Artist Profile: Jennifer Greenfield

Jennifer Greenfield has been performing in plays and playing the piano for several years, and as this senior prepares to graduate, The Voice got the opportunity to ask her about her start in art. Here is what she shared with us in an interview.
The Voice: What first got you interested in theater and music?
JG: Well, I’ve always been a very imaginative child. I started reading at a very early age which helped create the foundation of my vivid imagination. I literally played dress up until 6th grade. So, my imagination and dramatic nature have been evident from any early age. My grandma pulled her old keyboard out of the attic one day and let me have it. My mom says I used to freak her out because I would start playing a song I had heard playing in a store. There was one time when I started playing the song “Every Breath You Take” that I had heard earlier that day in Noah’s Bagels when I was in third grade, I think.
When I was a wee freshman, I was very gung ho about Speech and Debate. I won third place in my first novice tournament in Original Oratory. But after a while, I realized it wasn’t Speech and Debate that I wanted to do, but acting. Somewhere, Mr. Case is crying in a corner. Tears of joy, perhaps?

The Voice: Do you want a career involving theater and music?
JG: I don’t know what I want to do. On my list of goals, between marrying Harry Potter and winning an Oscar, I’d like to pursue a career as an actress. But I know that it’s a very difficult field to get into, so I want to make sure I have back up plans.

The Voice: Are you planning on studying theater or music in college next year?
JG: The thing is I’ve got so many options open. I like acting, reading, writing, design, drawing and painting, public speaking, and so I don’t want to pigeonhole myself into one major. But I know that whatever I do, I want to be able to express my creativity. I could never be stuck in a cubicle.
I definitely want to be involved in theater in college. I don’t know if I want to major in it. I haven’t declared anything as my major.

The Voice: Which do you prefer—acting or playing the piano?
JG: Oh, that’s a loaded question. The thing about acting is that I can only really do it when I’m part of a cast, when performing. Of course, I act everyday among my peers. But, most of time I only act when part of a play. However, piano is something I can do every day. When I come home I can sit down at my piano and play for hours. It’s such a stress reliever for me. I’m going to be noncommittal and not decide between the two.

The Voice: Who are your main theatrical or musical influences, and why?
JG: One is definitely Tim Burton. When I went to New York City, I had the opportunity to visit the Museum of Modern Art and the Tim Burton exhibit there. I look up to him because he’s so talented, not only at directing, but also as an artist, an illustrator, a writer and a film maker.
The other is George Winston. He’s a contemporary piano player whom I’ve seen in concert twice. I love his piano playing style. One of the songs he played was sort of a jazzy tune, and it inspired me to remix Lady Gaga’s Pokerface.

The Voice: Do you perform in other locations?
JG: Yes, I play piano for children’s first communion masses at St. Christopher and for graduations. I also like playing piano every opportunity I get on vacations. Last summer, my family and I took a trip to Glacier National Park. Where we were staying, there was a huge grand piano that was 100 years old. I asked at the front desk if I could play it, and I had a great time entertaining the guests.

The Voice: What inspired you to create such an eclectic mix of songs for the Talent Show this year?
JG: Well, I’ve wanted to perform for the Talent Show ever since Elaine Higashi played that spiffy medley on the electric violin for the Talent Show a few years ago. Ever since then, I’ve been sort of thinking of what I would want to do for the Talent Show and what songs might sound neat. I actually learned all of the songs separately and then a few months before the Talent Show tryouts, I mooshed them into an arrangement in my mind. The original arrangement was a lot less songs, but as I went through the list in my mind, I kept thinking, “Oh that would sound really cool too, and so would that!” So I kept adding more songs into my mind arrangement.

The Voice: How would your life be different now if you did not participate in theater or play music?
JG: It’s difficult to imagine, because I need some kind of export for my creativity. I’d probably still be involved with clubs on campus, and I would continue doing horseback riding lessons. I’m also very passionate about nature and the environment. I like hiking and taking photos of nature. So if I wasn’t involved so heavily with art and theater, I might get more in touch with my green thumb.

Operation: College Art Supplements

Stanford wants students to write an essay describing themselves for their roommates, while NYU is asking this year for applicants to write about a famous New Yorker they’d like to spend the day with. Students can often spend weeks perfecting a perfect response for the college admission officers to read. It will be, after all, one of the few ways a student can stand out of the thousands of prospective applicants. Every year, however, there are some in the senior class who take on an even more daunting additional task: the art supplement.

The art supplement portion of the college application often requires compositions that involve months of work. The compositions cover a wide range of topics – the visual arts of drawing, painting, photography, and computer graphics as well as the performing arts of music, dance, and theater.

For visual arts, colleges typically require another essay and an art portfolio consisting of at least 10 – 15 pieces of the student’s work. The conditions of the portfolios are as varied as the supplementary essay prompts. Some colleges will give their prospective students free reign, while others have very specific instructions. For example, UCLA requires a self-portrait while the Rhode Island School of Design in the past has asked that all portfolios include a drawing of a bicycle. This year, several Presentation students have become very familiar with the work involved in creating such supplements.

For those who know senior Corinne DiTullio, it comes as no surprise that she has been preparing her art portfolio for four years. The signs were everywhere – the quilt she made for her APUSH project of the events leading up to the Civil War and the dedication she shows collaborating with the Valenzuela Theater to produce the costumes for the school’s productions. For the last seven months, however, she has devoted herself specifically to perfecting her best work for her portfolio.

“My [UCLA] self portrait took over thirty hours,” DiTullio says of her endeavor’s time commitment. “I had a table set up in my room with all my collage pieces and there were some days I would work for eight hours or more on it and stayed up until midnight trying to make progress.”

The time commitment to do the art supplement for the performing arts is just as consuming. To do the music supplement for her colleges, senior Emily Nguyen was required to send in a CD with a professional recording of her work. With piano songs lasting eight minutes each, she practiced for four to six hours a day for a week to make her recording.

“Everyone who submits this supplement is extremely advanced and plays their songs impeccably,” she says as she recalls the experience. “I was so troubled about making it perfect that I had to restart the machine every single time I made a slip or teeny mistake. This meant I spent a lot of time playing and replaying my songs.”

She adds, “You can never procrastinate in music. I definitely put more priority in my college essays, but I regret that I could not completely showcase my abilities.”

The nerve racking demands and the need for perfection also affected DiTullio. Her advice to future seniors considering an artistic future in college?

“My advice would be to start early,” DiTullio says. “I worked over the summer on my portfolio, which really helped me get ahead. If I could change anything, I would have finished even more done in the summer. ”

Nguyen offers further advice for the musical inclined. “If you have an idea of what colleges you want to apply to, research them and see if they accept music supplements,” she says. “Start recording now so you can have plenty of time to perfect your playing. Most importantly, pick pieces you love! If you drudge through a song, the music department heads who will be listening will be able to tell.”

College counselor Mary Connolly says that a dramatic arts portfolio can also give some students an edge in such a competitive admissions environment. While most colleges do not require an audition, it is a way for those interested in a theatrical future to stand out. The National Association for College Admission Counseling knows that many students are unable to easily travel to individual colleges for auditions and so it holds national fairs in exchange. During these one-day events, such as the one held annually in San Francisco in October, prospective students can audition for the attending 120 schools.

While some students say they would much rather draw or play music than write an essay, Mrs. Connolly points to the grueling process of spending time alone for hours on end. As she says, “It’s not like going to art therapy.” Still, despite the extra time and effort above and beyond Pres’ already grueling requirements, these students all say that they hope their work will pay off with an acceptance letter this spring.

music clips from Emily Nguyen’s music portfolio