@frisbee3 and @Crazy2024BFAMom - yes, as @speezagmom mentioned, my D is a sophomore at Molloy/CAP21 also. Feel free to pm me if there are any questions I can answer!
@frisbee3 @MTMom2024 We got some good advice last year on the question of connecting with other students online, and it ties in with what @SingerDancerMom said in #205. We were told first of all to remember that the incoming students are 17 or 18 years old; some of them may try to impress everyone else to cover up their own insecurities and inadvertently end up coming across as jerks! Secondly, these online groups are ACCEPTED students, not necessarily the kids who will go to that school. Even those who say they are definitely going there may not, if the finances don’t work out. Thirdly, a small number of kids sometimes dominate the conversations. (My own D had a lot of questions but was too nervous to ask anything for fear of looking stupid!)
In terms of the current students, most are going through a complete upheaval in their lives. They have just been abruptly separated from their friends, their school, and their performing opportunities. They are back at home (basically the last place they want to be right now!) and dealing with online classes that have been hastily cobbled together. The technological kinks that have to be worked out are frustrating. The online versions of most MT classes pale in comparison to being together. One of my D’s freshman classmates summed it up perfectly when she told her mom, “I finally found the people who get me, and I won’t be able to see them for five months.” It’s a depressing situation and a huge adjustment for them. I wouldn’t read too much into any apparent lack of communication or enthusiasm on their part at any school.
Lastly, I personally think the odds are high that our kids will find their “peeps” wherever they end up, because they are all kindred spirits who are rabid about performing. They will make at least a few friends who totally click with them, and above all, they’ll be doing what they love. Over four years, the students will come and go for various reasons. The advice we got about focusing on the program instead of the students turned out to be very wise.
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@frisbee3 I think fit with students is hugely important. They will be working intensively together for several years for 10+ hours a day. The online FB accepted groups are helpful and I know a lot of the kids have been connecting outside of that. Theres their cohort but they will also work with the other classes.
I think it’s kind of like a job hire process, you apply because you think it’s a fit - in this case you’ve looked at curriculum, campus, location and faculty and they seem like good matches, and when you get to the final rounds you do what you can to see if it really is a mutual fit. You can also find social media for upper class students and alumni, and reach out to people here with current or recent students who have attended.
It also matters how the leadership of the department runs things. The first school I went to was very competitive. It was a cut program and we were not ever encouraged to work together. That was NOT a good fit for me. I am not a cutthroat kind of person. Never have been. I need to be in a collaborative environment. So it is important if they fit with the students and the environment. I know that one school, in particular, has been VERY welcoming to one of my students. Reached out to him. Added him to an accepted group (he is part of several) and they are constantly asking how everyone is doing and talking about concerns. He almost wants to go there just because he feels like it is a very “our department is a family” feel. Which is something he is hoping to find. Some accepted groups he has found the existing students to be more distant and less friendly. More aloof. Hard to say if that is how it will be on campus, but it is all he has to go by right now!
Hi! Daughter comparing American University BA MT and Skidmore BS Theatre. Thoughts anyone?
@RVCVRN1 @MTMom2024 and anyone else interested in Arizona, although we don’t know anyone who has successfully gotten into MT (tough admit, kudos to your kids), we do know kids who are BA Theatre and Dance majors( also a very tough admit). We are very familiar with the facilities, my kids have performed in most of the theater spaces on campus. The facilities are nice. My D thinks the dance theater and it’s rehearsal space are TDF. I do believe the MT’s have their dance classes in the same building as the dance majors, don’t know if they can be in the same classes as the dance majors. We have seen many performances by UofA students, no worries that the training is excellent.
The campus is large, has div 1/PAC12 sports, all the usual Greek orgs., all the stuff one expects from a large land grant university. If that is the experience your kid is looking for UofA will be a fit. A nice hidden gem aspect of the campus is the UofA Art Museum. There are shops and restaurants in the middle of campus and public transportation within campus is good- the rest of Tucson, not so much. There is always Uber/Lyft.
The campus is safe, Tucson in general is safe (you have to watch out for the wildlife more than the human ne’er do wells). Not to say there isn’t crime, and there are parts of Tucson one should avoid, as there is in any city. UofA is always building new housing, don’t know how it gets allocated, but there are a lot of choices. University Medical Center makes up the NE quadrant of the campus, has a level 1 ER, any specialty/subspecialty you may require. There is also the Campus Health Center for the students, which has stayed staffed and open during the COVID19 closure.
Tucson is in a unique and beautiful part of the country, the city is surrounded by mountains. The weather during the school year is mostly mild, but August will be brutally hot and humid, May is like living in a convection oven. You want AC. It does snow occasionally, rarely within the city, the mountains get snow every winter. If one is homesick for fall leaves, the mountains get that season, too. There is skiing at the top of Mt. Lemmon ( they have a very short season). There are numerous regional/local theater companies with which students can perform as well.
TUS is a smaller, user friendly, airport 30 min drive from campus. PHX is a 2 hour drive and there is a shuttle from campus to PHX. There are few direct flights to TUS but plenty to PHX.
One final AZ quirk is we don’t observe daylight savings time (except the Navajo Nation in the NE corner of the states does). We want the sun to go down ASAP in the summer. You still have to keep track of the change in time difference with the rest of the country.
I hope you find the above helpful, returning to the lurkers’ cave.
@AZperformom Your feedback on Arizona is SO helpful. Thank you!!!
@AZperformom What a helpful post!!! Thank you so much!
My son got into 4 BFA programs but is down to 2 choices. He’s actually eliminated the 2 MT programs both because he doesn’t feel the programs are as high quality and because he feels BFA acting is a better fit for him. He applied to both types of programs originally but only MT programs where acting is the strong suit. He agrees with that philosophy as he prefers to watch someone on stage that is genuinely moving you. He’s a strong singer but only a mover.
But through the audition process he realized he would rather be fully trained in acting and continue to develop his voice through private lessons, and maybe join an ensemble. Plus minor in dance and/or music. So he seems content with a BFA acting program. Plus both these programs are integrated with their MT programs and the actors can audition for the musicals although there seems to be more of a crossover at Ohio University.
The other school is Shenandoah University/conservatory. Both schools would cost the same even those Shenandoah is private because of the scholarships given. He likes the size of Shenandoah better (smaller). They both have similar and recent upgrades to their curriculums and both have reached out to him a ton so he’s having a hard time deciding. Any thoughts?
There is a ton if info on LIU – Two Facebook Pages – one for parents and one for accepted students – photos, videos, chats, etc.
@Shel325 I don’t know much about Ohio, but I can tell you Shenandoah has a lot going for it. Kevin Covert has done an amazing job with that program and I had hoped that my two students would have an opportunity to audition for it this year. Kevin has really made that program strong and set kids up for success. Many schools will not allow you to audition for outside opportunities while part of their program, but Kevin has Broadway experience (original Broadway casts of Spamalot, Memphis, H2$ (revivial), etc.) and he knows when there is a real opportunity, you should take it. It is also the first school that has really embraced the pop/rock side of Broadway and that is really coming into its glory now.
One of the things that truly impressed me about the program (besides the fact one of their voice teachers is on here and chimes in and helps everyone!) is an article I read awhile back about Roman Banks, the first POC to play Evan Hansen. It is on OnStage Blog and just reading about his process and how supportive the faculty was there made me really love this!
will try to put URL here but it always masks soooo…
onstageblog. dot com. /. onstage-blog-news/2018/12/18/at-this-performance-the-role-of-chatting-with-dear-evan-hansens-roman-banks
It is one of my top picks for a kid I have worked with since she was 8 and really has a strong pop/rock voice who is a rising Senior.
@user_752736 LIU Post (and other schools) are doing Zoom calls also - I know there was one today. Join the Accepted Groups on Facebook and they often announce them there!
@MI3rdClosingAct
Thank you so much for your information on Arizona! I really appreciate it. We have a lot to think about. 
@AZperformom
Thank you for your very detailed post on Arizona. I really appreciate your input! We have it narrowed down to 3 schools now. Getting closer…praying our kids can actually start in fall.
@MAmum1234, I’m sorry, I just saw this message. It did not come to my email. yes, the tag is so weird! Feel free to email me. Directly if you’d like. Fourscompany45@gmail.com. Happy to chat with you about University of Utah.
Can anyone comment on Oklahoma City U., my S got accepted but its a long haul from NJ and trying to provide guidance. TIA
@camban When did your S audition? It’s still crickets for my D.
@camban My D auditioned for OCU in November and was thrilled to be accepted…we are in the northeast like you and it is one of our leading choices right now. Superior facilities, amazing alumni success, great training and Add K. Chenowith and its got alot going for it, even if far from home…
@mtrose2024 my S audition the weekend of March 7, they said 3-4 weeks and he got the letter via mail on March 20th. Crossing fingers for D.
