I have a question for parents/students who have already tasted a variety of Musical Theatre programs. My D loves all all three disciplines of MT, studies the craft backwards and forwards, and is gearing up for a year of college auditions. I’ve noticed, however, that she isn’t “all in” on what I see as the bubbly, enthusiastic, collective “We” of Musical Theatre culture. Not sure if she sees it as a threat to her individualism but I know the culture feels smothering at times. She would also like to have conversations about politics, food, nature… really anything in tandem with MT. Please share if you have seen programs that foster other interests, as well as those that might take offense to being called smothering or too bubbly.
@PaperTrope She might want to consider a BA program rather than a BFA. Also many school offer Honor’s programs that can provide a lot of what she might be looking for.
Thanks, @bisouu . She is concerned about the lack of training with a BA. Wants to stay in shape and dance and sing with rigor daily. Would prefer a roommate with other interests, to have lunch and not talk about the Tony’s ceaselessly.
My recommendation is to focus on larger conservatory programs because there is likely to be a more diverse and less cliquey BFA student body and also small conservatory programs within larger universities where there will be social opportunities outside the department. My D just finished her freshman year of a BFA program at a major research university. PM me if you would like to chat about this.
Or look for a smaller conservatory program within a larger university. My D is in such a program. She chose to not have theatre roommates because she knew she would be seeing the theatre kids all the time anyway and felt that rooming with them too would be too much for her. She will be having a Education major as a roommate next year. She also got involved in other groups on campus to branch out.
@PaperTrope in many BFA programs, there is a feel of “all in” since classes are excepted to operate as companies or ensembles. That said, neither of my BFA kids had MT/Acting roommates freshman or sophomore year. My S chose to rent a house junior and senior year with a mix of BFA/non-BFA students; my sophomore D’s roommate is a philosophy major. That said, they each spend most of their time with their fellow BFA students. I agree with @bisouu - take a long look at BA programs if pursuing other interests and maximizing flexibility is one of your D’s goals.
Hi @PaperTrope Great suggestions above. I have a girl who is similar and also heading into the process and wants BFA. I’d like to put in a word for Emerson. She did their Summer intensive after her Sophomore year. She loves MT also Acting. She is looking at several programs (too many) but she felt the vibe and particularly the faculty…who are the same in the summer, including Scott the department head (who was also the acting teacher) were broad thinkers.
Great artistic background . They were artists but also well rounded lovely people. No cookie cutter thinking. Still intense wonderful training. Just a thought…
@PaperTrope and @laylamom I think your D’s have to remember that college is a larger universe than what they may experience in their school or community theater programs and people are much more diverse. My S is into sports, politics, and religion, etc. In college he has rarely found a subject or topic that he has not had a peer inside of the MT program share interest in, but he has also found friends outside of the program. He has watched sporting events at upperclassmens houses (including at the above mentioned house of @artskids S), he attended a political rally with some classmates, and he regularly attends church and bible study with classmates. All these things are time permissive, but when he is free he has never had a problem finding a way to connect with other things he love
My son’s experience has been similar to IfYouOnlyKnew. He has many friends outside of his BFA program, and there are many BFAs who have interests outside of theatre. His freshman roommate was a business major, and they now are Frat brothers (a low-key, non-national Frat). My suspicion is that your daughter’s
@PaperTrope It’s great that your D has an idea of the type of program and environment she wants. That will make her college application choices easier to create. Most BFA programs have almost no room for 'extras" outside the the handful of standard liberal arts courses (if she’s going to 4-yr, liberal arts college). That said, there are some very good BA programs that DO allow for diversification AND provide excellent acting, dance and voice training. Some one mentioned Emerson. I don’t know much about that, but I’m sure it’s worth looking into. Another college that offers a BA program is Point Park University. (PPU also has a great Honors program). The important thing is to check and see if the BA students are taking the same classes with same faculty as the BFA students. (This is true at PPU). Remember there is no one size fits all when it comes to MT or Acting programs. It’s great that you and your D are doing your research and gathering info. I’m sure she’ll find several programs that fit what she’s looking for.
@PaperTrope D had similar feelings when she started her journey. She loved theatre and music, but it was not the only thing that defined her. Most, but not all, of her high school friends did theatre, chorus and acapella music, but they had other interests, too, and excelled in a wide range of academics. Going into college she feared being isolated from others and being part of a community that could only talk musical theatre–in her mind the types if kids who saw their favorite Broadway shows 25+ times and were fan girls.
She chose the BM vocal performance program at NYU with a concentration in MT for several reasons. She wanted to be in a competitive school academically. She wanted the option of having a double major or two minors. She wanted to be in a larger school, integrated into the city so she could meet different people and have the option to do internships. She wanted to be in a music program so that she could be exposed to other musicians outside of the MT world in both required classes and performance opportunities. She wanted the option of taking professional classes outside of NYU if she felt the need–particularly in dance. She wanted MT voice training that had a basis in classical voice training. She wanted to include art songs, some classical pieces, jazz standards and MT in her repertoire.
NYU provided all of that. D made many friends outside of MT, but really bonded with the MT majors as well. Five years out of graduation, they are still some of her closest friends.
Academically, D graduated with a minor in English and the Business of Entertainment, Media and Technology. She was happy with her training.
She’s worked for several years in casting, talent management and marketing having decided not to audition post- graduation. (Decided she wanted to work in the business side of entertainment instead for now.)
She will be returning to NYU in the fall to pursue a full-time MBA in the fall with major scholarship $.
Many of her friends are still performing full-time, many are not. One is a cast member of Dear Evan Hanson which has been incredibly exciting. I feel NYU offered her and her classmates many options to succeed and network. I would look for programs in schools that draw top students in more than just MT and that would offer the option of taking other classes in addition to MT. I would also encourage taking as many AP or college level classes in HS as possible to allow for more flexibility in college.
One of the important criteria on my D’s List was “is this school a place that will stretch me intellectually as well as well as artistically?”. Like @uskoolfish’s D, she has found NYU to be an excellent place for that. But there are many others as well. I agree with posters above who say you might want to look for larger programs (greater diversity), and/or schools (where BA or BFA) that allow more outside classes/activities.
Does anyone have a school where the MT program has a suggested list of what to bring as far as dance clothing (and how much to bring of each thing). S is asking a sophomore in his program but just wanted to know if any schools send out a supply list and if so, what’s on it?
I seem to recall BW did provide required apparel for dance classes. How much will be dependent upon how often your S dances and how often he wants to do laundry. Pick up more dance belts than you think he’ll need - those things need to be washed regularly! My S has one pair of each required shoe (ballet, tap, jazz and some foot undies) and 3 sets of ballet tights/shirts. He was permitted to dance in shorts or sweats and t-shirts for jazz/tap. He went to school with one dance belt; he added two more quickly!
UNCSA (while not MT -although they do train in MT as well as drama) sends out a list of required clothes. The kids live in movement or dance clothing every day all day. They needed at least two of each item (leotards, tights, leggings, shirts, etc) but we added a few pieces over the year. For girls -lots of sports bras. Lol. My daughter said two weren’t enough as they get “very sweaty” every day.
Then, of course, all the various dance shoes. (Again this is a “drama” program but it is very physical with lots of dance, movement and stage combat. Voice too-but don’t need dancewear for that). Assume straight MT programs would require this amount or more if they dance daily.
You could probably check with someone in the department to be sure, but agree with others - most dance every day, so send extra clothes. Laundry is NOT a priority for college students LOL!
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My D told me she needs alot of black also because everyone was wearing black in the acting classes. She hasn’t gotten a list yet, but she mentioned that to me when we were talking about picking up dance clothes.
So I booked airline tickets and Air BnB reservations for our August trip to take my daughter across the country to college. It still doesn’t feel real - I can’t believe it is just two months away. I’m trying to wrap my mind around all the logistics and planning to distract myself from the idea that she is going away!
I feel you @sopranomtmom! I can’t believe it’s really happening…Jersey girl going to Cali! We have the August trip book plus her ticket home for Thanksgiving!