The Juilliard School

Please write about why you have chosen to become an actor and your personal artistic goals. We encourage you to write frankly and openly about your life, your connection to your art, and how you see your art connecting to the world. Share your passion about people, politics, other art forms or anything that speaks to you.

Please write about what brought you to dance initially, what motivated you to continue and pursue dance at the collegiate/professional level, and how you came to know about Juilliard. Please also elaborate on why you have chosen to apply to Juilliard, and how conservatory training will support your future goals.

In her book Grit (Duckworth, 2016, p. 51), Angela Duckworth writes, “skill is not the same thing as achievement... Without effort, your talent is nothing more than your unmet potential. Without effort, your skill is nothing more than what you could have done but didn’t. With effort, talent becomes skill and, at the very same time, effort makes skill productive.” Musicians who audition at Juilliard have all worked hard for many years to develop their musical talent into skill, and yet the work of developing your artistry is a life-long pursuit. What motivates you to continue growing as an artist, and what artistic habits do you value most in helping you achieve your professional/educational goals?

In his audio book, "Beginner's Mind", Yo-Yo Ma talks about the importance of reclaiming a "beginner's mind", in which he describe approaching each performance with an "open, unbiased, curious mind...remembering the discovery and wonder of music as if for the first time." As you look to begin your conservatory training, how do you plan to maintain a "beginner's mind" in your work? What do you hope to discover about yourself, or your artform, during your time at Juilliard, and how do you plan to continually discover the wonder of music?