By Gemma Frietas
As I finish my final week of classes at The Juilliard School, I have been doing a lot of debriefing on these past four years. Feeling nostalgic about relationships I have made, memories we have all shared, my teachers who I love dearly, and the incredible experiences this school has given us, it is time for the next chapter. As I finish my last few responsibilities at school, and prepare myself to graduate from this safe, warm, and protective nest, I leave with these three things…
1. We are all unique-
One of the things I admire most about the Juilliard dance division is the diversity among all of the dancers. Each class is full of different nationalities, sizes, talents, shapes, and strengths, yet we are all under one roof learning the same curriculum. As human beings we are prone to feelings of jealousy, especially when working so closely with others. However, it is important to know that we are all here with something special to offer. I have learned these past four years to admire and look up to those around me, and learn from them rather than being envious of their assets. Juilliard thrives on individuality, and I think it is a beautiful thing. I may never jump as high, or travel as far as some of my classmates, but I sure can go across the floor with those who do and push myself to jump higher, and traveler further. We need to be our own best friend allowing ourselves to believe in the distinctive gifts we have been given; we are all unique. By doing so we can strive to fulfill our artistic potential, and quit expending our energy wanting to be the person next to us.
2. Time is sacred-
After four years of being in a program that demands 12-hour days, free time becomes so valuable. Each person requires different things to be properly energized and fueled for the rigor. Therefore, it is important to figure out what these needs may be. Juilliard is a concentrated environment making life feel dramatized in everyway. For musicians, one wrong note in a practice room can seem like the end of the world, and for us, dancers, analyzing oneself in the mirror for endless hours each day can cause warped views of our own realities, and the greater picture can become distorted. However, this presents us with opportunities to grow and learn about what we need as an individual in order to flourish under high-pressure situations. Time is sacred; spending hours on end in a dance studio forces us to find little sanctuaries amidst the grind in order to be well. These outlets and/or places to debrief vary from person to person, but this pursuit in finding them is a skill that we can take with us through the rest of our lives.
3. This is just the beginning–
Coming into Juilliard I was hungry for knowledge, but I definitely believed that I knew way more than I did. I was very confident leaving my small town outside of Buffalo, New York, and when I arrived at Juilliard I was in disbelief of the talent that surrounded me. We were now all big fish in a very small pond, and we were being thrown new information left and right. Technique became a whole new thing and in a way I felt as though I was starting from scratch. As I prepare to leave Juilliard, four years later, I realize how little I actually know, and that to me is so exciting! Juilliard has instilled a Launchpad of knowledge and a surplus of tools in order for me to begin my career. We have been informed about our anatomy, different methods of self care, ballet technique taught by a plethora of brilliant teachers, as well as taking class from a wide-range of master teachers in various modern dance techniques, partnering skills, both contemporary and classical, choreographic strategies, knowledge on putting on our own production, the ability to work in stage craft, and more, yet I feel like I am just a seed waiting to bloom. I cannot wait to see how I can put the education I have received into practice throughout my professional career.
As our time together, as a class, comes to an end at this school we are now all set free into the promising reality that awaits us. It is going to bring me such joy to follow my classmates through the wondrous journeys they are about to begin, and I am so blessed to have been able to experience this remarkable institution.
It is just the beginning.
As I finish my final week of classes at The Juilliard School, I have been doing a lot of debriefing on these past four years. Feeling nostalgic about relationships I have made, memories we have all shared, my teachers who I love dearly, and the incredible experiences this school has given us, it is time for the next chapter. As I finish my last few responsibilities at school, and prepare myself to graduate from this safe, warm, and protective nest, I leave with these three things…
1. We are all unique-
One of the things I admire most about the Juilliard dance division is the diversity among all of the dancers. Each class is full of different nationalities, sizes, talents, shapes, and strengths, yet we are all under one roof learning the same curriculum. As human beings we are prone to feelings of jealousy, especially when working so closely with others. However, it is important to know that we are all here with something special to offer. I have learned these past four years to admire and look up to those around me, and learn from them rather than being envious of their assets. Juilliard thrives on individuality, and I think it is a beautiful thing. I may never jump as high, or travel as far as some of my classmates, but I sure can go across the floor with those who do and push myself to jump higher, and traveler further. We need to be our own best friend allowing ourselves to believe in the distinctive gifts we have been given; we are all unique. By doing so we can strive to fulfill our artistic potential, and quit expending our energy wanting to be the person next to us.
2. Time is sacred-
After four years of being in a program that demands 12-hour days, free time becomes so valuable. Each person requires different things to be properly energized and fueled for the rigor. Therefore, it is important to figure out what these needs may be. Juilliard is a concentrated environment making life feel dramatized in everyway. For musicians, one wrong note in a practice room can seem like the end of the world, and for us, dancers, analyzing oneself in the mirror for endless hours each day can cause warped views of our own realities, and the greater picture can become distorted. However, this presents us with opportunities to grow and learn about what we need as an individual in order to flourish under high-pressure situations. Time is sacred; spending hours on end in a dance studio forces us to find little sanctuaries amidst the grind in order to be well. These outlets and/or places to debrief vary from person to person, but this pursuit in finding them is a skill that we can take with us through the rest of our lives.
3. This is just the beginning–
Coming into Juilliard I was hungry for knowledge, but I definitely believed that I knew way more than I did. I was very confident leaving my small town outside of Buffalo, New York, and when I arrived at Juilliard I was in disbelief of the talent that surrounded me. We were now all big fish in a very small pond, and we were being thrown new information left and right. Technique became a whole new thing and in a way I felt as though I was starting from scratch. As I prepare to leave Juilliard, four years later, I realize how little I actually know, and that to me is so exciting! Juilliard has instilled a Launchpad of knowledge and a surplus of tools in order for me to begin my career. We have been informed about our anatomy, different methods of self care, ballet technique taught by a plethora of brilliant teachers, as well as taking class from a wide-range of master teachers in various modern dance techniques, partnering skills, both contemporary and classical, choreographic strategies, knowledge on putting on our own production, the ability to work in stage craft, and more, yet I feel like I am just a seed waiting to bloom. I cannot wait to see how I can put the education I have received into practice throughout my professional career.
As our time together, as a class, comes to an end at this school we are now all set free into the promising reality that awaits us. It is going to bring me such joy to follow my classmates through the wondrous journeys they are about to begin, and I am so blessed to have been able to experience this remarkable institution.
It is just the beginning.