Juilliard Presents Livestreamed Celebration Of Collaboration And Creativity With Virtual Gala

Juilliard presents its first-ever Virtual Gala on Monday, October 5, 2020, at 7pm, celebrating the creativity and unparalleled excellence that is Juilliard in the studio, on stage, and in the virtual space. The evening features students from the school's dance, drama, music, and preparatory divisions in a dynamic series of collaborative performances, paired with a starry roster of Juilliard faculty and alumni. This event will be free and available to all for viewing at gala.juilliard.edu.

"Juilliard is doing the extraordinary-pivoting in this moment and reaching new heights of artistic innovation and collaboration," said Juilliard President Damian Woetzel. "This special occasion is dedicated to providing new resources for scholarships for our young artists, who need support in achieving their full potential now more than ever. Our virtual performance will honor the talent across the school, from our Music Advancement Program and Pre-College students who are just starting their artistic journey, to the gifted musicians, actors, and dancers in the college who are honing their craft and expanding their artistry, to our remarkable faculty and alumni paving new pathways out in the world."

The gala program was conceived by President Woetzel and directed by Marcus Institute for Vocal Arts faculty member Mary Birnbaum and is bookended by two filmed performance pieces created especially for this occasion. Opening the evening, the Juilliard Orchestra and Juilliard Jazz Orchestra will join together in the Midwestern Moods movement of alumnus Wynton Marsalis' Swing Symphony, conducted by David Robertson, director of conducting studies and distinguished visiting faculty at Juilliard. The evening will culminate in a new audio and visual conception of alumnus Philip Glass' "Knee Play 5" from Einstein on the Beach, arranged by alumnus and Creative Associate Nico Muhly and performed by Glass, Muhly, alumna Lorraine Toussaint, alumnus Tim Fain, alumna and Creative Associate Nadia Sirota, alumna Alex Sopp, and a company of Juilliard instrumentalists, singers, and actors who range from students in the Preparatory Division to alumni.

The rest of the gala program will showcase highlights from the 2019-20 school year including a look back at alumna Renée Fleming's February 2020 master class with singers from Juilliard's Marcus Institute for Vocal Arts; a behind-the-scenes look at choreographer and alumna Amy Hall Garner's Sight & Sound from New Dances: Edition 2019 with Alicia Graf Mack, dean and director of the dance division; a tribute to President's Medal recipient, civil rights leader, and former Juilliard clarinet student Clarence B. Jones; a salute to Historical Performance's 10th anniversary season; the Juilliard Orchestra's virtual performance of "Nimrod" from Elgar's Enigma Variations, conducted by faculty member and alumnus Itzhak Perlman; and a glimpse into the making of Bolero Juilliard, the stunning virtual collaboration directed and choreographed by Larry Keigwin and Nicole Wolcott that has amassed more than 3.6 million views online since it was published in April 2020.

All told, the performances in the gala feature hundreds of students and alumni who have filmed themselves at locales around the world to create this event in support of Juilliard's scholarship funds. Approximately 90 percent of current Juilliard college students qualify for and receive financial aid; the proceeds from the annual gala will go directly to the Juilliard Scholarship Fund, helping to ensure the education of the next generation of performing artists. Donations to the gala can be made at giving.juilliard.edu/gala.

Honorary chairs for the gala are cello alumnus Yo-Yo Ma and Jill Hornor. The gala co-chairs are the Arnhold Family, Katherine Farley and Jerry I. Speyer, Clarence B. Jones and Lin Walters, Suzie and Bruce Kovner, Katheryn Patterson and Thomas Kempner Jr., Jeffrey Seller and Joshua Lehrer, and Deborah Simon.

*Invitations to the pre-show toast are based on giving level.

About The Juilliard School
Founded in 1905, The Juilliard School is a world leader in performing arts education. Juilliard's mission is to provide the highest caliber of artistic education for gifted musicians, dancers, and actors from around the world so that they may achieve their fullest potential as artists, leaders, and global citizens.

Located at Lincoln Center in New York City, Juilliard offers undergraduate and graduate degrees in dance, drama (acting and playwriting), and music (classical, jazz, historical performance, and vocal arts). Currently more than 800 artists from 40 states and 41 countries are enrolled at Juilliard, where they appear in more than 700 annual performances in the school's five theaters; at Lincoln Center's Alice Tully and David Geffen halls and at Carnegie Hall; as well as other venues around New York City, the country, and the world. Beyond its New York campus, Juilliard is defining new directions in global performing arts education for a range of learners and enthusiasts through The Tianjin Juilliard School and K-12 educational curricula.