Alumni Profiles

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Jessica Cerullo, MFA Theater: Contemporary Performance

When Jessica Cerullo came to Naropa, she had already trained in Russia and the United Kingdom, as well as worked in small companies and regional theaters within the United States. She had, however, grown wary of performing other peoples' work and "wanted to find a way to be directly involved in the content and quality" of the production.

"I wanted to make my own work but I didn't have the resources or the knowledge or the confidence to do it," she says. "I already had training and experience as an actor so I wasn't looking to learn about an acting technique or the business of acting. I wanted to go to a place that trusted me to integrate what I already knew into the teachings that the program offered. I wanted a school that would support me as an individual artist who was struggling to find her voice. I wanted to be challenged by the other students who would be making art different from my own, and I wanted to find future collaborators. The meditation component was also a strong draw for me. I didn't have a regular practice before attending Naropa but I do now and it is invaluable."

The investment clearly paid off, as Jessica is now performing in her own play Miracle Tomato as it tours the country. "This play began as a part of my thesis at Naropa and it provides communities where I perform with an opportunity to celebrate their local farms, foods and culture," she says. "Naropa gave me the courage to trust my artists' voice when it asked me to write a play about a fruit/vegetable. It also gave me the confidence to ask more of an audience. In 2009 I will work with the Improbable Theater on 'Devoted and Disgruntled', an open space forum for the New York theater community.

"Investing the time and money in a Naropa MFA was the biggest gift I ever gave to myself. Classes were difficult, relationships were difficult, but I never regretted my choice to be there."