<p>My D was accepted to American, Brandeis and SUNY Geneseo for Musical Theater
She was specifically looking for an BA Musical Theater program. Any one have any comments on differences between programs? Anyone know what the musical theater programs are like at these schools? We have heard much about the academics but not much about the Musical theater.</p>
<p>SUNY Geneseo is not a highly regarded program for MT in upstate NY at least that I’ve ever heard and I’m from Syracuse. I have a daughter who auditioned there for the dance minor and was accepted and said after her audition that she wouldn’t go if they paid her money to attend because she thought the dance space was impossible to dance well in, and the dance teacher who ran the audition was NOT good. That, I would think, would be a factor for any MT student. Their voice majors certainly don’t have the reputation that SUNY Fredonia has either. And we know a student who was admitted as an acting student, and she had little to no natural acting ability, so that would give me pause. Also, Geneseo is in the middle of nowhere (although they like to tell you it’s near Rochester it is NOT easy for the students to get there unless they have a car), so there are no off campus opportunities to either perform or even to see much theatre, so that would be a factor (my other daughter is a MT major in college). Washington DC seems much more culturally accessible, so American might be a better choice. And according to several inlaws who are graduates, not in MT, they LOVED American. Brandeis is so close to Boston that might also be a good choice, with easy access to the city by subway I imagine. Academically, Geneseo is a very well regarded school, so congrats to your daughter for the acceptance, but if MT is the major, I would seriously rethink it. Just my opinion (for whatever that’s worth. LOL)</p>
<p>I did not think Geneseo had much going for it in MT but I’m also not too sure about American either. I read somewhere on another post that the kids at Brandeis don’t take the acting classes seriously so that could be a turn off. Thanks</p>
<p>First, congratulations to the OP’s daughter. Having three choices is an accomplishment, for sure, so please let your D know that!!</p>
<p>This is only anecdotal (heard on the street) but I have heard good things about American and its program. And certainly the setting in DC is an asset, with so many theaters around.</p>
<p>Since your D is looking for a BA degree as opposed to a BFA, I’ll assume that she’s interested in an excellent liberal arts education as well as a first-rate Theater Arts program. That gives her academic options during college and hedges her bets post graduation in the event a career in the theater does not pan out. If that’s the case, Brandeis is the only one of her choices that would give her both first-rate theater opportunities and a first-rate educational experience. </p>
<p>In terms of quality of peers, education , prestige, post-graduate placement and overall experience, I would choose Brandeis over American and SUNY. Brandeis is a top-tier, exciting intellectual and creative environment inside and outside the classroom.
That well-rounded and challenging liberal arts education is what has produced such renowned theater and film industry alumni as actresses Debra Messing (“Will and Grace”), Robin Weigert (HBO’s “Deadwood”), Lorretta Devine (Broadway’s "Dream Girl"s, TV’s “Grey’s Anatomy”), Gates McFadden (Dr. Beverly Crusher–“Star Trek TNG”, Tyne Daly (“Cagney and Lacey”) and Louise Lasser, plus creators/producers Marta Kaufman and David Crane (“Friends”), TV producer Gary David Golberg (“Family Ties”) and Tony-Award-Winning producer Robyn Goodman (“Avenue Q,” “In the Heights,” “Westside Story”) to name a few.</p>
<p>Not only will there be opportunities for your D as an undergraduate in the Theater Department and with the resident Brandeis Theater Company, but the Undergraduate Theater Collective puts on numerous musicals each year as well. If you haven’t seen their website, here’s the link:</p>
<p>[utc.undergrad-theatre-collective[/url</a>]</p>
<p>Also, here’s the link to the Brandeis Theater Company site:</p>
<p>[url=<a href=“http://www.brandeis.edu/arts/theater.html]Brandeis”>Theater Arts Productions | Brandeis University]Brandeis</a> Theater Company | Arts | Brandeis University](<a href=“http://people.brandeis.edu/~utc/]utc.undergrad-theatre-collective[/url”>http://people.brandeis.edu/~utc/)</p>
<p>Forgive my enthusiasm, but I’m an alum who experienced theater at Brandeis first hand. Although I didn’t become a theater professional, I still participate avocationally and even semi-professionally. It’s an amazing school. Your D should visit overnight and experience it for herself.</p>
<p>Good luck with your decision!</p>
<p>I have friends who are very satisfied with the theater program. I’ve seen many of the student produced musicals and plays and they are very well done, Brighton Beach Memoirs which I just recently saw was particularly good. I think most students take the theater classes seriously, although of course there always exceptions with any class. I took an American Musical Theater survey course my first and enjoyed it, for one of the assignments we could choose to either do a song performance or write a paper, and we also had to review a production of a show. In our case it was at a local theater, although subsequent classes have also reviewed productions at Brandeis.</p>
<p>A student of mine is in the BA MT program at American. She absolutely loves the school, the program, and the Washington DC location. PM me if you are interested in speaking with her directly.</p>