Spirit Series comes at a time when many school districts in Maine struggle to provide arts education. The Maine Arts Commission is analyzing data from a recent comprehensive statewide survey of school districts, and preliminary results indicate a dearth of theater and dance education in Maine schools. Just 12 percent of Maine school districts have a certified theater instructor, and even fewer have dance, the survey found.

Linda Nelson, assistant director of the Maine Arts Commission, wouldn’t comment directly about Spirit Series because she is not familiar with it, but she said using partnerships between school districts and community groups to fill gaps in the curriculum is not unusual.

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The ultimate goal is to put students on the path toward responsible, civic-oriented adulthood. As the students and their parents left the gym after the performance, everybody feeling a little more ebullient than when they came in, Pierce reflected on the enormity of that task.

“Given the divisiveness in today’s public discourse, I don’t know that there is a more important thing we can do,” he said.

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Image credit: Portland Press Herald Staff photo by Shawn Patrick Ouellette