<p>Hey everyone!</p>
<p>I'm a senior in high school in Northern California and I'm new to acting. I have a 4.4 GPA and I would love to pursue theatre as a career, if possible. Does anyone have any tips on a school? What I should do as a next step? Any advice on the practicality of a theatre career?</p>
<p>Some feedback would be greatly appreciated. "Chance me" if you will haha. Thanks!</p>
<p>Wow, you’ve asked some pretty broad questions. None of them can be answered in a short post; and all of them have been discussed at length on this board. Take some time to do a search of the topics here and you will find much information. Unfortunately, as a senior you are very close to the deadline for applying to colleges. Very briefly, it sounds like you should be looking at BA degrees, since most BFA schools require an extensive audition necessitating a great deal of preparation. You can narrow it down by determining whether you prefer to remain in California or not.
As far as the “practicality” of a theater career – it’s not. It’s very very difficult to be successful as an actor; it’s not the sort of career where you can find guaranteed employment. However, if you DO find work, it can be very rewarding. And as a theater student, you will learn many valuable skills that can be applied to other professions.</p>
<p>True…this is a little broad. I don’t have a ton of experience in acting/theater, so that’s what worries me about choosing this as a career. It’s such a bet in general, but to not sure if you’re talented enough makes it even worse.
I’m applying to the University of Michigan and I plan on discovering their program and seeing if I want to dual major.</p>
<p>Have you considered doing some type of intensive summer theatre program to see if it’s really what you are looking for? While I realize you are applying to colleges now, you could attend a summer program and get a feeling for being “immersed” in the theatre experience and then look at adding it as a minor and dual major if it is offered as one of those wherever you end up.</p>
<p>I don’t know how much you’ve researched this program, but the BFA program at U-M is extremely selective and considered one of the top programs in the country. It requires an audition and the acceptance rate is very low. It is also a very demanding program and although it’s possible to double major, it would be very difficult to finish in 4 years.</p>
<p>I don’t want to discourage you from looking into theater as a course of study, but I would suggest again that you look at schools that offer BA degrees. At this late date, it is unlikely that you could even get an audition appointment at most BFA schools. You haven’t given us much information, but it doesn’t also sound like you have material prepared for these very competitive auditions. You need several songs, several monologues, and most schools also require a dance audition. (I have students who have been working on their audition material for several years.) Many of these schools (including U-M) typically audition nearly 1,000 students and accept only 20 - 30. That is less than a 5% acceptance rate.</p>
<p>austinntmom, </p>
<p>I have actually considered doing one of these programs; the California State Summer School for the Arts. I’m not sure if the money will work out, but I’m thinking about applying. </p>
<p>onstage, </p>
<p>I’m not necessarily talking about trying to scramble to apply to an MT program at this point. I even thought about rushing to do it and I just don’t feel like I would do my best. I’m not much of a singer, but I have a little acting training (with a monologue) and 12 years of competitive dance under my belt. I understand that U-M is extremely selective and I think if anything I would transfer into the program, even if it means graduating a little later if it’s really what I want to do.</p>
<p>OK, I understand. In that case, I would suggest that you look into some vocal training. U-M is especially selective in that area and is known for its excellent singers. Transferring into any BFA program is difficult, especially if you have not already been in another college theater program.</p>
<p>I definitely will look into some vocal training. I’m not sure about any private training that would be available to me, but I’m going to audition for the local Teen Touring company. It provides training and performances opportunities in singing, dancing, and acting so I hope that will help me out. I know that it might be difficult. It’s always hard to take a chance. I think in the end I don’t know where college will take me, but if I have enough talent I would love to study theater in any way possible.</p>
<p>If you’re a senior, your applications are probably in? Have you found some places with good theater BA’s? That might be a good avenue for someone who wants a double major…you could do an MFA after you graduate.</p>
<p>Gwen,
That’s definitely possible. I applied to UC Davis, UCLA, Sac State, Sonoma State, Cal State East Bay, Lewis and Clark College, and the University of Michigan. I know they all have theater programs if nothing else.</p>
<p>UCLA you must apply to the theatre program when you apply to the school…</p>