Lúa Mayenco Cardenal | Life After Juilliard

Postcards From Juilliard Alums

I graduated in 2020 in the living room of my childhood home in Madrid. Call it hard work, luck, or magic, but somehow, after two months, my efforts materialized in a three-week long audition process for Danish Dance Theatre, the main contemporary dance company in Denmark. Six weeks later, I was moving with a couple of suitcases and all the excitement stored up throughout five months of confinement.

August 2022 marks two years since my arrival, and in Copenhagen, I have found a new understanding of love, cultivated with the help of friends and colleagues and supported by all the experiences of my school years. Performances are back and as the company tours, my relationship with the stage grows stronger and richer. My time here has also allowed me to cultivate other passions. Last year, I self-published my illustration and poetry book Pasiones en Pedacitos, a collection of some of my most tender memories of Juilliard. The discoveries I’ve made through the challenges of my drawing and writing have enriched my journey through dance and choreography, rounding my practice and becoming a source of inspiration.

I found peace by making space for other aspects of my personal life to influence and shape my artistic voice. As my journey of self-discovery unfurls, I aim to continue creating with those around me. Music, film, photography, fashion—the fields continue intertwining and I couldn’t be happier to find myself in the middle. I would like to share with you the peace found in allowing other aspects of my personal life to take more space and influence the shaping of my artistic voice.

Lúa Mayenco Cardenal (BFA '20, dance)