<p>As deadlines grow near, we may decide to forgo having my kid apply to summer intensives. They are very expensive, and most require a ton of work to prepare the application.From those who've already been admitted to musical theater programs, how much of a hinderance do you think this is?
The child has voice lessons, dance, acting, choir,school, SAT prep, and local opportunities to perform and take summer classes. They may even be able to get in a show in our town over the summer.
I am wondering whether all this effort to get our student into a programs for a career that holds so few possiblities for making an income is worth it. Am I the only one who feels this process is becoming increasingly crazy and elitist? Are only affluent parents going to be sending their kids to the musical theater programs?And, at the end of the day, won't talent prevail?
I can't help but wonder if we are all being sold down the river much like the athletic parents who have their kids join traveling teams and pay personal trainers, agility coaches etc, only to have a tiny percentage every get a college scholarship.</p>
<p>lucymom,</p>
<p>I know exactly how you feel. It does often seem like we can never do enough to prepare our kids…and there si always someone out there offering the “must have” at $3000 a session.</p>
<p>That said, i still believe that our D experience at MPulse offered her so much as it was happening and continues to to this day, as a freshman in college…</p>
<p>I don’t know where you live or what your experiences are, but we felt our daughter needed her world to be opened up so that she could see the pool of talent out there on a national level. I think it was shocking, overwhelming and exciting all at once for her. </p>
<p>We live in a major city with lots of theater and lots of places for kids to be involved, but it just wasn’t the same. It prepared her for college auditions in a number of ways, but it also connected her to so many other like-minded kids and amazing mentors. She has friends at every major school for MT in the country and is currently trying to arrange places to stay for many of those students as they head to St. Louis for MUNY auditions in the next month. What fun to think that kids from CCM, Michigan, Northwestern, NYU, and many others will spend the week end with their Webster counterparts…since those auditions are on the Webster campus this year. To me that continued connection and relationship to the other like-minded students…students who will be her peers in the industry one day…the furthering of “community” in the theatre world is just one of the benefits of those summer programs…feel free to PM me if you want to hear any specifics. This is just one piece that doesn’t get much play, usually.</p>
<p>Ditto-- I don’t think these programs are necessary but-- for D, her summer at BU was life-changing. New friends, all that mybroadwaybaby says above, and also, the chance to really see what’s involved in a BFA program-- how intense it is, how all- consuming. She is better prepared for auditions, and much better prepared to know what she wants in a college. Some friends she made there decided on BA’s instead so it helped them too. </p>
<p>That was two summers ago. Last summer she got into Cherubs and decided against-- she had a job and performance opportunities here that she wanted more. But for a kid from a public school, that one summer at BU was an important opportunity and really worth the cost.</p>
<p>I would not send a child to a pre-college MT program to help his/her odds of getting into a college MT program! It is not necessary for that purpose. One can get into a college MT program without having gone to a pre-college program!</p>
<p>The reason to go to one is for the reasons stated in the posts above…the experience itself and all the other ramifications that result. My kid did not go to a pre-college program but she did go to a summer theater intensive for 8 summers prior to college. It was NEVER to help her odds at college MT admissions! She chose the program when she was merely 9 years old after all (and kept going every summer)!! College admissions was the furthest from her or our minds in sending her to this program (it was Stagedoor Manor). But everything that mybroadwaybaby wrote above is sooooo true from what my kid experienced that it was soooooo worth it for that experience. The experience was very significant in her growth in this field. Like written above, there is the immersion with many talented kids from around the country and the continued connections well beyond into college and post college (I’m in NYC right now and last night got together with my kid’s best friend from all her summers at her theater program, who went to CCM, whereas my kid went to NYU/Tisch and has since graduated…not to mention the very very strong bonds friendship-wise and industry-wise my D has to this day from her years at her summer program). Anyway, your child doesn’t need to go to such a program to get into college for MT but the benefits are many in other respects if she is very passionate about MT and pursuing a life in theater. I recommend such programs for lotsa benefits and college chances are not one of them.</p>
<p>(I cross posted with Gwen, but agree with her post as well)</p>
<p>My D didn’t go to any national pre-college programs but thankfully in our city is an excellent teen summer intensive that pulls the best kids from the tri-state area which was a super learning experience for her. I remember thinking that I knew she had a great private voice teacher, great dance training at her ballet school, and great actor training at the teen intensive- why did she need to leave town? It would have been different I guess if we were in a small town. My D did well last year for her college auditions without the fancy summer programs. HOWEVER, just the exercise of putting together an application for the national programs would be good “training” for preparing for college auditions! Especially if you have to send a video. :)</p>
<p>I do not believe college auditors place much importance to attending a MT summer program. Again, as always, most of getting accepted is your audition. However, I could make a case for a good summer program if your high school and/or community lack good training opportunities and experiences. As far as “life changing experiences” I believe these come when a person has reached a number cognitive and developmental thresholds - and then has an experience or meets a teacher or some other catalyst that solidifies a new stage in their development. That kind of thing can happen while at a MT summer program - it might just as easily happen in the neighborhood summer show - or at a a volunteer service camp - or many and varied other situations. It represents a qualitative change in a person as opposed to a simple quantitative change - which is the cornerstone of developmental psychology. My MT point is, most folks will be just fine with or without the expensive summer camp.</p>
<p>So, if I’m hearing all of you, spending thousands of dollars is so my kiddo can have fun and make friends? really?I know, they are making contacts, but if we’re going to pay for a degree in musical theater, isn’t that enough?
For $4,000, you could pay for about 40 hours of voice/dance/or acting lessons! Or, put it away in a bank so when they have a newly minted degree they could live on that money while they try to make it somewhere.
I am having a tough time getting my head around the notion that if we throw more money at this process the kid will make it. After all, we could drop $200,000 on a musical theater degree and they will never get cast! And, there are people on Broadway who don’t get a degree at all. This isn’t med school!
Seriously, I’m feeling like the nut job in the movie Network" I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it any more."
Probably the best thing for these young actors to do is to go get a job as a waitress or store clerk, is that is what likely is going to pay their bills when they are starting out.</p>
<p>lucymom - My D never went to any summer programs. She did perform in both community and regional theatre and she worked in the summer. She made it through the college audition process fine and came out with some nice acceptances and is now a very happy sophomore MT major receiving excellent training. Actually her work as a nanny and as a theatre camp counselor over those summers gave her some great job skills on top of the performing opportunities she received. It seems like it was a good choice for her so there are options other than the summer programs.</p>
<p>If you feel that way, there is NO reason to do it! </p>
<p>But for those weeks your kid will be getting a good 60 hours a week of training, and at least in the case of the BU program, 4 college credits.</p>
<p>I didn’t pay for a summer theater intensive solely for my kid to “have fun,” though she surely had a great deal of fun. My daughter loves musical theater and the idea of going away to an immersion program (which is not the same experience as taking classes at home, even though that itself is quite valuable for the training aspect) was the point…spending her summers in a worthwhile way doing what she loved and learning from many professionals, alongside other very talented kids from all over the country and outside the country, which was very different than being a “standout” locally. This is a program where kids eat, sleep and breathe theater with others who feel likewise. It is a chance to get different training than the kind at home the rest of the year. Also, at my D’s summer program, they also put on musical productions, in addition to the training, and it was a chance to be in many high level musical productions. She learned a GREAT deal and these experiences were very significant in her growth as a kid and as a MT performer. It is hard to describe to someone who has not done it. It is just different than taking classes at home. The talent pool is different. The teachers are different. Living away from home is different. Testing out what an immersion program is like is beneficial before committing to a BFA degree. Seeing how one may “compete” with a much more concentrated talent pool is very helpful to know how one stands beyond their local community. The experience, training, and all the rest has been INVALUABLE to my kid’s growth and to her MT background prior to going to college and entering her career in this field. </p>
<p>I also don’t think one should assume that everyone who majors in MT will waitress or be a store clerk. My kid graduated her BFA in MT program 2 1/2 years ago at age 20 and has never waitressed or been a store clerk and I am confident she will never do either of those jobs. She has supported herself in NYC since graduation day all in the arts. Her many many friends from both her summer theater program and her college program are also working in the arts in various capacities post college. The goal is also not simply “to be on Broadway.” Very few go to Broadway, though many of her friends have already done so. But the goal was to get a college education and to pursue the performing arts and she and her peers are doing just that. I will add that many of her summer theater camp friends have significant achievements in musical theater and related performing arts in their young 20’s. I cannot say that about her local peers at home.</p>
<p>Again, a summer MT program is NOT necessary to get into a college MT program! That’s not why my kid went to one. But if your kid wants intensive training and is pursuing this field, why would you not want to have her train and have such an experience? (other than cost)</p>
<p>Hi Lucymom, I’ve been enjoying this thread, particularly because of the great responses. No one is denying how costly it can be to send a kid to a high-profile summer program. There are many learning opportunities right in our own communities during the summer months. But there can be some surprising advantages beyond the kids just having fun. My son, for instance, attended a pricey summer program a few years back, was seen by an agent there and signed across-the-board. Totally unexpected. He is now in his second year of college in a great BFA program. But during this past summer he didn’t work as a cashier or waiter. He worked in voice over, a separate interest and love. He is training to be an actor. So we encourage him to work as an actor. Just our story.</p>
<p>By the way, is your daughter asking to go to a pricey summer program?</p>
<p>My daughter is now an MT freshman at Steinhardt NYU. Summers of her sophomore and junior year, she attended 2 of the lower priced programs, at UArts and Oklahoma City. Both experiences were wonderful and provided her with a chance to evaluate herself among peers from all over the U.S. They also offered her a chance to be independent, flying to each on her own from the west coast. Both schools were on her list of possibilities, and so this offered her a chance to get a look at them, as she auditioned at UArts at Unifieds. Her experiences solidified her desire to go into MT, but for some of her ‘camp mates’ convinced them it was NOT what they wanted, long before all the audition dollars were spent.</p>
<p>We have also been told, that no matter what local theater your child has done, universities have no way of knowing the expertise of that particular theater. But they DO know the expertise of the university based programs, and so can get a peek into how others consider your student’s talent.</p>
<p>We also had a positive outcome of what could have been a disastrous college audition. My d was the very first to audition at Unifieds for one college, in a very small room with a very low chandelier. The auditions started late, the auditioner was disorganized, her solo dance called for a kick that went a little too high (chandelier involved!) a cd belonging to the auditioner was left on the floor and my daughter tripped on it . . . she was convinced that she should just chalk that one up! But lo and behold, she received an invitation to that school with a VERY large scholarship. We are convinced that it was because she had listed their summer program on her resume and the auditioner had gone back to check out the evaluations that had been written on her 2 years before, which were very complimentary.</p>
<p>We also know of another student who was asked (begged) to audition at and ended up at the school whose summer program he attended. </p>
<p>All in all, for us the cost (half the amount of many) of the summer programs was a great investment!</p>
<p>Ok, now some of you have brought up some good points. I imagine kicking the tires for a few weeks to learn whether you’ve got the “stuff” is money well spent. And of course, we’d all love our kids to have as many experiences as possible in life…if money were no barrier.
But this is a very expensive venture. Trying to get a kid to be a “triple threat” while they get good grades, have some friends, learn to drive a car, take the SAT’s, and be happy is quite a logiistical challenge.
Yeah, Yeah, the theater parents in the crowd who’ve made these extreme sacrifices will come back with how it was worth it. And, I know the kids are going to have to suffer for their art, so start now.
For me, I find the whole process suspect and EXHAUSTING. I recall being told by a local director that at late 30’s, he was the only one from his BFA program still remotely working in theater.I am having trouble “drinking the Koolaid”…</p>
<p>Lucymom,
I have a different take on it than you (which is totally OK!). I don’t feel I drank any Koolaid at all. I have supported my kids in whatever areas interested them and it is no different for my MT kid than my other kid in this regard. </p>
<p>While this is a tough field, I feel VERY confident that my kid will be working in the performing arts in some capacity for years to come. While it is too soon to know the future, I can say that not only has she been involved in this field since preschool, she has been entirely involved in theater and music in many capacities in the 2.5 years since she graduated her BFA program. She is immersed in it seven days and nights a week. I feel she always will be. But even if she wasn’t? I would be totally fine with that!!! (other than any disappointment she would possibly have about it)</p>
<p>Why would I be fine with that (if she wasn’t in the performing arts field in her '30s)? I would be fine about it because she had pursued her interests full throttle (no regrets…she is who she is…why keep someone from being who they are?) and she will have grown from these experiences and will have earned a college degree and have become educated. College is more than one’s major. Many people do not end up in careers eventually related to their major. A college degree can open doors to employment, not to mention educate the mind! Most people have more skills than singing, dancing, and acting. While my daughter loves those things, she is also paid to write, compose, teach, play piano, and direct…all in theater and music. While she is a performer, she is more than that. I am confident she will work in some capacity in the arts throughout her life, and likely performance will be a part of that as well (and it is currently). My kid has not “suffered for her art.” She is who she is because of her art.</p>
<p>Lastly, many who make it in the arts (or even other fields) are successful, in part, because of people in their lives supporting them through their endeavors. That’s where us parents come in. I’d have written the same post even if talking about my other kid who is not pursuing performing arts (she is in the field of architecture).</p>
<p>And since this thread is about summer theater programs…
I had written that our reason to send our MT kid to such a program for 8 summers was not with college admissions in mind but for the experience itself. I should also mention that my other daughter (who is older than my MT kid), ALSO went away for 4 summers to a MT intensive summer program (she was very involved in performing arts growing up as well) and yet, this is not her career field and was never going to be. She just loved it, among other activities, including sports. Her summers at her MT program were great and VERY worthwhile, even though this is not her career field. We did not send them to these programs to get into college or due to future plans.</p>
<p>(this D attended French Woods Festival of the Performing Arts)</p>
<p>Your kids have an awesome Mom. I hope they realize that! I think what I am reacting to is the increased stress all these applications, voice lessons, auditions etc. bring to a family.
Calgon, take me away as they say</p>
<p>lucymom,
I hear you. I have fully “drunk the coolaid”, as I am committed to helping my kid pursue her dream to the best of my ability (thus, the lessons, coaches, summer programs-although a local and less expensive one, etc). But, like you, I am consumed with the stress of it all, and lay awake at night thinking “what am I doing?”. We do discuss backup plans and the odds of “making it” on stage. I just have to believe that things will work out and she will have a more fulfilling life with theater in it (in some capacity). But it’s giving me an ulcer!!</p>
<p>Well, I never claimed it wasn’t stressful! LOL! </p>
<p>But ya know, even my non-MT kid had stressful application processes. She applied to highly competitive colleges. She also has been through the graduate school admissions process twice, both times to highly selective programs (for example, she is in a program that accepted two students and was accepted to the most selective programs in her field in both rounds). And then there are other things like jobs and internship application processes and casting and all the very difficult odds in all these endeavors. Been there, done that many times over with both kids. I know it is new for you but really this is part of life in competitive fields and in competitive admissions as well. It is hard for parents as it is one of the first times we cannot control the outcome for our kids. But we can support them on this challenging journey.</p>
<p>(PS…one more thing…I do have a “Calgon take me away” image that I sometimes use for my Facebook profile!!)</p>
<p>lucymom, forgive me, but I am just realizing that I think you already have a D who went through the process of applying to colleges for theater and that D is at USC, right? So, other than the MT process, this is not entirely new for you and neither is the whole performing arts major thing either, right? You are now dealing with D number two I think, based on your prior posts on CC. I did not put that together when reading this thread initially.</p>
<p>I agree that people reading this thread should not think that these summer programs are the only way in - my son played baseball and hockey the last three summers and has been accepted to a pretty good MT program.
In fact, our hope going into this was that schools would see a less than polished kid who has had some real life experiences – and lots of potential.
I do echo the sentiment that the summer experience would have given us a sense of how our son stacks up with MT students across the country. Every kid who applies to these programs is one of the most talented in their high school or their town (not hard in our case with a population of 75,000)…and so there was always that doubt that maybe he should pursue “a real major” and that he really can’t compete with kids from the big metro high schools.
But of course, as others have said, those doubts will always be a part of this career choice so he’s best learn to deal with that.</p>