Auditioned BA's

College Majors Theater/Drama Majors
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<p>Oh boy, he is going to head for the hills when he visits Kenyon! It has one tiny street attached to the campus and I can recall just one coffee shop on it!</p>

<p>What is it that sounds so appealing about Kenyon? </p>

<p>If he wants to have some LACs on his list (which I always think is a great idea!) then Macalester is in a city, and in one of the best theater cities to boot. Carleton has a better town attached to it than Kenyon. Both of these schools will be less preppy than Kenyon, I think.</p>

<p>I would also suggest considering WIlliams College – really strong in the arts and is need-blind and meets full need. They have directing and playwriting – the Theater facility is astounding; it is the base for the renowned summer theater festival, and they even have a directing studio! </p>

<p>[WilliamsTheatre[/url</a>]</p>

<p>[url=&lt;a href="http://62center.williams.edu/62center/venue_explore.cfm]'62"&gt;http://62center.williams.edu/62center/venue_explore.cfm]'62</a> Center](<a href=“http://62center.williams.edu/theatre/facilities.cfm]WilliamsTheatre[/url”>http://62center.williams.edu/theatre/facilities.cfm)</p>

<p>a fabulous summer theater lab: [url=&lt;a href=“http://62center.williams.edu/theatre/lab.cfm]WilliamsTheatre[/url”&gt;http://62center.williams.edu/theatre/lab.cfm]WilliamsTheatre[/url</a>]</p>

<p>I know that you got burned with your other S, but don’t sell your son short because of it, and keep some reaches on the list. Williams takes extracurricular accomplishments into account and looks at arts submissions, so they would definitely evaluate a video of him performing or doing monologues prepared for the school.</p>

<p>Yes, Williams’ location runs counter to what you’re saying – but it’s WAY better than Kenyon! There are a number of places to eat and shop and there is a movie theater, too. (and it’s essentially part of the campus). It also has one of the most diverse student bodies among the LACs, so even though the student body does have a strong athletic tilt it is not as preppy as other schools out there. </p>

<p>No sailing (i don’t think – they do row on a nearby lake, so maybe there’s sailing too?) but it certainly has one of the most beautiful settings and outdoor activity is abundant.</p>

<p>I have to confess that I am a Williams alum, but I am not selling the school for that reason; I just happen to have alot of familiarity with it, so am trying to be helpful!</p>

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<p>Has your son thought about SMU? Many rule it out so quickly because of it’s Texas location, but it seems to suit his needs. It is an auditioned BFA, but a very flexible one. SMU really encourages interdisciplinary studies, and the BFA in Theatre Studies is flexible enough that many double or triple major and still graduate in four years. The Theatre Studies degree also allows for a double concentration in acting and another theatre field (such as directing, stage management, critical studies, etc.) It is located in Dallas, which would suit his desire for big city life, and I’m pretty sure they have a sailing team as well! There are also plenty of opportunities for aid - almost everyone gets some sort of merit aid (a select group receive a full-ride), many get financial aid, and there are scholarships he can apply for at the same time as his application, such as the Hunt Leadership scholarship which is another full-ride. There are also talent scholarships, and scholarships he would become eligible for in his sophomore year, and if the school does not meet whatever your need is the first time, his department’s financial aid department could look it over and maybe lessen the gap.</p>

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<p>5boys - I just have to comment on your other son…WOW. I am so impressed with his chosen path, literally and figuratively. And I am as impressed with you as a parent supporting him, what wonderful parenting and what a gift you have given him. I would love to hear about his adventures. Did he do a blog?</p>

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<p>I would find this thread hilarious if it weren’t so negative about Kenyon. For the record–there’s more than one coffee shop in town (and yes, a couple of bars too), a TON to do on campus (especially if you’re interested in the arts), a good-sized town (let’s just say bigger than Williamstown) 15 minutes away with shuttles that run there, a major metropolitan area 45 minutes away (many faculty members live in Columbus and the school has strong connections with theater and film communities there), and a quirky, interesting, very bright student body. My daughter applied to Kenyon, Davidson, William and Mary, Williams, and Bowdoin, and chose Kenyon precisely because it was the least “preppy” and predictable of her schools. Also–unlike most of the northeastern liberal arts colleges–Kenyon does give merit aid, which was a big consideration for us. Neither of her New England schools would have filled in the “gap” in her need-based aid with merit aid, so ultimately they weren’t viable options.</p>

<p>At Kneyon, her classmates–both theater majors and otherwise–were from cities all over the country, primarily Boston, LA, San Francisco, Chicago, NYC, Philly, and Minneapolis. Quite a few of the theater kids have been able to sustain themselves in the post-college theater scene, mostly in NY, Boston, and Chicago, doing everything from straight-up acting to arts admin to MFA programs in acting, playwriting, and directing. One of D’s best friends has launched a very successful (going on 4 years) “radio theater” web series that’s won awards in Chicago. The continued closeness of these kids, among each other, with their former professors, and with the wider Kenyon alumni community, has been a real asset to my daughter and her friends.</p>

<p>My youngest visited Kenyon several times as a sibling and as a potential applicant and ended up deciding not to apply because it was MORE artsy/quirky than he felt comfortable with…and he’s doing a BFA in acting. On one of our visits, with my alumna daughter along, we ran into the theater department chair, an African-American Kenyon alumnus who got his MFA from Cal Arts and whose own son is now a student at the college. He was a rehearsing a play about black history and said “We couldn’t have done this show even five years ago because we wouldn’t have had enough students of color.” They do now. Like all small liberal arts colleges, diversity is an ongoing pursuit for Kenyon, and they have made huge strides.</p>

<p>I guess it’s all a question of how we perceive things, which is exactly why it’s so important to visit and talk to people who actually attend (or work at) the school rather than relying on impressions gathered from CC or based on ancient history. By the way, I went to Middlebury myself (and have a nephew who just graduated) so believe me, I do know from preppy. Kenyon ain’t it. But it’s definitely NOT for everyone; some kids do want to be able to go out to clubs or whatever, while others (like mine) prefer the close-knit campus community and the walkability and inexpensiveness of a small town setting. From our PM exchanges, 5boys, I’ve gotten the clear impression that your son has a strong sense of what he does and doesn’t like, so while I know visiting is tough for you, perhaps he can talk to students online and maybe even work in a visit, perhaps on a weekend when there’s a show (and there’s something going on constantly). If he’d like to talk to any young alumni, give me a holler, as I can definitely set that up! Good luck with the search, and enjoy! :)</p>

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<p>^^ extremely helpful, Times3!!! p.s. also so impressed with your 2012 son, 5boys. now THAT is the way to take a gap year and discover yourself :-)</p>

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<p>All that Times just posted was reiterated almost verbatim by a Kenyon student who was talking to my S at Cherubs. This conversation really excited my S and now has a growing curiosity about it. The good thing is that all of his schools on his list are so great that if he happens t be lucky enough to get into even ONE of them, I know he will happy. My goal as a mom is to make sure his list is not too top heavy, and to make sure that he could see him self at every school on his list. That was the one of the things that we did do right with DS2102. Because he had such a researched and thought out list, when the rejection from his ED school came, he bounced back pretty fast, and actually liked SLU better after it was all said and done. I am pretty sure we will visit Kenyon and Wooster in October. We will fly to Muhlenberg ( for scholarship) and Emerson and drive to Chapman for EA auditions in November. He is sending in an early app and video monologue to U MInn, and that should be a good start. Brandeis sent him something in the mail to him yesterday. I will have him research that school when he gets home. I really don’t know much about it.</p>

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<p>My reaction to Kenyon was based on one visit, so I am sorry to have created a wrong impression. But, I left with a strong feeling of dreariness about the surrounding area (clearly we missed something there!), and even though I felt that it still might be worth my kids applying to, they just wouldn’t. It is interesting how these visits can make or break a decision about a school.</p>