Robert Nott / The New Mexican

There was a time when Joey Chavez thought he might be an architect. And another long period of time where he pursued acting. And once — long ago — he wrote on a college admissions document that he’d like to be a drama teacher at a university.

All those dreams came in handy as he ran Santa Fe High School’s drama department for 15 years. He started in 1995, and he’ll finish this spring. In August, he’ll move over to the new charter school, New Mexico School for the Arts, to become the theater department chairman.

In the interim, he’s working feverishly to get Urinetown into shape. The cult musical satire by Mark Hollman and Greg Kotis — set in a future society so beset by drought that people have to pay for the right to pee — marks Chavez’s last spring musical at the school. It opens at 8 p.m. tonight and runs two more weekends at Santa Fe High.

Speaking in between musical numbers during a recent rehearsal, Chavez said he estimates he’s directed 150 shows over the past 10 years. The first was David Ives’ collection of short plays called All in the Timing. The last show will be in late May, when Chavez mounts Stress and Coffee, the school’s annual “let’s put on a show in 24 hours!” theater fest. He’ll be leaving the campus after graduation on June 4. The district is currently looking for a replacement for Chavez.

“It was the toughest choice I’ve made since the choice to leave New York in the summer of 1995,” Chavez said of his decision to accept the New Mexico School for the Arts job back in December. “The mission of the school — in my mind — is to build a world-class program focusing on the arts. I want to be part of that.”

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Joey Chavez will join NMSA as Chair of the Theater Department. A 12th generation Santa Fean, Chavez has been heading the Theater program at Santa Fe High for the last 15 years. During this time he was involved in more than 150 productions, from musicals and world premiers to original personal and student work. He has also taught for The University of Oklahoma, The Alliance Theater in Atlanta, GA and for Young Audiences New York.

 Chavez states, “I am very pleased and honored to be joining the founding staff of the NMSA. This is a wonderful opportunity to help build a program for the students of our state which will allow them to have access to training on par with other Arts High Schools around the country.”

Cristina González, recently appointed Chair of the Visual Arts Department, received her MFA from the University of Washington, Seattle, and her BA from Yale University. She has been teaching painting and drawing for more than twelve years. “I’m delighted to join the New Mexico School for the Arts. I’m especially excited about working with professional artists who are among the best in their field, and who are passionate about sharing their knowledge, skills, and vision with high performing students” states González.

Upon accepting the Chair of the Music Department position, Benjamin Klemme remarked: “The New Mexico School for the Arts will strengthen the cultural fitness of our community by offering the promising young artists of our state a place in which to develop the skills required to express their unique abilities and talents. The opportunity to cultivate the promise of these students as a member of the NMSA faculty is a privilege I approach with enthusiasm and a responsibility I will strive to meet with purpose.”

Klemme leads the Santa Fe Youth Symphony Association as Music Director and Conductor and has helped bring classical music to life for young people through his work with the Santa Fe Chamber Music Festival’s “Music In Our Schools” program; in Ohio, he founded the Scordatura Chamber Orchestra, a Cleveland-based ensemble designed to achieve classroom learning objectives in language arts, math, science, and social studies through the creative presentation of parallel classical music principles, and served as the music department chair of Lutheran High School East; in Iowa, he served as the Associate Conductor of the Northern Iowa Youth Orchestra.

Karen Hall has been named Voice Instructor for the School. Dr. Hall is a versatile educator, music researcher and professional singer. Her experience as an educator includes university teaching positions at New York University, the Berklee College of Music and the Boston Conservatory as well as several high school accelerated arts programs throughout the United States.

The School is still in negotiations for its Dance Department Faculty.

In announcing these appointments, Head of School Jim Ledyard states, “The search for arts faculty and chairs, which has taken three months and involved over two hundred applicants, has been an incredibly rewarding process in itself. I have met artist teachers from every corner of New Mexico and from all of the major art centers of the country. The individuals who will be joining our faculty, and those who will sit on the audition panels, are as talented, distinguished, and committed a group as could be found anywhere. I look forward with great anticipation to begin working with them.”

The following individuals are available for interviews:

Jim Ledyard, Head of School 505-310-4195

Joey Chavez, Theater Chair 505-467-2975

Cristina González, Visual Arts Chair 505-670-9579

Karen Hall, Vocal Instructor 505-504-8750

Benjamin Klemme , Music Chair 505-603-6708

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New Mexico School for the Arts is a public, statewide, residential charter high school dedicated to artistic and academic excellence. NMSA offers pre-professional instruction in the performing and visual arts in combination with rigorous academics leading to a New Mexico diploma. NMSA prepares a diverse community of students to successfully continue their arts education at institutions of higher learning while preparing them to lead productive and creative lives that enrich their communities. New Mexico School for the Arts is located at the former St. Francis Cathedral School, 275 East Alameda in Santa Fe and is supported, in part, by the New Mexico Community Foundation, Thaw Charitable Trust, Thornburg Charitable Foundation and an anonymous donor. For more information, log on to: www.nmschoolforthearts.org.

The New Classroom Building

New Mexico School for the Arts, a public, statewide, residential charter high school dedicated to artistic and academic excellence, will open its doors in August 2010 with an estimated 120 students in grades 9 – 11 from around the State of New Mexico. In addition to academics, students will receive training in their chosen art form. Arts offered are dance (ballet and contemporary), music (instrumental and voice), theater and visual arts.

“We’re thrilled to have a home, to be in the heart of Santa Fe, and to know that our School will be open in a matter of months. It’s very exciting”, states NMSA Board Chair Catherine Oppenheimer.

St. Francis Cathedral School is the former location of Santo Niño Regional Catholic School prior to their moving to the College Avenue location. The 36,360 square foot school is located at 275 East Alameda, at the corner of East Alameda and Paseo de Peralta and was designed by celebrated architect John Gaw Meem in 1947. The two-story facility includes 14 classrooms, a library, cafeteria, stage, gymnasium and school offices.

“We are pleased that our historic St. Francis Cathedral School building will continue to serve the tradition of education in Santa Fe as the new home of the New Mexico School for the Arts.” says Jim Cutropia, representative for the Cathedral Church of St. Francis of Assisi.

The Stage

Head of School Jim Ledyard states: “Our students will be inspired by the architecture and works of art that grace the hallways at Cathedral School. We look forward to opening the school up to the public for semester-end performances and arts shows by the students of New Mexico School for the Arts. We are now working with state officials to obtain E-Occupancy.”

The following individuals are available for interviews:

Catherine Oppenheimer, Chair, NMSA Governing Board: 505-603-2900
Jim Ledyard, NMSA Head of School: 505-310-4195
Jim Cutropia, St. Francis Cathedral: 505-982-5619

Images: 505-310-4194 – or via email at admin@nmschoolforthearts.org.

New Mexico School for the Arts is a public, statewide, residential charter high school dedicated to artistic and academic excellence. NMSA offers pre-professional instruction in the performing and visual arts in combination with rigorous academics leading to a New Mexico diploma. NMSA prepares a diverse community of students to successfully continue their arts education at institutions of higher learning while preparing them to lead productive and creative lives that enrich their communities. New Mexico School for the Arts is supported, in part, by the New Mexico Community Foundation, Thaw Charitable Trust, Thornburg Charitable Foundation and an anonymous donor.

Jim Ledyard

New Mexico School for the Arts [NMSA], a public, statewide, residential charter high school dedicated to artistic and academic excellence, has selected a new Head of School. Jim Ledyard assumed the Head of School on August 5.

Dr. Jim Ledyard is a veteran educator whose career has spanned high school and college teaching, secondary school leadership, and university administration. He has been head of three independent schools, most recently Ravenscroft School in Raleigh, NC, where he served for eleven years. Ravenscroft is noted for its exceptional programs in the fine and performing arts which flourished under Ledyard’s guidance. His teaching has focused on literature for the theater, with a specialty in Shakespeare. Ledyard has considerable experience as a board member of various arts-related organizations including a charter school in Washington, D.C., and a program located in Spoleto, Italy, for high school students skilled in the performing or visual arts. He studied at Princeton (AB), Stanford (MA) and Claremont Graduate University (PhD).

“The New Mexico School for the Arts will be a substantial and exciting addition to the educational landscape of the state. I am honored to be its leader. I am also extremely impressed by the long line of volunteers, Board members, legislators, arts activists, foundations and corporations whose vision and generosity have brought us this far. Planning is proceeding on all fronts, and we will be making announcements very soon on significant developments in campus location, audition procedures, curriculum and staffing.”

Sherry Thompson, Chair of the New Mexico School for the Arts Governing Board states: “We are fortunate to have Jim Ledyard taking the reigns of the New Mexico School for the Arts. His background and experience in education is exactly what the School needs as we move forward in our planning year.”

The following individuals are available for interviews:

• Sherry Thompson, Chair, Governing Board: 505 982-7023
• Catherine Oppenheimer, Vice Chair Governing Board: 505 603-2900
• Jim Ledyard, Head of School: 505 310-4194

Images: 505 310-4194 or via email at admin@nmschoolforthearts.org.

This summer, a group of distinguished professionals in the fields of dance, visual arts, music and theater will travel to New Mexico to share their expertise with the state’s young artists.

The series of master classes and intensive workshops are presented by the newly-established charter high school, The New Mexico School for the Arts.

Spencer Beckwith, host of KUNM’s Performance New Mexico, sat down with the school’s summer programs producer.

Listen below or click here to go to KUNM’s website.

[audio:http://www.kunm.org/audiohurl.php?s0=061609SCHOOLARTS.mp3]

Craig Smith | The New Mexican

Brilliant Broadway hoofer Ann Reinking has won major awards for her acting, directing and choreography. Actor and comedian Richard Kind is equally at home performing onstage, in films and on television.

Susan York combines steel, porcelain and graphite in complex and alluring art installations sought by museums, galleries and collectors. And pianist Joel Fan is always flying all over the place to perform concertos, solo recitals and chamber music.

This distinguished quartet will share their skills with New Mexico middle- and high-school students this weekend in master classes at the National Dance Institute of New Mexico’s Dance Barns here in Santa Fe. The three-hour sessions, from 1 to 4 p.m., are presented by the New Mexico School for the Arts. While applications are necessary for admission, the fee is only $20.

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