NewsUpper SchoolFine Arts
Doss dances at Juilliard
Aug 25, 2006 10:43 AM
By Tannika King - Faculty
Already working toward her dream of studying dance professionally, senior Christie Doss spent six weeks of her summer at two rigorous dance intensives – one with The Atlanta Ballet and one at The Juilliard School in New York City.
“First, I was invited to attend an intensive with The Atlanta Ballet at Western Carolina University in order to get into great physical shape for the second summer program I attended,” said Doss, a member of The Atlanta Ballet’s elite Pre-Professional Program. “The teaching staff at The Atlanta Ballet is fantastic, and I knew their program, which consisted of six hours of dancing each day, would be perfect for getting me ready to attend The Juilliard School.”
The admission process for Juilliard’s program was much more intense and selective. After applying and attending a live audition in Miami, Fla., Doss was one of 24 girls nationwide selected to participate.
“At the live audition, dancers take a ballet class, pointe class and modern class. After each of these classes, there are cuts made,” she said. “At the end of the day, I still had no idea if I had made it … Hundreds of people audition for the program throughout the world and only 24 girls and 24 boys are chosen.
“When I received my acceptance letter from The Juilliard School, I was completely ecstatic,” she continued. “To be accepted at Juilliard has been a major goal of mine for the past three years, so to finally achieve that goal was absolutely amazing. To be chosen as one of only 24 other girls from all over the country is an incredible honor.”
At Juilliard, participants trained Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., taking classes such as ballet, classical partnering, pointe, ballroom dancing, modern, music, anatomy and contemporary partnering. At the end of each day, the dancers would have a two-hour rehearsal for the end-of-the-program performance.
“Not only was this an amazing resume builder and awesome experience, but the teaching staff was most definitely ‘the cream of the crop,’” said Doss.
Participants trained with Alexandra Wells, an international dancer who was a partner to the world-renowned male dancer, Rudolf Nureyev; Stephen Pier, who danced with the Royal Danish Ballet, Hamburg Ballet and the Jose Limon Company; and Irene Dowd, who is known nationwide for her expertise in anatomy.
During the three-week intensive, Doss received some meaningful feedback from fellow dancers and staff members.
“On one of the last days of class, several of us were taking a modern class alongside several of the actual college students admitted into the school. One of the students pulled me aside and encouraged me to keep pushing for whatever goal I may have in the future. She said she really saw a genuine love for dance inside of me,” recalled Doss. “Our final performance was a few days later. I had decided to pull everything out of me and dance to my absolute fullest potential the night of the performance. I had nothing to lose, and all I wanted to do was give the directors of admission a reason to remember me.
"After my performance, one of the main teachers at the school came up to me and said he never knew I had such a performance quality," Doss continued. "He went on to say that he was extremely impressed, and that he hoped to see me again this audition season. These two moments were, by far, the most memorable moments of my entire summer. They really made me think about my future, and because of these two bits of advice, I am more motivated and determined to improve than ever before.”
After attending the summer program at Juilliard, Doss feels she has grown to a completely new level as a dancer.
“Not only was I taught by inspirational teachers, I was surrounded by incredibly talented people from all over the world,” she said. “Seeing and being surrounded by such incredible talent can make one improve to such a high level quickly; it becomes almost unreal … Being surrounded by such motivation, drive, and desire for three straight weeks was eye-opening and certainly life changing.”
This winter, Doss plans to audition for Juilliard’s four-year college program. “There are only 12 girls chosen internationally,” she said, “but it would definitely be an amazing accomplishment if I could ever be admitted.”
“First, I was invited to attend an intensive with The Atlanta Ballet at Western Carolina University in order to get into great physical shape for the second summer program I attended,” said Doss, a member of The Atlanta Ballet’s elite Pre-Professional Program. “The teaching staff at The Atlanta Ballet is fantastic, and I knew their program, which consisted of six hours of dancing each day, would be perfect for getting me ready to attend The Juilliard School.”
The admission process for Juilliard’s program was much more intense and selective. After applying and attending a live audition in Miami, Fla., Doss was one of 24 girls nationwide selected to participate.
“At the live audition, dancers take a ballet class, pointe class and modern class. After each of these classes, there are cuts made,” she said. “At the end of the day, I still had no idea if I had made it … Hundreds of people audition for the program throughout the world and only 24 girls and 24 boys are chosen.
“When I received my acceptance letter from The Juilliard School, I was completely ecstatic,” she continued. “To be accepted at Juilliard has been a major goal of mine for the past three years, so to finally achieve that goal was absolutely amazing. To be chosen as one of only 24 other girls from all over the country is an incredible honor.”
At Juilliard, participants trained Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., taking classes such as ballet, classical partnering, pointe, ballroom dancing, modern, music, anatomy and contemporary partnering. At the end of each day, the dancers would have a two-hour rehearsal for the end-of-the-program performance.
“Not only was this an amazing resume builder and awesome experience, but the teaching staff was most definitely ‘the cream of the crop,’” said Doss.
Participants trained with Alexandra Wells, an international dancer who was a partner to the world-renowned male dancer, Rudolf Nureyev; Stephen Pier, who danced with the Royal Danish Ballet, Hamburg Ballet and the Jose Limon Company; and Irene Dowd, who is known nationwide for her expertise in anatomy.
During the three-week intensive, Doss received some meaningful feedback from fellow dancers and staff members.
“On one of the last days of class, several of us were taking a modern class alongside several of the actual college students admitted into the school. One of the students pulled me aside and encouraged me to keep pushing for whatever goal I may have in the future. She said she really saw a genuine love for dance inside of me,” recalled Doss. “Our final performance was a few days later. I had decided to pull everything out of me and dance to my absolute fullest potential the night of the performance. I had nothing to lose, and all I wanted to do was give the directors of admission a reason to remember me.
"After my performance, one of the main teachers at the school came up to me and said he never knew I had such a performance quality," Doss continued. "He went on to say that he was extremely impressed, and that he hoped to see me again this audition season. These two moments were, by far, the most memorable moments of my entire summer. They really made me think about my future, and because of these two bits of advice, I am more motivated and determined to improve than ever before.”
After attending the summer program at Juilliard, Doss feels she has grown to a completely new level as a dancer.
“Not only was I taught by inspirational teachers, I was surrounded by incredibly talented people from all over the world,” she said. “Seeing and being surrounded by such incredible talent can make one improve to such a high level quickly; it becomes almost unreal … Being surrounded by such motivation, drive, and desire for three straight weeks was eye-opening and certainly life changing.”
This winter, Doss plans to audition for Juilliard’s four-year college program. “There are only 12 girls chosen internationally,” she said, “but it would definitely be an amazing accomplishment if I could ever be admitted.”
