<p>I'm in an a cappella group at my HS, have been for all 4 years and love it to bits. I'm also in an acting club and do some small theater kind of stuff, more readings and studio shows than anything intense. The thing is, neither is auditioned, and while I enjoy these activities I'm not particularly talented in either--certainly nothing compared to the many award winning drama kids and musicians and people with years and years of experience that I imagine Stanford has lots of.</p>
<p>So, how feasible is it for someone like me to have music and theater opportunities at Stanford? I'm particularly excited about a cappella groups like Talisman that don't focus so much on contemporary stuff, and I like theater that's a bit off-beat, for lack of a better term. I'm just worried that the arts scene at Stanford will be more exclusive, in the sense of presuming more existing talent, than somewhere like MIT, say, (which I'm also considering), where there are more science kids with artistic hobbies like me.</p>
<p>I'm sure you'll have a blast with the Arts and Music Departments at Stanford--I think I read somewhere that they encourage people from all levels of talent to participate and sign up in their orchestras/band/choir groups and stuff...their resources for practice rooms/pianos are all available for undergrads if I'm not mistaken, so you'll really be taken care of there =)</p>
<p>Well I can't say for sure because I don't know your specific level, but there do seem to be groups for all levels. A cappella seems to be very selective, however, so you might want to consider auditioning for those groups as well as other singing groups on campus. There are a ton!! </p>
<p>I think you have to pay a small fee to use practice rooms, but I just practice in my dorm room because nobody minds and some kids like it. Also, if you're interested in lessons, we actually have private and group lessons. I'm not sure MIT has their own teachers for voice; I'm pretty sure they don't have their own oboe teacher...</p>
<p>As for theatre, there are also a bunch of groups, each with a different mood or focus (I think) as well as the actual drama department. I know a bunch of kids in a group that does operettas and they seem to have a ton of fun.</p>
<p>I can't say much about theater. In terms of music, I think a capella groups are somewhat difficult to get into, but maybe I'm just saying that because I didn't get in. Practice rooms are available to absolutely anyone. I believe the fee is $10 or $20 for the key, and that gets refunded to you when you return the key (which you can keep until you graduate).</p>
<p>To add to what chili90 said, the Band encourages people of all levels of talent--including none whatsoever--to join. If you want to have a ridiculous time and/or learn some music along the way, by all means join the Band even if you can't tell the difference between a snare drum and a clarinet. Orchestra and Wind Ensemble require auditions; I'm not sure how competitive they are. I'm also not sure about the choirs, but there are so many different levels of choirs (some of them quite large) that if you can sing, I'm sure you'll be able to join one of them.</p>