<p>Hello,
My daughter would like to attend a residential theater program this coming summer.
( Acting, not musical theater.) She will be a rising sophomore in high school. Because she doesn't have much experience under her belt, I thought it would be best for the first summer to attend a program that didn't require an audition. The one we are most interested in is the American Shakespeare Center in Virginia. I have heard good things about the program and although their information for 2014 isn't out yet, the director responded to my inquiry with a very pleasant email offering to discuss the program in length. I just wondered if there are any similar non-audition summer drama programs out there that we should be considering in addition to ASC. It wouldn't have to be Shakespeare necessarily, but it's fine if it is. We'd like a program that is at least three weeks long, could be longer. We're in New Jersey so East Coast programs are easier, but travel would not be a deal breaker. Thanks so much!</p>
<p>My son did the program at BU. Loved it. There was some singing, but not in an MT way. I think he said that there were kids of all ages, although he did it as a rising senior, so working on auditioning skills was timely for him. He was also able to do an actual audition for the BU BFA program the last week of classes. This program is basically a replica of the first quarter of BU’s BFA program. It might be something that she would appreciate more in a few years. You don’t want to scare her off!!! LOL!</p>
<p>Agree that the BU program is amazing. And that she’d be better off waiting. My D did it as a rising junior but it really is geared toward rising seniors. Virginia Shakespeare sounds wonderful…</p>
<p>My daughter did the Summer acting conservatory at Rutgers a couple of summers ago. It is an auditioned program, but I am not sure how many kids they actually turn away. She loved it. It was about $4500 and 4 weeks long.<br>
Carnegie-Mellon has a summer program as well that I have heard good things about. It is 6 weeks long, and something over $7000. My daughter is interested in that as well. Having read the other posts, I think we should also look into the BU program.</p>
<p>Sorry, I forgot to mention that the Carnegie Mellon program is non-auditioned.</p>
<p>Thanks for the replies. I’ve looked at some of the offerings at colleges and agree they would be better for next summer or the summer after that. Particularly Rutgers is appealing because it is so close, but it is an audition and I think she’d better get some experience first. I’ve heard only good things about ASC so we will most likely go in that direction.</p>
<p>My daughter did the NJ Shakespeare Theatre apprenticeship program for college students, but they have another one for high school students. It was really excellent. </p>
<p>For high school students, dates are July 1-30 or July 29-Aug 17 and include intensive classes. It is $900. But this would be only if you live close to Madison, as it is a day program. But again, the training is amazing.</p>
<p>My S did Northwestern’s summer theater program this past summer( Cherubs). There is no audition but they do look at your academics, grades and test scores, and they are pretty selective in regards to that. You have to also be a rising Senior to attend. My S absolutely LOVED it and thought it was probably, bar none, the best experience of his life. I am pretty sure he is still on FB/phone daily with his friends from Cherubs.</p>
<p>Connections, we are practically in Madison’s backyard so yes this program would be ideal (and the price is right too!) but it is an audition program. We are all new to this so I have no idea what to expect in terms of selectivity of audition programs, but I would imagine she would need some coaching. The Playwrights Theater of NJ, also in Madison, does offer private audition coaching sessions so that is a possibility. But it might be best to play it safe the first summer anyway and not stress about an audition. The American Shakespeare Center in Virginia requires an application and a teacher recommendations which will not be a problem.</p>
<p>If she auditions for a program and doesn’t get in, would that hurt her chances for the non auditioned programs? I say audition and get the experience. It can’t hurt, and she might actually get in.</p>
<p>I agree with bisouu. I don’t see the harm in auditioning. I don’t know how competitive it is but what is the harm in trying? If you are close, that’s a huge huge plus. Trust me, it is a top notch program. The teaching is superlative and you are also at a top equity Shakespeare theatre, so have the opportunity to work closely with theatre professionals and help with fabulous productions.</p>
<p>DD did The University Of The Arts program this summer and had a blast. She did MT but was in classes with the straight acting students as well. </p>
<p>Wonderful dorms, end of program showcase and the best for us was that she got experience with city life. We are in NJ and she was used to suburban life - being driven everywhere, not a lot of experience with crossing major intersections on foot, walking to a local store, etc. This experience did wonders for her - nothing like walking the streets of Philly’s arts district at 9:30 at night to get some Insomnia Cookies! Of course that’s I be a con for many people, but it was a pro for us. Great practice for NYC. </p>
<p>She had just recently decided on MT instead of straight acting, so I was a little hesitant about auditioned programs for her. UArts pre-college was just right.</p>
<p>The Teen Shakespeare Intensive at Actors Movement Studio in NY. My D did the program for three summers in a row starting when she was 14. It’s three weeks long and runs in July. There are dorms available and the kids are chaperoned.
This is an intensive program that runs 10 to 6 every day and sometimes in the evening too. They also work on the weekend. They do work exclusively in Shakespeare,so your child should enjoy Shakespeare. They don’t audition but will spend time making sure you and your child understand the seriousness of the program and that it is not just a fun vacation in NY.
The staff is wonderful and my D loved her time there. We highly recommend it.</p>
<p>Greatwhiteway, my son did both the ASC program and the BU one–ASC was great for a younger student (he went in the summer before freshman year of h.s., and I know many kids who’ve attended throughout h.s.). It’s excellent, rigorous, and life-changing. I would not describe it as a true pre-college program, so you may want to think about something like BUSTI (or other summer intensives at U. Minnesota, Rutgers, CMU, etc.) for the summer after her junior year. My son did the Minnesota program (SESTI) in the summer after sophomore year, and that was valuable too. They do meet the kids at the airport, so you don’t have to drive all the way out there, although we did go out for the final performances. It’s only 11 days, so it’s less of a time-eater in your kid’s summer, and the price is reasonable. BUSTI is a fantastic program; my son was there with Marbleheader’s and other CC poster’s kids, and I cannot praise it highly enough! It made a huge difference in terms of his preparation for auditions as well as his actual college work.</p>
<p>Those are all great suggestions above, though some are more appropriate when she is older, such as BUSTI and CMU. </p>
<p>I’ll throw into the mix the program my D attended for 8 years: Stagedoor Manor. You can go for acting or MT. They have three 3 week sessions. There is no audition. I think it is an amazing program. It is located in the Catskills.</p>
<p>As far as I can tell, there’s no audition required for the summer program at North Carolina School of the Arts.</p>
<p>My daughter attended Carnegie Mellon’s Pre-college program. They have both Acting and Musical Theater majors. It’s 6 weeks, on campus residential and very intensive. It is not auditioned but does require a pretty extensive application. She loved the experience, says it “changed my life”. :)</p>
<p>When I posted this I missed the part about how young your daughter is. Many of the on campus summer programs require the student to be 16 at the start of the program. CMU is one of them.</p>
<p>Wow, thanks for all the suggestions everyone. This is enormously helpful. You are right, there is no harm in auditioning for the NJ Shakespeare summer program; it wouldn’t prevent her from applying to non-audition programs and the convenience factor can’t be beat. I hadn’t heard of the Shakespeare intensive in NYC so I will look into that as well. I have heard of Stagedoor of course, but I never considered it for my daughter because I always assumed it was all MT. I know there is no audition but doesn’t it fill up really early? And do they give preference to kids who have been attending for years and years?</p>
<p>Stagedoor is for both Acting and MT. They have many acting classes. As well, every three weeks, they put on at least 5 plays/dramas. They also have a selective acting troupe. It indeed fills up early. I don’t know if it is full yet for 2014 but it would really be a good idea to call ASAP and check. Returning kids can enroll at an earlier date but new kids always attend every year! Also, they maintain a waiting list and kids do back out since they had to commit in early fall. There are kids who went to Stagedoor for Acting who went on to pursue BFA degree programs in Acting, not MT.</p>