My Experience at BSU

College Majors Musical Theater Major
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<p>My daughter just got back from a 2 day visit at BSU. We saw My Fair Lady and then spent the whole next day in the theatre dept. We sat through a dance class, a voice class (which they happened to be doing Shakespeare that day), and then an acting class. We then got a tour and had lunch with an Acting Major. She was quite accomplished and had won some competitions (not what she called them) for her work. </p>

<p>My daughter had thought she made up her mind about another school before our trip. We found out after My Fair Lady, that the cast was mostly Freshman and Sophomores, and we were quite impressed. Higgins was played by an acting professor, and he was brilliant! The next morning, after the show, we saw most of the cast at their dance class
and they looked so young off the stage! My daughter wanted to get up join in on the dance class. The voice class had the same affect on her, she thought it was intense and very telling of the talent of the teacher. Then the final acting class had a wonderful personable teacher that my daughter said, “Oh I can’t wait to have her!”</p>

<p>We also had a meeting with Andrea Sadler and Bill Jenkins. They talked to us about the showcases and connections made with casting agents and the support their program has gotten from Sutton Foster. They made us feel completely comfortable about the support system within the department and the goals of their program.</p>

<p>Acting was very important to my daughter, she has several acceptances to BFA acting programs and MT programs. She feels like this program will accomplish her goals of being employable and being a great musical theatre artist, but also a serious actress. She has had an acting coach in NYC, that did agree that BSU was havy on acting and a good fit for her. Hope this helps!</p>

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<p>It does help. I’m just glad to know they’ve HEARD of Ball State in NYC. My son and his coach (who graduated from there and got work right out of college) think it’s great (and nationally under-rated) program, and it just doesn’t get the play on this site like some others so it’s short on feedback. We are from a nearby area, too, so that makes it feel a little hometown (which is not as “sexy” for an 18 year old) but it seems to have so much to recommend it. In fact, my S was told that out of 16 accepted, 14 are from out of state. That means word is getting around. Thanks for the pep talk
maybe we’ll see you at orientation!</p>

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<p>nicksmtmom:</p>

<p>I am a junior MT major. I hope this helps:</p>

<p>In what discipline do you feel the most emphasis: dancing, acting, singing?
I would say that I get more training as a student in acting and singing, although the dance area has started getting more difficult since I have been in school. At the end of each semester, we now have a jury, where we are evaluated in all three areas separately. We are required to have one year of jazz, ballet, tap, and MT Dance each before graduating. </p>

<p>I know BSU has a big techie school
how does this translate for the theatre kids? Do you get extra time and training in acting for the camera?
Techie school? We have a large telecommunications program, if that is what you mean. Many of the Acting and Musical Theatre majors are in various films around campus. Also, during the senior year, you take an Audition and Acting for the Camera class, which helps you train for film acting. </p>

<p>Are you required to audition for every show? How often is an average student cast (shows per year)?
You audition for the whole semester’s season at the same time, and then go to the call back for whatever individual show that you are called back for. On average, a student is in one show per semester. </p>

<p>Are the university core classes challenging?
It honestly depends on the class and professor. I have not had any issues with core classes. In all honesty, every student in the University has to pass them, so they can’t make it too difficult. Plus, you end up making friends who tell you which class to take, and which class not to take. The biggest challenge is finding time to take them, not the classwork itself. </p>

<p>Is there a dorm where the MT kids tend to room together?
Not that I know of? I lived in Woodworth my freshmen year, which is the all girls dorm. I wasn’t too crazy about the idea, but it is right across from the theatre, and I ended up loving it, and meeting my two best girl friends. A lot of theatre students also tend to live in Park. Other than that, there is no option to place all of the MT students in one dorm. Nursing, I believe, is the only major that is clumped together like that.</p>

<p>Hope this helps!! Let me know if you have any more questions.</p>

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<p>Thank you bwaygal323
good info. I think we have almost decided
</p>

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<p>I know bwaygal323 already responded to this awhile ago, but I thought I would give an alternate perspective, in case anyone else has these same questions.</p>

<ol>
<li><p>BSU is definitely a Singing-Acting-Dancing school, in that order. Singing is the only area that you are guaranteed to have classes in every semester, and you will often have multiple. As an MTO you get a decent amount of basic acting classes, but less than one per semester and you do not really get an in-depth or specific education.
Right now, the dance program is not designed to push you in the slightest. If you come to BSU with dance experience, your classes there will allow you to adequately practice your skills and maintain your abilities, but your improvement over the four years will be minimal. If you come into the program without dance experience, you will graduate with subpar skills.</p></li>
<li><p>BSU is indeed a big techie school, with a ton of aspiring filmmakers looking to cast young and eager actors willing to work. HOWEVER, “outside projects”, meaning anything that isn’t officially part of the BSU season, are not encouraged in the slightest and are instead in fact HIGHLY DISCOURAGED. Your first and only commitment is to the department, even educational minors are extremely frowned upon.
Unless you are able to go behind your professors’ backs, you will not be able to take part in any of the great films going on around campus. Since scheduling around the department is all but impossible, you are basically SOL. As such, graduates have little to no experience on camera. AOs do take an “Acting for the Camera” course, but as an MTO you get no real experience whatsoever.</p></li>
<li><p>Yes you are required to audition for every show, unless you are a second semester senior when you have the option to “opt-out” of the season provided you have good enough reasoning. I have to respectfully disagree with bwaygirl323’s assertion that a student gets cast on average once a semester. That is simply not true.
As far as the department’s main season goes (meaning shows on one of their two mainstages with faculty directors) students are fairly lucky to get cast in any given semester. Obviously this varies depending on what your “type” is (if you are male, an ingenue, a unique type, and/or a strong dancer, your odds of getting cast will go way up) and the demands of the season’s shows. There are an extremely lucky few that will get cast every semester, but this is by no means the norm. Most students will spend their first few semesters either not getting cast or in the Cave (more on that later). There are no guarantees for upperclassmen either, as seniors are often left off of cast lists in favor of less experienced students.
To make matters worse, the department casts faculty members in major roles literally every year. In the past couple of years they have had a professor play the lead role in My Fair Lady and THREE (!) professors in the lead roles in Angels in America, AMONG OTHER EXAMPLES. Essentially, directors will cast whoever they want in their shows using whatever reasoning they please. Your performance experience will not be tailored to what you need as a performer or how you are as a student, but will rely on the whims of the directors.
The Cave is a smaller theatre hosting a season of 3 shows a semester with student directors. While the Cave does allow for more students to get performance experiences, it is given little respect by the faculty, who rarely attend these shows and have been known to walk out in the middle when they do. I would say an average student will be cast 3-5 times during their entire time at BSU.</p></li>
<li><p>Core classes are not extremely challenging. Obviously some are worse than others, but on the whole they are very pass-able.</p></li>
<li><p>Nope. A lot of students do end up in Park, Dehority, and Woodworth because of their proximity to the theatre, but honestly after sophomore year most students end up off-campus anyway.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>Hope this helps. Please let me know if you have any questions.</p>

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<p>Wow Anon
sounds like your experience was/is less than you had hoped. </p>

<p>While I respect your opinion and your experiences, my son did end up attending BSU, and has been incredibly happy with his choice. What broadway gal said in 2010 ended up being true in almost all respects.
He has had great training, and great opportunities, as have most of his friends.</p>

<p>But I know, as in life, two people can be in the same program (even the most well-known programs!) and have very different experiences, as you will see if you search this forum. Keep in mind that your opinion is just that, and may not be the reality for the majority of MT students at BSU.</p>

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<p>I am currently a freshman musical theatre major and I absolutely love it. if anyone has questions let me know. I will be happy to answer them. Im not entirely sure why AnonBSUMT had such a bad experience but I can tell everyone that that is not the norm. most students love it and receive excellent training.</p>

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<p>This is in response to Anon. I am a current BFA MT freshman at Ball State and I am shocked by this post. In my first 2 weeks at Ball State I have seen an amazing quality of performance from the upperclassmen and I have already been pushed in singing, acting and dancing. Our schedules are incredibly busy, and I have to work very hard to keep up, but that is exactly what I wanted. Though the acting classes are few, they are intense and give you plenty to work with on your own. Being inexperienced in dance, I am being pushed to my absolute limit in the classes and I am having to work very hard to keep up. As far as singing goes, its musical theatre. We all pretty much rock and I’ve yet to hear a bad singer. It would be very possible to meet requirements in this program without giving it your absolute all, but as Bill Jenkins often tells us “If you sit in your dorm room waiting to be discovered, it will not be by us.”</p>

<p>Honestly, the program is more than I expected. Life as an MT major is a lot to handle, and much will be demanded of you. But you will only get what you give, regardless of the school you attend. You can count on Ball State being an incredibly challenging and supportive place to train and transition into the real world.</p>

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<p>Dear AnonBSUMT,</p>

<p>I was so saddened and surprised to read you post. While I will respond to all the points that you make, I do want to say one important thing. If you are truly an MT student in our program, I would really hope that you would either (a) walk into one of the faculty offices (including mine) to share your frustrations or (b) investigate transferring to another school that can best satisfy your educational needs. As I often say, not every school is for for every student. If you feel as disheartened about your educational experience as your post indicates, I would hope you would take control of your education and work to find a solution to your frustrations. The first step would be sharing your feelings with those who can help solve your problems or looking into alternative locations to finish your degree. With that said, some responses to your points:</p>

<ol>
<li><p>The singing-acting-dancing components of the curriculum are split up evently. In essence, all students dance every semester and take an acting class every semester (some semesters include two acting classes). While musicianship, piano skills, sight singing, ensemble singing, etc. are focused on a great deal in the first year, this is merely to lay the foundational skills needed to succeed in the business. By the last two years of training, the majority of focus is on the dance and acting components. That being said, courses are evenly distributed if you look at total credit hours taken.</p></li>
<li><p>While I am very proud of our design/tech program, I would not label us a “techie” school
I would also not label us as an Musical Theatre" ONLY school. We have 420 majors spread out over seven equally valued options
acting, music theatre, design/tech, dance, theatre studies, theatre education, and production (directing/stage management). One option is not favored over another. In regards to outside projects, IF students are making progress in their required MT classes, they are often encourgaed to do outside projects. Close to ten MT majors took part in an off campus musical last spring, and, often times, MT students take part in films and also get a camera class
the audition class taken in the senior year focuses on camera auditions including television, film, and commercial work. Currently, MT graduates are working in film across the country. If a student would like to know more about this aspect of the program, please send me an e-mail (<a href=“mailto:wjenkins@bsu.edu”>wjenkins@bsu.edu</a>) and I will put you in contact with a number of recent grads who have worked in film post-graduation. Finally, students who are told not to work on outside projects, often are making unsatisfactory progress in some aspect of their curriculum. I know we have never discouraged students to work on something if they are doing well in their coursework
we may have encouraged students to not over-extend themselves if they are doing poorly in course work
this is something that will continue to happen as school work is MOST important at Ball State.</p></li>
<li><p>The assertions made about casting here are either not true or tremendously misconstrued. First, of the seniors graduating this year in the MT program, EVERY student in that class played a lead during their 4 years at Ball State. Further, of a possible 6 semesters of eligibility, the average amount of semesters the current MT seniors were cast in was 5.6 semesters. So, the assertion that students do not cast is not true. Also, it is true we cast faculty members on occasion. We believe that students working with Equity faculty or guests is important. While no faculty are cast in the current fall semester (with the exception of a faculty member playing the smaller role of Egeus in MIDSUMMER), we have only cast one faculty member in the spring. The role of Man in Chair was cast as a faculty member at the urging of Sutton Foster who is guest directing the show. She feels the role is better suited to an older person given the nature of the play. That said, we have no graduate students in the program and we strive to create meaningful collaborative experiences with students and faculty where they can learn from watching faculty and guests in a rehearsal environment. The Cave is a great space
I can honestly say that as the Department Chair I have missed 3 cave shows out of a possible 66 in my 11 years at Ball State.</p></li>
<li><p>Dance classes are incredibly challenging based on the feedback received from students. We are one of the few schools that places students based on ability level in all dance courses including ballet, jazz, and tap. Further, I know if a student does not feel pushed in their dance courses, a conversation with the faculty member would be incredibly beneficial. Our dance faculty work professionally and are open to student feedback.</p></li>
</ol>

<p>Finally, I firmly believe that students, faculty, alums, and parents are entitled to their own opinion. That said, I also think that the goal of this forum is to create a positive and meaningful dialogue about potential schools. I hope it will not become a place for disgruntled individuals to take out their agression on a school or an individual.</p>

<p>Sincerely,
Ball State Bill</p>

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<p>This response is directed at ANONBSUMT. You are certainly entitled to your opinion, but I hope that for the sake of the bigger picture you will speak up, in person, to someone in the department who can help you. I am available as well as several faculty members and our chair. Ball State Theatre and Dance is a strong, diverse, and competitive program where we thrive on student life, student success, and student honesty. All systems, juries, classes, and casting procedures are in place to create successful, motived, and driven individuals in all areas of the arts. I will not respond directly to the listing of items above, but what I will say is that we are more than a “techie” school, more than a musical theater school, and more than just a state school. We are a family who expects results and success form each and every student. Our goal is not to graduate burnt out students, but rather students who are ready for the next step. Again, I am available to talk with you at any time. Anyone with questions may e-mail <a href=“mailto:amsadler@bsu.edu”>amsadler@bsu.edu</a>.</p>

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<p>Going with what BALL STATE BILL & AMSADLERBSU have said, I personally have to disagree with ANONBSUMT. I am currently a transfer student into the MT option and I have had an amazing experiencing with BSU. At first, I was timid of auditioning at such an elite program
but after throwing myself into the Unified auditions and seeing their smiling faces, I knew Ball State was for me. The professionalism of this program, the hard working instructors, the family atmosphere, and the warm welcoming arms of the faculty had me instantly when it came to deciding where I was going to be spending the next four years of my life.
I have immediately been thrown into all things theatre and working my butt off in only the first 2 weeks of this semester.
As for how casting goes, I strongly disagree with what ANONBSUMT has to say regarding that fact. I think that I am a prime example of this argument. I was recently cast in an original main stage production in my first semester of being here. Yes, I am VERY lucky to be in a production
along with everyone else who was also casted in the show.
I also disagree with BSU being mostly a “Singing-Dancing-Acting” program. I believe that EACH INDIVIDUAL has something different to offer and bring to the table. Each aspect of this theatre program is equally divided. I am being pushed to the max. in ALL of my classes. That includes, but not limited to; my weekly private voice lessons, my dance courses, my acting classes, my masterclasses, etc.
One of the great things about each class is the student to faculty ratio. I can honestly say that I am getting tons of personal attention, which is what I need to be able to excel in this profession.
I cannot stress enough how awesome this school is. Whether you are Design Tech, Acting Option, Theatre Studies Option, Musical Theatre Option, Production Option or Theatre Ed.- I’m positive that you will be able to call this place your “HOME”. I have been able to become involved in so many opportunities on campus that have brought me closer to the program and the people within it. </p>

<p>This is a power house program with conservatory-like training, and you are going to sweat and work hard all the time. The rehearsal processes are even treated identically to Equity rehearsals to prepare you for the real world.
BSU is interested in helping ALL of their students grow and get the experience they need to go out and immediately get jobs. </p>

<p>Ball State will give you what you need and more to successfully achieve your career goals and grow as a professional theatre artist.</p>

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<p>The fact that busy faculty take the time to write responses and answer questions on here tells me a lot about your dedication to the program. I can’t wait to fly all the way from Denver to visit BSU tomorrow as well as sit in on a couple of classes. I’m also excited to see The Drowsy Chaperone!</p>

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<p>Thanks so much, luv2sing. We’re glad you are here to visit!</p>

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<p>I have to second the kudos to the faculty. There are just a few of you here on CC that take the time to address questions and help calm fears and take some of the mystery out of the process and you are among them.</p>

<p>Also, D had (for reasons I honestly can’t remember right now) taken BSU off her list, but I talked her into doing a Walk-in at Chicago Unifieds just because she had a big block of free time between scheduled auditions. She came out of that audition BEAMING! The faculty in that room had made her feel so good, and had made it so much fun, that she completely changed her mind about applying to the school. It was such a stark contrast to her first (scheduled) audition of the day where the auditors talked to each other through her audition and essentially said, “next!” at the end ofw her allotted time, making her feel pretty worthless.</p>

<p>Good people there at BSU, that’s for sure.</p>

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<p>Would one of the faculty or current students please remark on the juried reviews that occur each semester? What percentage of MT students typically get through to graduation? How many students get cut? Also, how many students are typically cast in showcases?</p>

<p>Thanks!</p>

1 Like
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<p>Good questions Shaun- these sound really important for a college decision! I know this about the Musical Theatre program: </p>

<p>Cuts: There is no “sophomore cut”, and there is no standard cut as long as students pass their classes and juries. There are piano and sight-singing juries every semester as well as a voice jury where you sing 3 out of six songs you do in a semester. There are also Dance and Acting juries which take place during your general auditions for department shows. There is also an acting jury of class work. The point of juries isn’t to cut any students-but to evaluate the work we are doing in our classes. Every option has evaluations each semester similar to this. </p>

<p>Showcases: The people who cast the showcases aren’t teachers in the department; so the percentage of students in a showcase just depends on the people who are in the Acting and Musical Theatre option. This year, 18 out of 21 people got into a showcase.</p>

<p>I hope this helps! If you have any more questions, please don’t hesitate to ask!</p>

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<p>Taylor11,
Thank you for your response. I suppose I would like to understand the culture of the school a little better when it comes to cuts. I read on Cal State Fullerton’s website that they start with 100 majors, but graduate only 10. I wouldn’t want to send my D into that kind of environment for her college experience. Do your students go through a culling process or is it rare that a student is unable to progress?</p>

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<p>Shaun,
Ball State is NOT a cut program. And Ball State certainly supplies all of the resources for a student to succeed. Therefore, students indeed progress. From what I understand, juries are for a reinforcement of what students have learned that semester and to ensure that they are still working hard. Juries do not cut students; they are an evaluation. Also- I assure you wholeheartedly that Ball State is not an overly competitive environment (but isn’t theatre naturally competitive?). Rather, Ball State is one of the most nurturing and warm creative environments I have ever encountered, and I am sure that many students would attest to that.</p>

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<p>Thanks so much
Ball State is now officially on our list!</p>

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<p>Great! :slight_smile:
That’s always good to hear!</p>