On Tuesday, November 22, 2021, Brophy College Preparatory held its annual Fine Arts Extravaganza. The event was organized into five sections taking place in the chapel, Jesus Stage, Dutch Stage, Poet’s Ally and the SAC. 

The campus was transformed into a winter wonderland for the Christmas holiday season. There were extravagant lights, decorations and food. There was even a live Santa Claus ready for photo opportunities to remember the special occasion.

To start out the event at 6:00 p.m, sophomore Charlie Judd performed guitar and vocal covers on the Jesus Stage. He said, “I think the FAE is a really great opportunity for students to perform and show off all the wonderful fine art curriculum Brophy and Xavier have to offer.”

Also performing on the Jesus Stage was the “Ryan Eagan & Friends” band at 6:30, “String Quintet” at 7:45 and for the grand finale “Hot Milk” band at 8:00. Over 208 students performed on the Jesus Stage.

Dancers from the Xavier Performance Dance company also had an opportunity to perform at 6:45. Senior Reese Cantu said, “Performance dance is my favorite class because it gives me a chance to take a break from academics and express myself through the art of dance.”

Xavier junior and performance dance member, Alex Keppel, said “FAE was a great experience and I’m so glad we got to share our love for dance with the Brophy community.”

In the Brophy Chapel, orchestra, wind ensemble and chamber singers performed their pieces. The beautiful performances did a wonderful job capturing the holiness of the environment.   

The Dutch Stage held seven performances. “Central Avenue Sound” began the performances at 6:00. Following at 6:30 was the band “Pidgeon and Friends” starring Dean Austin Pidgeon from BCP. At 6:45 was the freshman choir directly followed by the sophomore choir at 7:00.

Freshman Nathan Benzie said, “I, along with my classmates, practiced very hard in choir class and outside of school to prepare for our freshman choir performance.”

At 7:45, Charlie Ratterman performed some covers. Next up was the jazz band at 8:00. Finally to wrap up the performances on the Dutch Stage was Michael Fischer singing at 8:30.

In Poet’s Alley, the “Guitar Circle” performed at 6:00 followed by Ian Murphy DJ. To conclude the night in Poet’s Alley, Caleb Clapp DJ performed at 8:15.

In the SAC, “The Brophy Culture Project” was presented at 6:00, the speech and debate team presented at 7:00 and “Brophy Literary Arts Magazine”, also commonly known as BLAM, presented at 7:45. 

The event had a variety of things to see. There was a beautiful gallery set up to display many different art forms done by students. The gallery had everything from paintings to sculptures made out of recycled materials.

Outside of the gallery, there were some interactive activities. The Brophy photography elective had a station set up where visitors could have their photos taken with the skills the students learned throughout the course.

The event also had a working “Original Heidelberg Printing Press.” Next to it was a sign that read “This Heidelberg Printing Press was manufactured in Germany. Mr. Reasy acquired this printing press and restored it to its current glory. This machine is currently printing cards automatically with the design that the art department created.”

The ceramics studio went above and beyond for its display. The studio had a student actively spinning clay and talking about the process and effort that goes into each piece. Many pieces were already made and painted by students and were on display for the guests to view.

 Sophomore Clyde Walton said, “The thing I love about ceramics is that the creative opportunities are endless. I was able to create a sculpture of a dog for my aunt whose dog recently passed away. The joy and gratitude on her face when she saw my piece made me feel very proud of the new skills I acquired in the ceramics class.” 

The Fine Arts Extravaganza showcased all the impressive talents and skills of the Brophy and Xavier students. The art work and performances incorporated the holiday spirit and created a warming atmosphere.