Within the halls of Cypress Creek’s own Performing Arts Center, the theatre department hosted their very first show of the year- Little Shop of Horrors, on the 24th, 25th, and 26th of October to match the spooky spirits. The show began at 6:30 p.m, giving visitors plenty of time to hang around and converse beforehand- or perhaps shop at an even “littler” shop, residing amongst the crowd.
Ceramics is just one of the many conservatory arts programs offered at the school, and the program was in need of money. The solution? To sell their artistic pottery work! Students had been testing their abilities and crafting their own sellable items weeks prior to the show- including things like recreations of the evil, man-eating plant Audrey Two, to abstract, swirling cup coasters.
“We are trying to raise money so that we can purchase more tools and glazes and other materials to create more really cool stuff here,” said Aiden Venegas, a senior pursuing his passion in the class.
Unlike other programs in the conservatory program, ceramics do not have its own means of making money through shows and events. While things like the Festival of the Arts do take place annually, the event is all-encompassing across all conservatory programs- not just ceramics. Things like theatre and orchestra also have their own designated shows, where ticket money directly supports them.
“With ceramics we have not had any real public shows- which you should have for any visual arts class,” said ceramics instructor Samuel Dykins. “So- I just brainstormed, trying to figure out where I could show student work to the public.”
The program is hoping that this isn’t the last time they can show and display their art, with many customers purchasing and over 200 dollars being raised for the program from selling student-made crafts. Continuing down this path could give the program more opportunities to display their students’ art while helping them experience what it’s like to profit from their hard work.
When prompted if he would hold a ceramic-only display, Dykins replied with a “yes,” elaborating further on. “I’m actually working on doing that by the end of the year, and I’ve been talking to teachers from the district to try and put together an inter-school sculpture contest and show.”
Dykins plans to also have student voting to elect winners and offer prizes, which- while nothing is set in stone yet- could benefit the program heavily, monetarily and student interest-wise. It would be an exciting change for the department, and let the class live on.
“I was looking for a place where I could show student work to an audience- a demographic- that was interested in the arts.”