 At eighteen, Keeslar moved from Adrian, Michigan to New York City to attend the Juilliard School.The Juilliard faculty had selected him to fill one of twenty spots in Group 24, the twenty-fourth class to participate in Juilliard's rigorous acting program.Along with the group projects Matt performed at Juilliard, he also played the title role in a touring production of Molière's Don Juan, directed by Joseph Chaiken; produced and starred in a student production of "Waiting for Godot"; and participated in several interdepartmental productions.