Office of Admissions Blog

by Corey Dorris, 3rd-year actor

Before I came to Juilliard I heard so many things about the school. Many of them were myths and rumors, but many of them were true and made up what contributes to the school’s reputation. I heard that it’s really tough with a really busy schedule. I heard that it’s really hard to get into. I heard that the students are all great and talented and competitive. All of this is true. But what I didn’t hear about (and was genuinely surprised by) was the amazing student life. There are departments, programs, and staff here solely for the purpose of the student life outside of classes. And they help create a community and an actual college experience that are often overlooked when people talk Juilliard’s great reputation.

One department that probably over half the student body participates in is Educational Outreach. They have a ton of programs, from teaching to performing, that encourage students to participate and engage with New York City. Some students teach to middle schoolers on Saturday mornings. Some students take summer trips to Detroit and Utah to teach master classes or do community service. One thing I’ve done over the last two years is participate in the Gluck Community Service Fellowship. It’s a program for students to form performance groups and perform all over the city in places such as nursing homes, hospitals, and teen shelters. Sometimes after the performance, we stay to talk with the audience members and they tell us about a favorite song, or a grandchild who sings and dances, or things they do in the arts. One time a lady came up to us crying because we had performed a song from her favorite musical.

Another program I’ve participated in is The New Orleans Project, which is led by the Office of Student Affairs. Every year, a group of 20-30 students raise money to go to New Orleans over Spring Break and teach master classes, help build houses with Habitat for Humanity, and teach creative arts classes to students at the local YMCA. The program started 7 years ago because a Juilliard dancer wanted to help her hometown, New Orleans, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Since then, Juilliard has been back to New Orleans every year! I went two years in a row and was surprised at how many of the students from the YMCA remembered my name! Even though we were only there for one week, it proved that we really do make a difference, and that every bit helps. Evey year we hear from the person who runs our Habitat for Humanity site that we put them ahead of schedule on the house we help to build!

Not only are Gluck and The New Orleans Project outreach opportunities that help Juilliard give back to the community, but they help make a community at Juilliard. I’ve met some of my best friends through them! My performance group for Gluck hangs out before and after our performances; and through all the meetings and preparations for the trip, I met some of my best friends during The New Orleans Project that I otherwise wouldn’t have had the chance to meet. Juilliard has a reputation because of all the things you hear about it: the classes, the rehearsal schedule, the competitiveness. But what I never heard about was its amazing community and student life. Those are qualities that should definitely make students want to come and study here!

by Raquel Gonzalez, M.M. – Voice

My third year at Juilliard I joined the Gluck Community Service Fellowship.  I had sung at nursing homes while in high school but didn’t really have much true outreach experience.  I got involved with GCSF after hearing about it from my upperclassmen colleagues. I thought it would be a great opportunity for extra performing opportunities and to be able to perform for people within the city who might not otherwise have access to any type of performing art.

My first group consisted of myself (a soprano), a cellist, and two dancers. A motley crew to be sure.  Because of the size of our group and the space we required, most of our performances our first year took place in the outer boroughs–Queens, Brooklyn, the Bronx.  Furthermore complicated by our conflicting and ever-changing rehearsal schedules within Juilliard, most of our performances took place on our one mutual day off: Sunday afternoons.

Our strange group offered certain limitations as far as repertoire was concerned, but for each performance we strove to find a new way to make cello and the human voice serve as an inspiring and exciting scene partner for the magic our dancers created. We performed a lot of Bach, Handel, and Mozart, but found ways to work in some golden age standards and even holiday tunes for our December performances. Our two dancers would improvise to Bach preludes, Mozart arias, and anything else we would decide to throw at them.  Assembling the program for each performance really tested our creativity and ingenuity, but the end of a successful performance was always incredibly rewarding. We worked this way for two years together, and then my former group mates graduated and moved on. I graduated and stayed at Juilliard for my M.M., continuing in the fellowship program with a different ensemble – for which repertoire was much easier to assemble.  Myself, a collaborative pianist, and two more singers make up my current group.  We perform at nursing homes, homeless shelters, psychiatric treatment facilities, and hospitals in the five boroughs.  Our mission? To entertain.

Now, this concept may seem strange to anybody who is training at a conservatory, learning to be always critical of your own work. Though audiences at Juilliard are always seeking entertainment, it is our keen ability as performing artists to imagine the highly critical (nonexistent) dialogue taking place in the minds of our audiences. This is a finely-tuned method we artists use to cause ourselves maximum grief. As soon as we convince ourselves that our audience does, in fact, want to be entertained, we are freed.

Now, Juilliard is not an inherently critical or scary place. On the contrary. But this is the place where we are trying to become our best selves, and–as I said–we like to freak ourselves out. But that is not a requirement (or recommendation) for being a successful performer! And the minute we get away from school, we remember that people WANT to enjoy what we do! Especially people for whom our performances are novelty, are exciting, are NEW.

Selfishly, GCSF serves as a place to remind ourselves why we do what we do when we have worked ourselves to exhaustion and talked ourselves in circles. And the people in the audiences at these various facilities? They feel that, too. These performances serve as an outlet, an escape, a remedy, or as sheer entertainment for the audiences we meet. I have had long discussions with residents at nursing homes about the history of the Metropolitan Opera, or the lineage of bassists in the New York Philharmonic. I have been serenaded by a man at an HIV/AIDS treatment center singing his own composition. I have seen an unresponsive child in a pediatric facility open her eyes and lock them on me as I sang.  And I have had a man in a psychiatric treatment center come up to me after a performance and say, simply, “That made me feel so much better.” And the same was true for me.

by Jenna Pollack, 4th-year dancer

Do you remember being told, “Oh dear, if you keep crossing your eyes like that they are going to stay that way”?  Though I must defend funny face-making and the great GIFs they become, I do try to keep my own to a minimum.  Why?  Because the underlying, hard truth behind your Grandmother’s scare tactic is that habits stick.  I believe that the same rule applies in the studio: if you glue your eyes to the ballet mirror- or the script, or the score- they will stay that way.  Well, not your eyes per se, but the intention behind them.   And, contrary to popular belief, in order to reach your artistic potential you must stop practicing once in a while . . . and practice other things.

I have found teaching to be one of many excellent outlets for this. While everyone at Juilliard works hard to get better, The Office of Educational Outreach provides opportunities for students to work hard at bettering the lives of others.  I’ve found this to be one of the school’s secrets to making some of the world’s most talented performing artists. And not only does the teaching fellowship give me crucial skills to better market myself upon graduation, but the stipend lets me take out much smaller student loans.

On Saturday mornings I join one of my dancer classmates to The Children’s Storefront in East Harlem.  We arrive to a handful of the most adorable fourth and fifth graders, and for two hours we lead them through ‘dance class’.  But they aren’t like Juilliard classes. While certainly used, we keep codified French terms to minimum.  We explore new physical coordinations, play games, improvise, and create movement together.  We go across the floor improvising what it feels like to be different animals and different seasons.  We speak complete conversations to each other with our own created movement vocabulary, like the South African gumboot dancers.  We talk about the idea of ‘theme and variations’ and, after watching George Balanchine’s version, ask them to create their own contemporary remix. We watch Beyoncé’s ‘Countdown’ music video and learn the real Anne Teresa de Keersmaeker choreography. We ask the students to work together to generate movement phrases that are put together for a performance for their friends and family.  And week after week, I learn what it means to be a successful dancer from these students.

At the end of last semester one of our students asked about the upcoming winter break:

“So when do we come back to dance class?”

“After the holidays, in January!” I replied.

“What about when school ends in the spring?” her voice a near shrill.

“Well, dance class will go on a summer vacation with school.”

“Ugh, NO!  I want dance class to go on forever!”

I share this not to toot our horn, but to illustrate just how much a weekend activity- whether it be dance or basketball or a music lesson- is a vital outlet for young minds, and especially those targeted by Juilliard’s outreach programs.  They are so important in developing one’s identity, and with different standards from the regular classroom. Extracurriculars refresh what it means to learn and, more importantly, to be successful.

Dance class, as with most extracurricular activities, is a way for our students to express themselves, to push their own boundaries in a safe space, to try out new skins and voices.  Our students make important discoveries about themselves as their confidence grows with exercises big and small.

One of my favorite moments these past two years as a Children’s Storefront teacher was at a student performance last semester.  The father of a girl named Chyna had just returned from prison. He had been locked up for almost the entirety of his daughter’s life.  Chyna was still on cloud nine from his arrival the week before, and performed the best I’ve ever seen her dance knowing he was in the audience.  She has always had a phenomenal work ethic and attitude, and I am so happy that her father could be there to witness her success.  I am deeply moved to think how important of a moment that was for their relationship, and I love seeing him pick Chyna up from class every week now.

For me, teaching these students also solidifies what I (think I) know about dance.  I am re-inspired when they make their “different music can change the same dance!” epiphanies.  I am reminded of the importance of patience when a girl builds coordination to turn in the matter of a few weeks.  I am grateful for our diverse individuality when I give the boys their own steps.  And so I’ve begun to build better habits, habits of character, that I can bring back to the practice room.

Before coming to Juilliard I already knew that the arts were wildly underestimated as a crucial part of a child’s development.  But what I’ve learned since is that teaching them is also wildly underestimated as a crucial part of an artist’s development.

Take alumnus Adam Driver from HBO’s hit series Girls who, in addition to being a total rock star, co-founded Arts in the Armed Forces while at Juilliard.  In an interview last month with the Juilliard Journal Adam talked about the compatibility of his school work with his nonprofit organization: “In a way, it’s [entrepreneurship] the most gratifying thing to work on because not only is it beneficial to have a project where the focus isn’t about you, but it’s also about using the craft as a service. As an actor, there’s nothing that sucks more than feeling that what you’re doing is irrelevant, and I feel like I’ve been fortunate enough to work on a lot of projects that seem very relevant and active and have a point of view and that reminded me that it’s a service.”

So though you don’t have to believe me, you should definitely believe Adam Driver.  I mean, just look at his goofy face.

by Caeli Smith, 3rd-year Violinist

It’s comforting and empowering to know that there are people and programs at Juilliard standing by to help us become successful and well-rounded artists. Whether you’re a musician, actor, or dancer, once you arrive at Juilliard, you will discover that there are many different offices and programs outside of your department designed to support you, your education, and career.

One of my favorites is the Office of Career Services, where they help you out with everything from cover letters and resumes, to editing videos and recordings for auditions. Not only that, they’ll also hook you up with gigs for a that much-needed extra cash. Of course, Career Services is also a great place to find practical, real-world career advice. At Career Services, they make you feel supported as a student in a different way than your department teachers do. It’s comforting to know that there are people who are concerned with the business-end of your career – you know, the complicated bureaucratic stuff that we sensitive artists don’t always like to deal with! Career Services helps guide us through practical situations and prepares us for life after Juilliard.

Another office I love to visit is Educational Outreach. Let me just say it: this department is incredible. Educational Outreach offers numerous fellowships to students, to help us share our art through performances and teaching, all over the entire NYC metropolitan area. I am currently thrilled to be a recipient three of the fellowships, and to have the opportunity to teach and perform for New Yorkers of all ages. Aside from being an antidote to those soul-crushing hours toiling alone in the practice room, these fellowship opportunities provide us with teaching experience, resume boosters, and the extra cash needed fund our fabulous NYC lifestyle (AKA, that tiny little apartment in Astoria).

Also – take your blinders off! When students first arrive at Juilliard, they’re totally and understandably focused on and excited about all the great work ahead of them. It’s tempting to be narrow-minded and sink all your energy into classwork and practicing. Be sure to open your eyes. Be mindful all of the incredible artists around you, in so many disciplines. Take advantage of all the other divisions’ performances. Collaborate with them in performance and teaching. When you are at Juilliard you’re at the epicenter of the performing arts world. Music, dance, theater: it’s all here. Take advantage of the art being made by your peers outside your discipline. Their art will inform yours, and you will be stronger and better for it.

by Gillian Abbott, 4th-year dancer

My name is Gillian Abbott. I am currently dancing my last few months away at Juilliard. Looking back at my favorite experiences, I realized many of them were collaborations that I or other students made happen on our own time. I have had some amazing opportunities to work with extraordinary artists in all divisions. Last spring I got to choreograph the first musical ever performed at Juilliard! My dear friend Claire Karpen Pettry dreamed of making Sondheim’s A Little Night Music come to life by incorporating students from all three divisions: Dance, Drama and Music. In her final year of the Drama Division’s Actor Training Program, she decided to truly pursue this idea as an independent project.

Claire and I had become good friends through a school-run outreach program called GLUCK. The two of us, along with two other actors and one opera singer, went to different medical centers throughout the city to perform for patients of all ages. She asked me if I would be interested in helping her tell the story of this beautiful classic. I was so honored to be asked and jumped aboard! We held auditions for students at Juilliard in the fall of 2011 and it was such a great experience for me to be on the other side of the table, figuring out how we could best tell the story. We ended up casting 10 actors for the characters, and 5 opera singers for the “quintet”. In true Sondheim fashion, the music was incredibly complex and could not have been tackled without our Music Director Evan Fein, a forth-year student of the DMA in Composition and a new faculty member of Juilliard’s Pre-College and Evening Divisions. It was nice to work with him again as I had been friends with him from another school run outreach program called Artreach in which we went to New Orleans to build houses with Habitat for Humanity and to work with students at the YMCA. Taking parts of Jonathan Tunick’s orchestration along with the piano-vocal score, Mr. Fein orchestrated the score for four instruments! With himself on piano, and three Music Division students on Clarinet, Harp and Cello, the sound came to life. I learned so much from working with him, as I had to know the music like the back of my hand in order to put counts to my choreography to teach the actors and singers. The biggest battle we faced collectively was “A Weekend in the Country”, but somehow we did it!

So when do Juilliard students find time in their insanely busy schedules to make a musical? Sundays and holidays! We rehearsed every Sunday starting in December, as well as one week over spring break in March. Thanks to both the Drama and Dance Divisions, we had studio space to play in and a great black box for the show. I loved working with the actors and singers and was so impressed by their willingness and eagerness to try new things. I was thankful for their patience as well, as this was the first show I ever attempted to choreograph. I love telling stories through my choreography, so eventually I felt at home working on a musical.

In my eyes the show was a great success and, more importantly, something I think all of us will cherish forever. In Mr. Fein’s words, “Juilliard is not just about creating at the highest professional level, but about stretching the boundaries of the profession itself.” We hope this project inspires others to break down division walls and find inspiration and growth from each other just as we did. I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to work with such talented artists and I hope it is just the beginning of collaborating with Mrs. Pettry and Mr. Fein!

by Kerry Warren, 4th-year actor

At Juilliard it’s easy to get overwhelmed by the pressure to give your best performance. As a drama student, I remember looking at the strenuous class schedule every week and wondering how I would save my energy for rehearsal at the end of the day. I was always rehearsing for something in the Drama Division, be it Shakespeare, Chekov, or a Lorraine Hansberry scene. Yet as the weeks went on during my first year I kept having the urge to collaborate with people outside the drama halls. I became curious as I watched a ballet class on my way to Liberal Arts. I would stop on the fourth floor and listen to a musician practice their scales.

This curiosity led me to a dancer who introduced me to the Black Student Union and the Martin Luther King Celebration. I still marvel how first year I performed choreography by a fourth-year dancer and then sang in a choir led by a Jazz Trumpet student. Year after year I find students creating their own work from dance solos, reenactments of speeches, or honoring the black composers who rarely get recognition.

This year I decided to perform a speech by Coretta Scott King. After participating in the celebration for the past three years, I noticed that the woman behind this great man had never been recognized on stage. I was determined to honor her during the celebration in hopes that a curiosity for her story would emerge. I remember going over a certain line in the speech, “My husband arrived somewhere to his strength and inspiration from the love of all people who shared his dream, that I too now come hoping you might strengthen me for the lonely road ahead.” This idea of sharing a dream I related to, and when I read those words, I could not help but apply that metaphor to the meaning of Juilliard’s MLK celebration.

Every student at Juilliard has the dream to be a master at their trade. And I would also say that during their time in school each student has felt lonely in the struggles of conservatory life. This loneliness, I have found to dissipate when I reached out to fellow students. The MLK celebration created an opportunity for me to share and collaborate with different divisions. Which can be refreshing in between hectic semesters at school. It was a chance for me to create as an individual and be a part of a community of different artists. I got to perform pieces that I was passionate about and without the pressure of impressing faculty. Even the Sunday dress rehearsal had its perks. Laurie Carter, VP and General Counsel/Executive Director of Jazz Studies, gets the best fried chicken this side of New York and there are always left overs. Who doesn’t enjoy good food and the company of new people after a dress rehearsal?

Then something special happened after the performance this January. An alumni pulled me aside and thanked me for my work. He was a part of the first Martin Luther King Celebration, and was proud to see it in it’s 25th revival. I felt connected to something bigger at that moment. I was also a part of a tradition and a remembrance, that many before me and after me will continue. I always felt it important to honor my history and to pay homage to those that paved the way, and I believe that’s the main reason why I participate in MLK. However, that alumni reminded me that I also perform to keep that narrative alive. I mean, I chose to be an actor because I want to tell incredible stories, to work with extraordinary artists, and to make an impact with my art. Through MLK I think all the above is possible.

by DJ Pimm, Admissions Recruitment & Technology Coordinator

It’s interesting – before coming to work for the School, I didn’t know much more about Juilliard than its word-of-mouth reputation. Like many other people, I regarded Juilliard as one of the world’s greatest performing arts schools, and really didn’t know why. The name JUILLIARD has a powerful connotation, and is a name to which many young artists aspire.

Now, with my Admissions hat on, it’s my job to know the ins and outs of Juilliard’s one-of-a-kind education. I come to work every day and join a community that works tirelessly to create as many experiences for its highly ambitious students as possible. It is Juilliard’s mission to provide the highest caliber of artistic education so that students may reach their fullest potential as artists, leaders, and global citizens.

I take a step back every day and wonder what it is that a prospective Juilliard student should learn about the School. Since September, we’ve been talking to our applicants all about the process for admission – and believe me, we’ll keep doing it – but what about the Juilliard experience? What happens once you actually become a student here that gives Juilliard such a notable name? What kind of life can you expect as a Juilliard student? What does it mean to be an artist, leader and global citizen, and how does this education prepare you?

We’ve made it our goal to answer these questions right here on the Admissions Blog. For the next seven weeks you’ll hear directly from current students about everything from student-produced performance activities and cross-division collaborations to professional development and community outreach programs. Over the next two weeks we’ll commence this theme with two topics: On Stage at Juilliard and Things I Didn’t Know About Juilliard.

Enjoy!

by Leslie Williams, 2nd-year dancer

Usually I tend to “enjoy” auditions. Because of my strict classical ballet background, doing summer program auditions at the start of the year was like blinking…it was just something you did. I had spent summers at Pacific Northwest Ballet, Boston Ballet and Carolina Ballet all based on tough summer auditions and received partial scholarships at each. It was something that I knew the ins-and-outs of. I knew that ballet program auditions consisted of a ballet technique class, with maybe some pointe or partnering at the end. Before the audition everyone would “stretch,” or rather, compete to see who was more flexible. But I knew that the Juilliard audition was going to be different. An audition that lasted ALL DAY with five different parts including an interview at the end seemed mind-blowing and intense to me!

I traveled from North Carolina to Miami for my audition. It was nice to get away and have 80 degree weather for a bit. In NC, in the middle of February, that’s hard to come by. The night before my audition was slightly stressful. Thinking back on it – who am I kidding – it was horrible! I had forgotten that we had to wear all black for the audition and of all the leotard choices that I packed in my suitcase for the big day, NONE of them were black. And to make it worse, this fatal realization came upon me around 8pm, when stores were starting to close. My family drove me to all the dance stores we knew of in the area, but they were all closed. We drove to all the places we could think of that would sell dance wear but there was nothing appropriate for an audition. We went to Target right before closing time. The dance wear section looked as bleak as ever. A young lady was standing next to us.  She looked like someone that knew about dance wear and at this point I was desperate. I told her my problem. She said, “Oh, you’re auditioning for Juilliard. That’s amazing! They’re actually having a sale on dance wear at American Apparel!” Aside from being totally surprised at the fact that they even sold dance wear at American Apparel, I was overjoyed by this pure miracle that had sprung upon me.

So there I was on audition day, standing in line for registration wearing, not Yumiko or Danskin, but my American Apparel leotard.  The leotard was on the verge of crossing the line between high-cut and HIGH-CUT, and throughout the audition I made “adjustments” to avoid a massive wedgie. I pushed forward – happy that I made it to the audition, and in dress code.  (That’s all that mattered at that point). I walked in and set myself down in a dark corner of the warm-up studio. It was the first time in a while that I had been to an audition where I didn’t know or recognize someone. Walking into the audition studio was a bit surreal. The studio was completely black with an awkwardly positioned short mirror at the front. In front of that was the panel table, and there sat Risa Steinberg, Larry Rhodes, and Alphonse Poulin. I looked at Risa, a petite lady with a blonde pixie haircut. She seemed nice.  Larry stared at everyone warming up with a very stern and professional look on his face. His demeanor screamed “I am the Director.” I could tell that Alphonse was our ballet teacher just by the way he was postured in the chair.

The ballet class was more challenging than I expected; lots of developpe’s and rond de jambe’s that I wasn’t expecting to hold for more than a four count…we held them for seven. It also didn’t help that Larry decided to walk around with a clipboard. It was a norm for the panel to walk around and stare at you with clipboards, but at the EXACT moment when I was doing a very slow and difficult grand rond de jambe en l’air, Larry was standing directly in front of me. I don’t have the best extension in the world so all I could do was try to keep my hip down and point my biscuit foot as hard as I could. He walked away. I exhaled. Overall, the ballet class went really well. We then moved on to the modern portion of the audition that was taught by Risa. I really enjoyed her class. I thought to myself how I would enjoy having her as a teacher if I got in.

Finally, the first cut. I remember it feeling like the longest wait ever. We all anxiously gathered in the hallway around Katie Friis, Associate Director of Admissions, as she called out numbers…one by one. Oh boy here we go….

My number was the third to the last to be called. When Katie called it out my mother screamed so loudly they could hear her all the way back in North Carolina.  We began to go over our solos. I watched one of the boys whip out at least ten turns and finish with an illusion. I tried to stay calm. I saw all of the parents trying to crowd around a small crack of the studio’s back door to get a peek at what was going on inside. It was my turn to go. I walked in and it felt surreal all over again. The studio space seemed much larger, now that it was without 100 other dancers. I was slightly nervous, but was pretty confident in the solo that I had choreographed. I gave it my all. I put my whole heart into dancing for them! When I finished, I was satisfied. I looked at the faces as I walked out, and they all had smiles on them. That was all the validation I needed.

It’s time for cut number two…my number is called. Everyone was unsure of what we were going to do for the next portion of the audition. I felt that since we were all basically in the dark about what was going to happen, there was no need to be nervous. We went in and Risa taught us a combination from the Juilliard repertoire, and I really enjoyed it. She took it pretty slow with everyone until they got it, and gave us individual feedback on what we needed to think about or fix. Even though it was basically a test to see how well we could retain information and corrections, I felt that it was almost like a rehearsal. For the next thirty minutes, I felt like I was actually rehearsing a piece at Juilliard…as a student. It was really nice.

We finished that section and it was time for another cut…my number was called again. My mother actually managed to keep it together this time. I think she had cried enough. There were no more tears. There were 6 of us left. Four of them are in my class today, including the guy that did ten pirouettes. At this point, I couldn’t have been more relieved and happy with myself. I had made it through all the dancing portions. The way I looked at the interview was to just be myself and to answer the questions as honestly as possible.

I interviewed with Larry. We started off by chatting about Ethan Stiefel and his amazing dance career. That was a subject I literally could talk about ALL DAY. I was proud to call him my Dean of Dance at North Carolina School of the Arts. One of the questions I vividly remember Larry asking was what book, movie, concert or other art related thing I had recently seen, read or been inspired by. I totally could’ve said something completely made up like, “Oh, recently l read (insert extremely intense art/dance title of book here that will make me sound really intelligent and smart), but instead I decided to talk about when I saw the rock band Radiohead LIVE in concert. Radiohead is one of my most favorite bands in the ENTIRE WORLD, and I think I freaked Larry out a bit because my mouth was moving at least 50 miles per second while describing this awesome concert. But he just smiled and wrote something down on his clipboard. The interview was pretty long and some of the questions required a lot of thought, but as I said before, I just answered them in the best way I knew how…the honest way.

And that was it. The audition was over. Katie, in her very pleasant manner, said that she would call us soon and to have a good day. I remember Poulin giving my mom, with her dried tear marks on her face, a big hug as he was leaving. She was relieved. I was relieved. All everybody could be at the end of such a long day was just relieved.

Reflecting on this experience now makes me realize how lucky and blessed I was on that day. Sure, I was used to the intensity of auditions, but at the time I don’t think I truly realized the gravity of the audition. I wasn’t auditioning for just anything; I was auditioning for JUILLIARD!  I actually think going into the audition without having that added pressure made all the difference. I just went in and did the best I could.  I gave all that I had in the most genuine form. So, when you audition, just concentrate on being you and hopefully your love for your art will come alive with a spirit that is uniquely YOU. They totally see through the pretense. They see through all the make-up, slicked back hair, and fancy leotards. All they want to see is YOU and who YOU are.  Give them YOU. If you do that, you’ll be one step closer to being at a place that will totally and completely change your life… The Juilliard School….NO PLACE like it.

YOU CAN DO IT! HAVE FUN!

by Ellie Swiatkiwski, 3rd-year dancer

My Juilliard audition was not one out of the ten colleges I was auditioning for like many other auditionees in the room… Nor did I travel via the subway or by car to arrive at the audition like many others… I had traveled from the other side of the world, Australia, to be there that day and it was my one and only audition. In other words, the stakes were pretty high!  Juilliard had been my dream since the moment my dance teacher/mentor in Sydney had told me about the school, three years prior to my audition. Nothing was going to stop me from being at the audition that day, not even my severe jet lag or all the nerves in the world!

It was one of the most intense days of my life! I was so overwhelmed to be at JUILLIARD in NEW YORK with so many amazing dancers around me that I couldn’t eat or speak!! At the warm up, prior to the first class, I urged myself not to look at everyone else stretching and practicing around me because it made me feel sick with how talented everyone looked!

The audition consisted of a ballet class, modern class, solos, choreography, coaching, and finally interviews. At the start of the day there were 56 dancers and at the end there were 3. I couldn’t believe I had made it to the end of the audition, I was so happy!!

For dancers who are looking to audition I advise you to not compare or judge yourself to other people in the audition, it will just distract and intimidate you! Focus only on yourself and all of the special qualities that you have to bring.

Good luck!

by Cleo Person, 1st-year dancer

March 5, 2012 was a day I looked forward to with more anticipation than almost any other day in my life so far. It was the day of my Juilliard audition. So maybe I had things a little out of proportion, but I had spent months obsessively watching videos on the Juilliard Web site, reading blogs about the audition process, and taking the subway to Lincoln Center almost every week so I could just look at the school. (Disclaimer: I don’t recommend doing any of these things, as you surely have much more useful things to be doing with your time.) But if you’re anything like me, your big audition day might just occupy your thoughts a large portion of the time. Hopefully, this blog about my audition experience will ease your mind a little and help you to feel a bit more prepared for what you will encounter.

My whole audition experience got off to a rocky start. Ten days before my audition I was in a dress rehearsal for a dance show at my school, and at a part where I was supposed to be slingshot backward to the ground, I landed hard on one of my sits bones, causing a sharp pain in my butt. I got up slowly, and since I couldn’t really walk, I had to drop out of the show. Self-diagnosis: a mild puncture tear in my gluteus medius. Luckily, muscles heal quickly given the right care and rest, but that still meant that I couldn’t dance for the whole week. Then, I would have only three days to get back in class and rehearse my solo before the audition – not exactly the ideal situation.

Since I couldn’t really prepare physically, the days leading up to my audition were a sort of non-stop mental exercise: how do I contain my nerves, trust that my body will be there for me, and not psych myself out so that I can give the best audition I am capable of? The answer for me lay in the constant, positive pep-talks that I gave to myself.

I should let you know that I applied early, as a junior in high school, because I had already been living on my own for a semester and I had attended the Juilliard summer program twice. I felt I couldn’t wait any longer before applying for real, so I decided just to try, saying to myself, “Hey, I can always apply again next year if it doesn’t work out.” That was the mindset that took a lot of the pressure off. I was eased by many stories I had heard of current students at the school who had been accepted only the second time they applied, so I knew it wouldn’t be just a one-shot deal. Most importantly, I made the decision that I would let excitement, not anxiety take center stage in my often-fluctuating mental state. With my own mental game already won, the audition itself was really just fun.

You are surely already aware of the general process: ballet class, modern class, solo, coaching, interview; so I won’t go into detail about that except to say that there is nothing terribly difficult about the classes- they’re not trying to trick you or test your extensive dance vocabulary, but they’re really just trying to get a sense of who you are as a dancer and as an interesting, unique human being with something to say and the potential to be able to say it articulately though movement. The one thing I did find daunting in the audition was the pure magnitude of the cuts made. There were about 50 dancers in the ballet class, and just two of us were left by the time we got to the interviews. I find the best way to deal with this sort of situation is to come with no expectations of how far you’ll make it, and to remember that getting cut is in no way a reflection of your talent or worth as an individual, it just wasn’t the right time or place.

It is incredibly important to remember that Juilliard is just one school, and it’s not for everyone. You should think of your audition as an opportunity for you to audition the school as much as it is for the school to audition you. Ask yourself, “Do I like the energy and vibe of the teachers and the class they’re giving? Am I interested in working, for four whole years, on the things that they value and appear to be interested in?” And even if your answer is “yes, definitely!”, trust that the people auditioning you know pretty well what type of student will get the most from the education they’re offering (they’ve been doing it for a long time), and that you wouldn’t want to be somewhere that wasn’t a good fit for you. There are lots of great dance schools out there that you might find creatively stimulating and technically challenging, and may open up opportunities for your career that you didn’t even know existed!

So my main advice is to put forward the best and most honest version of yourself you know everywhere and all the time, not just for your auditions because it is ultimately that, and not the best tricks or best feet or anything else superficial, which will allow you to get to the places you’re supposed to be in every aspect of your life. Ultimately, you may want to think of your audition as an exciting opportunity to possibly change the course of your future, just as it was for me.