Colleges For Musical Theater - Part 40!

College Majors Musical Theater Major
521

<p>Welcome! Glad you joined in. I'd be happy to throw out some colleges she might look into given what you mentioned (though it is not an individualized list as I don't know nearly enough about her as a person, her talents, or her stats). But if she doesn't pursue a BFA degree (that alone is a deicsion she needs to make, BFA or BA...or perhaps to apply to some of each), then there are BA schools out there that fit her interest. Some are BA programs in MT. Some of these are by audition and some are audition optional or no audition required. As well, there are several BA liberal arts schools where there are AMPLE MT opportunities on campus to pursue while going for a liberal arts degree. I can't say which option best fits your D because while the first part of your post sounds like a BA is the route for her, the ending part of your post where you wrote: "I'm thinking for her persuing that dream by devoting her under-grad years to it might not be the best choice." makes me unsure if SHE doesn't want to do a BFA or if you think this is not a good choice for a college degree program. So, that is an issue to discuss. I won't get into the whole BFA vs. BA and the factors to consider in that decision as to which someone might be best suited for, but those questions/criteria are important at this juncture for your daughter. </p>

<p>But back to SOME suggested schools....here are some to look into:</p>

<p>BA in MT or related options (audition required):</p>

<p>American
Wagner
Fordham
James Madison</p>

<p>BA in MT (optional audition):</p>

<p>Muhlenberg
University of New Hampshire</p>

<p>BA in MT (no audition required):</p>

<p>Northwestern (audition after freshman year)
McDaniel (safety for your D)
Indiana University (but they are starting BFA in fall of 2007 so this changes)</p>

<p>BA schools that have strong theater and MT opportunitiies:</p>

<p>Sarah Lawrence
Brandeis
Skidmore College
Tufts
Brown
Yale
Vassar
Goucher
Cornell</p>

<p>That is not a comprehensive list but a place to get started.</p>

522

<p>
[quote]
I'm thinking for her persuing that dream by devoting her under-grad years to it might not be the best choice. Can anyone relate to my question and concerns?

[/quote]
Is is just you thinking that or is she? I went round and round with my mom over this last year, so I can relate, but might not say what you what you want to hear. :) Forcing a kid with a BFA personality into a BA program is truly a square peg in a round hole kinda thing. You should let her make that choice. Of course, there are a variety of BFA schools that have differing degrees of liberal arts. For instance, you can apparently double major at NYU/Tisch though I've always personally thought that was a sure course for burnout. Then you have others like CMU where the actors only take one liberal arts course a semester and the MTers are already considered to be double majors and take none. Maybe you could get her to take the BFA</a> vs. BA test from the FAQ. It might tell you something.</p>

523

<p>Thanks. I respect you judgement and opinions. Yes, she might want a BFA and I am certainly not opposed to it. She's a talented visual artist in many ways but it's hard to know at her age which direction to go. We had the same problem picking out schools for her older sister who started out as a BFA student at WashU and is now at SLC. I did not get the impression that SLC had many opportunities in MT even if D#1 would "allow" D#2 to join her there (boy, I hope neither of them finds this thread!). We have visited there in the past year, even seen a play, but though I've seen SLC listed often as a MT possibility, their curriculum didn't seem to support the concept. Same issues with Bard. Easy enough to find out, though. </p>

<p>Thanks again for your fine suggestions. We've had Brown on our list to check out. JMU we'll visit but it seemed too big when we were there two years ago. Goucher has been toyed-with, too, and might merit a visit. We didn't have American on our lists but it looks very promising on their web site and well worth a visit. I didn't see Wesleyan on your list but thought it might qualify for her, too. Hard to tell without a candid conversation or visit.</p>

524

<p>My D was offered a spot in a BA Drama program at a well-known school for which she auditioned for BFA. She knew immediately that this was not what she wanted, as pleased as she was to get an acceptance. So she chose to not attend any school rather than "waste our money" on a program she knew she would probably not be happy in. (I really appreciate that!)</p>

<p>So I think a lot of kids "know" if they are BA material or not. What does your D think?</p>

525

<p>You definitely need to have the BFA vs. BA talk and about which route best suits her interests. Also, as fishbowl says, the BFA programs themselves differ. Some have more liberal arts available than others. An NYU or PSU student in a BFA program takes more liberal arts than one in CMU's BFA program, for example. At NYU, she could minor in something else (double majors are possible but very difficult). </p>

<p>I really think your D ought to look into Muhlenberg. American as well. </p>

<p>Yes, for BA liberal arts schools where theater is strong on campus, Wesleyan is worth a look. Even Williams or Middlebury. </p>

<p>Since you have a child at SLC, look into it there. Here is a bit of what I know of the theater options there and have had clients who are applicants who had this as a BA option. The BA is in Theater which is interdisciplinary with theater, music, dance, courses in acting, directing, playwriting, conservatory training, London Theater Programs, has courses in Acting for the Camera, Singing Workshop, and Musical Theater Lab. Politically active, artistic types, quirky but smart kids, no required core (open curriculum), creative types, individualized programs. London Theater Program. I think better options here than Bard for her. </p>

<p>Check out Skidmore too. </p>

<p>At Goucher, she could combine theater with music.</p>

<p>But Muhlenberg is much stronger option for a MT kid but isn't a BFA. has a BA in Theater (inc. Performance) but while it does not have a MT major, it has high quality MT training (acting, singing, dancing); if you want MT, they recommend you major in Theater Performance and minor in Dance OR Vocal Performance (music dept.), 120 theater majors, has directing, each semester they put on one musical (besides dramas), anyone can be in the shows, lots of dance available, last semester put on Cabaret, has a Summer Musical Theater Program that is a mix of Equity Actors and students where they put on musicals, 50% do the London semester, 6 mainstage productions per year, 15-25 student directed workshops, while no audition is required, you can audition if you want your talent taken into consideration as part of the admissions process.</p>

<p>As I have a child attending Brown, I can tell you that it is great for a MT kid who doesn't want a BFA program. I know several talented MT kids who apply there and several who attend. Just yesterday, a friend of my youngest D who is one of the top MT talents at her theater camp, visited my older D at Brown (he is a HS junior) and loved it. A friend of both my girls who is a senior theater major at Brown and very active in the musicals there, has performed in them, has written one that was performed...he is now on leave as he is playing Mark in the National Tour of RENT. My D who attends is currently taking a course in the History of American Musical Theater and there are many theater students in it. Brown graduates are working in the MT industry. I know that at a production at CAP21 in the fall (a professional production) a recent grad from Brown was cast in the musical. My D's freshman advisor was from theater, as well as her peer advisor was very active in MT at Brown. There is a student run club at Brown that is just for musical theater. Even the dept. puts on musicals...right now Hair is being performed. There are lots of very good a capella groups at Brown as well.</p>

<p>Your D might want to look into Northwestern...she sounds from the little you shared, as someone who might fit that school.</p>

526

<p>Proud Dad - Soozie has given you many good ideas. I have a few different ideas for you, mainly because I'm from the mid-south and my friend Soozie is in the Northeast! Our family traveled far and wide over a course of about 2 years looking at various kinds of colleges for my son - we saw 24 colleges in all, and then we've been back to several of them for auditions this year. Sometimes in looking, we combined many schools (up to 8) into a trip, so it wasn't that many trips!</p>

<p>We visited 2 mentioned above - Goucher and Sarah Lawrence - and at that time 2 years ago, they were not offering musicals as part of their theatre season. Both have great fine arts in the various areas. I think Sarah Lawrence has excellent straight theatre. Goucher has excellent dance, and at the time we visited, the only musicals offered were student run productions. Things could have changed in 2 years, though.</p>

<p>In your area, you may want to consider MT at Shenandoah Conservatory, one we never visited, but several people we know like it very much. It is a BFA program that is strong in music.</p>

<p>You mentioned your daughter also being good in visual art, which I'm assuming is painting or something similar. As my son also has an interest in this, we talked to art dept's at many schools. I'll give you my thoughts, for what it is worth. </p>

<p>You must go visit Elon in NC - not only do I think it is one of the best kept secrets in MT (also competitive and hard to get in), but the BFA program there is somewhat flexible and has more liberal arts than other programs (conservatories). These liberal arts can be taken in visual art to some extent, and it appears that an art minor would be easy. They have a very nice art dept. and are building a new facility to house this dept.</p>

<p>Indiana University might be great for her, as it is very flexible in terms of what mix of classes you take. Even next year when they go to the BFA MT audition program, you could consider sticking with BA theatre, adding voice and dance, and doing art as well. They have the most incredible facilities for both theatre and art that we have seen. Their art dept. is very impressive.</p>

<p>Syracuse U offers more liberal arts than some programs in their MT BFA. The art program is very good also, but being a BFA as well, you might have a hard time doing both. We were told that a BFA MT major could not also be a BFA art major and could only take non-major art courses. Perhaps one could ask for more info. on this.</p>

<p>U Michigan is supposed to have a good art dept., but we never visited it. They have a fabulous and very competitive MT program which I believe offers time to take other liberal arts courses if one so desires.</p>

<p>If you are willing to go west / southwest, here are other options:</p>

<p>OCU with its well known MT program allows time for some liberal arts classes. They have a small but good art dept. where one could take classes.</p>

<p>University of Tulsa has a very small MT program that really encourages people to take minors. Their art dept. seemed very good and is worth a look.</p>

<p>After we visited all these other places, we went back to my alma mater TCU. They have a BFA theatre program where one can specialize in MT, currently no audition except for scholarships. Their program would be flexible where one could take other things. We had the nicest visit to their visual arts dept. Wow - neat new building from when I was there. The tour of the art dept. at TCU was our favorite part of the visit. Dramama on this forum has a special connection there and could share more if you are interested.</p>

<p>Good luck, and good to have you join us!</p>

527

<p>Thanks again to everyone. Northwestern's MT Certification program does sound very interesting. And Elon has been on a list we made up earlier from other posts/threads on this forum. Some concern by reports of it being a bit short on diversity, but we'll be very nearby for the NATS regionals and might also check out Guilford to see if there are any hidden MT opportunities there. </p>

<p>We were at Shenandoah a couple of weeks ago and that's where the idea of something short of a conservatory came into play. Conservatory or not, quite honestly it's not a campus where I'd want to spend four years. It felt like a side-show to the shopping mall traffic. Ericsmom's impressions of MT opportunities at Goucher and SLC echo mine. Some of the others are simply too big, but thanks for the thoughts. Even JMU was on the large size for what she feels she's looking for, but we're going back for another look.</p>

528

<p>Just a correction--JMU's audition is NOT required. This might be a change from previous years, but we double-checked about it because my daughter was very ill that weekend and had to cancel both her auditions scheduled for then. </p>

<p>Having said that, one of our school counselors told me last week that an admissions person at JMU told her that this year they received 17,000 applications for 3,600 spots. Oh, my Lord. And this was the school--BA program--that I was considering my D's safety school!!! We are very, very nervous right now, awaiting the results from three more schools. I am feeling that we/she should have spread things out even more. Nothing like very nervous 20/20 hindsight.</p>

529

<p>Not specific to MT intent, JMU has evolved into a very selective school with an apparently capricious acceptance policy. In my oldest daughter's class several kids were accepted by UVA (generally considered more difficult than JMU, and often the top-rated public U. in the country in many polls) and not accepted by JMU. Of course the converse was also true with some kids accepted at JMU not getting into UVA, but that used to be considered normal. And these were in-state kids so I'm not sure how that may relate to out-of-state candidates. It is sad to say that many top schools seem to select nearly half their entering classes from the ED candidates. At least JMU still uses Early Action and will probably accept nearly 50% of their regular admission applicants, even if it is a bit of a crap-shoot. Good luck!</p>

530

<p>Momsinger, I appreciate that clarification about James Madison's audition requirements, as I work as a college counselor and like to have the most up to date information, though have yet to have any students apply to James Madison. I now see on their website that an audition is "recommended". So, yes, that is not the same as "required" though if advising students, I'd recommend them to audition if possible, given that statement by the department. I'm glad for your D's sake that auditions were not required given her unfortunate circumstances the weekend of her audition. Wishing her positive thoughts in this process with all of her schools.</p>

531

<p>Welcome, Proud Dad. It's great that your daughter has your help in researching these schools. The process seems so overwhelming at times. I had a couple of questions for you after reading your posts. Do you think JMU's acceptance is truly capricious or is it just because (for whatever reasons students find it an attractive school to apply to) they get so many more qualified applicants than they can matriculate? My other question is about Shenandoah. You said,"It felt like a side-show to the shopping mall traffic." I'm wondering what you meant about that. It makes the school sound kind of bad, both in location and by calling it a "side show," which has low connotations. Were you that unimpressed with the school? Can you be more detailed about your impression and knowledge of the school? Thanks for helping us all out here. The info we get, the better we can help our kids make decisions. Of course, the more info we get, the more overwhelmed we can all get!!!</p>

532

<p>To be fair, we were not there to visit the school but for a brief period for a NATSAA competition. The facilities for rehearsal and practice were impressive and the campus itself, while clean and welcoming with many new buildings devoted to music—and a water feature—is unfortunately situated in a notch in the intersection of an Interstate highway truck route and a major U.S.Highway at what has to be the busiest intersection within 60 miles. Just to get something to eat during break took nearly a half-hour in crossing the Interstate, finding nothing, and coming back to the tiny maze of one-way and no-access entries to SU. Many will find the area somewhat confining and the town really doesn't seem to offer much more than the regional shopping center with typical shopping center fare; Target, etc. Unless you're really committed to SU as your conservatory, I can't imagine being happy to be spending four years in Winchester. It makes Harrisonburg (JMU) seem downright metropolitan! We did notice posters and photos of what looks like at least one MT production every year, but the main theater was not open while we were there. It may very well be a fine place for serious music students to sequester but somehow I think of MT students as a little more gregarious. I could be wrong. For students with a car I can see the hour-or-so trip to DC as a frequent necessity. IMHO</p>

<p>I almost forgot the JMU question. I believe their acceptance policy just comes with the newfound popularity. I still think they accept nearly half of all applicants versus about 30% for UVA. They may very well get some satisfaction in turning down qualified students they know are just using it as a safety. For all I know they could share applicant information with UVA.</p>

533

<p>mtmommy, you may want to visit the Shenandoah thread for a more in-depth look at the school and the area. And, you can easily get a variety of meals without crossing an interstate.;-) You may also want to check out the Winchester historic distrct, if you're really interested in the school. Again, a bit more info on that at that thread.</p>

534

<p>Exactly!
Let me emphasize, we were there only for a short time and we were not there to visit the school—though I was a bit surprised that no one from the school was on-hand to pitch the school to the talented high-school seniors and juniors in the competition. My impression was just that; a quick impression from driving to the campus and moving around in the direct vicinity. It should in no way influence your decision as to the efficacy of SU for your needs. I appreciate others setting that straight and I may have spoken out of turn. </p>

<p>I have long-time business associates whose son went to SU and has begun a very promising career as an audio engineer, already working with some big names in the music business. For him SU was the perfect start. Certainly there are beautiful areas in the surrounding counties including Clarke County, WV., Charlestown, Harper's Ferry, and historic Winchester— as well as many other historic areas in the vicinity that are interesting places to visit and spend some time. That's true of nearly anywhere you land in Virginia. (There's also an excellent road-course race track complex nearby—for cars—if that's of interest.)</p>

535

<p>Proud Dad - I'm interested in your search and would be happy to answer any questions you have by e-mail. I want to give you a few more thoughts, after hearing that your daughter only wants smaller colleges, and I've had a hard time logging into CC the past couple of days!</p>

<p>While Northwestern is a WONDERFUL school both in terms of campus and theatre program, do not go there with the expectation of getting into MT. That MT certification is very hard to get into and one must wait until after one or two years in either theatre or music to audition. We know a student who did not get into MT but is actually very happy in theatre there. Only do it if you are happy with their straight theatre program.</p>

<p>You might want to look at a few other schools - Baldwin-Wallace, while a conservatory also has liberal arts, Otterbein (the school we regret not visiting), Tulsa - seriously, it meets many of your requirements - my son did not choose to pursue it because the MT is very small, but we know a very happy MT student there. Someone likened it to the Yale of the South (or maybe midwest, I can't remember which).</p>

<p>When in NC, you might consider looking at Catawba, which is non-audition to start with and you audition the second year, I think for MT (we didn't visit, but we are on a mailing list) and UNC Greensboro, which may just be straight theatre, but someone who graduated from there told us they have the best undergrad acting program in the UNC system (Chapel Hill is known more for the MFA program). Elon - go for it, you won't find a prettier campus, but make sure you have a backup, since the numbers make it hard to get into (as with so many of the competitive schools).</p>

<p>Lastly, schools we didn't visit, but might be convenient for you - look at Belmont with a fairly new MT program, and also, I was interested in Kenyon College in Ohio, known for strong fine arts. I don't think they offer MT at Kenyon, and we didn't visit to learn if you can combine several things into a similar major. We just know several happy students, and Paul Newman apparently put money into a theatre building there.</p>

<p>Much luck to you!!!</p>

536

<p>Ericsmom, I just finished reading (all 12 pages!) of the Otterbein thread and visiting their web site (The CC serve booted me twice!). Sounds like a great bunch of people and an excellent program but—reality check!—I can't see how my daughter has any chance in a program that accepts only 4 girls each year. Our high school has no dance, no voice, and only a rudimentary drama curriculum which she has only just entered as a junior. Those who wish to pursue theater in our area often transfer to other high-schools if they can and are willing to sacrifice a bit of academic excellence in "normal" courses to do so. My daughter hasn't had a single dance lesson, has only had one small part in a previous production before her current lead singing role, and has only started voice lessons in the past three months. The fact that she placed third in her NATS grouping is only testimony to a natural gift and her love of singing. And even though her directors and voice teacher are amazed how well she performs and can't believe she is self-taught, I'm not sure I want to be the one to get her interested in Otterbein—or similar programs—only to find she has a one-in-fifty chance of being considered. I think its great that OC's faculty put so much time and interest into their selection but the intensity level of kids coming from "performing" high schools is thoroughly intimidating to me and there are so many talented kids in the world. I am blessed with not having to worry about my daughter qualifying anywhere academically for admission and I want her to reallize her dream to be involved in theater, especially musical theater, wherever she goes to college because I know it will enhance her college experience as well as help her prepare for life after college. Call me gun-shy but our oldest didn't get into her first choice in colleges, one I thought would be a safety for her, and I don't think I can go through that disappointment again so soon. (Good news is she made Dean's List at a much more prestigious/selective school and then successfully transferred to her previous first choice, so all's well...now!)</p>

<p>But that puts us back to square one where I asked what colleges have opportunities in musical theater, since maybe only one kid, if they're lucky, on this forum will ever join the MT program at schools like Otterbein. I understand the same is true of Elon but we'll be there anyway so we'll look. To be quite honest, Elon's reputation for "A&F catalog clones" and heavy dependence on Greek life puts me off more than my D's chances of getting into their MT program. But that's my proclivity, not hers. (Personally I liked the Guilford profile much better!) We'll have to look into UNC Greensboro, too. I'm not pushing Yale because my brother went there (35 years ago), I visited, and I'd have to say I'd believe those who imply the emphasis is mostly on grad schools no matter what the program, and New Haven never impressed me. Yep, a challenging educational environment for sure...but almost too much baggage comes along with the prestige. I'd prefer a school where under-grads are taught by professors and the best professors aren't spending their time publishing instead of teaching. A Sarah Lawrence with Music Theater would impress me more. And we'll continue to check out Wesleyan.</p>

<p>Thanks to you all. I know this is the nervous time for acceptances for senior kids and parents so I appreciate everyone taking the time to offer such helpful information to those of us with a year to go and not a clue! </p>

<p>(I've been trying to post this for an hour or more. Going to bed.) Server's back up and so am I!</p>

537

<p>Proud Dad,</p>

<p>I do understand your reluctance to even think about your D trying for the programs with the scariest selectivity percentages but I want to share with you that many of these schools are not focused on the amount of experience your child has BEFORE going to college. I offer my D as an example (forgive me, those of you who know her background, but it's been awhile since I've posted about this and I hope it helps people like Proud Dad). While she was an accomplished dancer (but mostly in ballet) she did not decide to pursue MT in college until her junior year in high school. She had her first voice lessons that year, with a classical instructor. When she applied to college, she had been in two musicals her entire life, both in high school. Her third was during her senior year. She went to CMU MT pre-college between her junior and senior year which made a huge difference in her life as it trained her for auditioning. I'm pretty sure she would not have had the success she did without that experience. But that's it! No summer drama camps, no mile long resume. She is now a sophomore MT at Michigan and was accepted at 4 of the 6 schools where she auditioned (she cancelled two other auditions after receiving the offer from UM).</p>

<p>So what am I saying? Don't ASSUME that the "dream" programs are beyond her reach. Yes, be sensible and apply to a range of college options, but maybe throw one or two "stretches" in there as well. If she expresses an interest, allow your D to aspire to these and she (and you) might be surprised at the result. She may be waiting for you to show her that you believe she has a shot. To borrow a cliche from my son's sports interests - The only shots you are SURE to miss are the ones you never take.</p>

538

<p>Theatermom,
from what I've read here over the years, the CMU program can really make a difference. Because of the audition prep, to say nothing about the other stuff. Without a program like CMU's, I'd say the chances of someone with little experience being successful go way down, wouldn't you?</p>

539

<p>That's a really good question Chrism. In truth, I don't feel qualified to answer that in a general way. I know it made a huge difference for my D. But for every student with little experience? I'm not sure. Though few and far between, there really are kids out there who are just "naturals" and I do believe that the auditors can identify and at some schools the faculty really do want to work with kids who have little experience, as evidenced by a short resume or a less than "perfect" audition, but HUGE upside potential.</p>

<p>That's why I say to throw a reach in there - who knows?</p>

<p>And if you can manage it, a program like CMU Pre-College or MPulse at Michigan or Cherubs at Northwestern or other programs people have written about that include audition prep can make a difference, especially in a student's confidence level.</p>

540

<p>From my perspective (my D never went to a precollege program. She has done quite a few shows, and many auditions, but always in a "safe" enviroment where she knew the auditors) she was shaken by the audition experience. We don't have results yet, but after her first audition, she just came out shaking her head. We won't know if going to a program would have made a difference, but I think it would have helped her confidence.</p>

<p>Now, I just keep my fingers crossed and hope that someone saw a diamond in the rough in my D.</p>