I love it @prodesse! For me, it’s not the info (nice to know what roles people have done, and nice that they like the people in then cast- though I know people who say that in bio even when they HATE everyone in cast) it’s the phrasing- it sounds so pretentious to me. I’d banish the “thrilled to announce…” Posts on social media - again, it just sounds so cheesy. Say “I got this part and I’m excited” that seems to much more genuine. Just MHO
@Soozievt, I don’t like “favorite roles” because it’s disingenuous. It doesn’t distinguish between Broadway credits and high school leads. Moreover, I could truthfully say that among my favorite roles are Ophelia, Hedwig, and Wotan in the Ring Cycle. Doesn’t mean I ever played them.
OK, well, I do realize that some with very little professional credits may say “favorite roles” and be using community or school theater on that list. I get what you mean on that. However, it is almost easy to discern when that is the case. Most actors when listing professional roles (even if limiting it to favorite ones), also list WHERE they got the credit (the theater name).
Also worth noting for all those new faces (welcome!!). These “Broadway” list often refer to musicals rather than plays so be aware that many strong “straight” theatre programs aren’t cited for this exact reason. Typically we straight theatre students get shafted due to this caveat.
I know back when I first started snooping the boards I did not realize the difference in terms of classification. Had I not done more research and just went off these alumni list I would have found myself signing up for many MT auditions never realizing my two left feet needed not apply.
Lastly, we all need to flip through these playbills the next time we’re visiting NYU and take account the ad space. Bottom line this is still a business at the end of the day with a lot of back scratching to go around. The sole purpose of these list are to make sure these schools have their fair share of application fees from the hundreds of students they know won’t stand a snow balls chance of getting into their school. There’s a reason every year a handful post acceptances and those same keep hearing the big news.
I always find it funny when we all start throwing figures and odds out there. Never taking into account just how many out of 1000 who audition quite simply aren’t ready yet or unfortunately aren’t really fit for this to begin with.
I would love to be an Olympic figure skater but let’s face it I’m not equipped for that lol. Sometimes I just wish theatre was handled with the same level of personal reflection.
I am not sure about the reflection piece, but the theater world as a whole as a way of letting you know if you are not equipped…
I don’t agree with this statement. This list was put out by Playbill. It doesn’t have a stake in what these schools do in any respect. Playbill has been offering up a series of articles this past week related to education with respect to theater. As well, they often post articles listing where a particular cast have received their training.
I agree that many kids in the applicant/audition pool for BFA programs are not truly contenders for admission. This is also true at some non-theater type colleges. For example, there are students who apply to Ivy League schools that have 0% chance of admission. I have an advisee this admissions season applying for a portfolio based program to one school on his list where I believe he has NO chance of admission on the academic side and have shared the black and white facts with him but he wants to throw his hat in the ring. Anyway, hopefully those who are applying to very competitive schools or programs, realize that not every applicant is in the ballpark. Still, that leaves a lot of applicants who really are in the ballpark and the odds are still quite challenging for admission.
Someone needs to go through this list and put the yearly cost next to each one…
I’m new to the board, just getting started helping son with college search. Someone mentioned the “hidden gems” schools that aren’t on the list. I’d love to hear the names of those gems. My son wavers between musical theater and drama. Any help with the decision of where to apply would be most appreciated!
@JKsmom -that is such a varied list. Are there certain requirements he’s looking for in a school or a geographical location? That might help others make suggestions. Also there is the big list of schools at the top of the forum that lists all the school. It’s a good place to start.
@jksmom, be sure to read the links provided by @mom4bwayboy and others in this thread. There are gems there for sure and these actually are for once, decent lists: http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/musical-theater-major/1806311-top-10-underrated-theater-colleges-mid-west-by-on-stage-magazine.html#latest
We’re near Ithaca, NY, so are looking primarily on the east coast. Ithaca College is on our list. So are SUNY Purchase, Pace (his current favorite), Emerson, Syracuse Univ, and Univ. North Caroline School of the Arts, which are fairly obvious. NYU is on the list but my son’s grades are average and his SAT math score sucks so I’m thinking that would be a stretch.
The other ones that a college consultant suggested and that I’m not sure of are: University of Hartford, Bennington College, Long Island Univ - CW Post, Muhlenberg Univ., SUNY Potsdam, SUNY Fredonia, Wagner College, Washington College, and Wells College.
I’ve just found this site and so will be going through looking for reviews of the colleges above and recommendations, but would appreciate any input from here too.
Thanks!
@JKsmom - My D just began her freshman year at The Hartt School (University of Hartford) and you should definitely look at it if your son can’t yet decide between straight acting and MT. They have 2 tracks, AT (Actor Training) and MT (Music Theatre) and they share some classes. The school has very strong acting training for both tracks, and if he did choose AT, he can pick up additional dance and voice lessons if he wanted to (extra cost, but available from the same professors). Feel free to send me a private message if you want more info. We are very happy with everything we have seen so far. It is a little strange to me, but it seems that Hartt gets left off of a lot of people’s lists of “top programs”, even though they have a very strong track record for excellent training. Best of luck in your search!
Since NCSA is on his list, he may want to check out The University of the Arts in Philadelphia.
@gingersnap97 …does The Hartt School have a MT dance track?
The big elephant in the room is that even if you conservatively assumed that everyone on these lists graduated in the past 10 years, it would suggest that even at the school that tops this list fewer than 2% are on Broadway, and even at the highly selective schools I think 10% is the max (even lower if you realize that alum - and careers - span more than 10 years). I think that can be a great reminder to folks that if your dream is Broadway NO program can guarantee you safe passage. Plus of the many people I know personally who have worked on Broadway very few have stayed much longer than 6 months. In short, “being on Broadway” is not a viable long term career strategy.
Also, I would never use any list like this as a starting point for building a college list. I’d start by figuring out what you want from 4 years of college (specific learning opportunities, campus style, peers, school size, location, etc.) then build your list from the ground up. Our D would certainly love to be on Broadway, and was well aware of all the schools above, yet only 5/10 made her list and only one in the top 10 was in her top 3 schools.
@DVCmember - They do not have an MT Dance track per say - all MT’s are assessed and placed in dance according their level though. They do have a Dance Performance major, as well as a unique and very well regarded Ballet Pedagogy program, which trains student to teach ballet. The extra classes I referred to was through their Community Division, which offers adult dance classes and are available to Hartt students at a discounted rate, so if you are an MT who wants more dance, or a AT (actor Training) that does not have dance as part of the standard curriculum, you can add that to supplement.
Interesting article in today’s NY Times about two recent Julliard grads who are currently starring on B’way. Seems appropriate to post it here in this discussion. http://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/06/fashion/alex-sharp-phillipa-soo-juilliard.html?ref=theater
Alex Sharp was AMAZING in Curious Incident.
Yes, I’ve heard Alex Sharp is an amazing talent.
But since it was brought up, I will mention that Phillipa Soo (in NYTimes article), a Juilliard grad, is a good friend of my daughter’s and they have performed a lot together in various capacities. I’ve seen Pippa perform about four times at least. She is a wonderful actor and terrific singer. The reason I am bringing her up after mention of that article, is because often on the CC MT Forum over the years, people seem to believe you have to major in MT to perform professionally in MT and Pippa is an example of someone who majored in Acting who is now very successful as a young graduate in musicals, including currently starring in one on Broadway. She studied voice growing up. But her major at Juilliard was acting. I know a number of people who majored in acting, not MT, who are now successful in MT, including on the Broadway stage.
Isn’t it often the case that several students each year from these top 3 or 4 schools leave because they get a great break on Bway? So that would indicate that these students were already Bway ready pretty much and maybe needed a year or two of professional training. Upshot: not the school but the talent already there.