Jenna Mitchell 17 ~ Charles Andrew Kulp Memorial Scholarship

There is an intangible affect that dance enables a soul to experience, an incomprehensible medium, that
when reached, allows us to reach the infinite hempispheres of our universe through our art form. To communicate
imperturbable thought, intention, and vulnerability through this physical language of movement, requires febrile
passion and tenacious ability to satiate the most profound discoveries within our soul. This inchoate experience can
only be entirely understood by the purest of human beings, whose minds remain open, and intentions remain
motivated by the indomitable existence of personal authentic power.

My artistry aquired thus far, has developed based upon the goals I set for myself in order to evolve into the
greatest, most genuine form of myself. When my love for dance, in its purest, and most sincere form, is internally
rooted in the deepest source of my being, it becomes nothing but the positive force in my life enabling me to achieve
greatness. I am constantly impassioned with the desire of aquiring knowledge and exposing myself to different
concepts, genres, and perspectives of dance. I am yearning to train endlessly and am assured that getting as much
training as possible will only assist me in my endeavor to develop my artistry and grow as a technician and
performer.

I’ve been dancing since age 2, but since I have attended Booker T. Washington, my Performing Arts High
School, for the past two years, my world of dance (or at least what I knew of it) has been completely broadened and
expanded through the experiences, education I have received, and the teachers/ master teachers I have been given
the opportunity to work with thus far. They have all assisted immensely in contribution to my maturity as a dancer,
person, and artist, and continue to give me a deeper appreciation and understanding of the art form I so profoundly
adore.

As an artist and a dancer, I believe it is extremely important to constantly educate, challenge, and expose
yourself to as much as you can. I pride myself in being, or striving to be, a well-rounded dancer, and try to do my
best to master each technique to the best of my ability. I do not express negativity to any dance form, but try and
cherish their value for what it is. Not only do I love to dance but also thoroughly enjoy choreographing. I am
constantly inspired by various past and present artists' choreographical aesthetics and ideas, and love divulging
myself in new and different choreographers and techniques as much as I can.

In summary, no words could possibly articulate my desire to train, explore, & gain as much knowledge
possible within the arts & humanities of our world. Throughout many discussions with dancers, currently training &
studying with, or graduated, from the Julliard Program, the laudable effects to those who’ve experience the program
are behemoth. The inevitable tales of dilapidated sensations, dearth amounts of sleep, desolate fatigue, and visceral
exhaustion of the mind and body are inevitable affects of assiduous training. The “struggle” of this art form is
inevitable, and regardless, I find myself imperturbable to these harbingers, absorbing the shared experiences others
may categorize as a painful process, instead, as an anticipation to a gift.

There are several programs I am interested in experiencing due to their goals to evolve and expand the
perspectives and artistry within the students, an endeavor I find The program offers additional training to the daily
ballet and modern technique classes, including; Alexander Technique, improvisation, anatomy, Gaga, ballroom, and
music, generating "enough information to fill volumes." The 3 week program is a personal and highly
developmental process in which the summer dancers get exposure to an extremely diverse variety of movement
language, & a sense of "focus and responsiveness.” It allows the dancers to practice the willingness to go from one
expectation to the next, welcoming the opportunities, rather than be overwhelmed by the work. The Julliard
Intensive sparks the artistic ardor within every artist's soul, and fuels this fire by it's endless desire to research,
discover, and offer an artistic evolutionary process through "improvisation, manipulation of movement, singing,
speaking, and the stretching of their imaginations and bodies in ways that most haven’t previously experienced."
I hope to continue to develop my technique and artistry through intensive training and pursuit of dance,
and with time, work ethic, determination and compassion for this art form, will continually evolve into the dancer
and artist I hope to be. 

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I’ve never felt so grateful. The experience of Ohad Naharin’s Gaga Intensive Workshop was simply
breathtaking. Every fiber of my being, my flesh, & every infinitely inexhaustible crumb of my soul’s existence is
total. The certainty, reawakened purpose, and indomitable passion for this particular art of dance, has never
existed within my soul as radiantly as it does now, after this experience of the Gaga Intensive Workshop. The once
questionable and naive thought or attempted idea to give into the pursuit of this lifelong, yet so-called “short lived”
artistic & physical endeavor of a dance career, now remains unquestionable within me. To dance is the only fuel in
fulfilling my most vast and indescribable desire… it is the only medium in which my soul is capable of reaching its
most pure form; liberated, unrestricted, honest, and blindingly radiant. Only through dance am I able to understand
my purpose, goals, intentions, strengths, weaknesses, impurities, capabilities, desires, and infinite connections
between my imaginative intellect, intentions of my soul, and the physical sensations. This Gaga Intensive not only
reminded me of my purpose in this pursuit of dance, but illuminated the endless love and passionate obsession for
movement that has and will forever manifest inside of me. To finally feel this whole again through the feeling of
pure movement, human-beings, space, environment, intentions, artwork, tenacity, and the awareness of radiant light,
simply leaves me amazed and grateful beyond words for this experience.

Gaga is the movement language that was developed by Ohad Naharin throughout many years, parallel to
his work as a choreographer and the artistic director of Batsheva Dance Company, originated in Israel. Gaga has
evolved into a dynamic language, suitable for everyone although it is simultaneously the daily training of Batsheva
Dance Company. The essence of “what” composes of Gaga is simply the acceptance and full understanding that all
movement & almost everything that we experience in every infinite form it may be composed of, is dance. It is the
most liberating, connective, indomitable, and beautiful form of being I’ve ever experienced. It awakens every fiber,
never-ending, numb or nervous area of your internal self, while simultaneously awakening your conscious and
unconscious awareness of the space, movement, and imagination connecting with the intention of your movement. It
triggers a new process of acquiring knowledge and self-awareness through your mind and body collaboratively, or as
a whole, instead of viewing them as separate entities. Gaga equips new ways for your body to understand how to
learn, strengthen, and increase flexibility, stamina, and agility while lightening the senses and imagination. Through
the process of gaining Gaga’s technique within the physical, mental, & soul’s intellect, inevitably, it raises awareness
of physical weaknesses, awakens numb areas, exposes physical fixations, and offers ways for their elimination. In other
words, it is the purest, most euphoric, & most indomitably peaceful form of a cure. The work improves & refines
instinctive movement, and allows for an experience of freedom and pleasure in a simple way, in a pleasant space, in
comfortable clothes, accompanied by music, each person with himself and others.

The endless discovery and research of sensations inside and outside of yourself allows this technique to be
endless, unbound and powerfully intriguing. The greatest lesson and constant tribulation that opposed me over and
over again was the essence of patience & “listening.” The requirement of patience and love towards yourself is the
only way you can be your best self, and most fearless artistic communicator through your movement. It is essential
to forgive, understand, push to make limitless, but also acquire the patience for yourself and your instrument,
otherwise you will be your greatest trial to overcome. Once this concept was understood, the initiation of the act
originated from the concept of listening… understanding what it is to actually LISTEN; to search & find a variety
of infinite sensations amongst the body, curiously exploring them with an open heart and mind, with patience, love
and correspondence saturating your awareness, & recognizing those places that become limp (or therefore, dead),
and bring life & presence to those places. Once this was acquired, I saw more distinctly when my eyelids closed, and
my soul perceived all. Concepts from every directionless space dropped from millions of black holes buried within
these depths of “closed eyes.” The idea of listening manifested into the realization of textures, the memories held in
space; around and within us, and the variation of copious memories held in just one place. On the body, for
example, the 1inX1in surface area of your skin holds memories and sensations completely different from those of
the bones beneath that exact piece of flesh… and so the endless flow of imagery goes.

Honestly, there aren’t possibly any words that could suffice in describing the copious amounts of inspiring
and life changing revelations that occurred during the week I spent in New York, training at the Gaga Intensive
Workshop. My attendance, and therefore the opportunity to experience this unforgettable week of training with two
of Israel’s Batsheva Company principle dancers, was all made possible through the generosity of the Dance Council
of North Texas’s Charles Andrew Kulp Scholarship! The money that I received from DCNT provided not only
funding, but provided the opportunity for me to train, acquire, and experience a truly exquisite program & growth
that, without the scholarship, would not have occurred.