Juilliard Summer Dance Intensive is a three-week program designed to both introduce dancers to Juilliard and provide information about college dance programs that will assist dancers in making decisions about their education in line with their professional goals.
Through technique classes, discussions, and collaborations with special guest choreographers, dancers have the opportunity to meet faculty, students, and staff, and will meet one-on-one with either Dance Division Dean and Director, Alicia Graf Mack, or Associate Director, Mario Alberto Zambrano.
Location(s)
- The Juilliard School, New York, New York
Schedule
- July 5 - July 24, 2026
Cost/Compensation
- Application Fee: $40
- Tuition: $2,400
- Room and Board: $2,100
Eligibility Requirements
We welcome applicants who are:
- advanced dancers with significant prior training in classical ballet. Familiarity with classic modern dance techniques is helpful.
- in grade 9, 10, or 11 at the time of application (typically aged 15–17 at the time of the program). Dancers MUST have completed at least one year of high school/secondary school at the time of the program, but should not have graduated. Dancers who will graduate from high school prior to the start of the program are not eligible and may wish to consider applying to the 4-year Bachelor of Fine Arts college program instead.
- available to participate in the entire three-week program.
- be fully immunized according to the NYS Immunization Requirements for School Attendance.
Deadline
- December 15, 2025
Application or Entry Requirements
- A completed online application
- Letter of recommendation from your primary ballet teacher
- Photograph or headshot
- Please record each of the following six sections separately in the order listed; you will be required to upload six videos to your application. You may not upload additional videos.
- Section One: Introduction
- A brief close-up shot of your face, from the shoulders up.
- Clearly state your full name, current city and country of residence.
- Provide a brief history of your previous dance training.
- Tell us why you have been inspired to audition.
- Section Two: Performance
- A prepared solo, either ballet, modern or contemporary, to musical accompaniment.
- State the title of the solo, the choreographer, and the composer of the music before performing.
- The solo may be original choreography or from standard repertory.
- The solo should demonstrate your artistic qualities and flow of movement.
- The solo should be approximately two minutes in length.
- Section Three: Ballet Technique - Center Exercises: Please view the demonstration video prior to recording your prescreening. You may learn and submit the suggested ballet combinations and phrases in the demonstration video. However, if you already have pre-recorded material that you would like to upload instead, you are welcome to do so as long as it meets the below criteria. We’re looking for:
- Tendu in the center combination with a pirouette
- Adagio in the center
- Pirouette that moves across the floor
- Petite allegro combination
- Grand allegro combination
- Record the combinations on the right and left sides
- You may use music from our suggested playlist or any music of your choice.
- Section Four: Modern Technique: Please view the demonstration video prior to recording your prescreening. Treat the video as a class and execute the modern combinations as demonstrated.
- Modern combination #1 - Record on the right and left in 12 measures. Then record on the right and left in 8 measures.
- Modern combination #2 - Record on the right, and then record on the left.
- Links to the music will be provided after you have started your application.
- Section Five: Choreography and Composition: Please view the demonstration video prior to recording your prescreening.
- Learn the phrase in the video
- Using the phrase, change your facing within your space after every 8 counts
- Once you’ve changed your facing, think about the words “expand/contract” and “contract/expand” to improvise for 8 counts from the shape in the phrase you’ve arrived in. Then, continue on in the phrase.
- Repeat this pattern until you have concluded the original phrase
- No music is required.
- Section Six: Improvisation: Please view the demonstration video prior to recording your prescreening.
- Improvisation exercise (60 seconds)
- Please use the Bach Cello Suite No. 1 in G Major, BWV 1007: III. Courante from our playlist.
- Section One: Introduction
- Format: You are required to upload your files in a Video format. Acceptable file types include: .3g2, .3gp, .avi, .m2v, .m4v, .mkv, .mov, .mpeg, .mpg, .mp4, .mxf, .webm, .wmv
Notifications of Decisions
- No later than February 13
Financial Aid Details
- Some financial aid is available for admitted students. Once admitted to the program, if a student wishes to apply for financial assistance, they are invited to submit a letter explaining their financial situation along with their parent or guardian’s tax forms for the current or previous year. International and U.S. students are eligible to apply for financial aid. Financial aid awards are based on need.
- Please note that most scholarship awards cover only a portion of tuition.
Other Dates to Keep in Mind
Have other questions?
The Juilliard School, commonly known as Juilliard, is a prestigious, highly-selective, private performing arts conservatory located at the famous Lincoln Center for Performing Arts in New York City. The school’s three academic divisions consist of dance, drama, and music, with music being the largest and oldest. Upon its founding in 1905, it was called the Institute of Musical Art and was one of the first musical schools in the United States. Juilliard's third president, William Schuman, was an American composer and the first recipient of Pulitzer Prize for Music. Juilliard offers undergraduate and graduate degrees, diploma programs for professional artists, and musical training for pre-college students, as well as liberal arts courses. Juilliard also hosts a wide range of performances and concerts throughout the year, including opera productions, orchestral concerts, dance performances, and theater productions. Juilliard boasts dozens of notable alumni. Some of the most famous being Leonard Bernstein, Itzhak Perlman, Philip Glass, Wynton Marsalis, Miles Davis, Yo-Yo Ma, Renée Fleming, Jessye Norman, and Robin Williams.
