For anyone familiar w/ Wagner, I read the theatre facilities there arent stellar nor is the dance dept? Any thoughts? We need to evaluate their one day only audition & see if it’s worth the major problems it’s causing other audition dates @ other schools
My daughter’s friend goes there and she loves Wagner. It was her number one choice. I haven’t heard anything bad about the school.
I haven’t heard anything bad really either. I just read about the facilities problem but maybe that’s old info. The one audition date available is kinda a bummer as we may not be able to swing it…
Today is the day! Applications are now open! Class of 2021 parents the journey begins!
Let the Games begin! Good luck to all. I’m gonna have another cup of coffee.
So… My D is not the picture of motivation right now since its still summer & the process seems to be overwhelming her. I’m trying to nudge her into starting apps and getting an essay under her belt…trying to get her to see the big picture that in sept oct she will be too busy at school to work on stuff and she should get a head start…trying to explain that she needs to get early start so she gets her choice of audition dates…
This process is definitely going to lead me to drinking…
@mom4bwayboy don’t go too far we will need your expertise this fall!!
^i remember wishing I had a valium pump 
My daughter is at a 6 week pre college program. I am feeling sad that her few weeks of summer left I will be pushing her for essays, prescreens et. In her mind it’s months away! And at 16 don’t you need a little down/ friend time? Plus we need to take the act again. I’m sure she will be fine and love doing it, but what a process for basically still kids. But she loved the “conservatory” experience and says there is no other way for her . So I will gently map out the time ( she will want to be in every show senior year) with her and we will meet with mtca to get a timeline and overview at least.
@entertainersmom, I just did a spit take.
Maybe I am over optimistic but I feel with planning, and using unifieds that it can be mapped out. My d is in a theatre rep that is a class, they do 2 straight plays, it’s part of grade. Between that, the fall musical, Senior musical, acapella concerts and performances, it it will be quiet the year. But we also live close to several of the schools(NYC) area, so that may be why I feel it is feasible. Reading this is all a little overwhelming! But thank goodness for this site, I was clueless. I do want to help plan audition dates since either my husband or I will be taking her…
She might have to pull from something though… And there are still academics…
How does everyone else feel? How many weekends if you use unified’s do you need? Her school has a Christmas break and a February break. Is it possible to ever audition during week?
@musicmama123 - on-campus auditions on weekdays other than Friday are rare, other than at Unifieds. Most are on Fridays, Saturdays, and some Sundays. The number of weekends outside of Unifieds that you will need will depend on how many programs that you want to audition for and how aggressive you try to be in scheduling at Unifieds. For example, if you want to audition for 12 programs and you schedule 6 at Unifieds (some people can squeeze in more than 6 at Unifieds, but more than 6-8 usually include lots of unscheduled walk-ins), then you will probably need 4-6 weekends to schedule the rest (depends on how the stars align for audition schedules at schools that are located close to each other so that you can do a Friday-Saturday or Sat-Sun combo).
@musicmama123 In terms of what’s reasonable at Unifieds: it largely depends on the particular schools your D is applying to and what they require. It can vary from holding a few minutes to holding half a day. There is no substitute for calling schools directly if you have a question after looking at their websites. A couple of schools that asked for a long slot but really only wanted the auditioners for a few minutes were very willing to work with her to fit the auditions in. If schools are auditioning in the area during Unifieds but not at the main location, you will want to factor in travel time.
My D did a total of 10 auditions (including 6 dance calls) at Chicago Unifieds (Sunday through Weds) plus two on campus auditions in Chicago on the Saturday before. She felt it helped her to be focused on the auditions all at once, and it was the most economical path for our family since we live in California. She was also able to easily go on her own from one audition to the next and come back to the room to refresh if she had time, and I was able to get some work done on my laptop, while being available to support if needed (ie-replacing the backup tights that ripped, the makeup that spilled, getting food, washing leos).
The tradeoffs were missing three days of class, and not being able to audition for shows that fell on the weekend before Unifieds or were in tech during the week of, as well as knowing that a health problem would require development of a Plan B. There are always tradeoffs and they’re different for every student and family.
Well I have some dates mapped out already as I made a list of audition dates for schools my D is wanting to apply at…it will be like brain surgery trying to make it work and I’m def thinking we will almost have to go to NYC unifieds to knock out at least 4 of the schools. Problem is several schools she has don’t go to unifieds either location. So we are having to do on campus for a lot. My D cannot forego the fall show as its a grade for her so November we are losing two wknds of audition dates which sucks. Almost all audition on the wknds. Plus… That’s if she never gets sick or weather forces a re schedule Ugh… Just gotta realize a lot of it is out of our control. Our problem really is school commitments that she can’t get out of. Senior year is so full of stuff! A lot of which can’t be blown off. Senior recitals, showcases, thespian festival where her class presents their one act … All of which fall on the weekends! Aargh!!!
Exactly!! And it’s the senior year they worked so hard for… But if all of the people on this forum managed I guess we can
@theaterwork - having the “map” of your ideal dates is a great start. I did that last year and we got all exactly how we wanted. Almost missed one due to applying in early Nov and dates filling up, but it worked out. Just apply by end of October or earlier if able and you should be ok.
That is hard that the school won’t let her out of stuff. Thank goodness my D’s school was fairly flexible. She could not audition for the winter shows but such is life.
Good luck - it will work out. Sounds like you are off to a great start.
Now that official Chicago Unifieds has added a fourth day, there will be more auditions possible than last year
My D is back from two weeks at Wagner and she loved it! Bring on auditions she is ready. Hehe. Just kidding I do feel that it will not be so crazy since I have been on CC for a year now. Kind of feel a lot more prepared since people are helping us with so much advice. Thanks everyone!
Oh and I wanted to let you know I chose not to drive on my return trip to pickup my daughter. I took an uber from the airport and stayed in an Air bnb in Brooklyn. I then took the ferry for free to Staten Island. There is a shuttle to Wagner. I did not see it and took a bus to Wagner. Do try and find the shuttle because the walk from the bus stop to Wagner was a very steep one. I won’t do that again. Now if your student has a lot of luggage you would be better off renting a car. If she does end up going there I will make my husband go with me and drive. Hehe.
Good Luck to everyone on your Senior Year!!!