<p>I’ve had the same talk with my D. She’s not planning any walk-ins anywhere, because her list is only the schools she wants to/is willing to attend, and has a “safety” lined up that she is also happy to attend in the event none of the auditioned programs go her way.</p>
<p>I like the idea of keeping a sheet for each school with 4-5 things that she likes about the program. I’ll definitely encourage her to do that. </p>
<p>I’m truly thankful she is so certain about the type of program she wants because it takes a field of hundreds and turns it into just a handful. And, at the end of the day, those are the programs that are more likely to want her too, which is just as important. </p>
<p>Re: ruling out walk-ins. I wouldn’t. if you have time and they don’t cost anything (or not much), they can be really valuable as practice. You can get additional feedback on your monologues that may be useful. And, in past years, really a lot of people have ended up falling for and eventually attending schools where they walked in. Everyone is different, obviously, and i’m not telling you or your kids what to do, but these things can be great for confidence. If you get an offer from a walk-in, that’s one more safety in a pursuit that doesn’t offer many sure things. My S got one acceptance with a lot of money as a result of a walk-in and it made the difference between having a choice and not. (He ended up choosing another school.)</p>
<p>My S found that many schools would ask where else he was applying, and would then question him on why he had such a mix (conservatory vs university/BA vs. BFA). The truth is the numbers are so daunting, he felt he needed a healthy mix. He also got many questions about how he would feel if he couldn’t perform during his first xx semesters (it varied by school). I don’t know any performer who could honestly say “thrilled not to perform” but on balance, he got comfortable with the concept and the question (at least comfortable enough to give a solid, honest answer)!</p>
<p>The question is much easier to answer when you are very focused like my son was – he wanted intensive conservatory training only - as opposed to my daughter, who wasn’t sure for the entire application/audition process whether she wanted a BFA training or a BA and if so, which type. In fact, for her, the audition process itself helped clarify to her that she wanted a BA program ultimately. She definitely found the question hard, because the answer was actually something like, “I want rigorous training and I want to be a working actor, but I’m not sure what path toward this goal is right for me right now; I’m still in the process of discovery.” She didn’t feel safe enough to say that. I don’t know if she should have; I don’t think so. But thankfully she ended up at Northwestern, which is perfect for her. </p>
<p>We researched the schools my son was applying for online and then created reference cards for each one. On the front was the name of the school, it’s particular audition requirements and three specific things he liked about their program. He would review them before each audition. </p>
<p>I think the reminder cards sound like a great idea to review before going into a specific audition. I can imagine it’s easy to give some of the details of each program confused, especially if the programs are similar in many regards. It’s good to call out those fine details that make each program appealing to the candidate. </p>
<p>I agree about the walk-ins. My D ended up choosing a program for which she did a walk-in audition at Unifieds - she chose it over several other of her “listed” options. She absolutely loves it there and is 100% certain of her choice. </p>
<p>My S was thrown (at least on the inside) by a direct question from one very top reach program when they asked him: if he was admitted, would he attend their school? He said something like he would love to, but his family had to see FA and costs would factor into his final decision. The interviewers said there was no merit aid at this school, and he kinda repeated he’d applied for FA through the university… so… They told him: this is a very expensive university (duh!) and then asked him to leave the interview room and please wait. When he came out, he was utterly confused and pretty down, as he hadn’t been expecting to discuss costs of college with auditors, and so couldn’t imagine why they would want him to wait around. The upshot: they called him back into their room about 10 (long) minutes later and told him he was being admitted. Again, he was thrown. He had never heard that this sort of verbal on-the-spot admission was possible. He had been prepared for a lot of “no’s” and was frankly unprepared for a sudden, in-person “yes” from his first choice program. I’m sure many of your students would have been dancing around, but he was in shock for about an hour until it sunk in. :)</p>
<p>@madbean, your S must have been terrified! I am so glad it worked out for him. Probably is a good sign (rather than unfavorable) when a school wants a student to wait. How awkward to have to answer that question, though! Your S must have been “in the zone” that day. Good for him for being extra spectacular at the right time and place. Those stories are so exciting–even if few and far between. </p>
<p>Not really a gotcha but something that used to happen fairly often years ago, not sure if it still does. Students should be prepared to be able to resume a monologue if they are stopped by an auditor with a question. This shouldn’t be an issue for most kids who are used to auditioning with monologues but others may be thrown off by it. The moral of the story is to know your monologues well.</p>
<p>@madbean my son was asked at 2 auditions last year “if selected, wI’ll you attend.” I think that part is fairly common - kids should be ready for it. The awesome twist in your story is the on-site offer (congrats! ). I know it makes the kids uncomfortable to hedge but the answer is rarely simple. Until the process plays out, all acceptances are known and all the FA is on the table, it is usually impossible to know!</p>
<p>Oh, and the upshot of my S’s story. The FA from at that 1st choice school turned out to be considerably less than several other schools, which made me wonder, after the fact, if the auditors had been aware they had to compete for admits in a climate of other schools with merit, and larger FA to offer? I don’t really know. Again–just speculation–perhaps they gave my son an on-the-spot yes in order to get him super-excited about attending? (He was.) But he was very fortunate to have affordable options and he chose a different program. This is stressful, even if you have been totally upfront with your kid about finances–because a top dream school is such a big thing to a HS senior. The school he chose was his other top choice (whew)–although with a bit less prestige. My advice (not that anyone asked) is to encourage students to find more than one desirable program and keep an open mind. Building a good list, that is affordable, is hard!! With FA a mystery until the very last minute, it means a lot of uncertainty. But I still love that great school who gave my S such an early and unexpected boost of confidence.</p>
What an awesomely informative thread! Definitely something to add to the folder for each school that we haven’t thought of already as we approach NY Unifieds in less then 2 weeks. AHHHHH!
D decided to do a few walk-ins in LA after all and said it was a great experience and even found a few programs she would consider if she was accepted, so I guess we’ll see. I think she felt empowered by being able to choose to audition on the spot outside of the “enormous spreadsheet of college audition planning.” She said it was easier auditioning for walk-ins because she hadn’t emotionally invested in those schools yet and found a gem or two she would really consider!
For anyone who might be truly financially constrained but can make it to a Unifieds audition with only 1-2 scheduled auditions, I would really consider the walk-in approach. None of the schools she sought out charged a fee (although I told her if she found one that did have a fee that we would pay if she thought she was really interested). One could just show up at a Unifieds event and find themselves at a really great school. As a “planner” that makes me nervous, but I can see how that approach could certainly work in a student’s favor.
It would have made me very nervous to depend on getting walk-ins, but even some schools that required prescreens were taking walk-ins, and, this year, a student could do at least a few at both NY and Chicago Unifieds. (Granted, at many that had prescreens, one still had to attend a campus audition for callbacks, but there were others who did the callback at Unifieds.) It was nice to not pay the audition fees at D’s walk-ins. Besides, she loved them–was excited to do them and energized by them–and would consider them if accepted. If fact, one was one of her favorite auditions of all.
I recently auditioned for the 16 member UT Austin acting program. I wasn’t interviewed right before my audition but afterwards thank goodness. When I sat down for my interview they looked at my resume and noticed that I was currently in a play they had just recently performed. “A Streetcar Named Desire” They asked numerous questions about how I personally felt about the play, the character I was (Blanche Dubois), and the significance of the play in American society. They asked me what acting meant to me, where I saw myself in 10 years, why UT Austin and not other schools out of state, and what other programs i’m considering/have been accepted into. What I really enjoyed about UT’s interview process is that I had to come up with a question to ask them specifically. They gave me a chance to be the interviewer myself. I asked them what they believe makes a great actor and asked how they strive to make their students just that. That threw me for a loop and it took me awhile to come up with a question I actually wanted an answer to. Needless to say, 3 days afterwards I found out that I was accepted.
I have not auditioned for any BFA programs yet, but I go to a conservatory style high school for the arts. From what I have heard, auditioners will give you different circumstances for monologues to see if you can take a direction no matter what the circumsatnce is and still remain truthful and in the moment.
That is true – CMU is known for doing this, and CalArts as well. For my d’s CalArts audition they asked her to do one of her monologues as if she was bathing – she had fun with it. It’s a way for the school to see if you are open to trying new things and, as you said, remain truthful in the moment.