturday, March 25 | 7:00pm

Sunday, March 26 | 2:00pm


Orange Avenue School Middle School Instrumental Concert

Band & Orchestra

Wednesday, May 17 | 7:00pm


Orange Avenue School Spring Choral Concert

Elementary & Middle School

Thursday, May 25 | 7:00pm


Hillside Avenue Middle School Spring Concert 

Chorus & Percussion Ensemble

Wednesday, May 31 | 7:00pm


Hillside Avenue Middle School Spring Concert 

Band, Jazz Band & Orchestra

Wednesday, June 7 | 6:00pm



*Please refer to the weekly elementary school newsletters for 

K-5 Fine and Performing Arts events.

         Arts in the Community

SPOTLIGHT ON ART

Former CPS Teacher and Artist connects with the Fine Arts Department

Earlier this year, June Brown, a former CPS teacher and Julie Murphy, made a connection with someone who would donate a floor loom to the CHS Fine Arts Department. After its delivery Ms. Brown and other volunteers spent numerous hours getting the loom to work after 40 years of storage. She then met with students in the crafts classes and demonstrated how to prepare the material for weaving. 

Ms. Brown modeled how to use the loom and then assisted students in the process. Afterwards, the students viewed projections of Ms. Brown’s three dimensional weaving, which was showcased at the Newark Museum. During the presentation students learned about the meaning of her artwork, which prompted many inquiries. They also discussed an upcoming project where they will be using recycled materials. This will be a collaborative weaving for any CHS students who want to be involved. 

Ms. Barkin (CHS Crafts Teacher), says that her goal is to have the work displayed in the school when it is completed.  

Congratulations to Erin Bradford who was awarded HONORABLE MENTION in the New Jersey State Bar Foundation’s Courtroom Artist Contest for 2023!

Fresh Perspectives 2023 Selections

Congratulations to the following students whose artwork has been selected for presentation at Fresh Perspectives 2023, a juried high school art on-line virtual gallery and curated exhibition hosted by the Morris Museum, Morristown, NJ February 18 through May 14, 2023.

Orange Avenue School Art Service Club


Miss Berk, Ms. Baillod and the Art Service Club started their annual mural outside the library. Students will be painting abstract shapes and then transforming the shapes into animated GIFs revealing school related drawings. This interactive mural will be using traditional and modern art techniques. Stay tuned!

February 2023

CHS Fine Arts student wins contest

Congratulations to Audrey McMahon, winner of the 2022 Spotlight on Cranford Teen Artists contest!


*Sponsored by Sharon Stone, Real Estate Agent


Cranford Scarecrow Stroll 

Congratulations to Lincoln School on winning first place in the 2022 Cranford Scarecrow Stroll contest-Schools & Organizations Category.

Lincoln School Art Teacher- Maria Polyviou



Art in Action at 

Orange Avenue Middle School!

Crafts Masterclass with Marianne Jennings

 

Marianne Jennings, a metalsmith and CHS alumna continues to stay connected and support her alma mater. Jennings learned of a competition from Potter USA and shared her story of how Cranford High School helped guide her decision to pursue a passion of working with metal. She told her story and, in the process, won the fine arts department a twenty-ton hydraulic press, used for stamping or embossing metal.  

 

Jennings recently worked with the Advanced Crafts students and showed them how to use the machine. She also showed examples of how she’s used the hydraulic press to create her own pieces. She gave each student a copper disk and they chose an impression to stamp. The students will enamel their impressions and use it in a piece of jewelry during the course. 

CHS Fine Arts student wins contest

Congratulations to CHS Fine Art student Audrey Esteves, whose painting of @delice_macarons won the Spotlight on Cranford Teen Artists contest! (Spring 2022)

SPOTLIGHT ON MUSIC

Hillside Avenue School

Mr. Alex Bickard, Double Bassist for the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, visits Hillside Avenue School.

Students in the HAS Orchestra program participated in a master class, engaged in a Q&A, and had an opportunity to play their repertoire with Mr. Bickard.

During the master class Mr. Bickard also played and discussed music from Bach and Koussevitsky.

January 2023


SPOTLIGHT ON THEATRE

CHS Acting Student wins award

2022 Senior, Bailey Croft, was awarded a Prestigious New Jersey Governor's Award in Arts Education

Join the Friends of Performing Arts!

 Support performing arts programming throughout Cranford Public Schools.  

2022-2023 CSFOPA Membership Application