2014-2015 Audition Day Review

College Majors Musical Theater Major
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<p>At @mtkellbell 's suggestion (and a good one at that since I was just reading last years thread!) I will start a current thread!</p>

<p>SOUTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY CARBONDALE</p>

<p>Very early in the year so there was only a (literal) handful of kids here. And go figure ... D and the other girl figure out they have a friend in common from some summer program. </p>

<p>We were welcomed personally by the head of the MT program at the front door - by name. :) Kids were shown to a locker room so they could store their backpacks/purses/coats and the parents were ushered swiftly out the door and pointed to the Student Rec Center and Starbucks. (A short walk away - and for the record, I totally agree with getting the parents the heck out of Dodge.) </p>

<p>We were told to come back at 11am - DH and I went back to the hotel as I"m battling a case of the flu (not ebola!) that has very bad timing. When we arrived, we sat and chatted with the mom of the daughter D knew and made small talk. I had known that we were supposed to have a campus tour at around 11am ... and we watched the group of kids walk right past us. I have no idea why we didn't put two and two together (I blame the flu!) but the parents didn't follow. The Prof came back some time after and were like "they forgot you!". Lol!! No big deal though ... the head of the music department wandered by and decided to take us on a tour of the music building.</p>

<p>Are you getting the general idea that this was a VERY personal, one-on-one experience? It really was lovely.</p>

<p>After the parent's personal tour, we were brought back to a classroom and had a great one-on-one (for the most part) conversation w/ the department head. (He even had Jimmy Johns for all of us!)</p>

<p>Here's the scoop on what happened when we were gone ...</p>

<p>The tour ... lead by a MT student so it was VERY tailored to the MT program. Awesome! D asked (and got!) some really good feedback on why she liked SIU's program ... she actually turned down a bigger name school for this one. </p>

<p>Music theory placement test ... D said it was pretty easy, but thanked her AP Music Theory class for it - she said she would've had a hard time if she wouldn't have taken this class.</p>

<p>Dance ... Ds not a trained dancer. Combos taught and they had to follow. D didn't tell me much about this - and honestly, I didn't ask.</p>

<p>Songs/Monologue ... the were told to have 2 contrasting, 1 min or under pieces plus one 1 min monologue. </p>

<p>I believe there were 3 people in the room - Dance Prof, Acting Prof & Dept. Head. D was asked some questions along the lines of where does she see herself, what do her parents think of her major (!) ... etc.</p>

<p>All in all, it was a very warm fuzzy experience. I have been on what feels like a bajillion school tours between D and our DD14, and BY FAR (except for Vanderbilt's PreVU ... and nothing could beat that!) this was the best experience. And most personal for sure!</p>

<p>DH & D are going to see their fall musical production of Curtains tonight (comp tix too!) while I camp out in the hotel room w/ some Nyquil. </p>

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<p>Thank you so much for starting this thread and sharing. It sounds like a wonderful experience. We have our first audition in 3 weeks, and will be sure to share as well.</p>

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<p>I hope you feel better @KaMaMom‌ . Does SIU have rolling admissions, when will she know? Sounds like a great day! My S did 6 last year, 5 were really really personal. The other 2 were nice but just not as warm and fuzzy, at least not for parents S enjoyed his audition at those 2 as well. Students auditioning should rest assured for the most part to expect the faculty and current students to do their best to make as less stressful as they can. </p>

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<p>Yes - it is rolling. She’s already been academically admitted. My D asked when decisions will be made … I believe he said not until after the bulk of auditions are done in February. </p>

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<p>KaMaMom, sounds like a wonderful audition day experience. I know son’s early auditions helped him to be more relaxed when Unifieds finally rolled around. And I know I was much happier once the audition process began, as the all the preparation of applications, pre-screens, essays, travel plans, etc. just about sent me around the bend. :slight_smile: </p>

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<p>I think the most stressful times were before auditions started (getting everything together, scheduling) and after they finished (the WAITING!) I am so glad to hear your 1st experience was positive - I hope they all continue down that same line - but without the flu :wink: </p>

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<p>Thanks, @KaMaMom ! This new thread will be very helpful to all. I promise to post updates as well. If everyone participates this will be so informative…</p>

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<p>MTMajorCook…just came for a visit…“My S did 6 last year, 5 were really really personal. The other 2 were nice…”
Um, hmmmm…something doesn’t add up…love you more!</p>

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<p>LOL I see that, checking my spreadsheet to see where the math doesn’t work</p>

<p>“FOUR were really personal. Of which 2 were nice…” Good thing I kept records. :)) </p>

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<p>@MTMajorCook‌ That’s probably because he was sick for one of those 7 auditions so he didn’t go, 'member? Your math wasn’t totally off! :)</p>

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<p>It feels a little surreal to be typing this already, but here goes:</p>

<p>MUHLENBERG(scholarship audition only)</p>

<p>Even though this school does not have an auditioned BFA musical theatre program, they do have wonderful theatre, dance and vocal programs, and the students seem to have the ability to build their own program to a certain extent. And my D did audition, so it was a perfect start to the audition season. </p>

<p>We arrived at about 9:30 and were met by the head of theatre, Charles Richter. He had arranged for my D to observe an acting class, followed by participation in a level 3 ballet class. She enjoyed the acting class, said she felt the instructor gave good feedback to the students. She loved the ballet class(has been dancing since age 3), loved the dance teacher, and thought the dance teacher gave good corrections to the students. She also felt very challenged in this class but felt she could keep up. Her dance audition immediately followed this class, she was a little disappointed in her performance because she was tired from the class, but felt she had been observed in class and did ok.
We then had about a 1 1/2 hour break for lunch, clean up and change, and warm up for the acting and vocal audition. She did 1 song and 2 monologues, and then spent some time talking with Mr. Richter. He completely put her at her ease, and she came out of the audition with a big smile on her face and a big boost to her confidence. Mr. Richter told me he had 4 students auditioning that day, by January he’ll often have up to 12 a day. We also met a lovely girl with her family who was just auditioning for the dance department.
We had also arranged an interview with the admissions department following the theatre audition. We visited the school in the summer and did the tour and admission session at the time, so did not need to do that now.
It was a long day, but in the end, I think very successful. The campus is beautiful, and everyone we met there, from the department heads, to admissions officers, to students, to the cafeteria staff(and they have justifiably been named one of the top 10 colleges for best food), was wonderful.
1 audition down, 14(hopefully) to go. Hope every experience is as positive as this one. Best of luck to everyone out there on this road.</p>

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<p>So funny – just thought of starting this thread later this week when my D auditions for Elon! You beat me to it! And here we go! BAL to all those amazing kids out there and their amazing parents. Oops – missed the post from earlier this month!</p>

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<p>mtflmomof1, so nice that your day at Muhlenberg went well! What a great way to start the process. Muhlenberg is a terrific program.</p>

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<p>mtflmomof1 - sounds like a great day! </p>

<p>So excited to see this thread get moving. I know there are some coming up this weekend, can’t wait to read the updates! </p>

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<p>@mtflmomof1 What did your child see as the value of having an interview with the admissions department? Is there scholarship money available for academic merit as well as the artistic awards?</p>

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<p>vocal1046 - From what I understand, Muhlenberg is a fairly academically selective school that wants students who demonstrate interest. An admissions interview is a great way to do this, as well as attending a campus information session/tour. The school does offer academic merit awards, and their website states that demonstrated interest is a factor in merit selection.</p>

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<p>ELON UNIVERSITY</p>

<p>Just relaxing after a wonderful day at Elon. Here’s the scoop.</p>

<p>First of all, different from last year in that there were only 13 students auditioning! They really took the prescreening process seriously. We were told that 200 students applied for the first prescreen round and from that 200 they selected 26 students total for the two fall audition dates – 13 today and 13 for the November date. This made for an incredibly pleasant day for kids and parents.</p>

<p>We met at 9:00 a.m. and the kids auditioning walked a few blocks to observe a freshman acting class. My daughter really enjoyed the class and all of the Elon students were super warm and welcoming. A bunch of the parents hung out together at a local coffee house. A very nice group of parents to match the wonderful kids. Oh, 7 girls, 6 boys from all over the country – California, Pennsylvania, NH, Colorado, Minnesota, Florida, Washington State, Georgia and more! </p>

<p>After the acting class 2 MT students led the auditioning kids (and parents) on a tour of the new Scott Studios building and then back to the main performing arts building. </p>

<p>After the tour, the auditioning kids each had 5 minutes with the accompanist to go over their pieces – during this time people also had their lunch break.</p>

<p>1:30 p.m. Dance Call – ballet warm ups and some across the floor combinations. Then, they learned a jazz combination and performed them in groups of three. Some of the students were asked to demonstrate pirouettes and kids who tapped were given a chance to show their stuff.</p>

<p>2:45 p.m. Information Session – what a nice group of faculty and students led by Cathie McNeela. My D and I got a very warm and nurturing vibe from the students and faculty who spoke. Three senior boys performed a song.</p>

<p>3:30 p.m. Individual Vocal auditions or Monologues – the group was split in half and half sang first and the other half did monologues first. My D sang first. She did her two songs and was asked to do a third. 1 minute cuts. She performed one monologue.</p>

<p>4:30ish As soon as the kids had performed both auditions, they were free to go.</p>

<p>Overall, such a wonderful day. I can’t say enough for how great it was to have such a small group. It just made for a warm, intimate day. A great way to kick off audition season.</p>

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<p>Great review @Divamamacita‌! Wow how great to have such a small group!</p>

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<p>WOW! That’s a huge difference from the reports last year where people were there well into the night. They are definitely maximizing on the prescreen!</p>

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<p>Audition Day Report - Wright State</p>

<p>I have to start with the beginning of our journey to Ohio… lots of lessons learned on the way. My S had play rehearsal until 5:30p on Thursday, so I planned to be on the road by 6p, and with nearly 4 hrs of drive time I had hoped to arrive in Dayton around 10p. Mid-afternoon, I got a text from S that rehearsal would run until 6:30p… so now 7pm was the goal. Grrr. When he arrived home, he quickly grabbed the last few odds and ends and we got on the road about 7:15p. So, fast forward 30 minutes down the road and we were discussing the audition schedule… he asks, “Did you grab my dance bag?” No… why would I grab HIS dance bag? So, we turned around and headed home… my husband met us part way with the dance bag AND his glasses (also left behind). So, we arrived around midnight. Not at all what I’d envisioned. LESSON #1… check the packing/ use a list. LESSON #2… double check the packing. </p>

<p>Friday – Master Class</p>

<p>The master class began at 10a. I dropped him off… and found a shopping area in Dayton, since there were no official parent plans. I got some Christmas shopping done, which was nice. :)</p>

<p>He had several classes… singing, acting, dance and acting for camera. He really liked the faculty and had a fun day. 3 of his TPAP friends were also there, so that was a fun reunion! There were several attendees who were underclassmen from a PA HS in Georgia, so it was hard to tell how many were actually auditioning. He said the students who helped with the day were great… welcoming and willing to answer questions, etc. </p>

<p>We attended the performance of ‘Hot Mikado’ that night. It was completely amazing! We had no idea what to expect going in… we were familiar with the ‘Mikado’ but not the ‘Hot Mikado’. The production was amazing, top to bottom… dancing, singing, acting… all top marks. We loved it!</p>

<p>Saturday – Audition
When we got up in the morning and got ready for the day, S kept looking at himself in the mirror and making faces. I could tell something was off. So, I asked… “I don’t like this vest. I thought I would, but I don’t.” Keep in mind, he had selected and packed his own clothes. So, I dived into the bag of Christmas items I had purchased the day before and pulled out a nice v-necked blue sweater, which he LOVED. So, that became the uniform of the day. I think it might become the uniform of the audition season. LESSON #3… have more than one outfit option. </p>

<p>This day also began at 10a. This time, there was an informal session for parents, so I stayed. The MT students were taken into the dance studio for that part of the audition. They learned a combination, and were then split into small groups for their demonstration of it. That took about an hour. Then they returned to the room where the parents were to wait to be called for their mono/singing audition. There were around 65 combined MT, Acting and Dance auditioners… with the bulk being MT. S only had to wait about 30 minutes until his name was called. When he got into the audition room, the faculty were getting their coffee delivered, so he went right over to the pianist (who is the head of the music dept). He complimented my S on his energy in the workshop and then complimented him on his song choices, which totally set him at ease. S then faced the faculty, who greeted him and then asked him to demonstrate Scottish Highland Dancing (from his resume). He kicked off his shoes and demonstrated a few movements… then Joe Deer said, “That was good, but I want to see some Highcuts. Can you do Highcuts?” Evidently Joe Deer has some familiarity with Highland Dancing… S did some extended Highcuts (the more advanced variety) and got a ‘wow’ from the panel. He then sang his two songs, and did his monologues… pretty much one right after the other. They thanked him, and sent him on his way. LESSON #4… be sure you can actually do the things on your resume.</p>

<p>We were impressed with this program… faculty & students were great. Performance (which I measure as ‘output’) was excellent. And they are doing a $23M renovation of the Creative Arts Center over the next 2 years. The blueprints look wonderful. This was a great first audition.</p>