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Keep Amber at AADA

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My name is Amber Brookes and I am a 26 year old English, International Student, studying at The American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City. The American Academy of Dramatic Arts is the oldest acting school in the English speaking world, founded in 1884. It's alumni include some of the most famous actors in the world, such as Princess Grace Kelly, Anne Hathaway, Danny DeVito, Paul Rudd and Jessica Chastain just to name a few. It would be a once in a lifetime opportunity for me to train here, and would be an imperative step towards my desired career.
However such reputable schooling doesn't come cheap, the tuition is $35,000  (around £25,000) per academic year. I am coming towards the end of my first academic year, which finishes on August 13th. My second year begins around a week later and I simply do not have the finances. I have been lucky enough to be awarded a $12,000 scholarship from school and I will have $4,000 left of the Career Development Loan I took out, which leaves me with $19,000 around (£15,000) left to find within the next 10 weeks.
To fund my first years tuition, which including my housing costs, came up to around $50,000. Myself and my family exhausted all options including loans, fundraising, writing letters to potential sponsors and searching for out of school scholarships and we now unfortunately have nothing left.
If I don't find the money, I will be unable to complete the second year of the program and be unable to graduate. If I can't graduate from school, I cannot stay in America or complete my OPT year - an opportunity after graduate to work in the Theatre/Film/TV industry in New York. This a huge opportunity that could lead to me extending my visa and working as an actress in America for a further three years and/or the foreseeable future. If I can't graduate, I will lose all of these opportunities and essentially have to give up on my dreams and come home. 
Going to AADA isn't just an educational need, or something to boost my career, there is also a very personal motive. From the age of 14 I have suffered from clinical depression, I've been in and out of treatment and on and off medication for the past 11 years. Acting for me became therapeutic and was a way for me to escape from my illness.
I hit rock bottom in January 2018 I was in a very dark place, that genuinely didn't think I'd be able to get myself out of. But I took back control of my life and in the process of doing so I was awarded this opportunity. It has proved to me that no matter how bad things get, there is always a way out. It's shown me that my illness can't defeat me, even when it tells me I'm not good enough. I didn't think I'd be able to do this in my wildest dreams, but I've managed to prove myself wrong so far.  It would devastate me to have to come home now, when I have made it so far.
If I manage to raise some money, but not enough to keep me here, I will donate what I do raise to the mental health charity Mind on my return home.

Thank-you so much

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Donations 

  • Mandy Brookes
    • £100 
    • 5 yrs
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Amber Brookes
Organizer
England

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