Sabrina Talamo is a senior dance and communication studies major and the founder and president of Nova Dance Society. She has won the New Star Dance Award and the Lifetime Star Dance Award from NSU. Talamo is also a choreographer for the NSU Vocal Ensemble, a contributing writer for The Current, and an editor for Digressions, NSU’s student-run literary magazine. She is a member of Body and Soul Dance Theatre, a contemporary modern dance company. Her goals are to attend graduate school, to write about dance either academically or professionally and to teach at a university.
On Feb. 12, I received a letter from Sarah Lawrence College inviting me to audition and interview for their master’s in fine arts dance program. Two weeks later, I was on a plane to New York.
I arrived in New York City early in the morning and took a taxi to the school. I knew I would be walking into an environment that helped shape the careers of Barbara Walters, Rahm Emanuel, Vera Wang and several dance legends.
I began to walk around the campus, admiring the English Tudor-style buildings and the small patches of snow that still remained on the ground. The dark sky and light drizzle did not distract me from the site’s beauty.
I met other MFA applicants who traveled from different parts of the country for the audition. I was surprised to hear that one of the dancers had seen me perform at the NSU Dance Concert and recognized me.
As I continued my tour, I walked into a room where I saw graduate dance students rehearsing Twyla Tharp’s “One Hundreds.” I knew that the following day I would be dancing in the same space.
The next day, I arrived at the college an hour before my audition to warm up. The program’s director, Sara Rudner, greeted me at the door. I could not believe that I would be performing for Ms. Ruder, a name I had read about in my dance history book.
By 10 a.m., the room was filled with dancers of all ages and ethnicities. Some were dance teachers seeking a degree to teach at the university level. Others were professional dancers living and working in New York. And some, like me, were college students near graduation and ready to dive into graduate school.
The audition began with a con-temporary class taught by one of the dance faculty members. After the class, we were asked to present an original solo. This was a chance for us to show who we were as artists, movers and creators. I knew in order to perform my best I needed to relax and not let my nerves get the best of me.
As I took the floor to begin my solo, I took a deep breath and thought of one thing: NSU. I envisioned I was performing for my fellow classmates and friends as I had done countless times in our studio. I imagined the floor as the Performance Theatre in the Don Taft University Center where I had performed so many times. I remembered all those who have been supporting me and giving me the confidence to pursue graduate school. All of these thoughts made me feel at home.
The day concluded with group interviews where we were given the opportunity to share our goals with the faculty members. We were told that only five applicants would get a spot in the school because of the program’s small size. I expressed my interest in combining my two passions: dancing and writing.
I want to pursue graduate school to enhance my knowledge of all of dance’s aspects. The program’s emphasis on writing for dance graduates fueled my interest in attending the school. At the end of the interview, Ms. Rudner looked at me and repeated a gesture from my solo. I knew that for better or for worse, I left an impression.
One week later, I received another letter in the mail from Sarah Lawrence. It said I was placed on the waiting list and would be contacted if a spot became available. I placed the letter in my bag and drove to NSU where I would be performing that same afternoon.
While my future at Sarah Lawrence is still uncertain, my experience was worth the effort. I enjoyed the time I spent at the school and the people I had the opportunity to meet.
