OUR STORY
Last week, in a Manhattan Starbucks, my forlorn D told me and an opera singer friend of ours, “why isn’t there a program that will just let me do what I want?” We chastised her, telling her to be realistic. I told her we were running out of time and she needed to focus on the available choices. We tried to encourage her that she had options and any of them could produce the desired end result.
Less than 24 hours later, in a tiny, but blinged-out office at a small private university in New Jersey, the head of dance said, “YOU JUST NEED TO TELL US WHAT YOU WANT.”
THE JOURNEY
We started our journey in a very practical way. All schools were on the table. D looked at, not what was on some random internet ranking, but what courses were in the program, what departments taught them, what the backgrounds of the teachers were, etc.
D was raised equal parts in the ballet studio and the barn. As a former ballet dancer, I insisted she begin at the city’s professional ballet company studio. After a few years, she decided flying over fences on ponies winning ribbons was a lot more exciting than plies and jetes. But she kept singing. As a lifelong singer, my children were REQUIRED to do 2 things: learn to swim and sing in church choir. She had the best early choir directors. At some point, I thought we might go check out a community theater musical audition. That led to playing Anne in Anne of Green Gables and learning 40 pages of script. Who knew she could act? And then to performing in what would be the first of 3 operas with the city’s opera company. After her first opera, she declared that she wanted to sell the pony and focus on a career in performing on stage. She insisted on returning to ballet, starting private voice lessons, and auditioning for the local performing arts high school. She was 12.
STATS
Training: Ballet school (with tap, jazz and modern), church choir, performing arts high school, private voice
Summers: Atlanta Ballet Advanced Intensive (2 years), Triple Arts Intensive (2 years), iTheatrics Choreography DVDs (4 years)
Coach: College Audition Coach
Applied: Western Carolina U, Carnegie Mellon, U Mich, Wright State, Hartt School, Manhattan School of Music, Cap 21/Malloy, Rider, Pace, Texas State, Marymount Manhattan, Fordham, Florida State, Point Park, Arizona, Baldwin Wallace, Ok City U, SUNY Buffalo, University of Georgia (academic backup), Kennesaw State U (vocal perf backup)
Academically accepted (LOL–Big Deal!): All except those that were contingent on artistic acceptance (U Mich, CMU)
Prescreens: FSU (passed), Michigan (passed), Tx State (in person prescreen, did not pass)
Moonifieds: Rider, CAP21, Wright State, Tx State prescreen, Pace Acting, Pace MT, Arizona, Point Park
Unifieds Chicago: U Mich, Hartt, Manhattan School of Music
Early Acceptances: Attended WCU on-campus audition and Moonifieds in November. Received 3 early offers from WCU, Rider, and CAP21.
Cancelled: Marymount Manhattan, FSU, Fordham, OCU, SUNY Buffalo, Kennesaw State U
Rejected: Carnegie Mellon, U Mich, Pace MT, Point Park, Arizona, Manhattan School of Music
Waitlisted: Baldwin Wallace
Accepted: Western Carolina, Hartt, Rider, CAP21/Malloy, Wright State, Pace Acting
D never fell into the category of “I have to go to XXXX school” or “XXXX is my dream school.” Even the “best” schools didn’t meet her requirements in each of the three disciplines. She would often lament, even before auditioning, “there’s not a school in America for me.” Either the dance was inconsistent (4 semesters of ballet, 1 semester of tap, 3 semesters of “movement for musical theatre”) or the acting inadequate, or the voice was from MT professionals not music teachers educated in vocal pedagogy. “I want to do musical theatre, but I want to train like I’m going to be a professional dancer, an opera singer, and a Shakespearean actor.”
Happily, she ended up with options. Nice options. With money. But still she worried there wouldn’t be a program that offered what she wanted. As she worked through the options, her depression deepened.
Then, we arrived a day early to Rider University to observe one of their advanced ballet classes. It was not even the most advanced MT ballet class and it was legit. All 18-20 students were MT students, but had serious ballet technique acquired before college. The teacher was former Joffrey. Robin Lewis, head of dance who recruited D, pulled us out for a meeting, and D proceeded to grill him. Can I take more dance than the MT curriculum requires? “Yes. And you can take additional classes at Princeton Ballet and take the train into NYC to take classes.” Can I take more acting? “Yes.” Can I audition for straight plays? “You are required to.” Can I continue to study classical voice? “You are required to.” Can I add TV/Film? “Yes.” Can I double major? “Yes.” Can I minor? “Yes.”
“And by the way, I have many students who graduate early.”
“And we also allow students who book national tours to “hit the pause button” and return a year later with their scholarships intact.”
“And also, 75 percent of our students last summer worked in summer stock.”
Then, in a made-for-tv moment, he leaned across the desk and said, “You just need to tell us what you want.” And the Heavens opened, and the Angels sang, “ HAAAAALLLLELUIA!”
DECISION: Rider University
