New Orleans native accepted into prestigious UK arts school

By Kai Davis
Contributing Writer

Since opening in 1949, The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama will welcome its first New Orleans native, Borris York, who will receive a Master’s in Acting.

“I understand that this achievement of being the first Black American from New Orleans to be accepted into The Royal Welsh is much bigger than me,” said York, in a statement. “It is both a win for this incredible city and Black American culture.”

York, who is from the Lower Ninth Ward, is one of only ten students accepted out of hundreds of applicants from around the world into this prestigious arts program.

BORRIS YORK

“I had been training and working so diligently throughout the entire pandemic to make this dream a reality and when I finally got the acceptance email, I just took a deep breath – said thank you, then I called my mom,” York said.

Prior to the pandemic, York worked in the theater industry on Broadway and performed in national tours, which were all completely shut down for the past year. Many actors like York were left completely unemployed and it was difficult to save for his master’s degree, he said. He started a GoFundMe campaign in order to raise money for the program.

“As a first-generation graduate student, education is extremely important to me because I am dedicated to excellence and continued learning,” York said in a statement. “With so much heartache and negativity happening in our city, it will be extremely refreshing for people to see such a positive story,” York added.

With help from people who believed in York, he now shows that dreams can come true and has learned the importance of representation.

“I’m beyond proud of Borris in this achievement, although there was never a doubt in my mind that he wouldn’t have been accepted. Borris is an exceptional talent and has always worked hard for what he wanted,” said Cody Renard Richard, a Broadway stage manager, producer and colleague who wrote York’s letter of recommendation. “So, when he made his mind up that this was the next step on his journey – I knew it was going to happen,” Richard added.

The Royal Welsh has produced some of today’s most well-known stars including Sir Anthony Hopkins, Rakie Ayola, Ruth Jones and Anthony Boyle. Richard believes the school can do the same for York’s career.

“We are thrilled to have Borris joining us to train at [The] Royal Welsh College in the U.K.,” said Jonathan Munby, the director of Acting at The Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, in a statement. “When Borris graduates from the programme, he will be joining a prestigious group of alumni. We are very excited about the potential future of our Royal Welsh graduates, and especially that of talented performers such as Borris. I can’t wait to see where his journey with us will take him,” Munby added.

York said that he intends to be an example to young Black youth in his native city to show that their dreams in performance and the arts are valid and most importantly show that if he can make it from the Lower Ninth Ward to Broadway and now to The Royal Welsh, that anything is possible.

“It’s a dream come true. It can inspire us all to believe in our dreams and know that with hard work they can become our reality. It doesn’t matter where you come from or what you look like, all you need to do is believe in yourself enough to know that you are worthy,” York said.

This article originally published in the August 9, 2021 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.