@cgn626 You can see all the folks here who are ready to help. This board is a great resource. I do want to add as it has been said here many times, that you do not need a coach in order for your S/D to be successful in the process. Many families do just fine without any help or just using free support available on the Internet.
One more thing to add: Most coaching is done through some form of online video conferencing so where you live is not a big factor. BAL
Honestly, coaches are a GREAT resource that can definitely help make the process less stressful, but they aren’t necessary to have a successful audition season. If you have local voice/acting teachers and coaches who have recently helped kids get into audition based programs, save your money and use them. You can make a good list on your own with research, and many teachers if asked will hold a mock audition of sorts for your student, which is a great resource and can help students feel more prepared.
I do not have any teachers with such experience nearby, so I am working with MCA and it has been a wonderful experience. I am currently a senior, and I decided last November to take a gap year rather than rushing into auditions before I was ready. This was a difficult decision for me and Chelsea met with my mother and I free of charge to give me advice and help me make a decision. She truly cares about her students and wants them to succeed. I don’t think you could go wrong with any of the major coaches, but Chelsea and everyone at MCA goes above and beyond.
When would you recommend to start with MTCA? Freshman, sophomore, or Junior?
We started at the end of the summer before senior year - so definitely start earlier than we did! 
That said, MTCA was super helpful. I wish we’d started with them the Spring of my D’s junior year as that would have allowed us to plan her summer /prescreens / applications better.
My son started the summer before junior year with MTCA. He wanted to take his time with training and also have assistance with his auditions for summer programs.
Here is my 2 cents on coaches. Is your child a female? Does she have an amazing voice? Has she taken dance since the age of 3? Does everyone rave about how your child is going to “make it” on Broadway? Is she one of those rare triple threats? If you answered yes to any of those questions… get in the middle of a pack of 5000 girls. While walking the halls at Unifieds you realize the crazy level of talent and the fact that all of those girls are sweet and gorgeous. Sorry parents of boys… it is not as competitive (but for trying to crack one of the top 5 programs).
We used Moo and do not regret one dime or one minute. 4 years ago I was on vacation and started chatting with an exhausted Mom from California (it was March). She explained her daughter was waiting to hear on MT offers. She grabbed my arm and said “do not do this without using a coach”. At the beginning of Junior year my daughter said she wanted to try. I remembered the mom from vacation but I felt the coaching was all some kind of racket. I spent hours reading CC and determined we could not do this alone. I read the CC stories and decided to go all in (online, personal consult and Moonifieds). I became a believer and we could not have done it without her. Moonifieds gave us 17 auditions before December and was a huge money saver. Three offers came out of Moonifieds. To those of you who think you can do it on your own I wish you well. We know girls who have worked with touring companies and who have their equity cards. Yes friends, even those girls were sweating out the offers this year. It is the very very rare GIRL who gets multiple offers from top 10 schools. My daughter ended up having 8 MT/BFA offers and some strange twists to the final school selection. Moo went above and beyond every step of the way.
Set aside all of the competitive stuff and please keep this in mind the process is brutal. It changes the landscape of Senior year. The most valuable lesson from Moo is seldom stated… she trains the kids on how to weather the rejection. She teaches them how to form a tribe and how to be healthy (mentally). We did not look into other coaches so I do not know how they would compare.Good Luck 2023 folks.
Not to contradict the potential value of help in the process, but whenever I see a post like the one above that implies it CANNOT be done without help, I feel compelled to say that I can think of a half dozen girls from my area (including my own D) who did not use a coach and got BFA MT offers at very impressive schools in the last 5 years. (Examples: Syracuse, BOCO, NYU, BW, Emerson, and Ithaca). Again, I am not discounting the value of support, just saying that there are MANY paths to successful BFA admissions - even for girls
My College Audition, Chelsea Diehl and her team. Huge support, understand the details of programs, works to guide college selection, and supports the kids throughout the ups and downs. Highly recommend.
We got started late and used Mary Anna Dennard beginning in late August last year - mainly because our S did not attend a performing arts high school and is/was basically a self-taught performer.
We found a coach really helped in terms of parents’ piece of mind and help with monologue and song selection. If I had to do it over again, I would have done a whole lot differently. Experience is the best teacher. But we definitely would have utilized a coach - who I view as more of an advisor than “coach.”
My main advice on hiring a coach is that they should be an advocate and advisor. In terms of crafting the audition, the best choice is to let your S or D be who they are.
@DramaMan Did you attend Moonifides? If so what was your impression?
My D attended Moonifieds and LOVED it. It is a terrific opportunity. Be advised, though. It is advertised as included with the cost of coaching. Traditionally, it required a small “registration fee” which, in 2016 had risen to $100. Last year? $450! No warning, either. Still very worthwhile, but the seemingly random fee was, in my mind, unconscionable. I strongly suspect that this year’s fee will be at least that amount or higher.
And should I ask the cost of coaching??
@NYKaren - you may want to take a look at the past threads on coaching from post #4 in this thread - there is a lot of information on Moonifieds, costs, etc.:
http://talk.qa.collegeconfidential.com/discussion/comment/21516591#Comment_21516591
The word I get from families across the board is that Moonifieds is a big money saver, that it can save you thousands of dollars in the long run depending on your list of colleges. The college audition process is expensive, so save your money every place you can!
@XMRadio72 this year you can’t attend moonifieds unless you buy the online prep course which is $699. For Moo (Mary Ann Dennard) the initial consult is $175 for one hour. From there you can spend as much or as little as you want depending on what you need help with. I know MTCA charges $120 for initial consult.
I wish MTCA could have auditions like Moonifieds in New York City but I guess New York Unifieds serves the same purpose
@Boilermom MTCA charges $100 for an initial consult which is 90 minutes (60 minutes with one of the directors for an in-depth artistic assessment and 30 minutes for a vocal assessment.
I think they can be two very different options, depending on what schools are participating, what schools are on your student’s list, and what the possible outcomes are, e.g., definitive offers resulting. Are ‘moonifieds’ individual auditions between a student and a school’s auditors or are they cattle call type auditions? The fees seem awfully expensive to me.
@alwaysamom I think I read ( or heard?) that most of them are final. And for sure private/individual. I know it is not a group/cattle call. But @EmsDad and @MTTwinsinCA knows from first hand and I would yield to them as to whether it is is overly expensive for what they offer
@theatremom10 I was just going by what they had on their website for price for MTCA. As for the prices with Moo I have spoken with her via email so I know those are up to date