Performing Arts
What does The Haverford School believe about music education?
Participation in musical study and performance facilitates an appreciation for beauty, a means of self-expression, intellectual growth and a forum for positive community activity. We believe that one appreciates most what he understands and that one understands best what he has experienced. The music curriculum is experiential and has as its core musical literacy and artistry. Literacy is not an end unto itself; rather it is an avenue to artistry, understanding and appreciation. The curriculum is structured to prepare our boys for a lifetime of participation in the musical arts as performers or appreciative, well-educated audience members. Students have the option to pursue an intellectual study of music through the study of theory, performance, production, songwriting and history.
Students may also pursue performance-based participation in the school’s musical ensembles. Performance based study includes options in both vocal and instrumental realms.
What does The Haverford School believe about theater education?
The purpose of acting, Hamlet tells us, is to hold ‘the mirror up to nature.’ Students of theater at The Haverford School strive to represent most aspects of human behavior in thoughtful, well-prepared performances both in the classroom and on the Centennial Hall stage. Students are encouraged to understand the world by thinking carefully of their own experience, by inhabiting the skins of others, and by studying classic and contemporary drama. Theater students develop a speaking voice of power and expression. They learn to move with strength and grace. They experience the value of collaboration in large productions including actors, designers, and technicians. They learn to listen to their peers and to carefully critique their work. Most importantly, theatre students develop a physical and emotional confidence to complement their growing intellectual and athletic abilities.
The Haverford School offers theater courses in the Middle and Upper School. Our 655-seat proscenium theater, Centennial Hall, hosts three mainstage productions every year. Centennial Hall is also a popular venue for professional production companies outside the School.
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Meet Our Faculty
Haverford's music faculty are extraordinary. They are experienced, dynamic, love to work with boys, and are each professional performers in their own right.
Duane Case
Duane teaches Lower School music and directs the Treble Choir. He performed in the Westminster Chapel Choir, the Westminster Symphonic Choir, and was one of the youngest singers invited to perform with the renowned Westminster Choir. He has performed at the Academy of Music, Avery Fisher Hall, and Carnegie Hall under the baton of Joseph Flummerfelt, Ricardo Muti, Robert Shaw, and Kurt Masur. He holds a BME from Westminster Choir College and a M.Ed from the University of Delaware.
Valerie Case
Valerie is a Lower School music teacher and the accompanist for Treble Choir. While her principal instrument is the piano, having studied with Marcantonio Barone and Harold Zabrack, she also held a position with Westminster Choir College's Symphonic Choir. Valerie is an experienced music educator and choral director who held positions in the Springfield school district and The Malvern School. She holds a BME from Westminster Choir College and an M.A. from the University of Delaware.
Jennifer Hallman
Jennifer founded two philanthropic theatre companies, Fourth Wall Productions and H.O.P.E. Players (Helping Other People Endure). She has directed and been cast in various productions, including playing Ouiser in "Steel Magnolias" and Crystal in "Little Shop of Horrors." She has performed in multiple cities' Fringe Festivals as well as the Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (PIFA). She holds a B.A. from West Chester University.
Darren Hengst
Darren's extensive Philadelphia-area acting experience includes performances at The Walnut Street Theatre, the Arden Theatre, and the 11th Hour Theatre Company Next Step Concert Series. He has performed in "Les Miserables," "Of Mice and Men," "Sunday in the Park with George." One of the greatest honors of his career was singing for Stephen Sondheim at the Arden Theatre’s first Master Storyteller Award. He holds a B.A. from Lycoming College and an M.F.A. from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign.
John Stroud
John directs the Centennial Singers, The Haverford Boys Choir, and is a Middle School music teacher. At Temple's Esther Boyer College of Music, he studied with Alan Harler and received the Elaine Brown Tribute Award for choral conducting in 2001. John is associate director of the world-renowned Philadelphia Boys Choir & Chorale and is also artistic director of the Media Chamber Chorale. He holds a BME from Susquehanna University and an M.A. from Temple University.
Stephen "Dex" Woodward
Dex got his start as a freelance stagehand in the Boston and Massachusetts Bay area working as a stage electrician, scene shop carpenter, fly operator, costume craftsperson, digital film projectionist. Odd jobs in New England theaters led him on the path to general management and operation of performing arts venues. He has served in that role for Emerson College's Office of the Arts in Boston and the AT&T Performing Arts Center in Dallas, TX.