<p>I was wondering if somebody out there could help me out. I am a sophomore at the University of Texas in Austin (UT) and have recently come to a point where I am doubting if this is the right school for me. I love Austin, am happy with UT, have great friends, and for the most part have enjoyed my experience so far-- but something has always been missing (musical theatre). I participated in the UT showchoir my freshman year, but that did not fulfill me, nor would it help in advancing my ultimate goal-- to move to New York after graduation and try to achieve a common dream among many of us--- make it on Broadway. (I quit the choir this year). Luckily the moving to New York thing is covered because I am fortunate in that my parents have the money to support me, but its step 2 that I am having problems with. UT has a terrible terrible Arts department. They do not even HAVE a musical theatre department. I was hoping that I could major in Psychology (my safety net), take voice lessons, dance lessons, and then be in several musicals etc to get my experience. Well I have recently discovered that no matter how superior your talents are if you are not a Theatre & Dance major you are out of luck at UT. My voice teacher in high school warned me of this and basically forbid me from going to UT-- but I did not listen to her. ANYWAY, if anyone has any helpful tips on what I should do, schools you would recommend, etc etc I would greatly appreciate it! </p>
<p>OCU takes transfers. You can check the audition requirements at OCU:</a> Music. You may have to pretty much start all over since you would be changing majors, but your gen eds should transfer. The school is small and the whole atmosphere is a far cry from UT and the excitement of the Austin area. I'm not saying that is a bad thing as I love the place and my D is very happy there, but it is nowhere near what you're experiencing now! You might search this forum as I believe there has been discussion in the past about other schools regarding transferring.</p>
<p>Adam, scout around this forum and look for information on transferring. I recall several kids last year who were in your position, and they posted often. In the meantime, is there any way to arrange to take some voice and dance classes outside of school, somewhere in Austin, to keep building your skills? I would guess that there must also be some community theater groups in a city the size of Austin: how about getting out to some auditions?</p>
<p>Not knowing where your from, I just focused some thought on Texas. I do know of a current sophomore girl at TCU who found some success even last year being cast in some productions. She might actually be a theatre major now, but I'm not sure she started out that way. She is very talented and fell in love with this school. She is also very active with community service far and wide. Anyway, the point is, I believe it's a school with a wide variety of opportunity located in the Fort Worth area. I believe Ericsmom on this forum might also have some thoughts to share on the school. Without more detail from you, this is the first school that came to mind. I don't know as much about that geographical area. As NotMamaRose says, networking a bit with local companies or teachers could help. Most of the companies probably have websites you can explore online if you can't physically get to them easily. Otherwise, if you find your teacher at home had some good advice, perhaps you could reconnect with her - ( a bit of humble pie, I know, but it sounds as if she knew something of the school.) See if she has some contacts in the UT area who might care to mentor you a bit. Good luck!</p>
<p>Sorry that you are unhappy with UT but understand your frustration. It is my understanding that UT is working on putting together a MT department. I do know that they are currently offering some classes for MT and adding more to their ciriculum as they can. Have you taken any of these classes?</p>
<p>We are from Austin. S is a freshman MT at Elon. I personally feel that Austin is a great place to receive excellent training in Musical Theatre! I know of one organization in particular that has a very good training program for college age students. There are numerous places in Austin where you could train while still working toward your degree at UT, if that's what you decide to do. There are several excellent dance studios with adult training available, voice teachers, acting coaches, etc. in the Austin area. There are also many performing opportunities in this area....some working with Broadway professionals. </p>
<p>You can send me an email and I will be happy to share this info with you privately. Hope this helps!</p>