<p>We just hired a monologue coach for our son for college auditions, the amount we are paying for one hour…is a great plan B! 
We discussed with the coach if he should have a Plan B? As previously stated here, she said, even with multiple broadway or film credits, you will always need to fill down time in between auditions and performances, teaching, writing, whatever works. She encouraged him to go for it !Now instead of having a Plan B, we are calling it an A+ plan.</p>
<p>Apologies in advance for a little rant:</p>
<p>OK, parents. Here, among ourselves, I must admit to puzzlement when these outsiders question our kids’ paths–just because young actors/signers/ designers/ film makers/ artists/ writers are pursuing advanced training in fields that are creative, talent-based, fun, and fabulous. Do these same worried souls feel equally upset when other parents say their kids are pre-law, or do they simply ignore the dismal employment picture for attorneys these days? Do they ask in worried tones: What’s Jonny’s plan B after he spends 4 years in undergrad and another 3 years ($225K) in law school? What’s his Plan B?</p>
<p>Or how many students hope to be doctors, start college as pre-med and… maybe don’t make it into medical school? The odds are daunting. Is there a communal gasp of worry when a parent mentions their daughter is planning to be a doctor? Do relatives and friends exchange looks and ask, But what is her Plan B?</p>
<p>In other words, I feel this public fretting on behalf of our theatre kids is masked a cultural disapproval of those who pursue creative professions. And yet… what would they have talented, driven, hard-working, creatively gifted kids do? Give up on their passionate dreams before they’ve even tried? Allow themselves to be steered to some other less fulfilling major, for which they may have less gifts, interest, aptitude?</p>
<p>What makes me really shake my head, is often the very people who are unabashed enough to ask us about our kids’ Plan B are, by the way, big watchers of television (um, who are those thousands who make a living in tv and film?), readers of books, theatre-goers, etc. </p>
<p>OK. I’ll stop now. 
But every time some actor or producer or writer wins a big award and thanks her/his mom for encouraging him… I’m yelling YAYYY at the TV screen. :)</p>
<p>Bravo @Madbean!! Beautifully said!</p>
<p>Good one, Madbean!</p>
<p>I recently saw an old friend of mine, who happened to be with her son. The guy just graduated from college. I asked him what his plans were, and he literally looked down at his shoes, then drew in a great big breath and said “I’m going to grad school for creative writing. There are many avenues I could go down with that. I hope . . .” I cut him off, told him my son was starting a BFA in the fall for acting, and smiled. He looked so relieved! He said he has a whole speech prepared for all the folks who tell him he’s nuts for getting an MFA!</p>
<p>Great posts Marbleheader and Madbean. I now have two kids pursing a BFA in acting, and a third one who is expressing interest in the theatre world. I am just smile when people raise their eyebrows, I know at least I am paying for kids to follow their passions, not amble aimlessly through college trying to figure out what they want to do when they grow up. My children have a love and a passion and my husband and I are so proud of their hard work.</p>
<p>My d is now three years out of college and this year has been the first year she has been cast in productions where she has actually being paid, of course not enough to live on, so a plan b and a plan for how you can support yourself is in order. She works as a nanny and a babysitter, she teaches music and movement classes for children, she has been an intern and a scriptreader for various arts development organizations and has produced and directed plays for theatre groups she is involved with as co-founder. As an intern for six months in the well-known arts development organization, she made $100 a week but also ushered there for extra cash and once was an emergency bartender there as well.
She is performing in summer stock now and as with her fellow actors, they support themselves as nanny’s, waiters, bartenders, temp office work and so on including one who is a children’s swim instructor.
She has also met several actors and aspiring directors who are 100% completely supported by their parents, living in nice apartments in Soho or Union Square or Williamsburg.
Grad school MFA is on her agenda… but the programs are few and admission is really difficult. Sometimes it takes three of four years of applying but all you need is one acceptance.</p>
<p>As people ask my actor son what his back-up plan is, I think to myself, “What is the back-up plan for your child majoring in English, History, Religious Studies, Political Science, Sociology…” you get the picture. ;)</p>
<p>And when Madeleine says she doesn’t have a back up plan they give her a pitying nod and look at me and say “guess she will be living with you for awhile” :(</p>
<p>Check out the thread “Are you tired of justifying a MT major?” thread on the MT Major forum for lots more opinions and advice! Also helpful comebacks when someone says these things to you! ;-)</p>
<p>You can also explain to people that there is more work in the entertainment industry than the average person is aware of. After you read backstage and other such publications, you get a much better understanding of what a student with a BFA degree may do for work.
Most of our kids may very well end up making a living in the entertainment industry, and the average American will not know their names. Most actors are not household names, yet they have active careers.
There is regional theatre, traveling productions, audio book work, cruise ship work, commercial work, etc. Most people aren’t aware of the opportunities that are out there. They only think of the shows running on Broadway and TV or movies.
So maybe some people can listen to this side of the story and learn something!</p>
<p>I have not had anyone ask me what my S’s backup plan is - other than my busybody brother. And I can tell him to take a hike!</p>
<p>Found this very interesting post by a directing major at CMU…actually the whole blog is pretty good, but this post deals with the “If you can see yourself doing anything else, don’t do theater” meme which I am sure all our kids have heard by now. (My S has a director who is very proud of having told this to Tina Fey, and I’m still not sure what the point of that story is: is she saying that Tina Fey should have quit comedy?) </p>
<p>Anyway, link: [The</a> Most Dangerous Advice | That’ll Do, Pig](<a href=“Private Site”>Private Site)</p>
<p>Really love this thread and the wonderful posts. I have always felt that my kids should follow their passions, because there is really no guarantees in this life, and as long as you are doing what you love, you will at least have that. Everything that means anything in life is also never easy. Like Madbean, I tend to get a little annoyed at the rolled eyes when I tell people that my son wants to act and possibly pursue a BFA. I also got A LOT of people think we were crazy to let one of our boys last year take a gap year. They were all sorts of doomsday predictions with this. It was possibly one of the best things we ever supported with any of our boys. He has had a transformational year. I can not tell you how happy he is and how much this past year has meant to him. He got to pursue some of his passions and also got a job and found out what it is like in the working world. I am sure all of this can only enhance his next 4 years in college. Life is precarious, go out and grab it… don’t let others discouragement stop you from doing what you love. I do not want to imagine what this world would be like without artists, dancers, singers, writers, actors, etc…</p>
<p>Jkellynh17, thank you for the link. I sent it to my D, hope she will read it. When I tell my friends/relatives that my D wants to become an actress, almost all of them respond with-- who didn’t? How would she know for sure theater is her life-time job, not just a hobby?</p>
<p>I personally would like my D to have a plan B. And I don’t mean having a job to support yourself while waiting for a break in the acting career. I mean a plan B for another profession that may or may not be related to theater. That is why I’d like her to go to a BA program and take some other classes including in psychology, writing and marketing. However, if she gets into BFA through audition, then, well, I guess I would agree that she has some potential and earned right to give it a shot.</p>
<p>So, my D’s college list for now includes 15 schools, half of those are audition-based BFAs and half-- BAs with theater major. That’s the only plan B she agreed to for now.</p>
<p>Thank you once again for all the support you give and the advice you share. It is so appreciated. :)</p>
<p>@notactingmom… my S has the exact same list. About 15 schools. half and half, because he hasn’t made up him mind yet what way he is going to go, and probably won’t until all decisions are in. I too think the decision may be made for him if he doesn’t get accepted into a BFA program…and his list is top heavy only on the BFA’s because he knows he could be just as happy at a BA school. I support him in any direction he so chooses.</p>
<p>Go Madbean!!! What if your kid was majoring in Philosophy? How many philosophers will our economy really need in next few decades? If you want to learn a trade, go to trade school. My D just finished her first year of a BFA acting…she is working in theater box offices and tech this summer and making a huge bundle, and she has to turn down work all the time. She has enough saved for a good start in New York if that’s what she decides to do after school.</p>
<p>I don’t know where this will lead…I don’t think anyone knows what twists and turns at 19. But I think that studying Shakespeare and O’Neill and Williams and Kushner and… intensively, line by line and move by move, is teaching her more than I learned about English Literature in my BA. And that’s just the beginning of her learning.</p>
<p>I just posted this on the Music Major Forum. Beautiful.</p>
<p>[Let</a> the Kid Study Music, Already! | LinkedIn](<a href=“http://■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■/today/post/article/20130728144536-52594-let-the-kid-study-music-already]Let”>Let the Kid Study Music, Already!)</p>
<p>On the subject of ‘safety schools’-- I just noticed that someone who graduated from URI’s non-auditioned BFA this year is going on to Yale School of Drama. That’s a fairly rare feat for a new BFA graduate, and it reminded me of how impressed we were by URI’s program. It’s not as intensive as some BFA’s but it seemed like a place where a motivated student could really get a great theater education. And admission is based solely on stats, so if your grades and scores are good (they don’t have to be great), you’re in, and sometimes with some good merit aid.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone. Never have I ranted on cc to a more forgiving / understanding crowd. :)</p>
<p>It’s not that we can blindly expect that each and every theatre major today will be guaranteed to have a huge and sustaining career in the arts, but they will sort themselves out. In time. Just like most every entering college freshman does by their mid to late 20s (or beyond?) And in the short term, they will be getting a thrilling/ personally important education that allows them to shine, to find themselves, to bond with peers who share their goals/passions, to stack themselves up against a bigger ocean of talented fish, to test the waters of the lifestyle of a working/not working actor, as well as getting a great education in literary analysis, psychology, etc. </p>
<p>And, Gwen, thanks for sharing that impressive info on URI. This community of parents is awesome.</p>