Arts Excellence

Arts Arts Excellence

St Peter’s, Cambridge offers our students the ultimate arts experience.

Welcome to a world of distinct opportunities;

At St Peter’s, we are fanatical about the Performing Arts. We grow and nurture creativity, share passion, teach precision and encourage collaboration. Performing Arts is a big part of our curriculum, starting as a core subject at Year 7 and 8 levels. From Year 9, students can choose Music, Dance, Drama and Musical Theatre as option courses, leading onto NCEA from Year 11.

We offer Music, Dance, and Theatre Arts to our Year 12 and 13 students of the International Baccalaureate (IB) pathway. Within the Performing Arts Faculty, students are encouraged to participate in the exciting array of musical ensembles, dance troupes, productions and activities on offer at St Peter’s, to experience the joys of performance and gain confidence in their abilities.

St Peter’s has always had a tradition of excellence in music. When Arthur Broadhurst founded our school in 1936, music was a core part of school life. The boys all sang and learnt multiple instruments, and Broadhurst spent time with them listening to records and bringing music to life for them. Later, celebrated composer David Farquhar continued to inspire musicians at St Peter’s. In this tradition, we continue today with performing arts a core part of life at our school.

Our students engage with many equally talented and inspiring coaches and tutors, who lead co-curricular activities in music, dance and drama. These leaders are established professionals and many are regular performers themselves. Their wealth of real-world knowledge and experience is hugely valuable to our students. The networks that our coaches and tutors bring with them provide yet another layer to student learning and gives us strong links to regional and national performing arts programmes.

Our arts programme is inclusive. It embraces students who prefer classical and those who like contemporary forms of music, dance and drama. It blends traditional methods with new technology. Performing arts allows students to work in a range of settings, both as individuals and groups. It encourages them to be the best that they can be and to strive for excellence. There is something for everyone, from individualised music instruction to hip hop dance classes, our Shakespeare festival to our Musical Theatre Academy.

As in all areas of the school, performing arts students are encouraged to be aspirational. St Peter’s offers a unique performing arts experience with distinct pathways from participation to professionalism, all delivered in our fantastic facilities.