BA vs BFA - a must read article

MomCares · November 23, 2012, 2:18pm

I agree with the 3 posts above, but would also add that some of D’s talented friends have had good success taking a gap year after not being admitted to schools that really interested them. In some cases they booked professional theatre work and in others they attended community college for a year. By the following year they all had a clearer sense of their goals and all are moving forward and happy.

fishbowlfreshman · November 24, 2012, 8:40am

I’m glad at least Connections got why I linked quotes from a brilliant and successful person who never attended a college of any kind.

Actor12 - As long as the quality of the classes at whichever state school you’re looking at are “very high,” you’ll at least come away with a solid foundation from which to work even if the program overall “lacks” the “intensity” of one of the well-known schools. With the help of the faculty, you’ll be able to assess where you stand by the time you’re a senior and determine how to proceed with additional training as needed whether that be in a graduate program or through professional studios. I’ll reiterate that even graduates of the top conservatories often still need some work in various areas when they enter the real world of the business and this can be difficult to afford if one has a load of debt. It can make just keeping a roof over one’s head in one of the major markets a challenge, so no worries if you emerge from whichever college you attend with a solid foundation and debt free. The clout of a top school’s name on the resume really only has a shelf life of around two years at most, anyway, after which the emphasis turns to what you’ve done with your training and not where you got it.

Here’s a link to an article by Bill Esper who runs one of the well-respected New York acting studios entitled “To MFA or Not to MFA” which he wrote while he still chaired the program at Rutgers. It might help clarify some things for you … [To</a> MFA or Not to MFA? | The William Esper Studio](<a href=“http://esperstudio.com/?page_id=869]To”>http://esperstudio.com/?page_id=869)

And since I’m such a library of links and videos lately, here’s one where Dustin Hoffman answers a question as to why he does this. [Start</a> watching at 10:08.](<a href=“- YouTube”>- YouTube) If you can in all honestly say that you feel that same kind of passion deep in your bones, you’ll find your way no matter where you go to college. Ambivalent parents take heed, too. He’s much older and wiser than you are. :)

P.S. As an aside for the technique geeks, he also does a great job of dispelling some commonly held misconceptions about “The Method” at 04:57.

actor12 · November 24, 2012, 9:55am

Okay, I’m feeling much better about this. Thanks to everyone!

EmmyBet · November 24, 2012, 10:03am

Again, the main points here are that you should follow your own needs and interests, work hard, and take advantage of as many opportunities to learn as you can. This has much more to do with the kind of person you are than the kind of degree you get or where you get it.

Yes, there are ways in which a theatre education differs from other college programs, both in terms of the admissions process and the specifics of the curriculum and training. But in a bigger way, we have to remember that college is still college, just like HS is still HS. All of us who are many decades out of college know that the name on the diploma is not the be-all and end-all of one’s future. What we learn in college and how we take that through life - whether it is a professional skill or a philosophical mindset - is the most important.

I’m not an expert on theatre careers in any way, shape or form. But I have a pretty broad experience with higher education, “elite” or otherwise, in many fields. I absolutely disagree that going to a top school means you are more hardworking or even more capable. I think being more hardworking and more capable means you are more hardworking and more capable, period. A fancy diploma gets perhaps a raised eyebrow, but the truth shows when you open your mouth.

Top schools have just as many people (in general, not just in theatre) who get by on charisma, on family connections, on athletic ability, on natural ability that may peak (or shrivel) at age 20, as any other institution. Top schools have kids who develop mental illnesses, who have personal crises, who change their minds about their goals, who are only trying to please their parents and are starving their souls, who run out of money, and who aren’t able to relate to other human beings in a productive way, just as any other college does.

Twenty or thirty years later, it is all about the person whom you’ve become. If you got the kind of education that helped you grow, you’ve probably had a more rewarding, or at least more interesting time. Or maybe the “failures” you experienced have provided more meaning than any top-ranked program could have provided.

This is not an argument against “top” schools. They are the right place for so many people, for so many important reasons. But only a small number of people are going to attend them, and everyone who didn’t can and will have successful, meaningful lives, too. Going to a certain school never guarantees anything, nor does it prove anything about an individual. Who you are and what you can do is what you take with you through life. Look, listen, and work hard wherever you are, and be smart about money, whatever your situation (with parents’ help or otherwise).

This thread isn’t worthless - this is a very important conversation. But that’s not because it solves the ancient riddle once and for all of what school is “best.” It’s because it can help up-and-coming theatre school applicants to see all of the angles and decide what feels right for THEM.

amontg10 · November 25, 2012, 11:38am

I hate to interupt but I was just wondering what any of you may know about a theatre major but one who is not planning to pursue acting as a career but more of a stage managing or directing? I’m a rising HS Senior and theatre is one of the things I am considered, but I was just wondering on the details?

Thanks so much.

KatMT · November 25, 2012, 11:50am

Since your question is a new one, you should start your own thread to get more responses… but in the meantime, here are some places to start:

TheRealKEVP · November 26, 2012, 11:57am

There are any number of schools now that offer undergraduate (Bachelors’ degree) programs for Stage Managers and/or Directors. Sometimes it might be called something like “BA (or BFA) in Theatre Directing”, other times it would be “BA/BFA in Theatre, with an emphasis (or concentration) in Directing.” Or Stage Management, whatever.

The threads that KatMT suggested are good places to start. If you call up a college and all they offer is a degree in “Theatre” or “Drama”, meaning Acting, it is probably not the program for you. Some places only have Directing programs for grad students, but don’t put off, there are a few undergraduate Directing programs.

KatMT · November 26, 2012, 11:13pm

Again it all really depends on the school. A school may or may not offer a degree or a concentration in directing or stage management, but may still encourage and work with a student to focus course work and opportunities in the areas of directing or stage management.

Inquire to find out the opportunities at the schools in which you are interested… both inside and outside of the classroom.

:)

ppmhotcocoa · November 30, 2012, 1:22pm

thank you for this.

redeye41 · December 1, 2012, 4:18am

I don’t know if anybody has mentioned this or cares, but I just thought I’d mention that I saw an interview with David Hyde Pierce where he says he went to Yale planning to major in classical piano. He wanted Ivy league, like the fit, was all in. After a while all his plans went out the window as he knew theater was for him. He graduated from Yale with his BA and supplemented his work at Yale with some experiences in NYC when possible. So this method got us Niles Crain! Frasier never would have been the same with out Niles!

fishbowlfreshman · December 1, 2012, 10:53am

^ David got his professional training at Michael Howard Studios.

MomCares · April 22, 2014, 10:06pm

So much agreement here, and very much our D’s thinking when deciding what she wanted from 4 years in college!

Are you actually “the” Burke Moses? If so, love your work!

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