<p>so i’ve done a lot of searching on these boards for this school and not much has come up…</p>
<p>I’m auditioning here in March, and I’m really excited about it because this is my first choice school.
I just had my Unified auditions in LA this past weekend and I auditioned for UArts, and I’m really liking that school so now I’m kind of in a rut decision-wise. At UArts, they do stage combat and I LOVE stage combat. I’ve already been taking it since my freshman year, and I want to go to a college with stage combat but I don’t think Millikin U has it, and thats a HUGE bummer.</p>
<p>Could somebody tell me more about the Millikin MT program?</p>
<p>And could you guys throw out your different opinions on these two schools, and just compare the two programs, locations, reputation, etc.?</p>
<p>Also feel free to PM me or email me with input.</p>
<p>I've heard that Millikin cuts about half of their class by junior year. I don't know how accurate that is, though. If anyone would like to elaborate, I sure would love to hear an explanation, I really like this school except for that...</p>
<p>I don't think Millikin cuts. I auditioned there first because they tell you right away if you're in or now (I'm In!) and I can tell you I was pretty impressed by the program considering it's size and popularity. They have freshmen "hurdles" which are the juries, but I don't think there is any other type of "cutting" after that. They're musical has a cast of less than 10 this semester, though, so perhaps it's more of a general trend of BFA kids changing majors rather than cutting.</p>
<p>According to a close friend who left the MT program after 3rd semester, they cut around half by Jr. year. Don't take this as fact, just something you might want to ask about at your audition.</p>
<p>ok let me give you some opinions on Milikin. These are not based on hard facts, I don't have stats to back them up so don't ask, however if you choose to put any weight behind this, I am extremely well-versed in the realm of mt, I have many friends and connections whom have appeared in leads, major roles, and dance captain positions on and off broadway as well as on tours. I also have many friends who are theatre professors. Sooo, I am not a fan of Milikin at all. this is not to say they don't have a good program. however, I know many people, whose opinion i credit, who have gone through the program and been far less than thrilled. I also know a professor there who is well respected, who is less than thrilled. Milikin has an attitude that they are on the same level as schools like ccm. they love to think that they are the best school around, and do little to improve upon what they have. As a performer and vocalist, i feel that so many students come out of there being cookie cutter actors. they are castable but only in that sense. a lot of this has to do with the vocal training they received. i am a huge advocate of vocal health and vocal health in belting because as we all know belting is an important tool, but it must be used correctly. a friend of mine whom is incredibly talented attends there. since she has been taking her level of skill in this area has decreased. the way she is belting now makes her more prone to injury. this is unforgivable on the part of the instructor. i also recently attended a production there. the production values of the show were weak at best. the production was definitely phoned in. yes, they are ultimately a good program and have had successful students however it is certainly not a choice i would make.</p>
<p>I'm a former BFA MT, I transferred out of the BFA (I'm still a theatre major though) for some personal reasons....but I have no problem answering anyone's questions that they may have...so PM me if you'd like!</p>
<p>I noticed that Drake and Coastal Carolina have both been added to the list of MT forum schools. In reading through previous posts, I see that in the past people have requested that Millikin be added. Can anyone tell me how to make this request again, or who to address it to?</p>
<p>I attend Millikin University for BFA Musical theatre and I am so passionate about our program. I am a freshman this year so I remember what y'all are going through. Don't hesitate to ask me any questions about anything!</p>
<p>...and just to clear some things up...there aren't any cuts. You can however be "redirected" to either BFA acting or BA theatre depending on your progress in all three areas of performance (voice, dance, acting). If you are working really hard and make progress there is not much to worry about. It's seriously an amazing school! I am so happy with the decision I made!</p>
<p>I agree with mesmom - this school needs to be added to the list at the top of the MT forum, but I have no idea how to do this. Can someone help?</p>
<p>So now that I've heard the good and the bad about this school, I still like it. My audition is at the end of this month and I'm VERY VERY excited!!! Is there any advice someone could give to make sure I'm completely prepared? This is my #1 school, so I REALLY want to nail this audition...</p>
<p>So do they let you know on the spot if you're in or not, or do you have to wait for them to send you an official letter?</p>
<p>The only thing I'm worried about now is if I am accepted to the BFA MT program is that I won't progress suficiently in the dance aspect. I've only been dancing for 3 years, so I'm not exactly the best but I work REALLY hard, I swear! haha. So at least I have that going for me. Everything else I've been doing for a long time and I have noticed significant progress in my acting and singing every year because I'm dead serious about musical theatre so I work my hardest to become the best I can.</p>
<p>They let you know that day where they feel you fit into Millikin - whether it's the BFA MT track or BA Theatre track (where the only difference is the concentration of gen ed courses vs. performance courses). My daughter was one of four kids out of about 20 who auditioned on February 2nd who was admitted to the BFA track. The head of the dept. took all four into one room and congratulated them and then gave them feedback from the judges on their auditions - their strength and weaknesses. She was the only one of the four who was a strong dancer - so the dancing weighs in as how hard you try at the combination rather than being a proficient dancer at this stage of your career.</p>
<p>Best of luck with your audition! The kids were very, very nice and intelligent and well spoken. The campus is beautiful (Decatur itself leaves something to be desired).</p>
<p>Tanaquil--my d auditioned there a week or so ago and was the only one of 7 auditioners to be admitted to the BFA MT track. To help prepare you I wanted to let you know that you will audition in front of the other kids. This can throw some people a curve so just knowing it ahead of time should help. We went to the school with preconceived ideas...we were not prepared to like it but my d and I really liked it. The current students were friendly and honest and encouraging and like Disney Director pointed out, very intelligent and well spoken. The school's facilities were nice...and as others have pointed out the town itself is a bit lacking but overall we were very impressed.</p>
<p>Thats great to hear, thank you very much for your input! I think I'm going to be really adequately prepared for the audition (mine is on March 31st) so now I just have to go there and do my best :)</p>
<p>As things are finally winding down in the process I wanted to take this opportunity to put in a plug for Millikin as future prospectives make their lists. I had the chance to spend some real quality time on the campus and see classes, rehearsals, talk with professors and students and look hard at the facilities and I have to say that I am very impressed. I got to see many of the students perform and did not find a weak one in the bunch - in fact, I would hire many that I saw. They were strong vocalists as well as (and this is important to me) strong actors. They were all very professional to boot and were genuinely nice. </p>
<p>I have a director friend who is working with the students at Millikin on three new musicals that are being workshopped at the school. The writers travel from Chicago and New York to work on the pieces - giving the kids new material every visit. It is a great experience for these students and a valuable skill to hone. Not all performers - no matter how talented - have the skill required to do these kind of readings. I actually had the opportunity to do the exact same thing with a musical that I wrote. It was workshopped for two weeks at one of the "top" programs on this site. While I had a great experience, I have to say that I was not overly impressed with the students at the time. They were lacking in a strong work ethic and had a sense of entitlement that did not work well in a high pressured situation such as this. My point in bringing up this experience is to reinforce the idea that there are some wonderful programs out there that don't have the reputation (yet) of the top ones but should be taken very seriously.</p>
<p>My advice is to go to the schools. See productions. See the level of talent and the result of their training. Don't rely on YouTube. Talk to the professors, etc. There are many many great programs out there. Do your research and don't get caught up in the labels.</p>