St Dominic’s is renowned for its musical and dramatic excellence and is frequently approached by companies for our pupils to audition in local productions.
Art, Design, Drama, Music and Singing all play a vitally important role at St Dominic’s. They reinforce the values of the school and help to build confidence and develop team spirit.
All children are encouraged to join the choirs, play an instrument, take up dance or singing, or tread the
boards. Throughout the year there are a variety of dramatic and musical performances where children of all ages delight their audiences with superb recitals of productions such as Mid Summer Nights Dream, Oliver Twist and more recently The Boyfriend, Guys & Dolls and Jungle Book.
The Girls will be taking part in their own production of "The Sound of Music" in June 2008. Please click here to see the flyer.
Pupils enter the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art (L.A.M.D.A.) examinations and consistently achieve a 100% pass rate – with the majority attaining merit or 
distinction, in addition to participating in a wide variety of local, regional and national competitions including the National Theatre Make-Up Competition, local festivals and public speaking events.
Here at St Dominic’s we appreciate the many intellectual and social benefits that are associated with learning to sing or to play a musical instrument. We are fortunate to have a strong team of peripatetic teachers who visit the school to give individual lessons to girls on a private basis. Among our peripatetic teachers is Chinese pianist Di Xiao.
Di began her musical studies at the age of 4 and progressed through studies in Guangzhou, Odessa in the Ukraine and eventually at the Central Conservatory of Music in Beijing, where she emerged as the Conservatory’s top student in both academic and piano studies. On a full scholarship she undertook her Master’s Degree in Piano Performance and graduated with one of the highest marks in the history of the Conservatory for her final recital. She was awarded another full scholarship which enabled her to study for an Advanced Postgraduate Diploma at UCE Birmingham Conservatoire, from where she graduated with distinction in 2006.
She has won many prizes – the Brant Pianoforte 
Competition among them, which culminated in the prestigious Symphony Hall Recital Prize and led to her being selected as a European Rising Star, an accolade which will see her appearing in many of Europe’s greatest concert halls during 2008/2009 including Concertgebouw (Amsterdam), Palais des Beaux-Arts (Brussels), Philharmonie (Cologne), Cité de la Musique (Paris), Megaron (Athens), Konserthus (Stockholm), Musikverein and Konzerthaus (Vienna), Symphony Hall (Birmingham) and Carnegie Hall (New York) – the only non-European venue.
On a local note, Di is holding a concert at 7.30pm on Friday 9th May 2008 at St. Marys the Virgin Church in Ullenhall. This is part of the Concerts in Warwickshire Churches programme and will enable you to see Di play prior to her playing in the Rising Star Series.
For more information on Di and to view her concert dates, please click here.
