Written by Alexandra Pullen
September 8th, 2013
Shoot for Change Takes NYFW
As an apprentice with American Ballet Theatre, I’m no longer a student and therefore no longer need the money that the Shoot for Change Scholarship offered to cover my tuition. But I’m so excited that the scholarship is continuing to make dreams possible for other aspiring dancers.
During this past fashion week, I invited one of my best friends, Isabel, to attend a fashion show with me. At the time, I had no idea about the significance of going to a fashion show with her.
Two days later, we all learned that the second recipient of the Shoot for Change Scholarship was Isabel!
Isabel is the perfect candidate for this particular scholarship because not only is she a fantastic dancer, she also has impeccable and unique taste in fashion. I could not be more excited for her! She’s so creative at piecing together beautiful looks, composed of quirky elements that she accumulates from various thrift stores. Also, next NYFW we’ll get to go together the entire week! Everybody wins.
Isabel showed up at my apartment in one of her ethereal looks: a long romantic-style lace white skirt with timeless accessories, like her vintage Chanel shoulder bag, to complete her ensemble. Suffice it to say, she looked stunning. As we walked across the plaza (fresh out of the disgusting subway), photographers snapped our photos, handed us business cards, and demanded our names. Were the photographers mistaking us for actual important people? I always thought the street photographers only photographed quasi-celebrities (reality stars and such), not average people like me. I shouldn’t flatter myself, because I knew the photographers wouldn’t have looked at me twice had I not been accompanied by drop-dead gorgeous Isabel!
Having been slowed down by all of the photographers, we rushed into the 9 PM Emerson runway show at 9:20. I assured Isabel not to worry because the shows ALWAYS start fashionably late. The looks were very young and fresh, and the music made the experience all the more exciting! Isabel was shocked to be leaving the theatre at 9:45, considering it started at 9:30. Even more bewildering to her was that 15 minutes would be considered a long show.
On our way out, the infamously cutthroat Kelly Cutrone, PR maven, asked us how our experience was. I don’t know what was more exciting — the fact that Kelly Cutrone approached us or that she was actually nice!
Isabel was gushing the whole way home and she had officially been bitten by the NYFW bug!
PHOTO: Fashiontographer’s Editor-in-Chief Walter Grio with Isabel Deyo (2013 scholarship recipient) and Alexandra Pullen (2012 scholarship recipient).
+ READ MORE FROM ALEXANDRA PULLEN
Alexandra Pullen was born in Nashville, Tennessee, and was raised in Chicago, Illinois, where she began her initial ballet training at a local community center. Pullen studied at Dance Center Evanston, Evanston School of Ballet, and Chicago Ballet Arts, and also at the Ruth Page School of Dance, where she joined their company, the Civic Ballet of Chicago. She trained on scholarship at the Joffrey Academy of Ballet in Chicago under Anna Reznik and Alexei Kremnev. She toured with the Joffrey Trainees to perform as Clara in The Nutcracker Suite. She studied on scholarship at summer programs of the San Francisco Ballet School, School of American Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, and American Ballet Theatre. In 2012, Pullen competed in the Youth America Grand Prix Chicago Semi-Finals and received a gold medal in the classical category and a silver medal in the contemporary category. She was a Finalist in New York City. In September 2012, Pullen was awarded the Shoot for Change Scholarship to attend the Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis School at ABT, and joined ABT Studio Company two weeks later.
Pullen joined ABT as an apprentice in 2013.
