As many of my adventurous classmates cleared the halls of the third floor, packed suitcases full of bathing suits, sunscreen, and hiking boots, an enormous group of hopeful 17-20 year olds filled our corridors as they auditioned for The Juilliard School’s Dance Class of 2018. With the regional audition tour already behind us, the New York auditions were the final stage of the audition season. For five days, roughly 250 prospective students arrived and auditioned in front of the entire faculty as well as Lawrence Rhodes, the Artistic Director, and Risa Steinberg, the Associate Artistic Director of the Dance Division.
Along with the dance faculty, Katie Friis plays an important role in audition process. Katie, the Senior Assistant Director of the Admissions Department of Juilliard, is in charge of Juilliard’s dance audition tour and is present in each of the regional and New York auditions. It is through Katie Friis that many current upperclassmen are given the opportunity to volunteer their time and work the New York Auditions. The volunteering consists of demonstrating a portion of the audition, checking-in dancers, or calming the nerves of anxious parents. For those of us who haven’t escaped New York, this was an opportunity to meet some of the prospective students and share our experiences.
Juilliard Dances Repertory will consist of three pieces, all of which are choreographed by American choreographers. The first piece, Baker’s Dozen (1979) by Twyla Tharp, features a cast of twelve dancers and plays off the structure of multiples of twelve: six duets, four trios, three quartets, two sextets, and closing with twelve solos. The piece is set to compositions by Willie “The Lion” Smith, which will be performed live by Juilliard Jazz alumnus, pianist Christopher Ziemba. Following Baker’s Dozen is Concerto Six Twenty-Two (1986), choreographed by Juilliard Alumnus, Lar Lubovitch. The work is set to Mozart’s Concerto for Clarinet and Orchestra in A Major, K. 622 and will be performed live by the Juilliard Orchestra, conducted by Juilliard alumna Karina Canellakis, with Juilliard clarinetist Weixiong Wang. Concerto Six Twenty-Two showcases a male duet, which has become one of Lubovitch’s greatest achievements. Closing the evening will be Elliot Feld’s The Jig is Up (1984). The ballet plays with the abstraction of traditional folk dances and features large virtuosic group sections as well as intimate solos and duets. Celtic music by The Bothy Band with Archibald McDonald, and John Cunningham are the soundtrack to Feld’s energetic work.
Tickets are available online at www.juilliard.edu/dancesrep or at the Janet and Leonard Kramer Box Office at Juilliard. General admission tickets are $30 and Senior/Student/Alumni tickets are $15. For more information, call (212) 769-7406.