<p>Whenever I ask for a few colleges good for theatre, I always get the same cliched answers (NYU, CMU, etc.). Well I know that. What are a few lesser known colleges that have great theatre programs? Because not everyone is destined for a top 30 school, and there are plenty of great opportunities outside of those colleges.</p>
<p>Here’s a list of just about every BFA in the country. (c. 2005 but it was still pretty much current last year when we were looking). <a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/theater-drama-majors/63432-theatre-drama-colleges-part-8-a.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/theater-drama-majors/63432-theatre-drama-colleges-part-8-a.html</a> There are also BAs, some auditioned, some not, and the experience can be very different at every one. Once you start looking at the websites, seeing the curriculum laid out and getting a sense for the emphases, you can narrow them down and see which ones seem to fit you best.</p>
<p>A hidden gem you should check into is Shenandoah Conservatory in Virginia. Good reputation for MT, and their new director of drama is revamping the curriculum and working to bring the acting program to a new level of excellence and recognition. Beautiful campus, 90 minutes from DC. My son auditioned recently and was very impressed - and he is quite savvy. They do not go to Unifieds, though.</p>
<p>My D, who is technical theatre, applied at some of the big name schools, but she also applied to others. Otterbein, Coastal Carolina, Virginia Commonwealth, Shenandoah, Evansville, and the University of Central Florida are all on her list. She also applied to Point Park in Pittsburgh. Now, these are all auditioned/interviewed schools, so they really aren’t “safeties.” They just aren’t as “top tier” as some of the others, maybe. I don’t know, I think this whole process is overwhelming and risky.</p>
<p>And, to build on Prodesse’s comments-- if a school doesn’t go to Unifieds, it will likely have fewer auditioners and a higher acceptance rate. We loved Shenandoah but at the time the acting program looked like an afterthought. A vocal coach from Shen. comments on the MT forum often-- always very smart and thoughtful.</p>
<p>Two schools that intrigued me, but which my son decided not to audition for, were Santa Fe University of Art & Design (or some similar name) and Savannah College of Art & design. Both schools are in beautiful cities, known for their creative communities. I’m not sure how strong their performing arts departments are, but they certainly looked appealing as backup options. Both participated in the Unifieds in the past, and I think they accept walk-in auditions.</p>
<p>Are you looking for only BFA conservatory programs that are less well known, only auditioned programs (BA or BFA), non-auditioned programs… or any of the above?</p>
<p>SCAD honestly doesn’t have the performance component. The design is terrific, but not so much on performance. My D briefly looked at the program and very quickly decided against it.</p>
<p>My D is a junior at Coastal Carolina University. They have a terrific theatre department. They offer BFAs in Acting and in Physical Theatre by audition. Both majors offer a fabulous study abroad experience at the Accademia dell’Arte in Arezzo, Italy. There is a video prescreen requirement for CCU. They are not a Unifieds school, but they do travel to Chicago and offer auditions during Chicago Unifieds.<br>
[CCU</a> Department of Theatre](<a href=“http://www.coastal.edu/theatre/html/bfa-acting.html]CCU”>http://www.coastal.edu/theatre/html/bfa-acting.html)
[CCU</a> Department of Theatre](<a href=“http://www.coastal.edu/theatre/html/bfa-physical-theatre.html]CCU”>http://www.coastal.edu/theatre/html/bfa-physical-theatre.html)</p>
<p>For anyone interested in CCU, the TheatreMania University blogs are a great read:
[Alexa</a> Doggett](<a href=“http://www.theatermania.com/author/alexa-doggett_335/]Alexa”>http://www.theatermania.com/author/alexa-doggett_335/)</p>
<p>I’m always happy to chat with anyone interested in CCU!!</p>
<p>I would second austinmtmom. Coastal Carolina is a really impressive program, with great faculty. The new physical theatre study abroad seems amazing.</p>
<p>I’ll throw in for my school. Just wrapped up my first semester at Chapman and I love it here. The training is terrific and the program is expanding aggressively-- we’ve got a new performing arts center under construction and there’s talk of adding a musical theater BFA soon. </p>
<p>What we’ve got right now is a program where one auditions into BA Theater, and then has the choice of either continuing on that track, or auditioning into BFA Theater Performance or BFA Screen Acting (the latter of which is a dual degree with the university’s nationally-renowned Dodge College of Film and Media Arts) at the end of the freshman year. </p>
<p>The freshman class started at 54 (performance and technology majors together, although there were only about 10 techs in the year IIRC) and we’re down to about 46 through attrition already. The BFAs accept about 18 each year per program.</p>
<p>All told, these past four months have been some of the best of my life. It’s hard work, make no mistake, but to be surrounded by people who are clearly so passionate about it is an incredible breath of fresh air.</p>
<p>Consider Ball State University for a BFA! The [Ball</a> State Theatre and Dance](<a href=“http://cms.bsu.edu/Academics/CollegesandDepartments/TheatreDance.aspx]Ball”>http://cms.bsu.edu/Academics/CollegesandDepartments/TheatreDance.aspx) program is always growing and is truly a family like atmosphere. I’ve discovered that one of the most important things for me to have in a school/program is a sense of a family like environment within the theatre department. It is very important to me that my classmates are not only supportive of me, but also people I will be able to be great friends with throughout the four years of college. Leaving my high school theatre family was really hard, and I wanted to make sure I was going to a place where I would have that same sense of community and I have found that here at Ball State.</p>
<p>StrangeBro—What is your sense of the acceptance rate for those within the program who audition for the BFA in performance at the end of the freshman year?</p>
<p>OddDad-- Sometimes it’s unanimous. If there are fewer than 18 or 20 applicants to the BFA in theater performance, and the panelists (those are our professors and the department chair) think everybody is up to scratch, everybody gets in. If it’s a competitive year, or somebody has not demonstrated the ability to consistently hack it on a more intensive performance workload, there will be rejections. GPA comes into play here as well; since BFAs are required to have something like 78 credit hours (compared to 40-50something for a BA), the administrators want to make sure nobody is going to fail out of school by concentrating their energies on acting.</p>
<p>Short answer: I’d say more than half of those who audition for BFA TP get in. The way it looks this year, a lot of people are focusing their energies on BFA Screen Acting and a lot of people are double majoring, so they’re sticking to the BA track. Dr. LeNoir, our department chair, says it’s possible everybody could get into the degree they want when all is said and done.</p>
<p>Check out wright state in Ohio. My son is currently working in a production with two graduates so he had heard some good things about it. He fell in love with it when we got there. Was very impressed with the faculty, the students, and the productions we saw. The only hesitation for him is it is in Dayton, which really didn’t impress him, but he figures he will have very little time for hanging out, so what does he care. Drama students can live in the honors dorm and the food was pretty good. Nothing else to worry about :)</p>
<p>I would recommend looking at Northern Kentucky University.</p>
<p>StrangeBro - I am a senior very interested in Chapman’s BA and BFA programs. Do you know the statistics for how many students audition for the BA? You already said that 54 performance and technical theater are accepted but is there a cap on the number of students accepted or is there flexibility? Also, how serious is the talk about adding a BFA Musical Theater and how long would it take before it’s implemented if at all? Thank you!!!</p>
<p>My daughter is a freshman Theatre Performance major at American University in Washington, D.C. It is a BA program. She just completed her first semester and is absolutely thrilled with the program. Through course work, a new student production at the beginning of the semester, a mentor program, various auditions and some other unique opportunities, she has gotten to know most of the professors and students in the program already. It is a fairly small, close-knit department with lots and lots of performance opportunities. She already feels that she has learned and grown as an actor and is extremely excited about some of the things she has committed to doing in the spring. She has been challenged and excited by her other classes as well and loves that the kids are from all over the world…freshman class of 1600 has 48 states and 40 countries represented within those students. Probably the best part of being at American is being in Washington, D.C. She has attended almost weekly professional theatre performances within the city through one of her courses and they have constant opportunities sent to them to audition within the larger community (which she hopes to take advantage of when she is a junior/ senior.) Study abroad opportunities at a conservatory type program in London for a semester later in her course of study is another exciting opportunity. </p>
<p>When we were doing the searching and auditioning process last year, American was sort of an afterthought because it is close to us and she loves D.C. Of all her auditions, the auditors at American spent the most time working with her and giving her feedback. She also received written feedback on her audition from them. After that, and a few more visits, she knew she had found her home and she has not been disappointed.</p>
<p>Anyway, we didn’t see much about American on here when we were searching, so I do think it fits into the category “hidden gem.” For her, it has been a perfect fit! I would be happy to answer any questions, if you want more info.</p>
<p>My D just returned from her 3rd semester at Adelphi University (auditioned BFA). I have to say that once again we all are thrilled with the curriculum and opportunities she has there. She is getting strong, comprehensive training in Acting, and also will have significant tech/design experience, plus several courses in Directing, Theatre History, and numerous other electives. She’ll do a semester at LAMDA (next year!!!), and has gotten great advice and referrals for summer theatre work as well. Her performance opportunities have been varied and all very valuable - from mainstage work onstage and in tech, in class projects, and in student-directed work (Senior Capstone projects). In addition, she has been able to take advantage of her proximity to NYC and sees on average 12-15 plays per semester (at great discounts).</p>
<p>One thing that impresses me is that at the end of every semester each student (there are 15-20 per class) sits down with their theatre professors and has a frank discussion of their strengths, their challenges, and their goals. The feedback is invaluable, and the overall feeling is a team approach to learning. My D feels respected and cared about, and she is more than ready to take the next steps in her professional and personal development.</p>
<p>As for academics, while the gen eds are easy for most students to get done with quickly, there also are great opportunities to do solid, college-level study. My D is in the Honors College and also is considering a minor in an academic field. Adelphi is a moderately selective school academically - pretty safe for a B student with decent scores - and has lots of merit scholarships for students with higher stats.</p>
<p>As for BFA selectivity, while the chances are, as always, low, they are higher than big name schools that audition thousands of students. Adelphi probably auditions 400 kids and accepts more than the 20 that end up attending. They do not go to Unifieds, but they have several on-campus audition days, take personal appointments, and also accept video submissions (and they do accept by video).</p>
<p>Adelphi also has a substantial film/TV/media department and many Acting students take classes there and perform in student films. They also have an auditioned Theatre Minor, and do regularly take transfer students.</p>