|
13th Annual BPS Citywide Arts Festival
The BPS Arts Department is excited to host the 13th Annual Citywide Arts Festival at the recently renovated City Hall Plaza! This is our biggest event of the year in which performing arts groups across the district unite to deliver four jam-packed days of music, dance, theatre, and spoken word performances. Back by popular demand, Boston actor and theatre educator Naheem Garcia takes the microphone once again as our festival host. Get ready for some artistic fun in the sun as we celebrate the final days of the school year... #BPSArts4All style! We are excited to welcome the Ulysses Quartet, GBH Music’s Quartet in Residence, as a special performing guest on Wednesday, May 28th as a part of their ongoing partnership with Boston Public Schools. Over 1100 BPS student performers will join us from 25 schools across the district! |
|
PROGRAM ORDER BY DAY
(schedules are organized by time blocks and are subject to change)
(schedules are organized by time blocks and are subject to change)
|
Tuesday, May 27th | Arts Extravaganza
10 to 11:15 window Warren-Prescott Chorus Curley Ambassadors of Theater/Curley Theater Company Boston Latin School Gospel Choir Kenny School Singers |
11:15 to 12:30 window Eliot String Ensemble Eliot Choir Eliot Band Eliot Rocks |
|
Wednesday, May 28th | Music: Wired
10 to 11:15 window Boston Latin Academy Jazz Band Boston Green Academy Bachata Team Boston Green Academy Band Russell Modern Band |
11:15 to 12:30 window GUEST PERFORMANCE: Ulysses Quartet, GBH Music's Quartet in Residence Boston Latin School Big Band Eliot Elementary Choir |
|
Thursday, May 29th | Music: Unplugged
10 to 11:15 window Boston Latin Academy Singers Hale Percussion Haynes Early Education Center Choir Edison Shining Lights Mather Bee Singers Higginson-Lewis A-Team |
11:15 to 12:30 window McKay Orchestra East Boston High Concert Band O'Bryant Middle School Chorus Quincy Upper School Concert Band Umana Academy Band O'Bryant Jazz-Rock Ensemble |
|
Thursday, May 29th | Music: Unplugged
10 to 11:15 window Curley Dance Crew Holland Tech Dance Team Grew Theatre Performance Ensemble Baldwin Dancing Blue Jays Ellis Theatre Ensemble Mather Movers |
11:15 to 12:30 window Dudley Street Neighborhood Charter Dance Club McKay Musical Theater Ensemble Orchard Gardens Drama Club Orchard Gardens Dance Team Charlestown High School Dance Team |
|
“Dear Vincent” Letter-Writing Contest with the Museum of Fine Arts
In honor of the exhibition of Vincent van Gogh’s series of portraits of the Roulin family, who were so instrumental in the artist’s life, the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA Boston) and Savvas Learning Company invite Boston students to participate in a letter writing and art contest. Participants are encouraged to write a letter to Vincent van Gogh to share their feelings regarding the meaning of “family,” and are encouraged to also ask a question of the world-famous artist. Participants may also choose to submit a piece of art that symbolizes these same feelings about family. Letters are to be one page maximum (8.5 x11) with the same size for artwork. Acceptable file formats include PDF (.pdf) or Word (.docx). All materials are to be submitted electronically by Sunday, May 25, 2025 at 5PM. All submissions will be reviewed and up to (36) submissions will be selected to be displayed at the MFA from July 6, 2025 to September 7, 2025. Only (18) works will be on display at a time, with selections rotating in early August to present an additional (18) works. BPS student submission form | letter writing packet Photo credit: © National Gallery of Art, Collection of Mr. and Mrs. Hay Whitney |
|
|
Register for Boston Symphony Orchestra's Days in the Arts (DARTS) at BPS
Location: Boston Arts Academy, 174 Ipswich St, Boston 02215 Summer 2025 | Cost: FREE *update, 4/30/25: Cohort 1 is full (additional applications for this week will be placed on a waiting list), but there are a few spots remaining for Cohort 2. COHORT 1 June 30th-July 3rd | 9AM-3PM (Note: This will be a 4-day week because of the July 4th Holiday) Wed, July 2nd: Afternoon Trip to Boston Arts Institution (Details to follow) Thurs, July 3rd: Student Arts Expo & Program, Closing Reception from 2-3PM COHORT 2 July 7th-11th | 9AM-3PM Wed, July 9th: Tanglewood Day Trip from 8AM-6PM Thurs, July 10th: Afternoon Trip to Boston Arts Institution (Details to follow) Fri, July 11th: Student Arts Expo & Program, Closing Reception from 2-3PM The Days in the Arts (DARTS) free summer day camp has been sponsored by the Boston Symphony Orchestra since 1969, and has grown into a vibrant collaboration with Boston Public Schools. Middle school students (entering grades 6 - 8 in Fall of 2025) experience a weeklong immersion in musical, visual, dance, and theater arts with instruction from BPS educators and local artists from the Greater Boston community. In addition, students take special trips to arts institutions in Boston and Tanglewood, the BSO’s summer home in the Berkshires, to visit the renowned Tanglewood Music Center. Students may register to attend Cohort 1, Cohort 2, or both. Please fill out ONE FORM PER CHILD. Registration will remain open until our maximum capacity is met. The BSO will send confirmation messages to the email addresses provided in April 2025. Please contact Erica Lindamood, BSO Education Program Manager, with any questions. ([email protected]; Phone: 617-638-9302) Register here |
|
The Arts Advantage: Impacts of Arts Education on Boston Students
Released in May 2021, this research study highlights the role that increased access to arts education has on student engagement as measured by reductions in absenteeism; increases in parent engagement; and the strengthening of school climate. Read the report here.
Creativity is alive in the Boston Public Schools. Come take a look! BPS students have access to a wide range of arts opportunities, both in schools and through our arts partners. Together, arts teachers and community artists help Boston youth to think creatively and critically, discover possibilities, and express ideas. The BPS Visual & Performing Arts Department supports this work through district-wide resources, BPS Arts Expansion, and a host of partner programs.