EVANSTON — It may be the middle of summer break, but Evanston High School was still home to more than 400 students the week of July 9 as The Arts, Inc. hosted its annual MAT (Music, Arts and Theatre) Camp.

MAT Camp director Eric Pasenelli said this year’s camp was the largest yet, with 423 students ranging in age from 3 years old to adults. There were also 44 staff members who logged more than 850 total instructional hours and 40 volunteers who put in more than 700 volunteer hours to make the week a success.

“Every year I say it’s the biggest camp ever, but every year it’s true,” said Pasenelli. “We just keep growing.”

Pasenelli said the camp draws in large numbers of students from out of town, with approximately 45 percent of those registered coming from outside of Evanston. Instructors similarly hail from far-off locales, as only eight of the 44 instructors were from Evanston.

Course offerings included a variety of programs such as musical ensembles, acting, theater sound crew, cooking and dance. Very young children were able to take classes like painting and puppetry, while elementary-aged students had options including stained glass, paleontology, piano, crafts and even a Harry Potter class.

Theater-related classes included options such as musical theater, stage combat, makeup, improvisation and sound crew. Music classes covered the spectrum from beginner to advanced and included nearly every instrument imaginable as well as vocal options.

Classes began at 8 a.m. and ran until 5 p.m. all week, but the fun didn’t stop then, as there were evening events most of the week as well. One evening, all camp students were able to visit the Evanston Recreation Center for free. Wednesday evening featured a staff concert and Thursday evening the talent show.

Many classes had showcases on Friday to allow students to demonstrate their talents for parents and families. There was also a concert Friday morning and another Friday afternoon, and Friday evening featured the gala concert that included comedy improv, the symphony orchestra, jazz band, the world music choir, the a capella class and a musical theater grand finale complete with pit band.

The Friday gala concert was an impressive showcase of the wide range of talented kids and adults who participated in the camp, and the musical theatre finale included performers from third grade up playing, acting, singing and dancing to “Come Alive” from the film “The Greatest Showman.”

Pasenelli said it was an incredibly successful week filled with a lot of fun and learning.

“It’s been incredible to see the smiles on all the faces each day,” he said.