My husband was SO MAD AT ME. D was really waffling between two equal programs (in her mind) - both of which accepted her from their waitlists at the last minute. She had visited both but assumed she wouldn’t get into both of them so never compared them directly (a mistake)! I think hubby jinxed it when he kept asking “what if there is a glitch - c’mon girls!!”. It worked out. D had already made the appropriate phone calls but it was a rush!
Re: May 1 decisions. One of the schools my d did get accepted to said the housing deposit needs to be in by 4pm on May 1. I found this on their portal, and I don’t think it was in the acceptance paperwork.
My d is on the MT side, due to no acting acceptances (so I haven’t kept up with this thread). We are getting closer to a decision, but I do not want to wait until Tuesday (especially since I am working that night).
So, here’s where we’re at in the decision-making process:
Hartt is still the frontrunner. There is SO much D likes about Hartt: the “repertory” approach with guaranteed casting starting in sophomore year and four shows a year; the Shakespeare study in London; the connections with Hartford Stage and the Monomoy Theatre, which means opportunities to build a professional resume before graduation; and the fact that many alumni are working right after graduation or even during senior year. Also, we saw a play there (“Dancing at Lughnasa”), which was excellent. D was very impressed with the talent of the students.
But the one thing that still concerns her is the lack of studio class time. Acting class is just twice a week for an hour and 20 minutes, so a total of 2 hours and 40 minutes a week. Adding in the other classes (voice & speech, movement, etc.) brings the total to about 10 hours a week. It doesn’t seem like much. At my D’s performing arts high school, she gets 15 hours a week of studio classes, and out of that total, 7 and a half hours are acting class. She’s concerned about going to a college where she gets LESS training than she had in high school.
Now, having said that, at Hartt once they start the “repertory” part of the program in sophomore year, they’re in rehearsal for 20+ hours a week in ADDITION to the 10 hours of class time, and the rehearsals are very instructional in nature and are considered an integral part of their acting training. So at that point, it DOES become an intense 30-hour a week program. So that definitely makes her feel better, which is why it’s still the front runner. Still, she doesn’t love the idea of only 10 hours a week of training in freshman year. The rest of the time in freshman year is spent running crew on productions in the evenings, which is fine - she doesn’t mind doing that - but she wishes she had 4 or 5 hours of class time during the day and THEN ran crew in the evenings.
She also auditioned for Stella Adler, which DOES have intense conservatory classes all day. She found out the other day that she was accepted, but there’s a catch: the 3-year daytime conservatory is full. They have rolling admissions, so all the slots for that daytime program were taken. So instead, they accepted her for the 2-year evening conservatory (which is 6 pm to 10 pm, 20 hours a week), and waitlisted her for the daytime program in case someone declines a spot. She doesn’t love the idea of going to school in the evening (although I did point out that she could then audition during the day).
This past Tuesday, she also auditioned for Neighborhood Playhouse. She had applied there at the same time she applied to Stella Adler, but there was an issue with them not getting her transcript or something, and time was running out, so she had written that one off. But then last week they notified her that the problem had been resolved, and they scheduled her audition for this past Tuesday. She was considering canceling it, since she probably won’t hear back til after May 1, but then decided to go anyway, since we paid the application fee.
She ended up liking Neighborhood Playhouse a lot. The first year is 30 hours a week (including 12 hours of acting training), the second year 40 a week. It’s a Meisner program, which she likes. The woman who interviewed her was very familiar with D’s PA high school…in fact, one of the teachers at NP is the husband of an acting teacher at D’s high school. The woman said that since students from D’s high school already have so much training, they need a really intense program to challenge them and bring them to the next level. She also said that there have been Hartt students who took the summer program at NP and liked it so much that they switched from Hartt to NP (which added to D’s concern about Hartt).
So she’s really torn. She’s still leaning toward Hartt though, because of a point that I had brought up: this is her only opportunity to have the “college experience” of living away from home in a dorm, being part of a troupe of student actors the same age as her for four years, going to London with them, and hopefully bonding with them and having a memorable, life-changing experience. That aspect really appeals to her - she has often said that she wants to feel like college is a whole new phase in her life.
Whereas if she goes to Stella Adler or NP, she’ll get great training, BUT her day-to-day life will be just like in high school: living at home, taking the subway to school, coming home after school. Plus, she may feel lonely and isolated, because the students at Stella and NP are mostly adults, so she wouldn’t be hanging out with them outside of class, and most of her friends are going away to college.
I also pointed out that if she turns down Hartt, that opportunity is GONE forever. Whereas if she turns down Stella and NP and goes to Hartt, she can STILL do Stella or NP later on - the conservatories will always be available to her. She could go to Hartt but then do a summer program at Stella or NP, or she could do the full program after she graduates, or later on in her 30s, or she could go to grad school, etc. There will ALWAYS be opportunities to get additional training throughout her life if she feels she needs it. But this is the ONLY time she has to go away to college.
She does agree with that point, and even texted me that she had been watching “dorm decorating” videos on YouTube and thinking how much she’d enjoy going away from home and living in a dorm and having that new experience/adventure. She also asked one of her acting teachers at school for advice, and he said the same thing, that he advises going to college and having that unique experience, since she can do the conservatories any time.
She told me not to make a deposit yet, because she still wants to think about it some more. She’s at YoungArts right now and won’t be back til Sunday night, unfortunately. We need a decision by Monday night! (Because I don’t want to leave it til the very last minute and then my internet crashes or something.)
I just wish Hartt had more studio class hours - if it did, it would be totally perfect and she wouldn’t be so conflicted.
I also wish so much that she had gotten into Rutgers or UNCSA, her two dream schools; then she would have had everything she wanted. We talk so much here about finding your “perfect fit” school…but sometimes the perfect fit schools reject you. In that case, you have to look at your acceptances and try to figure out which one checks off the most boxes, even if it isn’t EXACTLY what you want.
Anyway, thanks for letting me vent! One way or another, this will be over soon!
Question: I know this is a BFA thread, but… we are not comparing Syracuse BFA-Acting with USC- BA Acting. I am well aware of the extra academic requirements at USC. What we’d like to drill down on is the acting training. Is this a school where if you really wanted to try to be an actor that you’d need to follow it up with an MFA? Also, I understand that the school is great for internships - but none of those are acting, right?
@momofJ5, does the USC website have the curriculum for the BA Acting program? The designation of BFA vs. BA is less important than the actual curriculum - how many acting classes do they get, what techniques are studied etc.
@actorparent1 I think the college experience is very important. Last year my D was deciding between a BFA at Calarts and a BA at LMU. The college experience definitely played a huge role in her decision to go to LMU. (Not that Calarts doesn’t have a campus but it’s a small arts school so not quite the same thing). Location was also a factor as well as the draw of a diverse liberal arts education. This summer she has decided to supplement her training by attending Neighborhood Playhouse’s 6 week summer intensive. So yes, that opportunity will always be there for her. If Hartt doesn’t work out NP will take her anytime I’m sure!
@actorparent1 - since no program has it all, the option to supplement training doesn’t have to be limited to the summers. Instead of thinking about what is “missing”, maybe it can be a hidden “opportunity” to try new things during the school year outside the classroom. Not all acting training has to be on your feet in the studio. Perhaps the lacking studio hours might turn into opportunities for independent pursuits (extra script analysis, volunteer hours at a community theatre, student-driven extracurricular script writing, special project with mentor, focused coaching to build rep for summer stock auditions, research history/setting/character about a favorite play). The rounded actor gains experience beyond the stage. Just a thought.
@actorparent1, I enjoyed listening to your D’s story. (I let Siri read the posts to me while I drive to work.). In addition to the traditional college experience, don’t discount the value of the academic classes and the degree that your D would get at Hartt. IMHO, well-rounded / multi dimensional people who have had lots of rich experiences are more interesting people and interesting people are better actors.
@MomofJ5 The majority of actors don’t have MFA degrees so I would not say that’s a necessity for success anyway. Certainly if someone wanted to teach at the college level they would need that. My D’s agent told her she didn’t even need a BFA! My D also applied (class of 2021) to USC, both BA and BFA. Had she gotten into the BA I think she would have gone, even with other BFA offers. According to my spreadsheet, USC’s BA has 52 credits in the major. In addition, I’m sure she will be able to add electives to that. My D is a freshman at LMU in a BA program and hers has 56 so they are similar in that regard. Syracuse’s BFA is going to have a lot more. Here is the link to the requirements:
http://coursecatalog.syr.edu/preview_program.php?catoid=13&poid=6757&returnto=1731 (you probably have this already!). Looks like if you take out the electives and gen eds there are 76 in the major. The actual acting requirement is 30 credits. For the most part, when you’re comparing a BA to a BFA there are certainly going to be more requirements in the major for the BFA program. But not all programs are alike…some BFA’s have fewer requirements than others so it’s important to print out both curriculums and compare them side by side.
@MomofJ5 one other thing I remember from last year is that I had gotten a PM from a mom whose D was at USC in a pre-med program. Actually I think she had twins there who had backgrounds in MT. She had told me that the BA Theater majors are up against everyone else in the school for roles in their non-BFA productions. This woman’s D had been cast as a lead more than once and she was not a Theater major so that is something you may want to look into.
@coronado yes you are so right! Funny story, this past August we were at Newark airport at the gate ready to embark on the flight to LAX for move-in weekend. When we lined up, I started chatting with the woman in front of me for a bit. Once the plane landed and everyone stood up to grab their bag the same woman stood up in front of me. I hadn’t realized she was sitting in front of me the whole flight. Anyway we started chatting again while we were waiting to disembark and somehow the conversation rolled around to why we were in LA. My D told her she was moving into college. She asked where my D was going and she said LMU for theater. So the woman tells us that she teaches at Calarts! Crazy coincidence since Calarts and LMU were my D’s final two choices! So of course we told her that my D almost chose Calarts and she replied that my D made the right choice! Her opinion was that a well-rounded actor is a good actor and a liberal arts education was the way to go. That made my D feel really good about her decision. 
@marg928 Love that story! When my son decided on liberal arts colleges with theater, I struggled with that decision a bit at first. He’s more inclined now to have the college experience, and he can always take additional acting training in the future. John Mahoney didn’t start acting until he was in his 40s.
@coronado @marg928 @bfahopeful @dramama1022 Thank you all so much for the encouragement and the extremely helpful advice! It makes me feel so much better! I love this board!
@coronado, you make a really great suggestion about seeking out other opportunities. Your post reminded me of something I had forgotten: Hartt allows acting students to take dance classes and singing lessons for an extra fee. So it occurs to me that if D feels that her freshman schedule is too light and she has too much free time, she can take dance classes and/or singing lessons. (She could also get a part-time job and earn some spending money!)
I think you also have to look at connections, regardless of where you go, @actorparent1 - it seems like the connections she’ll make with other developing artists at Hartt are really valuable. She will always have the opportunity to join an adult actors studio later.
@MomofJ5 - is your S or D interested in stage or film? USC has such a great film program and (again) making connections with young directors and writers there would be easy and might be instrumental in building a career. I am sure those creative folks are always looking for actors. I think Syracuse is a better stage acting program and likely has better live theater connections. Also - what a difference in living situations! Syracuse NY or Los Angeles…! Hmm!
@actorparent1 wow you have some Amazing Options and have dared to veer off the college route. I know that being in your location has been a curse and a blessing. I think if I were living in Iowa and had a shot at those conservatory programs, I’d jump at it because (hello!!) It’s NYC and they are great programs but when you’re already there, the feeling is different ( I know this very well) I can’t wait to hear about the final choice within the next 5 days
Thanks, @actingdreams!
@actorparent1 - Stella Adler has a summer program where you get the first semester’s training over 6? weeks or so. Also, if taking a script writing class (as others suggested) isn’t an option, she could always add the summer training on.
Everything I hear about these BFA programs is that the kids are BUSY. If Hartt is 4 hours per week short on acting, I bet they have something else to take its place. And even if they don’t - since you know the rigor is their sophomore year— maybe the school does this because there IS an adjustment to college. Maybe they have found the kids are happier with this 4 hours to work on homework, etc.
@marg928 and @actorparent1 - thank you for the acting curriculum suggestion. I had been so focused on the academic curriculum differences, I didn’t look at that.
@CaMom13 - he has mostly done theatre, but loves film - makes his own movies with a friend every summer. I read somewhere, though, that the actors at USC have to audition at the beginning of the year for the film students. USC seems more competitive. Syracuse seems like it’s in its own bubble (albeit cold, snowy and cloudy!)
@MomofJ5 and @actorparent1 That has certainly been our experience this freshman year. D is at UMinn-Guthrie and went to a rigorous college prep school so she was ready for the long hours and intensity. She’s handled it very well (actually, she loves it so much I don’t think she realizes how hard she’s working…) They’re busy all the time, in class, in rehearsal, working on projects, and doing the rest of their liberal arts homework. I can’t imagine her having time for anything else. That’s just been our experience, but I thought it might help.
@momofj5 I only know music students at SC but I think overall it’s got a very happy student body - 96% freshman retention rate. I think he’ll have great opportunities either way but they are such different schools, I’d really look at what coast he wants to work on and in what industry he wants to have college friends.