Hi all, I’m wondering if anyone here has been accepted to CalArts and if so, could they detail the “breathing exercises” that they will occasionally make you do? I’ve heard of these multiple times and have no idea what to expect. This is the only school I could afford to apply to, so I’m nervous as heck.
Sorry, I was so frazzled I didn’t even detail what program I was trying for. Acting in the School of Theater!
@pvhkouta I did it about three years ago now, but what I remember is they had me tdo my shakespeare monologue again on my knees with my hands up and outstretched and my eyes closed. They guided me through some breathing and had me take the monologue a lot slower. That’s pretty much what I remember. Hope that was helpful!
@josh703 that is so helpful! were you accepted? can you tell me if there’s anything they look for in a student besides just a good monologue? what sort of questions did they ask if you can remember?
(i’m so sorry for all the questions, i’m really nervous! my audition is on the 5th!)
My d is a BFA2 actor at CalArts – they look for students willing to be open and adventurous. Go in there to have fun and to learn from the process and you will do great! If they ask you to stick around after the first round of auditions, then you know they are interested. After the second round if they ask you to schedule a shadow day that is a really good sign.
@astute12 by any chance do you remember what monologues she did? i’m having trouble finding a contemporary one…
She did a Shakespeare and a for her modern a Sheila Callahan monologue, and a monologue from Tribes. Check out the New Dramatists website – lots of young, modern playwrights many of whom have their plays on line or are easy to order from Amazon.
@pvhkouta how did your audition go? My D is auditioning at NYC Unifieds next week.
@astute12 My D auditioned yesterday and was given a card and asked to schedule a shadow day! I would love to hear more about how your D likes it. PM me if you have time.
WONDERFUL!!! My daughter loves it. I will PM you.
i’ve heard a lot of things about people being given cards, being told to do breathing exercises, and being told to shadow only to be rejected. this is not making any sort of implication towards your daughter at all, more of just me being miserable and nervous considering i could not apply anywhere else thus far. my audition is coming up on the 5th of february. i’m just going to keep praying!
@pvhkouta believe me I’m not buying any plane ticket for her to go shadow a student without an acceptance! That being said, she did email the director as they asked and received a very nice reply saying she was going to share her excitement about my D with her colleagues in the coming weeks. So…I am hopeful but would never assume anything.
@pvhkouta At the end of the day there are no hard & fast rules about how one gets accepted into an acting program. People share their various experiences to give you a frame of reference. Spend the next few days doing relaxation and mind focusing exercises so your nerves don’t get the best of you. As @astute12 said open yourself up to the experience, have fun. And don’t be afraid to fail. Schools aren’t looking for a perfect auditition They are looking for students that are fearless and willing to jump into the deep end of the pool. Go for it!
@pvhkouta My daughter loved the CalArts audition and was called back but wasn’t given a card. There was not really any stress and she had a great time. CalArts moved way up the list after the audition. They didn’t have her do breathing exercises but they did have her repeat her monologues while dancing and also while acting like a witch lol. She got a real kick out of it. She thinks she probably won’t get in because so many talented people audition and they don’t accept a very large class, but she loved the experience and the auditors made her feel really comfortable. I did ask the admissions dept. about the card thing and they said they do occasionally give cards to have people come and shadow, but lots of people get accepted without getting a card as well. Don’t worry and Break A Leg!
@samigaga did she audition on campus? At their NYC auditions they didn’t do callbacks.
They did at our AM session on 1/20 in NY. They did an info session and auditions after. Then they asked a few to come back to see a little more. It was pretty quick. I don’t know if it meant anything. Maybe the people who left early nailed the audition lol. They may have changed the process because it ran into lunch.
@samigaga yes it was very long. My D ended up being one of the last ones which was stressful because we had to get back to Pearl Studios for another audition. I did not see anyone called back though nor did they tell us people might have to stick around…there were maybe two people still left when she was done. She did hers on Saturday afternoon 1/21.
We were probably the first session. My daughter was next to last as well. Maybe they were testing the waters and decided the callbacks took up too much time? Congrats to your daughter on the card!
what totally fun experiences! they gave me breathing exercises/card, and told me to shadow and get in touch with rachel park. i feel like it went well but theres just no telling! i didnt get requests to act like a witch or anything haha.
wish me luck!!!
My daughter was asked to do one of her monologues as a fairy. She enjoyed the audition and is hoping for an acceptance letter and I’m hoping for a scholarship.