BFA Acting Pre-Screen and Auditions. Class of 2022 - Sharing!

@vpvpbp nope! :))

Just googled it alsoā€¦

Commenting on the talent of the existing students is probably just not appropriate on this board. As much as we seek this information. I know my D cared about this tremendously: top instruction, and talented, passionate, hard-working artists. Best suggestions: go see student productions, look for productions on line, and look at placement in the industry (although luck plays in as much as talent and connections).

So hereā€™s a ā€œfor instanceā€. My D and I saw productions at four schools while she was auditioning. Then at her accepted school. So five in total. At least one of them we were not very impressed. But I am not going to trumpet that information, are you kidding? That would be an in person discussion or private messaging, once there was a level of trust and if the information was given full context.

Iā€™ve met a lot of great people here, and there has been a lot of interest, support, information sharing, plus just some great human interest stories. I know my mission now is to Pay it Forward. People helped me a lot! Thank you!

LOL, sorry! Iā€™ve been on so many internet forums for years, the phrases are ingrained! YMMV = your mileage may vary. In other words, your opinion or experience may differ from mine - Iā€™m not claiming to be ā€œright,ā€ just sharing my own personal opinion/experience.

I think that the key may come down to not WHAT a person thinks - all people are entitled to their own opinion - ā€œI donā€™t like Wicked- never haveā€, (thatā€™s true BTW), but HOW they express it - ā€œanyone who likes Wicked has poor tasteā€ (they just have different taste) My own personal litmus test from now on will be this: If I wouldnā€™t say it that way to the face of someone with a kid at that school, I wonā€™t say it on this forumā€¦ b/c someone with a kid at that school will probably read it.

ā€œWhen given the choice between being right or being kind choose kind.ā€ - Wonder

I think itā€™s important to remember that theatre is art and art is subjective. Not everyone enjoys the same type of entertainment and luckily for all of us thereā€™s enough theatre to go around

Well I donā€™t mean to change the subject but there are many great programs, many amazing talented kids, well informed (expert) parents, and good intentions here. Art is always subjective ā€¦but man oh man if people hadnā€™t been effusively sharing info here, I would have been lost in the woods. Forever grateful to this community.

@FourStars is far more eloquent at extolling the positives of UNCSA than I can be but Iā€™d like to report that we will be committing. Honored to be. Also forever thankful to whomever chose a different road and eternal thanks for opening the spot! My daughter got accepted to Purchase yesterday (which is a school she loved-WLā€™s are on the move) but did not even waverā€¦

Will write our journey on that page in the future. I love this school so much for a million reasons. It is the right fit for my
girl and we are all in.

It really isnā€™t over as puzzle pieces are moving as they will in this world. I was so rattled and blue during the longest month of March. I actually need to pinch myself because things feel settled in my type A turbulent mind. Itā€™s a good day.

@laylamom congratulations!! so excited for you. Itā€™s nice to meet another CC Parent who will be connecting with you at all of the shows :slight_smile: So happy for your daughter

@laylamom - that is so awesome! Congratulations!!!

I agree with @too wonderful and @theatremom10 that because art is subjective it is not our place to comment on the quality of talent of any of the students we see perform (after all, who am I to make that judgment?) and often these comments just come across as mean and not helpful since what one person considers weak acting, another person considers great. Sticking to comments on things that can be better quantified (size of classes, number of courses, number of teachers, number of kids working in the field upon graduation, casting, etc.) seems to make the most sense and provides the most valuable information. Of course, many of us are effusive when extolling the virtues of the schools our kids went to but I donā€™t think any of us think that those same schools donā€™t have shortcomings. Many times, however, what parents point out as shortcomings are often just rumors or hearsay about a school and that is why the feedback from parents who have or had kids in the school is important ā€“ because they know what actually goes on. That is the value of this board ā€“ hearing about the experiences of others and taking from those experiences what is valuable to each of us.

Congratulations!!! @laylamom

Congratulations, @laylamom! Such a fantastic choice, and such an amazing story, with so many unexpected twists and turns! I am so, so happy for you and your D!!!

On the other subject- I have found that I canā€™t ā€œtrustā€ certain dear friends for book recommendations. We just donā€™t like the same books at all. In fact, if she likes it, I wonā€™t read it. Thatā€™s why I donā€™t think a comment about your opinion about the quality of a show or a performer is a fair measurement on this forum for a school. And donā€™t forget too - we all have (or know others on cc that have) limited choices. Saying that you didnā€™t like a production at their one or another choice isnā€™t helpful. What can someone do with that? In contrast- if you comment that Acting students can take 1 hour of voice per week (or where/how they can do so)- thatā€™s incredibly helpful.

Congratulations! @laylamom

And on the subject of sharing info, I want to thanks all those ahead of me, and with me, on the journey. Iā€™ve learned so much here, I think the positives greatly outweigh the negatives. Its all about fit. I have a friend with a kid 1 year behind my son, and they have different tastes. The reasons for him not liking a school are the same reasons that other kid likes the school. Neither are wrong.

I really like @momofj5ā€™s point that sharing factual information (ā€œthe students get X hours of acting training a week,ā€ ā€œthe training is Meisner based,ā€ ā€œacting majors are allowed to audition for musicals,ā€ etc.), is much more helpful than sharing a totally subjective opinion (ā€œstudents at X school seem more talented than students at Y school.ā€) Itā€™s better to go to a school yourself and see a play there, or watch YouTube videos, or see what alumni are doing, and form your own opinion, rather than trusting someone elseā€™s on the issue of talent.

So true! D and I saw a performance at one of the schools she was visiting. With the exception of a few actors, neither of us were particularly impressed. However, we saw other parents at Unifieds who RAVED about the performance. Just wasnā€™t our cup of tea, I guess.

@CaMom13 If youā€™re referring to the comment I posted, I will add that there is some background here. It harkens back to many years ago when a coach who is highly touted here on CC was part of a group of parents who took every opportunity to bash Tisch. In the ensuing years, that has continued by certain members. I have never been one to discount the negatives of Tisch, in fact, Iā€™ve discouraged students frequently who were struggling with a decision. Iā€™ve shared, in detail, issues that some students may have at the school. Iā€™ve arranged for prospective students to sit in on classes, even though the school will not. Iā€™ve put prospectives in touch with particular faculty, with grads and current students more times than I can count through the years. Itā€™s important to get the opinions and to hear the voices and experiences of many in order to make an informed decision.

I think Tischā€™s program is a very good one but I have no dog in the race ! My D graduated 11 years ago. My reason for the post I made earlier today is influenced, maybe wrongly, by the years of experience Iā€™ve had here but mainly because I donā€™t think itā€™s kind to disparage any particular program when there are parents and students here who have made the decision to attend. If someone said the same about grads of U Arts, or Ithaca, or BU, or any other school, my reaction would likely have been the same.

Yes @momofJ5 and actorparent1! This is exactly what I am getting at. Try to stick to the more factual, objective information. Across the board/s! That is what I tried to do regarding the two UNCSA issues, just correct the facts.

Even though we might WANT to figure out the fit of talent with certain schools and kids, that is not going to work on this board in general posting. However, ā€œthere are two years of voice in the standard acting curriculumā€, or ā€œmany students are able to get a minorā€ or, ā€œroughly 30% are not cast in a student production.ā€ Curriculum stuff is super helpful and fairly objective. The other conversations are probably better done OFF the public boards. Itā€™s hard because there is so much in common, and yet, students and families have very different priorities. Over time, we find a few people who seem to be targeting the same schools with same criteria, and sometimes, we can share the more personal observations privately. I have done so on countless occasions, using PM or switching over to e-mail, and folks have been generous and noone gets offended. Letā€™s keep the good stuff!

I love the analogy about books and recognizing that you may not like the same books as your friend, even a best friend. I canā€™t tell you how many times my D has felt a radically different vibe from a school than some of her good friends. And thatā€™s okay. Thank goodness there are good programs all across the country so all (hopefully) of our kiddos can find a program that feels right for them. And a word of advice to any people employed by these programs who may be lurking here, itā€™s is a real turn off when the tour guides (or in one case the program head) criticizes another program by name. If you are confident in your program, tell us what we need to know to fall in love with your program. Donā€™t try to elevate your program by putting down another program.

@alwaysamom - I absolutely agree that there are some people who try to put down Tisch in a hateful way. No other school that Iā€™ve noticed gets the same level of hate. I can see why some folks are not a fit there, but thatā€™s not a reason to put the school down. I still donā€™t know which way my S will go (look for my post at 11:59 on May 1), but hateful posts (remember ā€œthe top 10 listā€ that was floated a few weeks ago) arenā€™t helpful and I appreciate your correcting the record.