Enlightened by Theatre - Harvard - College admissions essay help course
Hometown: Suzhou, China
High School: Private school, 120 students in graduating class
Ethnicity: Asian
Gender: Male
GPA: 7.0 out of 7.0
SAT: Reading 720, Math 800, Writing 730
ACT: n/a
SAT Subject Tests Taken: Mathematics Level 2, Chemistry, Physics
Extracurriculars: Student Council of UWC USA, Far East representative, charter initiator; Chinese/Hong Kong Community at UWC USA, Chinese father; math games with children instructor; UWC USA news writer
Awards: Graduate of Excellence, Excellent Student Leader of Suzhou City
Major: Economics
College admissions essay help course
“Few in millions can speak like us,” I said to King Alonso, as his loyal chancellor Gonzalo.
Under the spotlight, I wore a fluffy, emerald robe and an exquisite, shining sword, with an artificial beard on my face and a wooden crutch in my hand. I was excitedly acting my role and performing the story, together with my classmates. When King Alonso started his monologue, I glanced at the audience: my friends, my teachers and many other visitors from the nearby community. They all gathered on this evening in the auditorium of UWC-USA to appreciate Shakespeare’s famous work, The Tempest, played by the first-year theatre students, who had been preparing this show for months.
At the end of the performance when we the actors and actresses bowed to the audience and enjoyed the thunderous applause, I felt really proud and grateful to be a theatre student at UWC-USA.
Just eight months ago, when my academic mentor suggested that I take theatre as one of my IB courses, I hesitated a lot. As a Chinese student raised with standard Chinese education, I had doubts: could theatre possibly become part of my academics? Even so, could a non-native English speaker survive in such a speaking-oriented class? Worried and apprehensive, I joined the theatre class to “have a try.” Surprisingly, I found it to be an eye-opening experience as I began to learn about different practices and practitioners of theatre, to gain professional performing skills, and to successfully collaborate with my classmates. It is in this theatre class at UWC that I am able to totally explore my potential talents in theatre, something that is repressed back home.
Theatre is deemed “irrelevant” by both Chinese high schools and Chinese parents, who believe that only natural and social sciences are the basic knowledge students should master to make a living in the future. Therefore, unless I had accomplished my academic goals set by my parents and teachers, I was discouraged from participating in any theatre shows. Even more frustrating is that the prompt and contents of the shows in Chinese high schools are so restricted that only short, comedic skits which reflect students’ lives are allowed on stage. Although the opportunity was limited, I still grabbed as many chances as possible to perform, simply out of my passion to express myself and to bring joy to the audience.
The atmosphere is absolutely different at UWC; not only can theatre be part of students’ academics but also acting is respected and praised. I attain confidence and happiness through the regular study and performance of theatre, and enjoy the sense of achievement a lot after my classmates and I together made this amazing show, The Tempest.
For the first time, I overcame my language obstacle to master a script of Shakespeare. For the first time, I put makeup on my face and dressed in a formal theatre costume to act a role with a distinctive personality. For the first time, I sensed the power of theatre that offered me a way to experience the culture and history of Shakespeare’s era. Only after The Tempest did I realize that theatre, to me, is as essential as natural and social sciences, for it provides me with another perspective to understand the world. Furthermore, it also demonstrates and strengthens the part of my identity which dares to take an adventure, to face a challenge, and to make a difference in the end. The Tempest was not just a tempest on stage, but a tempest on my heart.
I am fortunate to have this realization. Indeed, few in millions can speak like I do.
REVIEW
The essay addresses culture in all senses of the word through extremely descriptive sensory language, and an interesting perspective on the expectations of the author’s family, his culture, and himself. The author subtly acknowledges a few of his positive attributes in the second paragraph, with months of preparation pointing to extreme dedication and discipline to his craft. However, the characteristic that remains central throughout the essay is the author’s bravery.
He challenges the beliefs of his culture by pursuing a craft that has been deemed frivolous and unnecessary. Regardless of the author’s passion, he is expected to put his academics first. But, by pushing the limits of his culture’s beliefs, and overcoming numerous obstacles, including speaking English as a second language in a Shakespearian play, the author shows tremendous courage, and that he is adventurous and independent in his thoughts and actions. These attributes are important to an admissions officer, who understands that students who are willing to take risks and think for themselves are often the most successful.
Though the author provides a great deal of cultural context in his essay, and it is for the most part very well crafted, the piece loses momentum at the end. In an attempt to summarize the impact that this experience has had on the author’s life, the paragraph falls short of bridging a genuine connection with the reader, because it reads like a laundry list of key points.
However, the cheeky last line refers back to the very first, ambiguous line of the essay, and leaves the reader feeling satisfied that the writing has come full circle.
From 50 Successful Harvard Application Essays, 5th Edition edited by the Staff of the Harvard Crimson. Copyright (c) 2017 by the authors and reprinted by permission of St. Martin's Publishing Group.
