NYU/Tisch MT Questions

College Majors Musical Theater Major
1

<p>Hi, I am a Freshman male in high school interested in making a career out of Musical Theater. I have looked in to many schools and will continue researching but I have found that NYU Tisch has received great reviews along with a fantastic list of alumni. The problem is, whenever I research the MT degree all I find is tiny paragraphs about their mission statement and what link I need to click to sign up. So can anyone give me an overview of what the MT program is, or where I can find out more information about it. </p>

<p>(Questions I have)

  1. There are two studios, Tisch and Steinhardt, what is the difference?
  2. On the website they don’t state that MT is a degree they offer, is it or is it just a program?
  3. There are multiple studios, such as the “New Studio” or the “On Broadway Studio”, what are these?
  4. How hard is it to get in?
  5. What should I be doing now to prepare?
  6. Have you been through this program? How has it helped you? What is it like?</p>

<p>If you can answer any of these questions please respond. Thanks for your help!</p>

2

<p>Hi, I’m a current sophomore transfer doing Musical Theatre at NYU Tisch. Although I am only in my fourth week of first year, I can still clarify some things for you. </p>

<ol>
<li><p>First off, Tisch and Steinhardt are not studios, they are colleges within New York University. Tisch is the school of the arts, while Steinhardt is the school of culture, human development, and education. They do both offer a musical theatre program. The main difference is do you want to study musical theatre from a focus on acting or a focus on music. Steinhardt offers a Bachelors of Music degree so naturally you’re training would be focused more on music and you would take less dance and acting classes. In Tisch, you get a Bachelors of Arts degree in Theatre. Thus, the training is more focused on acting, although there is a good amount of voice and dance mixed in there (more so than Steinhardt). In short, if you want to focus on voice go to Steinhardt. If you want a more equal balance of all three disciplines, go to Tisch. Note: You can only apply to one school within NYU so you will have to choose.</p></li>
<li><p>There is no degree in Musical Theatre in Tisch. In the department of drama at Tisch, the only degree they give is a B.A. in Theatre. They do have a musical theatre studio however…</p></li>
</ol>

<p>…3. Tisch drama has 6 acting studios: Meisner, Strasberg, Stella Adler, Playwrights, Experimental Theatre Wing, and New Studio on Broadway. To clarify, New Studio on Broadway (NSB) is one of six studios, and is the only one to offer a Musical Theatre program at Tisch. </p>

<ol>
<li>The formula basically is : Grades/SAT score (50%) + Audition/Interview (50%) = Admission Decision (100%) </li>
</ol>

<p>When I auditioned April 2014 the director of admission told me there was a 30% of getting in. </p>

<ol>
<li><p>PRACTICE. Hone your skills, and figure out what strengths and weaknesses are. If you never took a dance class, I highly suggest you take as much dance as possible. While, NYU takes many non-dancers, they need to see that you are teachable. Also, get as much experience as possible. Do shows at school and in the community. Really just learn as much as you can. Once junior year comes or maybe even sophomore year, choose your auditions songs and monologues that are gonna show you off, but also be comfortable for you to perform under pressure. </p></li>
<li><p>As for my first impressions of the program, it is really great. It’s hard…especially in the beginning when you are adjusting. They are training you to learn how to work outside of class so you will have a good work ethic as a professional. They have high standards and it forces you to rise to the occasion. From what I can tell, if you put in a lot you get a lot in return. PM if you have more questions. </p></li>
</ol>

<p>I hope this was helpful. </p>

3

<p>^Slight correction to points number 2 and 3 above. The degree for all studios in the Tisch drama program including the one focused on musical theatre is a BFA in Drama, not a BA in Theatre. There are 7 primary training studios for actors (this includes New Studio with focused MT training) and the list above should also have contained Atlantic Studio. </p>

4

Thanks, halfokum, I indeed made a typo. The degree is definitely a BFA and not a BA, and Atlantic studio is another studio offering acting training.

5

D is freshman at Steinhardt in MT. First two years are very classically based, with English, Italian, French and German diction classes, plus LOTS of music theory. You take one dance class per semester, starting with ballet, and one acting/MT class per semester. Course load is VERY Heavy, wanting you to take 18 hours your first two semesters. Steinhardt has a senior showcase in NYC as well as several opportunities to audition for performances. Great program, but definitely music major.

6

our son was just accepted into tisch. does anyone have any idea how many get accepted overall? when should we expect his studio assignment? does tisch have the reputation of the talent level not being particularly high? any comments? also, he was also accepted into ucla musical theater. any comments on the comparison of these two programs?

7

@dramamother‌ here is a link of the ranking of the drama schools http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/25-best-drama-schools-2014-706880

NYU Tisch definitely has a reputation for being an elite school when it comes to drama majors. I also got accepted this year, and I was fortunate enough to be a part of their high school program. The talent caliber is something that becomes a global thing at NYU. Everyone is exceedingly talented, and sure they take some people that don’t have a lot of training, but it’s people they know they can mold and transform. Past threads show about 15 percent getting admitted, and studio assignments come out in about two weeks.

8

One of the things I love about Tisch is the diversity of the talent. There are other schools known for having a “type”- since Tisch has multiple studios they are able to take a huge variety of students. The ones I have gotten to see (my d is a freshman, also did the summer program) have been extraordinary- and unique. No cookie cutters there!!

9

lots of MT applicants get accepted to the Tisch drama programme but are placed in one of the acting studios. I was really shocked when I was placed in Atlantic because I didn’t think my acting alone was good enough for any of the straight acting studios. there’s a few musical theatre rejects in Atlantic and also in playwrights, is what I’ve found - but honestly I don’t even think of it as a rejection. because Atlantic has turned out to be the best place for me. and this is true of any acting studio - you will learn so much more about how to actually be a good actor than you would in the MT studio, because there are many hours devoted to dance in MT. that’s not a bad thing, not at all, it’s just not what I want. when I look back on my first year and consider what would have happened if I’d been in MT, I don’t even know what I would have done or become. Atlantic is incredible and I am really learning how to act. unless you are totally married to another technique - and especially if that technique is the method - I would tell you to look into Atlantic because they are doing some really great things and I have literally watched myself change and get better.