Centre For The Creative Arts

Work towards the development of this Centre within school is now complete and the Centre was officially opened by the Right Reverend Charles Taylor, Dean of Peterborough, in November 2007.

Peterborough High School has an admired record of creative arts achievements and has been the catalyst for many great performances and successes.  However, its musical and dramatic facilities were in need of refurbishment and better display spaces were required to display artefacts well.

The Centre is now being used by the school to build on their record of music, drama and art achievements.  In addition, the facilities are available to benefit the whole community of Peterborough and to provide a multi-disciplinary, inclusive Centre For The Creative Arts.

The new facilities include:

Refectory Gallery:  located in the old Stables Block, the Refectory Gallery is home to art exhibitions, workshops and displays and is a wonderful setting for dining.  Opened in September 2006, the area is equipped with a feature lighting system and functional lighting to enhance the ambience for both diners and displays.  The Refectory Gallery has hosted several Jazz Breakfasts, providing live Jazz music as a background to a leisurely Sunday morning reading the papers and having coffee and croissants.

Sculpture Court:  an external courtyard of 30 sq. meters with a number of architectural features is ideally suited to the dramatic display of sculptures from the both the school, local artists and art clubs.  David Undery's stunning work in concrete provided the opening exhibition and was followed by samples of Claire Guest's wildlife pieces in bog oak.

Music Practice Rooms:  five music practice rooms provide excellent individual practice and group tuition areas.

Drama Studio:  a fabulous new 'black box' area, replacing the old kitchen, was opened at Easter 2007 and now provides space for dance, rehearsal, drama and mime.  Particular improvements include professional curtain tracking and blackout provisions, to allow alternative dramatic settings.  Sliding doors open directly into the Hall, providing additional space during performances for participants.

Music Technology Room:  a 40 sq. meter teaching room provides opportunities for classroom teaching in both Music and Theatre Studies and was open in September 2007.

Entrance Court and Lobbby:  this area has provided a new entrance to the school which inspirse and motivates those passing through.

Enhancements to the Hall:  the Hall is now a dedicated performance space and has benefitted from the enlargement of and improvements to the stage itself.  The Parent-Teacher Guild's successful 'Sponsor A Seat' campaign enabled tiered retractable seating to be installed at Easter 2007 and other generous donations to the Appeal have further equipped the lighting and sound provisions.