2010-2011 Auditions

College Majors Musical Theater Major
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<p>Because we so appreciate the information shared from previous years, and knowing that things change over time, here is the story of “A Day in the Life of a B-W Audition.” To those who’ve posted great information in the past, this is my attempt to thank you…</p>

<p>Anyway…Baldwin-Wallace’s audition has a reputation for being a very supportive day…and it was. It was also a very long day. At Saturday’s audition (first of the year for the school) there were 53 prospective MT students, and they will take 10-15 students for next year. There are 5 additional audition dates, which typically are more crowded. </p>

<p>Parents and kids were separated at checkin, with parents being taken to their own information and Q&A session with students and faculty, a campus tour, and a nice lunch provided by the college. It was a pleasant, low-key morning for the adults.</p>

<p>Kiddo got her audition schedule when she arrived (she was really wishing she could have had it ahead of time, so she’d have an idea of how the day would go, but it worked out fine). Kids also had an info session, then she did her musical theatre skills test, followed shortly after by her piano test. She then had a bit of a break before her monologue and singing audition. </p>

<p>A lovely thing that BW does is to have a current student to be with them during part of the day, to answer questions, make sure they get into a practice room to warm up, and keep them company in the hallway before their audition. That student then walks into the room with them, introduces them, and cheers for their audition after it’s over. She really, really, really appreciated that. </p>

<p>The kids were given a box lunch, then were taken into one of the concert halls to observe a master class with David Krasner, a talent agent from The Mine in New York. Parents were also invited to watch this class, and she and I both found it fascinating. The current students are SOOOOOO talented, and it was exciting to see the progression from sophomore to senior. </p>

<p>During the entire day, students were being escorted in and out for their individual auditions. She really appreciated that she was done with all but the dance call before lunch, so she could really enjoy the master class. </p>

<p>The students were walked across campus (from one far corner to another!) for the dance call. She said the ballet teacher (from Julliard) was excellent, and she really enjoyed the jazz combination taught by their new jazz teacher. Then faculty came in to the studio for a Q&A after the dance call, and really spent the time the kids needed to have their questions answered. During this time, parents were invited to a comfy lounge in the same athletic center for a Q&A with a couple parents of currently enrolled students.</p>

<p>Kids were done for the day shortly after 6 pm (after checking in before 9). So yes, a long day, but a really rich, well-thought out day. She should hear one of the infamous 3 answers by the end of December…</p>

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<p>Thanks for the info! It is great to hear! Good luck to your daughter. Quick question, though. What is a “musical theatre skills test?” Also, how “intense” did she say the dance audition was? And what exactly does the piano audition consist of? Thanks so much!</p>

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<p>I was also there yesterday and can give some insight as well. The musical skills was clapping a rhythm and sight singing. They said it has NO bearing on acceptance no matter if you do it perfectly or you can not do it at all, the faculty members making admission decision do not see the scores…or so I was told! For piano, i said I would bring a piece so I just played about 16 measures of a piece I had memorized and I sight read an easy piece on the piano, again no bearing on admissions. As for dance, I think the ballet would be on the more difficult and more daunting side for someone who doesn’t have ballet training, but not hard if you have been in a few ballet classes. Jazz, for me was more challenging because it was more on the hip hop kinda contemporary side with basic jazz steps thrown in but made difficult by the style. I hope that helps, It was a great first audition for me and I really learned a lot about myself and how to keep growing for future auditions.</p>

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<p>Thanks, thiisismegan – as a mom, I’d have no insight into the process except what I heard from the kid. One thing to think about w/B-W is that it is a Bachelor of Music degree, not a BA or BFA…so their whole program is weighted strongly toward music (students give a classical voice recital, as well as an MT voice recital before graduation). However, they are working to be sure students receive a well-rounded MT curriculum – which includes really, really stepping up the dance component – apparently, now there is “ballet boot camp” – a required 7 a.m. ballet class Monday through Thursday and again (if I remember correctly) on Saturdays.</p>

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<p>I also auditioned on saturday, and had an amazing day! The experience was extremely fun, but also really long. Be sure your student has breakfast, and gets a lot of rest the night before-I didn’t eat all day and was starving and exhausted when I was finished! The music skills test was easy, some simple sight reading and rythmn clapping. The dance audition was challenging-the ballet was not difficult, but the jazz was difficult to pick up-and I’ve take six years of jazz! But the dance call was possibly my favourite part of the day. It was very fun and informal.</p>

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<p>A heart-stoppingly thin letter from the conservatory admissions office arrived today. In the envelope was an informational letter from Peter Landgren, Conservatory Director, thanking kiddo for applying to the conservatory and stating some of the benefits of choosing B-W. Once the panic at opening such a slender envelope, one week after auditions passed, subsided, she read it, appreciated the new information to put in the B-W file, and moved on to prep for her performance tonight. </p>

<p>Checking admission status online still says students who auditioned in November will hear by 12/15…</p>

<p>Just wanted to avoid heart failure in others…if a thin letter arrives quickly after an audition for B-W it was (at least in this household) a nice piece of marketing…but no news on the audition results front…</p>

<p>Back to waiting. I feel like a hen sitting on top of a fragile egg!</p>

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<p>Mommafrog, glad to know it was just extra information. I remember some of those heart stopping moments. the wait can be so painful, but just remembe it will all work out in the end.</p>

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<p>Speaking of admissions decision letters generally speaking (not simply Baldwin-Wallace), while the common thinking is that thick envelope means acceptance and thin envelope means rejection, that is NOT always the case!!!</p>

<p>My daughter’s acceptance to Ithaca was in a thin letter sized envelope. </p>

<p>For Emerson, we got the big fat envelope with all the bells and whistles and while it said she was accepted Early Action to Emerson, it said she was deferred for the BFA itself until spring, and since we didn’t realize that was a possible outcome, it was very exciting to open all this stuff up only to find out it wasn’t quite what we thought. </p>

<p>So, the size and thickness of the envelope is not always consistent when it comes to acceptances and rejections and so keep it in mind!</p>

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<p>MommaFrog:
Thanks for posting the note about the thin letter from Baldwin Wallace. My son auditioned for Double Bass the first weekend in November and he just received a very thin envelope from BW. His immediate response was “oh, its a ding letter”. But thanks to you and CC, I was able to tell him its probably just a form letter… And so it was. Good luck with all the auditions and envelopes!</p>

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<p>Has anyone gotten a call about a reception on Thursday? Not quite sure what this means… Very eager to find out! Ahhh!</p>

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<p>Quick note- Baldwin Wallace acceptances come in a big envelope since they include a welcoming folder/packet! =). Good luck on all your upcoming auditions!</p>

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<p>Momofbassist – looks like congratulations are in order! Hooray for you and kid. Stegosaurus – would love to know what the reception was all about – exciting!</p>

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<p>The reception ended up being an accepted students reception! Glad to say I got accepted for both Musical Theatre and Composition! Super exciting, hopefully some more got the acceptance letter??</p>

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<p>My BW audition is on the 22nd of January and this thread helped me ease my nerves at bit. BW is my first choice (: Congrats to those accepted!</p>