Back up plans and can't take this DRAMA

College Majors Musical Theater Major
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<p>How many of you (or your kids) have made back up plans if doing MT full time doesn't work out? Plans that don't include asking would you like fries with that or living in your basement when they are 35?</p>

<p>We are REALLY struggling with that. My D is open to exploring optional career fields and double majoring but we can't figure out what to reasonably pair with an MT degree that would give her a steady income. We are set to skype with someone I met through these boards about her occupation that is coupled with MT and how she got there. That's all I have at the moment.</p>

<p>RANT BUTTON ON</p>

<p>It has been a very difficult year for D (jr in HS) and lately it has been much worse. She is thinking that all her hard work is for nothing and that she isn't talented so should give up on her dream. I can't imagine this kid not being on the stage in some way and not being miserable. I don't know what to say anymore. I'm not a stage mom and I don't care what she chooses to do in life as long as she is happy and can provide herself with the basics. That being said we have done everything she has asked us to do; dance lessons, acting lessons, voice lessons, piano lessons, choir performances, me designing all media for HS performances (BFA, graphic designer), on and on and on....</p>

<p>D is a good student with a solid 3.6 gpa and will have 5 APs and college algebra credit (the rest of her classes are honors) under her belt at graduation in 2013. Has only taken the ACT once with no studying and got a 27 (R 35, M 21, S 23, E 30). She plans to study and bring that up hopefully to a 29 or 30. She also has a guaranteed free ride at at a state flagship for tuition (DH is on faculty). Unfortunately, this school has no musical theatre. Great music program but D doesn't want to go the music ed route. Sigh.</p>

<p>My heart is breaking for this poor kid. Not getting selected for Governor's scholarship for the Arts was the nail in the coffin this week. Not to mention her twin was selected for the Governor's Scholar Program (she did not apply; her sister is much more academically inclined; took the ACT without studying and made a 32) and will be gone for that program for five weeks this summer.</p>

<p>I need a valium. Check that... I need a damn IV of valium STAT.</p>

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<p>B r e a t h e . . . , Momma Walker . . . , B r e a t h e . . .</p>

<p>And a deep cleansing B r e a t h . . . (big sigh - make some noise)</p>

<p>Now, here’s a Big Cyber ( ( ( H U G ) ) )</p>

<p>You’ve come to the right place :)</p>

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<p>Thanks… Helps :)</p>

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<p>Sent you an email ;)</p>

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<p>Reading this reminds me of how I picked my cc nickname…</p>

<p>I am a nurse and my husband is an engineer and neither of us is as passionate about our career as our kids are about all things MT. We knew long before they hit HS that they would be pursuing some form of performing arts, so we had many years to consider the whole “fall back” way of thinking. The more we considered it, the more we came to realize that it would be really hard for our kids to really follow their dream with that elephant in the room, so we took the position that we would encourage and support their going the BFA route. We told them, and still tell them, follow this passion wherever it takes you and if, down the road, you decide you want to change careers and you need more education, you can get your masters degree in whatever you want…</p>

<p>But for now: “Do What U Luv”</p>

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<p>I think that smart, hard working kids will always be successful. My niece was the salutatorian of her high school. She had many traditional academic choices to build a career. She did what she loved and majored in modern dance in college. When she graduated, she became a yoga instructor and health consultant. She’s very happy. All the various things she studied and experienced gave her insight into helping others with health and exercise. She is married, happy, financially secure, and doing some community theatre. A Success! Do what you love and make a path. You don’t need an audition program or “top” program to build a career path.</p>

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<p>Caveat: I know there are kids out there who want to double major in MT/Acting and something else, that was not the case for either of our kids, but they picked programs that would allow them to become versatile lifelong artists capable of creating and producing work. </p>

<p>Sorry to monopolize your thread, but I want to share two quotes that have guided us for the past 5-6 years - the first is posted in our study, the second on our refrigerator :</p>

<p>“I must study politics and war that my sons may have liberty to study mathematics and philosophy.
My sons ought to study mathematics and philosophy, geography, natural history, naval architecture, navigation, commerce and agriculture in order to give their children the right to study painting, poetry, music, architecture, statuary, tapestry, and porcelain.”
~ John Adams on Education</p>

<p>“Though you knew we were bright enough to become doctors,
you allowed us to be come artists…
Doctors discover new ways of helping us live longer.
But artists discover new ways of helping us live better.”
~ Quinn Strassel - BFA Theatre Performance 2001
University of Michigan commencement speech</p>

<p>@theatremomma - That is so refreshing to hear! Ironically, we feel the current dip in the economy supports "following your dreams"more than ever, since what were once the most practical career paths are now as uncertain as the romantic. And your niece is a perfect example how studying performing arts can result in a successful career that is now where near a stage, much less NYC.</p>

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<p>Good old John Adams. Gota love the man. I’m copying that great quote right now. Thanks for sharing, d-what-u-luv!</p>

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<p>I hear where you’re coming from. My daughter is a junior as well (4.2 GPA, 32 on the ACT, so similar to yours), and is embarking on this road. It sounds as if your daughter’s fears are somewhat premature. She hasn’t even applied to schools or auditioned yet. My daughter has looked at a few schools thus far, and what she is finding based on talking to students at different places is that there are a lot of different avenues to reach one’s goal of performing. For example, she has a friend at one college she visited that is a theater major, and they went to a show put on there by the department. It was a musical and only about a third of the actors were MT majors, the others were theater majors with music or dance minors. And there are a lot of such schools where there is no audition requirement. So she will have a lot of different ways to reach her goal.</p>

<p>The other thing is that her goal may change. My daughter is starting to realize going to a college with different options might be a good idea in case her desires change. She doesn’t see that happening (neither do I), but I applaud the maturity she is showing in thinking in such a manner. She still feels no passion for anything but performing, and from everyone that’s evaluated her she should get a MT spot, but as I tell her all the time I wanted to be a lawyer starting college and I wound up going into science, so things can change with time.</p>

<p>Tell your daughter this for me:</p>

<p>From what your mom has written, first of all be very thankful you have parents that are so supportive. And that they will support you no matter what you decide to do in life (within reason, of course, I am pretty sure they won’t support you if you decide to be a cat burglar!). I can’t overemphasize how important that is; many parents would not be as supportive, especially if you’re deciding on a performing career. </p>

<p>From the description your mom has given, you sound like a remarkable young lady, intelligent and very talented. You have wonderful gifts, but what you don’t have is life experience, and wisdom that comes with age. That’s what your mom and dad have (and others of us). </p>

<p>So what we can tell you is that right now things seem a bit scary, you’re looking at going off to college, and trying to get into a program (music theater) that is difficult. But you have trained well, and you have people around you (dance instructors, voice teachers, etc) that you can depend on to give you a good opinion on your skill level and how competitive you’ll be. Ask them for honest opinions (but be prepared if some are not as glowing as you’d like!), then work on what they tell you. Know there may be stumbling blocks, and that those build character. Make sure you’re performing now, and ENJOY it while you do. Years from now you will look back on this time of your life, and it should be with fond memories of high school, of finding out about yourself, of that first boyfriend, of that first time on stage. You don’t have to be in a big hurry to grow up, that is what college is for, and what life after college is for. Give yourself the gift of enjoying life right now!</p>

<p>You have a dream, and from all indications the drive to follow that dream. So follow it, but just realize the path you take while following your dream may not be the exact one you think it will be as you start taking those first steps. And that’s OK. Many people wind up either reaching their dream in a different way, or they dream new dreams and follow those. Ask your folks and other parents if they’re now doing what they thought they’d be doing when they were juniors in high school; I think the answers may surprise you! </p>

<p>I am jealous of you (and my own junior year daughter) because you have such an exciting time and life ahead of you. Rest assured that young ladies like you with intelligence, drive, and determination make it in this world many more times than not. Your future is bright, and I am confident you will make it everything you want it to be.</p>

<p>From the Dad of a daughter who’s just like you!!</p>

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<p>As of now, I really don’t feel that we need a set “back-up” plan. Like many of the other posters, I can’t imagine my D not having done MT. She really couldn’t think of anything else she wanted to major in when she was applying for college. Having said that, we have had our moments over the years of wondering how "stable " her life will be. She is now a junior and I no longer have any doubts. She has always held down a job while going to school, -mostly in large chain retail- and in every job has been approached about entering a management training program. While I don’t think this is something she would consider doing in the long run, she has told me that it is her MT major that has given her the tools to be noticed. She maintains that there is no other major on earth that can prepare one as completely and thoroughly for life as the MT major. She says that through MT, she has learned how to think quickly on her feet, developed confidence in standing before a large or small audience, how to nail an interview (what interview could be more grueling than standing by yourself in front of a bunch of strangers at a table, who have watched possibly hundreds of people stand in the same place as you over the last weeks, and singing a song, or doing a monologue where you become someone else…???) how to prioritize and get an unending amount of work done in a short time, how to not be embarassed at almost anything that could possibly happen to you, how to always keep smiling, how to not take no for an answer… you get the picture. I think this is true of most MT majors- it is the nature of the beast. Having 2 other kids who have graduated in non-MT majors and are in the "real"world working, I can say that our MT D is probably more prepared than either of them to go out and take on any job that interests her. So many people graduate from college and then end up doing a job that is in no way related to their area of study. I think any graduate of an MT program has just as many opportunities for success as any other graduate, especially in today’s world. </p>

<p>I think the OP has added stress with the twin situation. Our oldest are twins, although boy/girl, which in my mind made it easier for us. No matter how much we all try to treat each child as an individual with their own strengths and weaknesses, it is tough sometimes when one twin has more “successes” than the other. I would imagine the Gov. Scholar. for the Arts is a highly competitive program, so there should be no shame in not being selected for it. I would try to find a community or regional theater show she can audition for, or maybe dance thru a community college to get ready for college auditions. There are so many ways to keep a theater kid busy over the summer, and it is a perfect opportunity for her to strengthen her skills for the upcoming audition season! Tell her to keep going, and start coming up with a plan for applying to MT schools now. Read everything you can on this forum and prepare a list now that includes a wide range of MT programs. There are many roads to success with MT, so be sure to consider all; including BA’s, BFA’s, minors, etc. Most of all, take a deep breath and don’t worry- it will all work out.</p>

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<p>I think great complimentary gigs (that do not require a degree - just training) include:</p>

<p>Certified Fitness Instructor/Personal Trainer</p>

<p>Certified Massage Therapist (1000 hours of training in New York State, as low as 600 hours in other states)</p>

<p>Graphic Designer - freelance</p>

<p>Photography - have several former students who make $200-400 per photo shoot and pull in enough extra money in big cities to complement their acting (think headshots, band photo shoots, small businesses, restaurants, engagement photos, new born photos, etc)</p>

<p>Web Design - You can easily teach yourself how to use a program like Wix and there are plenty of people who will pay you to do it for them either because they are computer illiterate or do not have the time.</p>

<p>Murder Mystery Dinner Theatre - I ran a business once where we offered a weekly murder mystery show at an Italian Restaurant. We earned $10 a person and brought in 40-50 per week. The restaurant loved it because they had guaranteed sales on Tuesday - one of their slowest days.</p>

<p>Jazz Singer - MT vocal training lines up nicely with jazz. Your D can learn a 3 hour set of standards with no problem during four years of school. When she moves to a city, all she needs to do is hire an accompanist and then go to locally owned restaurants with a business plan of how adding a live jazz singer for “Tuesday Date Night” will help him/her fill the seats on an otherwise dead night.</p>

<p>Graduate school for CCC-SLP: Look up Dr. Wendy LeBorgne. She has a BFA in MT and runs one of the leading voice clinics in the country where she treats celebrity performers. She also still performs.</p>

<p>Earn your BFA, perform for a while, then go back to school for a MBA in accounting, marketing, or non-profit management. There are regional theatres and symphonies throughout the US who have full-time staff for these positions. If the company has a $1 million budget, its not uncommon for the General Director to make $100k+ The Metropolitan Opera GD gets $1 million + per year. The Cleveland Orchestra business manager used to pull in $600k. Many regional theatre GD/ADs pull in $80-150k.</p>

<p>Earn a MFA in directing and teach at a community college (part-time or full time) while performing locally and teaching private lessons. In many of the bigger cities, private voice lessons run $75-100 per hour. I have a colleague who teaches 20-30 hours a weak on the west coast for $100 an hour (with no major performance accomplishments in her background - she’s just that good). Do the math, it equals out to $100k per year if you average 25 hours and 40 weeks.</p>

<p>Go through the “Teach for America” program and allow the organization to pay for your masters degree in education (in select states) while earning a full time salary.</p>

<p>Work as a special events coordinator for a convention center, resort, or university.</p>

<p>Earn a certificate or masters in Music Therapy - its one of the hottest up-and-coming fields of medecine and there is a huge shortage. They have discovered that people who have suffered a stroke can learn to speak again by beginning with singing. They are also having HUGE success with Autism Spectrum Disorders and considering we now have 1 in 88 children diagnosed with the average therapist only able to handle 30-40 clients a week, you could possibly justify the need for one music therapist per 3,520 children in a community. That doesn’t begin to reach all of the elderly and others who benefit from those services.</p>

<p>Run an entertainment booking service in a community. Many restaurants want live music, but they do not have the time to do the auditions or bookings themselves. If you can start a service where you offer vetted performers with a track record of success to these businesses with a one stop shop to fill all of their needs with little to no hassle - you’ve got a business. Buy a few Karaoke machines and hire a few DJs to spin your tables at weddings and you have quite the business.</p>

<p>Open a Kinder Musik Franchise - super cheap and very desirable in most upper-middle class communities.</p>

<p>Think outside of the box and invent your own mix, even if it seems crazy, it could be just the thing everyone wants. When I first announced to my colleagues (about 7 years ago) I was only teaching Pop/Rock singers from now on, they all thought I was crazy and there would be no demand. My studio was absolutely packed full within a year, I had clients driving to me from as far away as NYC (a 4 hour drive) for lessons. I was asked by radio stations and TV stations in town to be a “celebrity” judge every time there was a contest, and I ended up consulting record producers in the area on their bands and eventually on how to market themselves to specific demographics and expand their businesses which led to me working on and entire Downtown Business District Revitalization plan with a local non-profit. I do not have a business degree. I learned how to learn in college, as a music major I learned to think outside of the box, and when I didn’t know something I asked someone who did or found a book to read. Was I really THAT good at all of those things? Don’t know - but I found something people wanted, I gave it to them, they were happy, so I kept figuring out how to give them more and they kept coming back and sending referrals. That’s how you make a living as an entrepreneur musician. In my seven years since graduate school I have only worked a day job once, for 6 months, after moving and while re-building a business. Otherwise, I have always worked in my field - in some aspect. ALSO: I was NOT the most talented freshmen. In fact, probably bottom half - but I worked harder than anyone else and I wanted it more than anyone else and I must say history has proven to me time and time again that an insane work ethic is much more valuable than pure talent in the long run.</p>

<p>Final Thoughts I posted for my students this week - to give you hope and a bright side to all of this:</p>

<p>A few facts to remember in this stressful time of your life</p>

<p>• There are 6,840,507,003 people in this world
• 80% of them make less than $10 per day
• 1.6 billion of them live without electricity
• 1 billion of the children in this world live in poverty
• There are 42,475 members of Actor’s Equity who wake up everyday and pursue performing for a career
• 42,475 people in this world get to wake up everyday and pursue a living doing something they absolutely love.
• You are about to become part of the 0.0000062% of the world population who are fortunate enough to worry about whether or not you will get paid to sing, dance, and act for other people.</p>

<p>Most of you will never have to worry about finding the basic needs of life (food, shelter, clothing) or love. No matter how rough things get, please remember that you are incredibly fortunate to have the life you have and everything will eventually work out.</p>

<p>VT</p>

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<p>Great post, VT!
Here are some ideas that my D and I have been kicking around. You could become an x-ray, CT or ultrasound tech with a 2 year certificate program. You can work for temp agencies doing this type of work. If you book a show, you can take off, then go back to the temp agency when the show closes. I believe that there are temp agencies for medical assistants, dental assistants, lvn’s, etc. All of these jobs pay decently.</p>

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<p>My D (although only a sophomore right now) is planning to be a preschool teacher as her day job. I teach preschool – came to it late in life – and she loves when her schedule allows her to be my unpaid assistant.
Although an Early Childhood Bachelor’s degree is desirable, you are employable with an AA or less.
You don’t make a great deal of money, but at least it’s a steady job.
I hate to admit it, but I also felt better about D’s career choice when I discovered that actors are eligible for unemployment between shows.</p>

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<p>My D lives in DC and her favorite job is as a tour guide. Combines her acting training, love of history and fitness (lots of walking). And they get to meet interesting people from all over the world.</p>

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<p>If she is considering double majoring while doing a BFA MT program that will be very difficult. There really isn’t a ton of time to do that. I guess it depends on what credits she goes in to college with. My D had 19 credits both this and last semester (all but 3 of them in her BFA major). Maybe she should consider a BA program if she wants to double major or consider a school like Northwestern? Good luck and like everyone has said BREATHE! :)</p>

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<p>Oh and I believe NYU you can possibly double major!!</p>

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<p>Thanks to everyone for listening and providing your insight! Many kind people on here… I’m answered several PMs and appreciate every single thought that someone has taken time out of their busy day to write down for a complete stranger. Remarkable.</p>

<p>Today is a bit better and the wound-licking is in full swing :). </p>

<p>I had to laugh at VTs suggestion that graphic design is something you can do with a “little training”. So is acting or singing, right? lol. I have my BFA in graphic design (minor in marketing) and it takes a little more than training to do what I do for a living. Are there “graphic designers” out there without a degree? Hell, yeah and some actually have learned on the job, but most are hacks who make stuff without any idea what they are doing.</p>

<p>We have read each and every suggestion and are formulating a plan. I will update when we firm things up a bit.</p>

<p>Thanks again for listening and helping us along the road to recovery!</p>

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<p>Walker1194: I had the same reaction to VT’s post as I am also a graphic designer with a BFA : ) Glad today is better!</p>

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<p>@Lojosmo, lol!</p>

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<p>Just so you know Momma Walker, there were plenty of times on this journey that I wanted to RUN SCREAMING FROM THE ROOM. :0) Remember, we parents have our kids’ well being in mind as well as our own, so the stress feels double at times. I would say that the majority of the people on this board felt overwhelmed many, many times, especially at the beginning of the process. It gets better. And worse. And then better. :0)</p>

<p>Also, my daughter’s junior year was by far her most challenging totally unrelated to all of this application and auditioning business. There just seems to be something about that year of school. </p>

<p>@do-what-u-luv Love the quotes! I so agree with what you said about how it’s a good time to follow your heart . . . I have said something similar to folks who question the wisdom of pursuing a BFA . . . “There are no jobs anyway, she might as well pursue her dream and do what she loves.”</p>