Tisch Special Programs Blog

What a difference a semester with Tisch makes!

In 2009 Jourdan Hurst was a student in the Spring at Tisch program. Today, she’s back at The University of Texas at Austin, reminiscing about the semester that changed her life.

The West Village in New York City.

Here’s Jourdan’s letter to Angela Pietropinto, director of the Open Arts Studio: Acting for Stage and Screen:

Dear Angela,

I hope you’re having a great start to 2010 and are off to a wonderful new semester at Tisch. As I begin my spring (and last!!) semester, I cannot help but be reminded of where I was a year ago and how much I’ve grown from an incredibly naive, thin-skinned southern gal to a self-assured, independent adult (arguably). My time spent with Spring at Tisch was beyond fulfilling and full of memories I still love to reflect on. I entered my senior year at UT [University of Texas at Austin] with more confidence than ever before, and a much better idea of where I want to be in the industry. My decisions to pursue entertainment law and get back to the city that stole my heart away largely have to do with the experiences I have been able to draw upon from your program. Furthermore, such experiences and fun-filled stories have served me well in several internship and employment opportunities in Dallas and Austin.

Again, thank you for some of my fondest memories. I just wanted to let you know the profound impact you and the other instructors had upon me. Honestly, I don’t think there’s a day that goes by where I don’t recall some exciting aspect of last spring. Take care!

Warmest Regards,
Jourdan V. Hurst
BS, Corporate Communication
The University of Texas at Austin

Spring at Tisch is an opportunity for undergraduates at other colleges and universities to spend their spring semester at New York University Tisch School of the Arts in New York City and study acting, dramatic writing, filmmaking, photography, or the moving image in cinema studies.

Need to be in New York City? Watch these videos.

Angela Pietropinto discusses life in New York City.

What’s the best thing about going to school in New York City?

Some exciting announcements about the 2010 edition of the Next Reel International Film Festival coming up in Singapore, 31 January – 5 February.

We are pleased to announce that Oliver Stone, the Academy Award winning filmmaker, will be the guest of honor at the opening night of the Next Reel International Film Festival 2010. A special screening of one of his films will be held 31 January 2010 followed by a Q&A with the director. More details on this event will be released soon.

For more information visit www.nextreel.org.

Check out the festival trailer here:

Students from across New York University joined the Tisch School of the Arts All School Choir. Here are a few photos from the Drama Cantorum under the direction of Ralph Affoumado.

Photo Credit: Marius Shanzer

Photo Credit: Marius Shanzer

Photo Credit: Marius Shanzer

Check out the full album on Facebook.

The Tisch All School Choir is a 2-point course offered through the Open Arts curriculum.

Hannelore Williams, instructor for the Tisch School of the Arts Open Arts Curriculum course Acting for the Camera, was recently cast in a guest starring role on the new television series Louie. The show stars the comedian Louis C.K. and will air on FX starting in March.

More details to come.

Angela Pietropinto

Angela Pietropinto, New York University Tisch School of the Arts Open Arts studio director, will be on the episode of Law and Order entitled “Fed.” The episode airs tonight at 8 p.m. on NBC.

The New York Times today tells us about mask-changing, a Chinese opera tradition in the Sichuan province that dates back 300 years.

An image from a Chinese opera performance.

This art is truly unique, and so are the courses in Chinese art and culture New York University Tisch School of the Arts is offering in 2010: History of Dance and Performance in China, Steps, Rhythm and Movement of Chinese Dance, and Topics in Chinese Culture. Students may also study abroad in China for one semester and train in the Chinese acting program, East Acts West: An Eastern Approach to Western Performance. These courses introduce students to the artistic legacy of the Chinese culture, and the social and political movements that have influenced art in China.

This might take the Captain Obvious award, but one of the greatest things about a semester-long program abroad is the opportunity to live in an unfamiliar city for a few months. That is, to get to know a foreign city like you know your own — memorize the street names just because you pass them every day, discover where to find the best pancakes and beer (usually, they’re in different places), know which way to look when crossing the street.

In Dublin, I wanted my life to feel normal. Not to feel the same as life in New York — if that’s even possible — but to feel like real life and not just a long vacation. I bought toothpaste, went grocery shopping. I went to the gym, and skipped going to the gym. Life went on mostly as usual, but with better accents, better Guinness and a lot more rain.

Part of that, for me, was yoga classes. (I don’t mean to make myself sound more hardcore than I really am — I don’t get up at 4 every morning to practice my ashtanga, but I do like a Downward Dog now and again.) One problem: everything is more expensive in Dublin, and even in New York I could usually afford only the donation-based classes. So I decided to do what they did in the days when time really did equal money: barter.

The studio, Samadhi Yoga, was conveniently located right next to my flat — I could pretty much see into their windows from mine. One day — when Corpse Pose was finally getting old — I just walked in and asked if I could clean the studio once a week in exchange for free class, and (after some phone calls and emails back and forth) the director, Greg, said yes. I’d go in before class on Friday mornings to mop the floor, and in exchange I got to take an excellent Ashtanga class every week.

The moral of the story? There are some venues where elbow grease goes as far as Euros. Sure, yoga people are pretty mellow, and I only tried the trade there, but give it a shot at other places you want to get in — you never know (my guess would be theatres — some places let you usher and see a show for free).

On a similar note, a few students also got involved in writer Roddy Doyle’s Fighting Words, an organization that provides free creative writing tutoring to kids in the area. Look into it if you feel like swapping a few free hours for that warm fuzzy feeling.

Anna K. Jacobs, at right, works on the musical "Pop!" with fellow members of the creative team

Anna K. Jacobs, a 2008 graduate of the MFA program in Musical Theatre Writing at New York University Tisch School of the Arts, was recently featured in the New York Times for her role as composer of the new musical “Pop!,” currently in performance at the Yale Repertory Theatre.

Prior to becoming a feature in the theater’s 2009-10 season, the musical was part of the school’s summer institute, and, according to the Times it “struck such a chord with James Bundy, dean of the drama school and artistic director of the Yale Repertory Theater, that he and his associates decided to mount a full-scale production of ‘Pop!’ there this season,” and that “it will be the first new musical at the theater since ‘Thunder Knocking at the Door’ and ‘The Triumph of Love’ during its 1996-97 season.”

The article quotes Anna as saying that the Graduate Musical Theatre Writing program at Tisch School of the Arts “felt like being part of a community…like a little Warhol family.”

Those interested in being  part of this collaborative program can take classes at Tisch in musical theatre writing during the summer.

Tisch School of the Arts Open Arts instructor Aly Rose jazzed things up at her audition in 1995 at the Beijing Dance Academy in China. Dancing to Peggy Lee’s “Fever” with a choreography that she says resembled cabaret, Aly was ambitious and daring.

Aly was accepted to the school but was warned she would not receive special treatment and must do things the “Chinese way.”

Today, she is still the only Westerner to graduate from the Academy. And her aerial art? Just as daring.

Read more about how east and west converge for choreographer and director Aly Rose in the latest issue of the Claremont McKenna College Magazine.

Aly Rose teaches History of Dance and Performance in China and Steps, Rhythm, and Movement of Chinese Dance at the Tisch School in New York City.

Ten Irish acts were selected to have their music videos made by students in the New York University Tisch School of the Arts Dublin music video program. The bands are Neosupervital, Sweet Jane, The Ghandis, Heathers, Director, David Geraghty, I Phoenix, Deadbots, Delorentos, Vengeance and the Panther Queen.

Louise and Ellie MacNamara of Heathers tells The Ticket, Irish Times “We’re so grateful for this opportunity. The program seems like a really great idea.”

Shooting started this week and the finished videos will be screened at an event in Dublin in December.

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