Michelle Rocqet Attends Berklee NYC for Masters

OK FRANDS!

 

This September, I will be making the big ol' move to New York City to pursue a Masters Degree in Writing & Design for Musical Theater at Berklee College of Music (NYC).

 

*insert happy dance here*

 

"WHAT'S THE STORY MORNING GLORY?"

 

Me and Musical Theater:

My oldest brother took me to my first Broadway show when I was fourteen. We sat way up on a balcony, and I will never forget the awe and elation I felt when I heard "Seasons of Love" from Jonathon Larson's RENT, for the first time. I realized in that precise moment what it meant to have urgency in music. What it meant to be a storyteller at a level that was so beyond what I had previously imagined. After that, I was so enraptured in the magic of Musical Theater that I auditioned for my High School theater program (Troupe 1096 wussup), went to the young Thespian Conventions, consumed Original Broadway Cast Recordings awkwardly piecing together the story through the soundtrack, and I watched every bad movie musicals that came out at the time. I was even a camp counselor at a small (but mighty) performing arts camp called DPAC for nearly a decade, where I self-examined tons of musical theatre songs and even performed a song or two myself. I had plans to pursue musical theater performance after High School and apply to all the big colleges that supposedly made little broadway stars.

 

 

"ON MY OWN"

 

As I was looking into programs during my senior year, I began to realize that Asian Americans were vastly underrepresented within the Theater industry as a whole. It was (and still is) rare to see Asian characters that aren't some exhausted Asian stereotype or involved in some type of white idolatry. "According to the Asian American Performers Action Coalition, in the 2018-19 theatrical season in New York City, Asian American actors were cast in just 6.3 percent of all available roles, Asian American playwrights and musical theatre writers made up just 4.9 percent of all writers produced, and Asian American directors oversaw just 4.5 percent of all productions." Yikes.

 

So I resigned my dreams of a life in Musical Theater because they were gridlocked by an industry that refused to see me as a whole person. I didn't think I would be able to thrive in this career being who I was, so I went on to study Recording Arts at CU Denver and shifted my adoration of Musical Theatre to "fan" rather than aspirant. I went to shows whenever possible, continued championing bad musical movie adaptations, and moved away from it. Afterwards, I headed into an abundantly fun fifteen year stretch as a musician, producer, and songwriter. 

 

 

"DEFYING GRAVITY"

 

TikTok

Fast forward to 2021...I started to create these seemingly innocuous videos that combined my love for 2000's music and Musical Theater. Much to my shock, it received millions of views, eighty thousand new followers, and the feeling of a new digital community of mega nerds like me. I'll admit I had weird feelings about all of it when it first started. You go from invisible to visible quickly and naturally, you feel a little freaky outtie. But over time, it has been equal parts healing and revealing to share this dorky love. I started with covers of pop songs and sang them in a musical theater style. I then started to write my own short originals, such as potato the musical. Probably the most ridiculous AND best thing I've written to date. We are writing ourselves back into the narrative.

 

You can watch more videos here

 

Here's a recent article that came out on popsugar.com about accidental virality and finding digital community:

 

 

 

"I AM NOT THROWING AWAY MY SHOT..."

 

Berklee NYC: Writing & Design for Musical Theater

I've known of Berklee's prestigious reputation my whole life, and when I heard about this graduate program, I knew immediately that I wanted to apply. The main campus of Berklee is famously in Boston, but this is a new satellite campus in the heart of New York City. Only housing three specialized graduate programs. One of which is Writing & Design for Musical Theater. I did not apply to any other schools because I knew this program could uniquely foster who I am as a student and artist. It's a year-long program and I should have something close to a rough draft of a whole dang musical a year from now. I am one of 20 students accepted, being led by a staff of wildly competent educators and industry professionals.

 

Here is my 4 minute statement of purpose that I made for my application! It's me smooshing in lots of information as to why I applied to Berklee in the first place:

 

 

I was awarded a very generous merit scholarship that covers about 75% of my total tuition costs. Because I am rehabilitating my student loans, I do not qualify for federal financial aid until the start of the spring semester. The most significant financial lift for me to attend will be within the first 6-9 months of being in school until I can apply for loans at the start of 2023.

 

My Money Don't Jiggle Jiggle, It Folds:

This is a gigantic sum of money! It was difficult for me to wrap my own head around when I tallied it up over and over again. But with the encouragement of my family and friends, here we are! Wow. In the spirit of transparency, this figure represents costs for:

 

 

 

"HOW DO YOU MEASURE? MEASURE YOUR LIFE IN LOVE."

 

You can contribute in so many ways, even if it's not monetarily. Sharing this link or just DMing me an encouraging word will make this process more connected and joyous. And for those of you who are able to contribute in $, thank you so much for believing in me and I won't let you down, coach.

 

If you made it this far and still don't know who I am or how you got here, that's totally cool. I get it.

 

So here is my CV/Resume and Updated Portfolio for funsies if you want to self-elect into a rabbit hole of my past musical projects and professional experience.

 

Thank you all so stinkin' much.

 

Warmly,

M

 

 

 

 

 

 

cover photo by: @stephmathenaphoto