<p>The fact is, getting rejection at this stage of the game is not a deciding factor of whether or not to give up this specific career aspiration. Rejection is 99% of an actor's life and let's face it, less than 50% of their success really depends on talent anyway. It's all about who you know, where you are, how you look, etc. An example being that producers will higher someone who may be less talented over someone else simply because they fit in the costume that the current actor is using, which means they won't have to spend money for alterations or creating a new one. It happens everyday, is it fair or right? Probably not, but this is a business and that's how it needs to be looked at most of the time.</p>
<p>You have people that make their Broadway debuts at 7 years old and others that do it at 67! There is no one direct path, some will be able to work non-stop their entire careers while others may go a few months to over a year without anything. I know a girl, very talented but aren't they all, who went to Michigan for her undergrad MT BFA. She has been on Broadway twice already, she's still in her mid-20s. Her last show was on Broadway and she hasn't been employed for two years since that show closed. She's having doubts now about continuing in this career path because the endless months of being unemployed are starting to get to her. Yet tomorrow she could get a call and be right back in a show. It's impossible to predict someone's success in this business, and I think that often people put way too much faith in what program will be their "ticket to Broadway". The positive thing is that everyone wants an education and no matter where they go they will be achieving that goal!</p>
<p>i have been on vacation all week (while having 2 auditions in the process) and i am finally done. i arived home today and got a rejection letter from CCM I wasn't real surprised though. it was my What the Hell school. ha. my top choice is IWU. i won't hear from them for another 2-4 weeks.</p>
<p>mtdad....weren't you the guy causing all the havoc on the CCM thread? I think all of the 100 kids that I have heard auditioning through the doors could impress me in a show. Look at Doug Flutie. He was great in college, but bombed in the pros, yet you see many professional players from schools like Western whereever State.</p>
<p>I paid careful attention to the Broadway play cast brochures of the shows I have seen lately and I haven't seen any references to CCM, Michigan, Penn State, or CMU. The star in Avenue Q that I saw recently actually went to AMDA and she was excellent and I don't even think that is a 4 year program. </p>
<p>There is plenty of time for the real world. I just hired a sax major from Boston U. as an investment analyst and I won't have problems finding her a "real job" if she wants it.</p>
<p>But whats wrong with having some fun. I've spent 20 years in the "real world". If I can get her into a second tier school why not give it a shot? Most of these kids have had some successes in performing or they wouldn't be where they are and all of them in the right situation and with strong ambition should give it a try. That's just my opinion. There is plenty of time to squash the creative life out of people.</p>
<p>Yes I was the person causing havoc on the CCM board. I was also the 2nd rejection poster on this thread. I also botched a sentence in my last post regarding my D not getting into a program (I was half a sleep when I wrote it and you can't edit a post after a short period of time). </p>
<p>For the record, I did not tell anyone to quit or give up their dream. I said if you auditioned for 10 schools and were rejected 10 times you should reconsider your major, maybe the word re-evaluate your situation is a better way to say it. Understanding that there are exceptions to the rule I find it difficult to believe that I'm the only one that has these thoughts. Regardless of my not so popular opinion, what does one do if they don't get into a program that they want to get into? I thought that once you were rejected you could not audition again for the same school. If that is not true has anyone else out there done this? I'd also like to hear from others about the training aspect, has anyone's child improved there singing acting or dancing drastically since being in college? If so what college did they/ do they attend?</p>
<p>You can re-audition for many schools in the following year - some specific examples I know for certain are CMU and BoCo. I also know of students who have had great success doing this, with another year of training/awareness of the process/development/maturity in their favor. I also have the cool experience of watching the classes progress through both the Michigan and CMU programs, and there are many, many students there who improve greatly in acting, singing, and dance. Yes, they had some considerable talent in order to be admitted to those schools, but it is often raw and is developed and refined to a significant degree by the time they graduate. In fact those students who DON'T need that refinement as much often end up leaving to work in shows - there aren't many, but it does happen.</p>
<p>I feel compelled to chime in here and I suspect that many other college reps would agree with me when I say that we see MANY more talented candidates than we have space to accept; students who have the potential to be successful in the industry. We also don't necessarily see a student's best performance on a given day so I would hesitate to advise a student to make career choices based on the outcome from a short audition.</p>
<p>Another observation that I've made over the years is that individuals develop at different rates. Some individuals "come into their own" so to speak by their senior year in high school and are ready for the college audition process, while others develop that confidence and skill later in life. I have seen some wonderful performers "blossom" during their junior/senior years of college.</p>
<p>All of these students should be constantly reevaluating their path, regardless of the accept/reject outcomes because that is how personal growth takes place. Fulfillment comes in many forms.</p>
<p>MTdad -- when my daughter was going through her auditions 2 years ago, we told her exactly what you have suggested: if you don't get accepted at any of the schools, you should reconsider your plans. Like you said, we didn't tell her to quit or give up her dreams -- just to be realistic about her chances of success. Luckily, she was accepted at several schools, including Syracuse, where she is now a sophomore.</p>
<p>And yes, I have seen a big improvement in her skills in all three areas -- acting, dance and singing. She is getting excellent training.</p>
<p>All4FSU - Thank you for that excellent post! There are so many variables that can happen and so many different paths a student might have taken when those audition days come around. It's reassuring, that they can try again if they didn't get to put forth their best at an audition or if they just weren't quite ready at that moment in time. My D had one stage or another of the flu, bronchitis & asthma for 5 out of 6 auditions, complete with fever. It broke my heart, although she's been pretty philosophical about it. Four of them were at the LA Unified's and the week before at an on campus audition. She didn't complain or say anything to the auditors, but her voice wasn't clear and strong and she could barely keep from coughing her brains out. We tried our best to keep her healthy, but what can do when it's going around? Just plain bad timing. We'll continue to support her and her dream and if it means trying again in the near future so be it! :-)</p>
<p>All that said... she received a rejection letter from Point Park last week. She pretty much expected it. :-(</p>
<p>SarasMom so sorry to hear that your D was having health issues smack in the middle of audition season. </p>
<p>I think you have the best attitude about things though, and I am sure that your support means the world to your D. Like so many people are posting as reminders, there are still so many decisions forthcoming in the weeks that lay ahead. Keep the faith!</p>
<p>Thank you so much MTgrlsmom! Your kind words mean a lot. </p>
<p>Actually, I'm amazed at how well my D is taking it, considering. She did end up with at least one audition that she felt great about last week and it was one of her top choices. So, now it's up to the hands of fate. </p>
<p>Sarasmom-we were dealing with the same issues. My son had the flu with a 102.5 temp 2 days before and maintained enough voice to sing. His speaking voice was audibly affected and he had to stop on more than one occasion to cough. I just keep encouraging my son that the right program will want him and it will all be obvious where he's suposed to go. (I hope I'm right)!</p>
<p>SarasMom - I'm pulling for you and your D. We had a debacle my D's sophomore year when she got a bad cold just before opening night of B&B and she was Belle. They had to replace her the following night as she could not get out of bed. We were all so torn up, what can you do? We took her to the doctor twice in two days and they did give her something that seemed to help. She made it back for Friday and 2 shows on Saturday and you couldn't tell she was sick. We knew every time she left the stage she was blowing her nose or coughing to clear her throat. This was a tremendous learning experience for her as I'm sure this happens to everyone at the worst possible time. She has since been very diligent about getting enough rest, staying away from people that are sick and taken a lot of vitamins’ and Zinc.</p>
<p>MTDad777 - your post brought back some memories :); some time ago, my D danced the part of Clara in The Nutcracker (yes, she is a dancer who fell in love with MT later on :)). She was running a 102 fever, and nauseous to the max. They had buckets for her SL and SR, just in case, and everyone stayed as far away as blocking allowed, except of course for the poor nutcracker prince, who in the end did manage not to catch her bug... </p>
<p>These kids are pretty determined the show must go on, it never ceases to amaze me :).</p>
<p>I performed Working my senior year and the first day of tech week was diagnosed with bronchitis and a sinus infection. I played the housewife, Kate, whose song conveniently sits right in the middle of the voice between chest and head and stays there for a long period of time. Along with that song I was in several ensemble roles including the blues/belt females in Brother Trucker. Needless to say, I was in panic mode. I went to the doctor, took 2 days off of school, and was on a regimen of antibiotics and codeine. I was up and running by show time but since I performed the show in a very vocally damaged place, I scarred up my chords to the point where I have lost any resemblance of a sustained soprano voice. I used to be able to perform in a more legit sound but have been forced to embrace my alto/second soprano/belter voice.</p>
<p>Point is, the show must go on, yes, but beware of pushing the body too far to avoid damages.</p>
<p>SarasMom and Jack - I'm pulling for you. You and your children have great attitudes. My daughter got sick the first 3 trips including Unifieds. I know that "WHY NOW???" feeling. Taking daily Vit C seems to have really helped. </p>
<p>Liz - thank you for this post. I know it's always the attitude of "the show must go on" but sometimes I think they really have to consider at what price. Every year her entire theatre group is ill passing it around. We've even had leading men run off the stage between scenes, vomit their guts out and then return to the stage to kiss the leading lady. It really makes me crazy because I keep thinking this is a HIGH SCHOOL play not Broadway.</p>