Thomas S. Perakos Arts and Community Center

An extensive exhibit of Contemporary African Art opened October 28, 2025 in the Perakos Family Cares Art Gallery and the Richard C. Colton, Jr. '60 Art Wing, featuring more than 75 selected works from The Saidy Collection. The exhibit will remain on view in the Thomas S. Perakos Arts and Community Center (TPACC) through January 17, 2026. The gallery is open to the public free of charge. Hours are Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Parking is available in the Upper Lot off Kirby Road, with a limited number of accessible parking spaces outside of TPACC. Please refer to the Campus Map for details.
 

Original photographs by four Frederick Gunn School students will be featured in the 15th annual Celebration of Young Photographers, sponsored by the Washington-based nonprofit ASAP! Work by Charlie Hutchinson '29, Johnny Bekov '26, Alex Saga '27, and Jenny Wang '26 will be featured in a juried exhibition this Sunday, November 2, from 2-3:30 p.m. in the Donald and Linda Silpe Gallery at the University of Hartford, 200 Bloomfield Avenue, Hartford. If you would like to attend the exhibition, admission is free but pre-registration is required.

Register Here
 

The Frederick Gunn School Theatre Program will present Peter and the Starcatcher, a prequel to J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan, on November 13, 14, and 15 at 7 p.m. in the Tisch Family Auditorium of the Thomas S. Perakos Arts and Community Center. All shows are open to the public. Admission is free and seating is by general admission.
 

This week, Sharon Playhouse will present the Writers Playground, an annual festival of new, 10-minute plays. Among the seven featured works is a short play titled “Box,” written by Gunn student Blake Baumgartner ’26. A professional actress, Baumgartner started her acting career at a young age and as a first-year student appeared in Gunn Theatre’s 2023 winter musical, Head Over Heels. She guest-starred in the film Love the Coopers, and later in Fosse/Verdon and City on a Hill. She wrote “Box” last spring for a new playwriting course taught by Kent Burnham P’29, Director of Theatre Arts at Gunn.
 

Litchfield Jazz Camp returned to the campus of The Frederick Gunn School in June to begin its 29th year, and this weekend, Gunn will host the 30th annual Litchfield Jazz Festival, which promises an incredible weekend of “can’t miss,” world-class jazz. The partnership between Gunn and Litchfield Performing Arts (LPA), the non-profit organization that produces the camp and festival, began in 2018 and has brought hundreds of talented student musicians, amazing faculty, including multiple Grammy Award-winners, and thousands of jazz fans to Washington, Connecticut.
 

Congratulations to the cast and designers of the fall play, Pride and Prejudice, and the winter musical, Mean Girls, who together have been nominated for a total of 18 Halo Awards, including eleven individual best performance nominations and Best Contemporary Musical.
 

The Frederick Gunn School Music Program will present its spring concert, “Soundtrack of Our Lives: Iconic Movie Themes, Music Masterpieces, and Timeless Jazz,” on May 15, 2025, at 7 p.m. in the Tisch Family Auditorium of the Thomas S. Perakos Arts and Community Center. The concert will feature Chamber Orchestra, Vocal Ensemble, Jazz Band, and special guests under the direction of Ron Castonguay P’27, Director of the Arts and Music Director. 

Limited seating is available for family, friends and the community. No registration is required. Parking is available in the Upper Parking Lot with a limited number of accessible parking spaces directly outside TPACC. Please see the Campus Map for details.
 

“Rowland Scherman ’55: Peace, Protest, and Promise,” a stunning retrospective exhibition featuring more than 150 black-and-white photographs by Rowland Scherman ’55, opens Saturday, April 12, and will remain on view through June 8, 2025, in the Perakos Family Cares Art Gallery of the Thomas S. Perakos Arts and Community Center. An opening reception will be held April 24 from 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. The gallery is open to the public free of charge. Parking is available in the Upper Parking Lot with a limited number of accessible parking spaces directly outside TPACC. Please see the Campus Map for details. 
 

Cathy Yang '28, a student in the Technique and Artistry cocurricular program, won The Connie Horton Memorial Award for Best in Show at the Kent Art Association's 33rd Annual Student Art Show. Yang was honored for her beautiful ceramic work among students who exhibited in a variety of artistic mediums from six schools: The Frederick Gunn School, Millbrook School, South Kent School, Forman School, Marvelwood School, and Housatonic Valley Regional High School.