<p>Freshmen in the MT program at Florida State University do audition.</p>
<p>Freshmen in the MT program at Florida State University do audition. It is a requirement for all MTs to audition at Generals each semester.</p>
<p>Freshmen at Elon are required to audition for all productions, both musicals and plays. Freshmen are sometimes cast. I believe Elon’s philosophy is, as suggested by an earlier post, that students gain from the audition experience and are able to obtain feedback on their auditions, thus improving their auditioning skills.
SoozieVT, I understand your point about your D not needing auditioning skills since she had already had so much experience before college, however I am sure many incoming freshmen had nowhere near that level of experience, my own D included, and so learning audition skills could well be important.
I agree with the rest of your sentiments, and understand that you were just trying to present information and “food for thought” to the OP.
Personally, my D was cast in a musical after her first audition, and very much enjoyed the experience of being in that show as a first semester freshman, but it was difficult to juggle her academics (Elon has more than many MT programs), her MT courses and related out of class work, her dance training (which she has more than most MT kids at Elon), learning to live in a dorm, on her own, far from home, and being one of only two freshmen in the cast. Although everyone in the cast was very welcoming, at first she felt very nervous because of wanting to do a good job, make a good impression, but socially didn’t even have a peer group in school yet, let alone in the cast. In the end, it was a wonderful experience and she grew a lot from it. But it certainly wasn’t a necessary experience as a feshman, and she didn’t even consider whether freshmen could audition for shows as a criteria when she made her college list.</p>
<p>nydancemom brings up a really important point, that I kept thinking of as this discussion ensued. Going to college comes with a lot of significant changes (living in a dorm, meeting new people, being on your own). The whole college experience with the responsibilities of balancing academics and a BFA course load on op of things can be quite overwhelming at first, depending on what school you choose to attend.</p>
<p>Quite frankly my D thought that not performing would be unbearable, but in the end, it did not really play that crucial a part when she applied to colleges. The truth is that at the end of her freshman year, she was keen to perform during the summer, but she is also very happy that she had the opportunity to “ease into college life”, had time to explore, try out different things, and that she did not have to worry about rehearsal schedules on top of that.</p>
<p>I do understand the value of of the audition experience itself. I am a firm believer that the more you audition, the better you get at auditioning. Auditioning is a skill itself. It also involves a great deal of confidence that you build up over time by doing it. </p>
<p>I am just saying that there were audition experiences anyway during freshmen year at a college that doesn’t allow freshmen to be in productions. I can only say what my kid did freshman year but upon arrival, she auditioned for the a capella group (that involved singing). In classes each semester she had to do “demos” which are very much like auditions, for the entire class and faculty. She also was called in to audition for a professional production taking place at her school being directed by a Broadway playwright/director who wanted to cast her but her school would not allow them to do so but she actually had the audition. In spring, she attended Straw Hats (auditions for professional summer stock). She also auditioned for about four other summer stock or professional summer shows that spring. Then, that spring, Into the Woods, a student run musical, was being auditioned for the following fall. She would have typically attended that audition too but ended up being the Musical Director and so she ran the auditions but did not audition but many of her freshmen peers did so. So, plenty of audition experience still happened during freshmen year.</p>
<p>I’m glad NYDanceMom posted because as you can see, only two freshmen were cast in that musical at Elon that year and so it is important that those who are applying to college who are using “freshmen production policy” as a selection criteria, realize that even if a school does allow freshmen to audition, they may not truly end up being IN a musical their first year at college. Of course, the audition experience itself is valuable and not to be underestimated. But they should be realistic that they may not be in shows as a freshmen at colleges that allow it.</p>
<p>May I chime in briefly. Those schools who choose not to allow freshman to audition do so because they believe that they are not ready for the rigors of training AND production. Combine that with the fact that few freshman get cast and it simply allows one or two semesters of training prior to the audition process. </p>
<p>Every MT school that offers a BFA and is nationally accredited must give each BFA student at least one significant role in a musical theatre production. (No, significant role is not defined).</p>
<p>To keep it simple, schools that allow Freshman to audition (Y/N):</p>
<p>BoCo: Y
CCM: Y
CMU: N
Elon: Y
FSU: Y
IU: Y
JMU: Y
NYU: N
OCU: Y
Pace: Y
Point Park: N
UArts: Y
Webster: N</p>
<p>I think Ithaca is Yes and Syracuse is No. And I think Emerson may be No. Prefer if those who attend or have kids attend, confirm this though. </p>
<p>Mich is only NO for first semester and then Yes for second.</p>
<p>Can someone associated with CCM say whether they can actually be in the regular musicals or just the Freshmen Showcase?</p>
<p>PSU freshman can audition with the Chair’s permission. If the show is late in the fall freshmen can audition; the spring is open to all freshman with permission. My D was cast in 3 shows her freshman year, one in the fall and two in the spring. After that they are REQUIRED TO AUDITION.</p>
<p>CCM - Yes, freshmen audition for (and are cast) in “regular musicals” (both Mainstage and Studio Theatre). Freshman Showcase is a performance resulting from classwork.</p>
<p>Baldwin Wallace - yes
Northern Kentucky U - yes
Wright State - yes
Illinois Wesleyan - no
Ohio Northern - yes</p>
<p>MtgrlsMom - I’m sure the OP appreciates you getting back to what they really asked for instead of a debate about it.</p>
<p>Hopefully, it is not a debate but is meant to bring to attention to prospective students considerations about this that many prospective students are not aware of. Almost every prospective student I have met can’t imagine the notion of freshmen not being in shows. So, it might help to open their eyes to the realities of the situation and just have more information to consider as they weigh all these factors in college selection. I think it would help an applicant to hear about these things as well as specific experiences at schools that allow freshmen to audition and ones that don’t. Information is power. Experiences of those who have been through such college programs can be helpful in weighing these factors when considering colleges and what is a “must” and what may not be in making a final selection of programs. It is a very individual choice in the end.</p>
<p>Colleges that allow freshmen to audition Y/N:</p>
<p>Baldwin Wallace: Y
BoCo: Y
CCM: Y
CMU: N
Elon: Y
Emerson: N *)
FSU: Y
Illinois Wesleyan: N
IU: Y
Ithaca: Y *)
JMU: Y
NYU: N
Northern Kentucky: Y
OCU: Y
Ohio Northern: Y
Pace: Y
Point Park: N
PSU: Y
Syracuse: N *)
UArts: Y
UMich: N/Y (from second semester onward)
Webster: N
Wright State: Y</p>
<p>*) to be confirmed by parents or students currently involved with the program.</p>
<p>HoosierMom 2012 - Thanks :). I actually think that this information is interesting, and not necessarily easy to locate on each school’s website. In the long run however, I don’t know that it “makes or breaks” where one choses to matriculate. Still the more information you have about a program, the better you know what to expect.</p>
<p>I am thankful for both sides of response. Whether it’s debate, discussion, or just a simple y/n list, I’m just trying to get as much information as I can before I embark in this journey. It’s summer, auditions are coming up, and I’m nervous- so knowing as much as I can is all I am attempting to do. I’m not making decisions, ruling out colleges, or anything- just trying to understand this big process a little more.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone!</p>
<p>Syracuse is definitely a “NO” to the question of whether Freshman BFA students can audition - - this applies for both the Musical Theatre and Acting students and for both the SU and Syracuse Stage productions. However with Syracuse, it is my understanding that Freshman BFAs (Acting and MT) have technical (stage-hand) or ‘front of the house’ responsibilities for most if not all of the productions; and I’ve never heard an SU BFA student complain about not being able to perform during Freshman year. I guess the program is pretty intense and the students are kept quite busy.</p>
<p>I think part of the reason why Freshman are not permitted to audition at some schools is to allow the Freshman class to bond as an ensemble, rather than risk dividing the class from the beginning by imposing the competition and pressure of the audition process right from the start. </p>
<p>Something else to consider is whether there is actually a benefit to a BFA MT program which allows students to audition for professional productions outside of the program. I believe Pace allows this, and maybe a few other schools do as well, and it does make me wonder: if a BFA program is willing to allow students to detract from the learning process within the program by actually encouraging or allowing students to attend outside auditions, and if the BFA program then permits students to take a leave of absence from the program if they are lucky enough to get cast, then how much progression and continuity can there be within the program itself, if the process can be so easily disrupted??</p>
<p>Just a thought …</p>
<p>I know that at Tisch, Syracuse and CMU, for example, freshmen are required to do crew. At Tisch, that is the only year it is required. So, it would be hard to be performing in a show since the crew assignments are also at night when rehearsals take place. I imagine this is yet another reason why these schools don’t allow freshmen to perform in the productions because as part of their training, they require them to take on various crew positions for productions (at Tisch this is part of the course in Theater Production).</p>
<p>Alexa, I am glad you are gathering information. That is exactly what you should do and take notes on each aspect of each school you are considering. Try to keep an open mind and then see where you get in and then be even more nitpicky at that point as to which school most closely matches up with your personal selection criteria.</p>
<p>BoCo lets freshmen audition and I know it’s good for new kids to be seen by the production staff, but I kind of wish they didn’t…there was enough going on that first year without the added stress of auditions!</p>
<p>One final thought: I traveled to UMich with my child last year for the BFA Acting audition, and I attended a parent info session with members of the UMich Acting faculty, while the students were taken as a group for an improv workshop and other ensemble work. </p>
<p>This was in December and there were only 8 or 9 prospective Acting students auditioning that day, so the parent info session wasn’t crowded at all. Consequently, there was lots of opportunity for the parents to engage in a meaningful discussion with the Acting faculty, all of whom seemed to be passionate about what they taught, and very interested in the well-being of their BFA Acting students.</p>
<p>But, I specifically remember the faculty panel sharing with some candor, that because BFA students at UMich tend to vie for roles in the larger Powerhouse productions (i.e., student productions that are performed at the Powerhouse Center, which I believe is the largest public theater at UMich), the process of selecting shows to be performed at the Powerhouse each season, and then auditioning and casting those shows created an aura of competitiveness and tension among the students that the faculty would rather have avoided. </p>
<p>This was also confirmed by our student tour guide that day, who admitted that in some years, the issue of which students were or were not cast in the main-stage Powerhouse productions actually divided the class; and it seemed to apply to both the main-stage musicals for which MT students auditioned, as well as the main-stage dramatic production that Acting students auditioned for.</p>
<p>Alexa, </p>
<p>You’re doing the smart thing in collecting as much possible information, and as many different points of view, as you can in preparation to start this process. There are so many different factors which should form a part of the research of different programs. Some factors will weigh heavily for some applicants, and not at all for others. Ultimately, it is you who has to determine which are the most important factors for you, and as long as you do your research well (something that not all kids do), you will be fine. Very few, if any, people know every single detail about every program out there. That’s what makes CC a valuable resource, that there are so many who participate who have either attended or who have children who have attended the schools discussed here. Being an informed consumer/applicant is important for college admissions, maybe even more important for kids who are planning on pursuing theatre. Do your research, develop a varied and appropriate list of schools, work hard at preparing your audition material, and my guess is that you’ll have options when April 1 comes around. THAT is the bottom line of what is important! </p>
<p>For what it’s worth, I wouldn’t allow something like this issue of freshman auditions to affect your list of schools at which to apply. If in April, you have options from which to choose, then look at each program and see which one has the most of your top priorities available to you. But, up front? I wouldn’t say that this is an issue to determine your list of schools. Just my opinion. </p>
<p>browneyes, even if schools don’t specifically “allow” or encourage their students to audition for professional productions, students still do. I’m guessing that there are very few, if any, college BFA or BA theatre programs that have not had some kids who decide to take a leave of absence for a job. My D didn’t, but we probably know dozens, personally, and more tangentially, who have done so. As I’ve said before, some kids go back and finish their degrees, some don’t. Those who returned, depending on the timing, sometimes had to do an academic semester prior to re-entering their program, others have had to take a semester off and go back the following year. The set-up of the particular school will determine how this works. I don’t think it’s simply, or maybe even ever, a case of an issue with the quality or existence of progression and continuity within a program.</p>