During an all-school assembly on February 26, faculty members from the Visual & Performing Arts Department announced the latest Working Artist Award honorees. Chosen each trimester, the honors recognize students that have gone above and beyond in their respective artistic fields. For the Trimester 2 awards for the 2024-25 academic year, the following list names the students honored, and what was said about them at the assembly:
Visual Art: Acacia Nickeo ’27
This Artist is not currently enrolled in any Arts courses, however she uses every second of Arts Intensive after school and most moments of her free time to create in the studio. This student has great fundamental throwing skills on the wheel and has also tried her hand at hand-building. Daily, she seeks to refine her skills while also experimenting with new forms and vessels, trying out new techniques, and seeking ways to enhance her work with glaze combos and motifs. This student shows great promise in the Visual Arts world and it was a pleasure to have her this winter in Arts Intensive this trimester; please check out her pieces at the Arts Walk next Monday! Congratulations to our Winter Working Artist, Acacia Nickeo.
Music: Isabel Baxter-Paris ’25
Last month, we had a very successful Winter Warmer, a collaboration between Williston Choirs and the Community Service Club. The event showcased the talents of several of our performers, and collected donations for the Easthampton Community Center. Several students were involved in producing the event, and we would like to recognize one in particular: a student leader who coordinated the Winter Warmer capably, deftly, and with a sense of humor—who showed outstanding leadership as she invited others to shoulder the responsibility with her—and who kept a generous, service-minded outlook that was good for the performers, good for our Williston community, and good for the wider Easthampton community. This Williston Working Artist Award goes to Isabel Baxter Paris.
Dance: Sadie Dripps ’26, Maya Vulakh ’26, and Wakanda Hu ’26
There are many ways to be a good leader. Some lead by example, displaying preparedness and enthusiasm. Others might lead by lending a hand to those in need, helping their peers to achieve success. Some might lead by taking on additional challenges thereby lightening the load of others. This trimester, the dance captains of the Winter Musical each displayed leadership in their own ways, contributing greatly to the success of the production. Sadie Dripps led the ensemble in warmups each rehearsal and took on special dance roles for the production. Maya Vulakh consistently stepped up to help her cast members master challenging scenes, and Wakanda Hu created original choreography for our ensemble. While they took the time to hone their performance quality and attain a strong grasp of the show’s unique movement vocabulary, it was inspiring to watch how they transferred that knowledge to their role as captains in their own unique ways. Congratulations to Sadie, Maya, and Wakanda.
Theater: Aster Carlstrom ’25
On the few days when Aster Carlstrom as unable to attend rehearsal for Hadestown, our production process did not run as smoothly—evidence of the crucial role he played as assistant director and stage manager. In these roles, Aster took careful notes of complicated staging, provided feedback on stage pictures, coached actors on their performances, tracked all scenic needs, and proved a vital creative sounding board to the director. Aster completed outstanding work when directing three scenes of the musical and calling every performance. The cast, crew, and faculty involved in Hadestown all greatly benefited from the reliable, caring, and thoughtful approach—leading us to present our best work onstage.
Tech Theater: Caleb Kemp ’25
Every day, Caleb Kemp dedicates his afternoon to working in the Tech Theater program building sets, hanging lights, and preparing the stage for our productions. This kind of work is essential to our productions: being invisible behind the scenes so that others may stand on a stage in the light in front of an audience. Caleb is rightly proud of his work and his role in our productions and we are proud and lucky to have had him working with us for all of these seasons. Congratulations Caleb!
