<p>i definitely agree with you fishbowl…it’s unfortunate how some kids here will trash talk other programs. but since i’ve been here, it hasn’t seemed a huge problem here…my pet peeve is when students at any program trash talk others. yes, i’ve had times where i’ll talk about another school and say how i might disagree with their philosophy or aspect of the school, but i would never discount the program’s actual quality.</p>
<p>maybe i’m lucky and i’m in a company that is not rampant with kids who like to trash talk…i mean there are a couple kids in my class who are a little cockier than i think they need to be about our school, but i do think its gotten better as we’ve matured and cared less about being in a “reputable” program. i don’t know. most of us know we’re at a good place and that we’re lucky to be given the opportunities we get, but seriously, we care more about the training and work than to be in the “best” program in the country. and plus, we run into our fair share of problems here in our projects that humble us…aka the fact that the theatre dept generally gives us little to no tech support for our projects or even money for that matter until our senior year. just getting a lighting designer for a project is considered a blessing. yea, cool…our faculty says that it forces us to rely even more on our acting, but that’s one thing that we unfortunately don’t have the access to since the program is on the newer side…the university, being a public institution, cares more to fund our shall i say less than stellar athletic programs so they make cuts that cost the theatre dept which makes it even harder to get money for the bfa program. and neither do we have a well-known, “famous” actor to have come from the program to make a huge donation or bring in major donors. and that’s probably due to the fact that we have yet to credibly say we’re the best.</p>
<p>as i’ve said, this could just be my class. i’m only friends with a small handful of kids in the other companies and the rest i’m just vaguely acquainted with, so i don’t know how they are as far as bagging on other schools.</p>
<p>sometimes, the kids here who judge juilliard may be judging the work of a juilliard graduate on the guthrie stage that they thought was less than stellar. but as i said before, we all make the mistake of thinking that a singular performance can and should define an actor’s ability. and two of the adjunct faculty here at the program that we love happen to be graduates of the J…i think the reason why people always think we’re comparing ourselves to juilliard is the simple fact that the training is quite similar to what juilliard does or used to do (someone correct me on which that is).</p>
<p>but it isn’t just people here that trash talk. i think it’s probably rampant anywhere you go. i experienced it quite often while visiting other schools and when it came time to choose, there was a program i was definitely very close to attending but decided against it mainly from the trash talking i experienced while eating dinner with some of the students there. but in all honesty, it’s probably just young adults voicing insecurities that they’re hiding…</p>
<p>and just some info for people not in the know of current news about my program…we’re currently undergoing some big changes. judy b, the ken to the university aspect of our program, shall be retiring at the end of this year…with a new program director, i expect changes will come (some of us are hoping for a camera class or at least more workshops that will give us chances to work in front of the camera). also, a new freshman year acting teacher joined the program my first year and this year, we have added a new voice/speech faculty member. at least for me, i can’t imagine being here without having had my two foundations year with them in it. and with the addition of the new voice/speech teacher, a voice over unit was added to the jr year curriculum.</p>
<p>yes, we’re finally 11/12 years old and somewhat established and even though we’re no longer officially guinea pigs, i see that the faculty is still enthusiastic with trying new things every year. change means that the program and its reputation has a possibility to grow.</p>
<p>and at least for me, i have tons of respect for the program at juilliard. i will happily admit that the class of 2014 there all were probably better actors than i was before i started here at umn…but that’s true about most of the people in my class. i was at a messy place for about 18 months that made me probably one of the worst actors in any conservatory acting program. i don’t know how we compare now, but i do know i’ve made huge leaps here at school. but it doesn’t matter if they’re better than me or not…my ears will perk up when i hear someone has come from juilliard or my school or any school i’ve heard good things about. it doesn’t affect my final judgement of a performance i see, but i will admit, a school i’ve heard of will grab my attention. i was simply referencing juilliard since we all have a tendency to use it as a reference point when comparing schools. i could have easily thrown in cmu or whatever other program people tend to rank as the #1!!! school. but yes, the truth of the matter is that there are far more juilliard graduates working than the alums from here. i do think, however, it’s safe to say that we’ve made some significant strides since the program’s conception and more and more students and grads are working than they were before.</p>