Applications are CLOSED for the Deon Nielsen Price Tuition Scholarship for the 2023-2024 school year.
Our Scholarship Selection Committee is reviewing applicants to determine the recipient,
to be announced on June 3, 2023.
Our Scholarship Selection Committee is reviewing applicants to determine the recipient,
to be announced on June 3, 2023.
About the Scholarship Award
75% Tuition Scholarship awarded to 1 applicant for the 2023-2024 school year at West Point Ballet
Eligible applicants included any current student of West Point Ballet aged 8 and older.
Application deadline: May 1, 2023 (CLOSED)
Recipient announced June 3, 2023
Eligible applicants included any current student of West Point Ballet aged 8 and older.
Application deadline: May 1, 2023 (CLOSED)
Recipient announced June 3, 2023
About the Program
The Deon Nielsen Price Tuition Scholarship is awarded annually to one student of West Point Ballet who demonstrates dedication to their academic studies and commitment to refining their artistry as a dancer. Funded by Utah Theatre Ballet 501(c)(3), the scholarship program aims to emphasize the importance of arts education and the life skills that ballet training brings to a developing student.
Arts education immensely enriches and improves the lives of young people. Studies show that students in arts programs achieve better academic outcomes than their peers without arts involvement. The skills taught in ballet — focus, applying constructive criticism, hard work, creative expression, storytelling — transcend the classroom and apply to so many areas in a student’s life.
This scholarship fund was created and named in honor of Dr. Deon Nielsen Price, the renowned pianist, composer, educator, and author. Dr. Price is a lifelong member of the arts community who played a crucial role in founder Juliana Martin’s arts education, and was influential in the creation of West Point Ballet.
Arts education immensely enriches and improves the lives of young people. Studies show that students in arts programs achieve better academic outcomes than their peers without arts involvement. The skills taught in ballet — focus, applying constructive criticism, hard work, creative expression, storytelling — transcend the classroom and apply to so many areas in a student’s life.
This scholarship fund was created and named in honor of Dr. Deon Nielsen Price, the renowned pianist, composer, educator, and author. Dr. Price is a lifelong member of the arts community who played a crucial role in founder Juliana Martin’s arts education, and was influential in the creation of West Point Ballet.
Scholarship Selection Committee
Ashley Ivory Parov
Ashley Ivory Parov began her early ballet training with Zola Dishong and Richard Cammack at the Contra Costa Ballet Centre in Walnut Creek, California. At the age of 13, Ms. Parov was accepted as a full scholarship student at the San Francisco Ballet School (SFBS) where she trained under the direction of Lola DeAvila, Gloria Govrin, Sandra Jennings, Pascale LeRoy, Shannon Breshnahan, Jocelyn Vollmar, and Irina Jacobson. While at SFBS, she performed extensively with the San Francisco Ballet in supernumerary, apprentice, and corps de ballet roles. At the age of 16, she was invited to join the company on their summer tour to London and Spain. While on tour, Ms. Parov performed in Helgi Tommasson’s Swan Lake. After returning from tour, she was invited to join the company as an apprentice. Ms. Parov spent the next three seasons as a corps de ballet member dancing in countless performances. After SFB, Ms. Parov received her BA in Dance from Brigham Young University. After graduation she returned to the San Francisco Bay Area to dance for Charles Anderson’s Company C Contemporary Ballet. While at Co C, Ms. Parov danced lead roles in works by Twyla Tharp, David Parsons, Charles Anderson, Val Caniparoli, Michael Smuin, Lar Lubovitch, and Amy Seiwert. In 2016 she graduated with her MFA in Dance from Saint Mary’s College of California with honors. Ms. Parov is a certified Pilates instructor and holds teaching certifications in the Bolshoi Ballet Academy and the ABT® National Training Curriculum.
Deon Nielsen Price, DMA
Deon Nielsen Price, DMA, with degrees from Brigham Young University, University of Michigan, and University of Southern California, has received numerous grants and awards as a prolific, commissioned composer, international performing and recording artist, conductor, educator and author. Dr. Price’s book, Accompanying Skills for Pianists, 2 nd Ed., her albums on Cambria and Navona labels, performance videos, and sheet music for her 275 compositions are available online at culvercrest.com and archived at Brigham Young University. As an advocate for living composers, especially women composers, she is a former president of the International Alliance for Women in Music, and President Emeritus of the National Association of Composers, USA. Currently she serves on the Board of the Interfaith Center at the Presidio of San Francisco, where she is Composer-in-Residence and curator of the concert series held in the beautiful Presidio Chapel.
Kori Wakamatsu
Kori Wakamatsu is an Associate Professor of Dance at Brigham Young University. Before entering higher education, she taught junior high and high school in the Utah public school system. She has had many opportunities to work on collaborative projects such as the Thought of You animation with Ryan Woodward, The Nightingale play with Julia Ashworth, ON SITE mobile dance series with Kate Monson, and Theatre Engine/Dance Engine with Alison Dobbins and Michael Kraczek. She has been published in the Journal of Dance Education, Arts Education Policy Review, and contributed to Ethical Dilemmas in Dance Education: Case Studies in Humanizing Dance Pedagogy. She is married and a mother to three fantastic young human beings.
2023 Application Requirements
We are no longer accepting applications. However, here's a look at what our applicants were required to submit, along with a $20 application fee.
1. Original Choreography
Prompt: Create a solo about something that inspires you. (Could be a person, place, or thing.)
Requirements: Video of a self-choreographed solo. 1 minute long. MP4 or .MOV format. If the file is too large to email, please provide a Google Drive, Dropbox, or Youtube link to the video.
Notes: Music selection should reflect the theme of the choreography and be age-appropriate. Use of costumes is optional; regular class attire is assumed. Must be original choreography; cannot be choreographed or coached by any teacher internal or external to West Point Ballet. May be classical ballet or contemporary ballet. The use of physical acting / storytelling is allowed and encouraged. We want to see dancers’ skill level and technique, as well as their interpretation of the theme, and how they creatively express themselves. (Age and skill level will be taken into account when evaluating applicants. An 8-year-old student should not worry about competing with older applicants; just do their very best at their skill level!)
Prompt: Create a solo about something that inspires you. (Could be a person, place, or thing.)
Requirements: Video of a self-choreographed solo. 1 minute long. MP4 or .MOV format. If the file is too large to email, please provide a Google Drive, Dropbox, or Youtube link to the video.
Notes: Music selection should reflect the theme of the choreography and be age-appropriate. Use of costumes is optional; regular class attire is assumed. Must be original choreography; cannot be choreographed or coached by any teacher internal or external to West Point Ballet. May be classical ballet or contemporary ballet. The use of physical acting / storytelling is allowed and encouraged. We want to see dancers’ skill level and technique, as well as their interpretation of the theme, and how they creatively express themselves. (Age and skill level will be taken into account when evaluating applicants. An 8-year-old student should not worry about competing with older applicants; just do their very best at their skill level!)
2. Short Essay
Prompt: Write about a skill you have developed in ballet class, and how you have applied that skill in other areas of your life.
Requirements: Typed. No more than 1 page. PDF or .docx format. Parents may help younger students type their response, but content should be the student’s.
Prompt: Write about a skill you have developed in ballet class, and how you have applied that skill in other areas of your life.
Requirements: Typed. No more than 1 page. PDF or .docx format. Parents may help younger students type their response, but content should be the student’s.
3. Letter of Recommendation
Requirements: Letter from a teacher (or counselor/administrator) promoting the student’s academic performance, citizenship, or other positive qualities. Typed. PDF or .docx format.
Requirements: Letter from a teacher (or counselor/administrator) promoting the student’s academic performance, citizenship, or other positive qualities. Typed. PDF or .docx format.
4. Demonstration of Academic Achievement
Requirements: Recent report card or progress report. PDF or .docx format (scanned document is fine).
Requirements: Recent report card or progress report. PDF or .docx format (scanned document is fine).
Please email scholarship@utballet.com with any questions about the program.
The 2023 Deon Nielsen Price Tuition Scholarship will be awarded to one (1) student currently attending West Point Ballet or Utah Theatre Ballet as of May 1, 2023. Any student aged 8 and older by May 1, 2023 may apply. The $20 application fee is non-refundable and non-transferrable. The scholarship recipient will be selected by our Scholarship Selection Committee, who are unbiased members of the arts and dance communities. The Scholarship Selection Committee’s decision will not be influenced by any teachers or faculty of West Point Ballet. The recipient will be awarded a tuition scholarship equal to 75% of their specific tuition cost, reducing the amount of their monthly tuition payment. The scholarship is applicable for Fall/Spring tuition for the 2023-2024 school year only, and cannot be used for Summer sessions or studio fees, including but not limited to Registration fees, Performance fees, Costume Rental fees, or Video Recording fees. The tuition credit is non-transferrable and does not hold cash value. The tuition scholarship may not be used in combination with any other tuition discounts. If the recipient withdraws from West Point Ballet during the school year, the remainder of the Tuition Scholarship will be forfeit.
West Point Ballet Academy
13865 S 2700 W Unit 217 Bluffdale, UT 84065
support@wpballet.com
Text: 385-355-1198
13865 S 2700 W Unit 217 Bluffdale, UT 84065
support@wpballet.com
Text: 385-355-1198