<p>Just like the thread says: I'm here to answer all your questions about the USC School of Theatre and the Musical Theatre minor through the Thornton School of Music!</p>
<p>Bring it on!</p>
<p>I’ve been doing theatre for the last four years in high school and really don’t want to give it up in college. How easy it is to minor in theatre or at least still be involved in theatre activities in a completely different major, specifically engineering. Are there are any real differences between the different minors offered there (e.g. musical theatre, acting, performing arts)? Also, do they have a stage design program within Thorton?</p>
<p>1) It’s very easy to minor in theatre, and if you would like to perform in official School of Theatre shows, you must be either a theatre major or theatre minor. However, the annual musical is open to the entire university. There are also many student theatre organizations on campus whose shows are open to everyone. I am active President of the classical works company on campus, Slanderous Tongues Theatre ([SLANDEROUS</a> TONGUES THEATRE - Home](<a href=“http://www.slanderoustongues.com%5DSLANDEROUS”>http://www.slanderoustongues.com) for more info). There’s also Musical Theatre Repertory, Women’s Theatre Organization, and Brand New Theatre.</p>
<p>2) The musical theatre minor is offered through Thornton School of Music and not the School of Theatre. That minor is very different in requirements than the others (Applied Theatre Arts, Performing Arts, or General Theatre). I would check into the requirements for each minor for specific information about the differences.</p>
<p>3) The School of Theatre offers BFAs (Bachelor of Fine Arts degrees) in Technical Direction and Design as well as a BA (Bachelor of Arts degree) in Theatre with an emphasis in technical theatre/design.</p>
<p>Hi,
I’m in a similar position to the previous poster. I love performing and I’ve done a lot of theater including some adult community theater and youth theater and 6 years of middle school and high school drama and have been pretty successful in getting a variety of parts including several leads. However as a freshman and non-theater major or minor at USC (at the moment) I have not had any luck getting in on any of the student shows. Just wondering if competition is so fierce that it is unlikely to get cast in any parts if you’re a non-theater major, or whether being a theater major or minor really gives you an edge. I am considering minoring in theater and probably should just declare a minor, but thought that I’d try my hand at some of the student shows first. Just trying to get a feel for whether it is unlikely to get cast if you aren’t tightly connected with the theater department. To paraphrase Cathy from THe Last Five Years, I’m pretty sure I don’t suck, so have been disappointed not to get even a consideration for minor roles. Thanks so much for your advice. Don’t mean this to sound whiney, just want to be realistic about my expectations. THANKS!!!</p>
<p>Rosieoney - What have you auditioned for? Maybe you came out for my show! I don’t think being a theatre major/minor gives you the edge, but without it you are somewhat restricted in the shows you can audition for. True there are a ton of great student shows, but sometimes some of them can get a little nepotistic. If you are really dead set on performing for sure, I would say declare the minor and audition for SOT shows which are far more open. They’re sometimes directed by guest directors who come in with no prior knowledge of the student body.</p>
<p>There are many visitors to this forum from across the country who are not acquainted with the USC School of Theatre. What are some positive aspects of your experiences which you could share? </p>
<p>Could you tell us something about the faculty and the training you are receiving to prepare yourself for work on stage or TV/cinema?</p>
<p>Thanks for the response! By the way, do you have to audition for any of the minors?</p>
<p>musicalstudent, thanks for starting this thread here. I have a few questions…</p>
<p>1) Must a student audition for the BFA program in Theatre? How many are selected as entering freshmen? Is there also an audition process for those wanting a BA? How many BA freshmen are in each incoming class?</p>
<p>2) If no audition is necessary (like for the BA, maybe), how do they select for talent?</p>
<p>3) Is there a distinct division between the BA and BFA students (socially, getting cast in roles, or?)</p>
<p>4) Does USC admit a balance of boys and girls? Is the applicant pool more girls than boys? </p>
<p>5) With Hollywood in your backyard, do you find many Theatre majors getting jobs, agents, etc while in school? Does the department help make this easy?</p>
<p>6) Any Theatre alums currently doing well professionally? Care to drop some names?</p>
<p>The school’s alumni have been honored with the Oscar, Tony, Emmy, Goldern Globe,
Lawrence Olivier and Palme d’Or.</p>
<p>Here are some of the more prominent alumni of the USC School of Theatre. (No order)</p>
<p>Forest Whitaker
Kyra Sedgwick
Eric Stoltz
The late John Ritter
Tate Donovan
Anthony Edwards
James Lesure
Jonathan Silverman
Sophia Bush
Swoosie Kurtz
Ally Sheedy</p>
<p>Stark Sands, Tony nomination 2007 for Journey’s End-Best Featured Actor
James Snyder, Starring role in Cry-Baby,
Grant Meslov (writer/actor) Good Night and Good Luck, Leatherheads
Andy Tennant (writer/director) Fool’s Gold, Hitch
Jack Bender (producer/director) Lost, The Sopranos
Todd Black (producer) The Pursuit of Happiness</p>
<p>Add to that list…</p>
<p>Brandon Barash
Richard Biggs
Kristin Hanggi-(director) Nominated for 2009 Tony</p>
<p>Alright, here goes!</p>
<p>Q: There are many visitors to this forum from across the country who are not acquainted with the USC School of Theatre. What are some positive aspects of your experiences which you could share? </p>
<p>A: The USC School of Theatre is ranked #5 in the country for undergraduate theatre. Between official School of Theatre shows and ISPs (Independent Student Productions), there are over 30 productions each semester that are mounted within the school. Electives within the school range from Stage Combat to Voice-Over Acting to Acting Shakespeare. The faculty work hard to make sure that each student follows the path that he/she wants to and, in that, there is an incredible amount of flexibility within the BA program. I’ve looked at my course plan for the rest of my time here and I will actually be taking more Acting/Performance classes as a BA than some of my friends in BFA programs at other schools. The USC SOT (School of Theatre) really makes sure that each student is trying new things and finding what will make them happy.</p>
<p>Q: Could you tell us something about the faculty and the training you are receiving to prepare yourself for work on stage or TV/cinema?</p>
<p>A: The faculty in the School of Theatre are all working professionals in the theatre/film community. In my experience, I’ve worked with John Rubinstein (original Pippin on B’way) and Jason Robert Brown (Composer of Parade and The Last 5 Years) on Musical Theatre performance. In terms of acting training, we have amazing professional actors from Mary Joan Negro (graduate from Julliard with Patti LuPone and Kevin Kline, founding member of John Houseman’s Acting Company) to Lora Zane (graduate of the Goodman School of Drama in Chicago, actor across the country for 20 years). In terms of acting training, you have a different teacher each semester for each level of acting (at least in the BA program) which helps the student build a “toolbox” and prepares each student individually for the unique experiences they will have with different directors and different situations.</p>
<p>Q: Must a student audition for the BFA program in Theatre? How many are selected as entering freshmen? Is there also an audition process for those wanting a BA? How many BA freshmen are in each incoming class?</p>
<p>A: Audition is required for BFA admission. The incoming BFA Acting class is usually around 12-15 actors. There is no audition requirement for the BA program, it is by interview only. There are around 70 BAs altogether in each class (acting, design, and tech)</p>
<p>Q: If no audition is necessary (like for the BA, maybe), how do they select for talent?</p>
<p>A: I will be honest here: there is no screening for talent for the BA program, but it really doesn’t matter because once you get into the school there are auditions for everything and if you’re not actually talented than you won’t be cast in shows and you may not get in to certain classes. I’ve been scouted from acting class/shows for my next semester classes.</p>
<p>Q: Is there a distinct division between the BA and BFA students (socially, getting cast in roles, or?)</p>
<p>A: Socially, there is very little distinction between the BA and BFA students. In the first few weeks of school, the freshman BFAs do have a little arrogance to them in terms of BA students, but that quickly fades away when BAs get cast in shows over BFAs. Each semester after second semester sophomore year, the BFA classes each have a show and so there is very little competition between BA and BFA students. Most of the BFA students are taken out of the running because they have their own show to participate in which opens roles for BAs. </p>
<p>Q: Does USC admit a balance of boys and girls? Is the applicant pool more girls than boys?</p>
<p>A: In my experience, there are less men in the SOT just because of the percentage of applicants. I don’t believe they admit equal numbers for the sole purpose of balance.</p>
<p>Q: With Hollywood in your backyard, do you find many Theatre majors getting jobs, agents, etc while in school? Does the department help make this easy?</p>
<p>A: There are a lot of theatre majors who do go out and audition/get agents while in school. The SOT is very supportive of this; their policy is make it to class and you can do whatever you want with your free time.</p>
<p>Hope this answered most (if not all) of your questions! Feel free to add more!</p>
<p>I will be an entering freshman with no prior experience in drama or theater. It’s really something I would like to try out if I attend USC. I know that they have intro classes, I was wondering if you could tell me about these, if you know anything. And whether it’s possible to get more involved than just the class, considering I would be starting out years behind everyone else.</p>
<p>How rigorous is the BA program? </p>
<p>Are the students are as serious and dedicated as the BFA students?</p>
<p>Sort of similar to some posts before mine, I’m a current freshman and I did acting in high school plays and community theatre, but I don’t plan on declaring a theatre major or minor. Would I still be able to audition for shows? And if so, where do I find out about upcoming shows?</p>
<p>Thanks!</p>
<p>Q: I will be an entering freshman with no prior experience in drama or theater. It’s really something I would like to try out if I attend USC. I know that they have intro classes, I was wondering if you could tell me about these, if you know anything. And whether it’s possible to get more involved than just the class, considering I would be starting out years behind everyone else.</p>
<p>A: There are intro classes in every discipline. The intro classes I took last semester (as my first semester) were “THTR101 - Intro. to Acting” which was a VERY introductory class and “THTR130 - Intro. to Theatrical Production” which is an intro. class to technical theatre/scenic construction.</p>
<p>Q: How rigorous is the BA program? </p>
<p>A: The BA program is as rigorous as you want it to be. I, for one, am fully committed to it and, therefore, am taking a hugely rigorous course load in performance. I know people in the SOT who are not as committed to it and are therefore taking less electives in theatre and more around the University. I was looking at my course plan the other day and I realized that I will be taking more performance classes in my 4 years as a BA than some of my friends in BFAs at other schools. It’s really what you want out of it.</p>
<p>Q: Are the students are as serious and dedicated as the BFA students?</p>
<p>A: It really depends on the student. There are some BAs who are far more serious and dedicated than the BFAs. Generally, I would say no, but then again there are some BFAs who couldn’t care less about it and they put very little effort into it. There are students in both programs who are very serious and dedicated and those who are not.</p>
<p>Q: I’m a current freshman and I did acting in high school plays and community theatre, but I don’t plan on declaring a theatre major or minor. Would I still be able to audition for shows? And if so, where do I find out about upcoming shows?</p>
<p>A: You cannot audition for any SOT shows except the annual spring musical unless you are a theatre major or minor, but you may audition for all ISPs (independent student productions). Your best bet for finding out about them is to (a) join the Theatre Students’ Association facebook group; they send out all the casting calls from the ISP directors or to (b) make weekly visits to the ISP board in the Drama Center on Childs Way.</p>
<p>thanks for such great answers, musicalstudent.</p>
<p>What is the acceptance rate for the musical theater minor at USC?</p>
<p>My daughter was accepted to the BA theatre program at USC- but her main interest is really musical theater- in fact she told the interviewers that she was no longer interested in the BFA since there was not much room for musical theater classes in that program.</p>
<p>I would hate to see her go to USC- and then not get accepted in the musical theater program.</p>
<p>(She does have a lot of musical theater experience and was accepted at other top schools for musical theater, but was not offered any money there- USC has been most generous)</p>
<p>The minor is not very selective. If she has as much experience as you say, she’ll have no problem.</p>
<p>Hello! So I have applied to USC’s School of Theatre for Fall 2010 as a transfer student. I auditioned in San Francisco in February and since then, they asked for my Spring Semester grades. I just received them and submitted them today! Now, I am super nervous!!! I don’t have an outstanding GPA, but it’s not bad. And Brian Parson really liked my audition. He said he wants me in the program back in February when I auditioned for him. What do you think are my chances of being accepted??</p>
<p>I read that there’s a minor, I think it’s called, Performing arts which is a mix between Theatre and Film (maybe Music too?), how hard is the acceptance rate into that minor, and also, does that qualify you to be in the plays as well? Thanks</p>