TESTIMONIALS

“Yara was so generous. She guided us through our own interests and created a space that allowed me to feel safe and take risks. I felt like I could be honest, skeptical and open in this space. This workshop is so important to help us understand ourselves and grow our artistry. I received so much wisdom from Yara that will stay with me for the rest of my life.”
—Workshop participant

“This class has been the most useful and exciting class that I have ever taken at Juilliard. Yara is an incredible individual and has much to offer us as students. I think the focus of the class truly being on who we are as individuals and finding what our "north star" is to guide all of our projects and ideas has really changed my perspective on how to create work that is meaningful. “
—Juilliard Student

“This was one of the most inspiring classes I ever had at Juilliard. Yara was a great mentor. She encouraged us to go after our true artistic goals and guided us on the way. Thank you for bringing her.”
—Juilliard Student

“This was a special workshop. I found it very challenging when asked to dig so deeply into myself to figure out what I was inspired by as a human. Yara helped me realize that I need to tap into this more, taking time to ask questions and discover what intrigues me and why, without judgement.”
—Workshop participant

“Yara's energy and presence during the event immediately creates a community environment. Thinking about navigating institutions for funding and residencies can be intimidating so I really appreciated the welcoming environment. The abundance and community-centric approach is so valuable. Yara provided macro and micro support, by giving a zoomed out scope of different funding avenues and technical support on how to fill out the applications. This is critical information that needs to be shared more widely.”
—Workshop participant

”Yara went above and beyond in offering this workshop! The event itself was not only informative but also addressed all of the emotional and social aspects of the process, which I thought was the most helpful of all.”
—Workshop participant

“I watched this workshop over and over and i loved it - it was informative and i hope there is another one like this.”
—Workshop participant

“Yara brought beautiful energy to the Juilliard building. She relinquished the pressure that comes with being a student at the institution, which enabled us to reflect deeply on the reasons why we are here together. The space she curated made for honest explorations into topics we wanted to investigate, dreaming big while learning to use the resources that were available to us. The genuine interest she brought to the student's lives seems alien to the dance division, possibly seen as taboo in the culture or the student-teacher relationship. As an enrolled dance student curious about topics beyond physicality, I felt alienated from the division having to discover alternative means of inspiration on my own. Her addition to the faculty gives me hope for students of the following generations to see there doesn't have to only be a physical connection to dance movement to be a student at Juilliard. Movement is everywhere and the monopolizing perspective of dance purpose to be on stage is confining to creatives with in the field of dance. I am honored to be the first class that this door is being opened for.”
—Juilliard Student