<p>We are rapidly approaching our D's auditions, beginning in Jan. We have had a bumpy fall, started w/an audition coach that really didn't work out & then spent some time w/a music teacher at my school, her previous voice teacher & then another voice coach that helped her tremendously (in Dec!). This last coach & her previous voice teacher have a friend in common, who is a music teacher & coaches other students going thru this process (wish we'd found her before) & directs the musicals at her school, she said she would be willing to see my D & give her a bit of advice before she begins her auditions so I called her today to get that set up & she asked which schools we are applying/auditioning & when I gave her our list (Pace, Baldwin Wallace, Rider, Wright State, CMU, Montclair, U of Arts, Temple, Nazareth & Fredonia), she said "pretty ambitious", probably her best chances are w/Nazareth & SUNY Fredonia, the others are really a reach! Her own D is going to Nazareth & didn't get into the MT program at Fredonia. I know the odds are against my D & it's ridiculously competitive, but that just really bummed me out nothing I can do about it, we're still gonna give it our all, but it was discouraging just the same!</p>
<p>If I read this correctly, this person hasn’t even seen your D yet - how is it that she can state these schools are a reach for your D? Maybe the schools are reach schools but you shouldn’t be discouraged by a comment made by someone who hasn’t seen what your D can do!</p>
<p>Try not to feel discouraged. I hope this person didn’t mean it as harshly as it sounds or personal in regards to your D. I’m hoping she just meant those are some pretty competitive schools and didn’t phrase it well. How many auditioned schools are not selective or competitive, they all are as far as I know. This process makes you question everything I swear. I have felt that my S’s list is filled with too many reach schools but those are the schools he is interested in and feels he can be happy at and grow, so what else can we do as parents but support them they best we can? </p>
<p>Have faith it will all work out just as it should!!</p>
<p>Sure they are ambitious - all auditioned programs are ambitious. Good for your D that she is an ambitious girl and wants what she wants!!! </p>
<p>Enjoy the audition season - think of it as an adventure. And smile!</p>
<p>Preklbt - I know just how you feel! In late November we had three things happen at once. First, my D got an email from Ithaca, rejecting her pre-screen. The next day, although she got a callback for 2 leads in her school musical and had a great audition, she didn’t get either part, losing out to a junior who has very little tap experience and had to sing her song twice because she was off-key the first time. We were both really shocked.
The very next day was the U Arts audition, which is a callback style audition. If they didn’t like my D, she wouldn’t make the callback list and that would be it for U Arts. I can tell you I had myself worked up into a near panic by the time noon rolled around. She didn’t even make a pre-screen!! She didn’t get the lead in the musical!! Why did we apply to so many reach schools?? Her friend goes to U Arts and she’s as good as him but he’s a boy! U Arts doesn’t need more girls so she’ll never get in!!
I was a freaking disaster. I think I had heart palpatations. (If you read my other description of our day at U Arts on the audition day thread I mention none of my insanity, because it seemed like it might be a bit distracting to readers looking for info about how the audition day went. haha) I was totally doubting everything at this point though.
But my D wasn’t.
She got a callback. She was calm and prepared and really clicked with the auditor during the callback.
Two weeks later she was accepted to U Arts.
I went from a black hole of insecurity to a much better place, and you can too!
My D said she knew her pre-screen video wasn’t her best work, and she wasn’t surprised it was rejected. It was the only video she had to do (she’s applying for acting, not MT) and she said, “I don’t like videos…” (Insert me biting my tongue in frustration here! We will be having a long conversation in April after all this is over about the importance of video!)
She’s applying for acting, not MT, so not being the lead in the musical isn’t the end of the world.
But I had myself all worked up with these negatives.
It was a waste of energy in a negative way. I learned an important lesson, from my D, who said, “You just need to chill Mom.” We just need to stay calm, and be positive. Through their whole careers, some people are going to reject our kids, and some people are going to accept them. And we will all be OK.
Chin up! We need all our energy for the 8 auditions we have over the next 7 weeks! :-)</p>
<p>^^What all of them said! So many times people speak before they think and don’t realize how hurtful their words can sound. Just like all of us, you wouldn’t be going through this insane process if you truly didn’t believe that your daughter is talented and can do this!!! She can do this and will kick butt at auditions and land where she is supposed to be that is perfect for her!!</p>
<p>Thank you for sharing this personal (and painful) story, dramamom0804. And I’m so happy for your D’s awesome outcome! It gives everyone hope.</p>
<p>And I’ll add that it sounds like this woman is a little bit bitter about where her own D did/didn’t get in. Yes, all audition programs are ambitious!! But I think you have a decent mix of schools. Good luck!!</p>
<p>I needed to hear these words too…thank you all for taking the time to uplift and give words of encouragement.</p>
<p>I second Biouu’s sentiment!</p>
<p>preklbt- my son’s list has similarities to your D’s. He passed his pre-screens which really buoyed my spirits but then was rejected from his one and only early audition. As much as I understand that rejections are to be expected, all the doubts I had rushed in after the rejection. Lucky for me I received support from this board, and a very kind parent pm’d me and helped me to move forward (as my son already had done). With all the auditions just around the corner, my part of the process is almost done and now it is my son who will be taking this huge leap and I’ll be in the waiting room hoping for the best. I’m processing this as I write, but I guess for me, it is about letting go, trusting in my son to do what he does best, and knowing I have little control (darn it!!) over what the outcome will be.</p>
<p>This woman does not know your daughter, and appears to have her own biases due to her child’s experience. If working with her doesn’t feel right, trust your gut.</p>
<p>preklbt - I’m right there with you today, feeling very discouraged. But you have given me hope that it can and does get better. My D applied to 19 schools. 4 are non-audition schools and she’s been accepted at those but they’re her bottom 4 choices. She passed her pre-screens but was rejected from 2 schools already. We actually watched someone audition at Elon (who was later accepted) and we were in shock because her audition was sub-par at best and she really wasn’t a very nice person to boot. I guess we never know what schools are looking for at the moment and I’m trying to take everyone’s advice that our kids “will end up where they’re supposed to.” Thank God for this site because going through this grueling process alone would likely have put me in the funny farm.</p>
<p>Thanks so much everyone!! I truly am the type of person that believes she will end up where she is supposed to be, I was just so shocked by this woman’s comment! My hubby was great when he came home, I told him about it & he said, “so then according to this woman, you don’t even try for these schools because it’s a reach or the competition is too tough, no that’s no way to live!” So true!
I am so grateful for this board & others to “talk” to that can relate to the feelings we all seem to have, I know it doesn’t change the situation, it’s just nice to know you’re not alone!
Thanks again! Hang in there everyone! :-)</p>
<p>We had a similar experience last year, when my son did his monologues for an acting coach/director that he idolizes and the coach was an hour late, had completely “forgotten” about the appointment and spent the whole time talking about one of my son’s friends whom he seemed to think had a much better chance of acceptance. I was devastated, but my son took some good pointers out of the session and went on to a very successful Unifieds. Everyone’s got an opinion…just have faith and do the work and it will come out okay in the end.</p>
<p>And what do you know…JUST as I had said I was discouraged, my D received an email from Seton Hill University that based on her audition and interview, she’s accepted to their BFA MT program with a really nice academic scholarship! 
This mom can breathe a little now!!! Thanks everyone on CC for the encouragement!</p>
<p>Congratulations to your daughter!!</p>
<p>Thank you GSOMTMom! Just think everyone…within 60 days or so, this audition stuff WILL ALL BE …O V E R :)</p>
<p>Just this afternoon I was walking with our D, who is an MT junior, and she told me she sometimes likes to look at audition reports for films to see all the great actors who auditioned but weren’t cast. I was reminded that our MT kids are incredibly creative and resilient about handling rejections, or they wouldn’t be drawn to this profession.</p>
<p>I do think much of this is tougher on us than on them, as I for one am not cut out for a life of constant auditioning, while they are choosing to actively pursue it!</p>
<p>Hang in there, and pat yourselves on the back for helping your kids travel where few of us would dare/care to go.</p>
<p>It is very sad but I have to say that some of the MOST inappropriate, bitter, and unprofessional comments and behavior I have ever seen/heard have come from high school drama teachers. Please do not give this woman any credibility and, IMHO, find a different coach. Giving her the benefit of the doubt for a moment- maybe her comment wasn’t intended the way it sounded-and maybe we’re missing some of the context of the convo, etc; but these kids have enough stress and they need their coaches to be encouraging- not blindly of course, but respectful of these kids and not allow their own disappointments in life to poison their feedback.</p>
<p>Everyone said the same to my daughter, including her high school choir teacher. She applied to the most competitive schools anyway, and was accepted everywhere she applied. She’s attending her dream (“reach”) school and I hate to sound petty, but if I could draw a picture of someone sticking their tongue out and making raspberry sounds at the naysayers I would. I think the woman you mention is projecting her own insecurities about her daughter on you. Get rid of her quickly and encourage your daughter to keep reaching for the stars.</p>
<p>samigaga, that’s a great story about your D and something everyone can learn from. In life, there are always nay-sayers and people who will bring you down. Find a trusted advisor who gives constructive feedback, and if you can’t, then rigorously pursue the training yourself.</p>