I remember this thread! Yes, @toowonderful, we too had to fend off a few comments about our son this holiday season. Not from any close relatives - they are all supportive - but from people we don’t see or talk to outside of the holidays. A friend of my husband’s said he and his wife were talking about our S, and although they think he is handsome (!) they feel he shouldn’t try to be a movie star. He would be better suited for the Lifetime Channel - they have lots of movies and the actors are never famous . . . hmmmmmmm. Then another relative asked if our S was seeing anyone - “guy or girl, I guess, since he is in the theatre”. That stereotypical comment blew my mind!
@marbleheader- my favorite comment was “if she’s studying theater, she’ll be surrounded by weirdos”. Her response was “normal is boring”.
@jkellynh17 - I like your new year’s resolution 
@marbleheader: you should write a book–those comments are nuts!
Oh, marbleheader, that made me literally laugh out loud. Good grief.
Yes - truth is better than fiction sometimes - and to be able to laugh at these bizarro comments is what will get us by. Surrounded by weirdos? Toowonderful, I hope that was a parent saying that, as I firmly believe our kids (and their generation as a whole) are way more excepting of all different types of people!
It as a 70+ great aunt- not someone with what I would call a modern world view
Nothing wrong with being surrounded by weirdos. (Especially as defined by someone’s 70 plus year old great aunt.)
I lurk on the theatre threads all the time - love to read about these kids. Mine have not an ounce of artistic skill but we have a great appreciation for those that do. My D and I attend productions whenever we can, at every level of skill (high school to professional). We are truly amazed at the skill of most of these performers. So, know there are people like us in the audience that have little knowledge, no skill but totally appreciate what your kids are capable of.
I so apreciate @Txmom14 speaking up in defense of our artistic kids. So sweet!!
I also want to play devil’s advocate for a moment.
First, I wholeheartedly applaud those kids with the foresight to plan for survival and/or backup skills. Our D (college senior MT) has no backup plan, unless you count a degree from a respected university, but she has extremely talented friends who are concurrently pursuing pre-med, engineering, and various other majors along with theatre training. I seriously doubt that any of them have suffered artistically as a result or will ever regret their broader education, and I suspect many of them will benefit greatly from their versatility over the course of their lives.
Second, the reality is that many, if not most, of our friends and family who actually care about our young artists probably worry a bit about how they will make ends meet. Those who ask probing questions are perhaps not the most tactful, but they might be the more honest and/or genuinely concerned. And anyone who doesn’t think theatre kids tend to be more colorful than the general population hasn’t been paying attention. 
We have always supported our kids’ artistic pursuits, but are certainly not naive about the lifestyle difficulties (poverty, periodic unemployment, late night lonely post-show commutes, etc.) that can accompany acting as a longterm profession, nor will we be even remotely disappointed if our D later chooses to switch careers. I know plenty of creative engineers, doctors, teachers, etc. so Plan B is by no means this kiss of death for artistic souls.
I am so appreciative of this discussion. We are always faced with justifying our kids’ choice of college degree/major to family, friends and everyone under the sun. If they were music or art majors no one would question it. If they were English, philosophy, history etc we’d certainly get less flack. But I personally think a theater degree is equally if not more valuable - even outside the acting field. Most college freshman have no idea what they want to do. And most end up working outside their chosen major anyway. I could use a bit more confidence in my defense of the disapproving or concerned reactions to our support of our kids.
No real Plan B for my D. She’s always known she’d have a career in the arts. We don’t get too much flack about making her have a back-up plan. I suspect other parents silently think we’re a little whacked for not making her have an alternate career in her back pocket, but one way or another, I know she’ll end up doing theater whether on stage, writing for the stage, directing, etc. She’s got reasonable expectations and aspirations for a career in the arts, and is as smart as a whip–so why not let her go for it?