- Douglas Anderson School of the Arts (commonly referred to as "DA" or "DASOTA") is a magnet high school in the Duval County (Jacksonville, Florida, United States) school system. The school first opened in the 1930s as a traditional school for African-American students. Over the years, it also served as a Sixth and Seventh Grade Center. Douglas Anderson became an arts school in 1985. The school has been awarded Blue Ribbon School status.
- Academics and arts
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Students take traditional high school courses such as English, Biology, etc., while concurrently attending arts classes as part of a specific arts program. The "arts areas" in which a student may major are Creative Writing, Dance, Instrumental Music/Piano/Guitar, Performance/Musical/Technical Theatre, Cinematic Art, Visual Arts, Piano, and Vocal Music. Students are accepted to the school based on auditions offered in the spring of each school year. A number of AP (Advanced Placement) and honors classes are also offered in numerous academic areas. In addition to excelling in their chosen course of artistic study, students are expected to maintain an at least average G.P.A. or they can face probation and/or eventual expulsion. Also, students can be put on probation for missing over 8 instructional units.
- Instrumental/Piano/Guitar/Vocal
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Musical instruction at Douglas Anderson is divided into four departments: piano, guitar, vocal and instrumental--which includes both band and orchestral groups. As a whole, the music classes were named a Gold School and ranked number 2 in the nation by the Grammy Foundation in 2008. [1]
- The various groups perform throughout Florida and the nation on a regular basis. In 2006, the DASOTA Jazz Ensemble I, under the direction of Ace Martin, won first place in the Essentially Ellington High. School Jazz Band Competition and Festival in NY. Other honors include the invitation extended to the Symphonic Band to play at the Midwest Band and Orchestra Festival in 1999 under the direction of Tom Haller. The Wind Symphony, under the direction of Shawn Barat, performed at the 2008 MENC National Biennial In-Service Conference in Milwaukee. The jazz band was also featured in the award-winning documentary "Chops." The film followed the jazz band on their journey to the Essentially Ellington High School Jazz Band Competition and Festival starting with their first experience with jazz in middle school, at LaVilla School Of The Arts, and going through their winning the competition.They are returning in the Spring of 2008.
- Creative Writing
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The Creative Writing Department at Douglas Anderson offers Creative Writing, Poetry Portfolio, Fiction Portfolio, Editing, Journalism, and Creative Non-Fiction, among others. The department was opened in 1990 and in 2006 became one of the last to receive its own building. The Creative Writing department produces a literary magazine, Elan, and the school newspaper The Improviser. For a short while the journalism classes also produced a magazine, titled Segue.
- Film
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The Film department, established in 1997, is the newest department in the school. Here students can write, shoot, edit, and produce films and television. The studio is equipped with a state-of-the-art green screen for visual effects. The DA Production company is hired to produce a variety of local videos. One of the department's notable achievements is producing the high school game show "Brain Brawl". The Film/TV department has a winter and spring showcase to show the students work.
- Performance/Musical/Tech Theatre
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The Performance/Tech Theater department has existed since the school's inception. With a state-of-the-art theatre, as well as a modern 'black box' theatre, students have all the trappings of a professional theatre. The department averages four shows a year, including a children's show, a musical or Shakespearean play, and a contemporary piece. All theatre students are given a background of general knowledge in stagecraft, acting, plays and playwrights and theatre history classes, in addition to more specialized courses like Directing and Voice and Dialect. The tech department allows students to assist in design, technical direction, and creation of costumes, props, and sets. Musical Theatre--a more recently added major opportunity--allows students to enter as either a theatre, vocal, or dance student, and integrate the three beginning in the second year. The performing theater majors and tech majors are expected to prepare juries at the end of each school year that show their growth over the course of the year. The jury also determines if the student can continue into the next acting level. Students also have the opportunity to visit and compete at the Florida State Thespian Convention, held annually in Tampa, Florida. Furthermore a group of students from Douglas Anderson serves on Work Crew--an organization of students who organize and run the Florida State Thespian Convention each year.
- Visual Arts
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In this arts area many students take part in drawing, painting, sculpting, photography, printmaking, and art history. Gallery openings occur throughout the year to showcase the students' talent. There is an annual Senior Show marking the last gallery opening for the outgoing seniors, and in which they are the only contributors, subtracting the underclass work. As well, there are additional shows added throughout the years on no particular timetable or annual schedule, including the Staff Shows (which showcases the skill of the instructors), and Camp/Kitsch shows. The latter features non-original work students find and place them on display in jest, because they are humorously outdated or otherwise kitschy.
- The program boasts a fully operational and state-of-the-art photo lab, yearly student built installations around campus, and full facilities for printmaking, sculpture and drawing/painting classes.
- Dance
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The Dance department offers many different classes to about 150 students. There are seven dance levels: Dance 2, Dance 3, Dance 4, Dance 5, Dance 6, Dance 7, and Dance Theatre. The two performing groups, Tap Ensemble and Dance Theatre, require an audition to join. Dance majors study everyday with a rotating schedule of modern and ballet/pointe classes. The Dance department also offers electives such as Dance Production I and II, Jazz, Dance Career Prep, Research, American Musical Theatre, Dance Aesthetics, Variations, and Ethnic Dance. Also, all dancers are required to complete a Choreography credit during either their Junior or Senior year.
- Design
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The school's design utilizes a variety of colors, a "tin" design, and oddly shaped buildings [2]. Some interesting features of the campus are the rotunda, the office area, the sculpture garden, the art gallery, the vocal building, and the theater.
- One of the most popular and unique aspects of Douglas Anderson were its courtyards, which featured trees and grass. The courtyards were a popular place for students to congregate during free time; seniors had a courtyard designated solely for them. However, a construction and renovation project led the destruction of the courtyards in 2003, despite protests from the students and unflattering articles in The Improviser.
- Famous Alumni
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Quite a few Douglas Anderson alumni have made names for themselves in the entertainment industry.Here are some of the well known ones:
- Wes Borland (guitarist) and John Otto (drummer)- former members of the band Limp Bizkit.
- Several members of the band Yellowcard, such as Ryan Key.
- Ash Brannon - director of Oscar nominated "Surf's Up".
- Patrick Heusinger - actor.
- Jon Wilkes - drummer of The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus
- Davis Robertson "Claude Davis Robertson III" - dancer, Joffrey Ballet and on Broadway
- James Beeks - aka Delisco actor
- Alyssa Key - NYC Fashion designer and owner of Love Brigade Clothing.
- Daniel Breaker - 2008 Tony award nominee for role in the musical Passing Strange"
- Paul Kirkland - dancer, music videos and tours
- Dekker Dreyer - Writer / director, and founder of Illusion On-Demand.
- Andy Bothwell - Former Theatre Major, now famous hip-hop artist going by Astronautalis.
- External links
- School homepage
- Awards received
- Source: Wikipedia; it is used under the GNU Free Documentation License. You may redistribute it, verbatim or modified, providing that you comply with the terms of the GFDL.
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