<p>My daughter was very happy to be accepted to NYU. However, after going to the Saturday event, looking through the website and talking to a few people, she is very confused (and frankly so m I). She did not get into CAP (which was her first choice, along with many other people). She did not get in to any BFA’s only BA’s MT minor and she is starting to wonder if maybe she is heading down the wrong path.</p>
<p>Anyway, are there any Strasburg students out there that could comment on the type of training they are getting and if they feel like they will be trained to also audition for MT when they get out of school? Or would we be better off considering the BA acting MT minor at Marymount Manhattan?</p>
<p>racmom, some clarification, please. What do you meant, she worries about heading down the wrong path? Meaning, studying acting would be the wrong path? Just not sure what you meant. :)</p>
<p>Sorry about being unclear. No. I don’t mean that acting might be the wrong path. She is wondering because she didn’t get accepted into any BFA’s for MT maybe this may be the wrong career choice. </p>
<p>It seemed like auditors always liked her at the auditions and always asked her would she consider … something else such as BA in theater or directing. She’s wondering if maybe MT isn’t in her future and that maybe she shouldn’t be considering this field. </p>
<p>During her NYU audition, she felt like she couldn’t go wrong with any of the studios because the way Chris had described them, many of the studios had a mt component. Now we’re wondering if she will be taking herself off the MT track completely if she chooses Strasberg.</p>
<p>racmom, she will not be taking herself off the MT track completely if she chooses Strasberg. Strasberg has many MT students in the studio and has some singing and some dancing (not as much as CAP does but some). Strasberg also puts on musicals. In fact, in my D’s soph year, she was in Jesus Christ Superstar at Strasberg, even though she was a CAP21 student. As well, private voice is available. Also, many other musicals are put on at Tisch…mainstage and GAP shows and Playrwrights Horizons directing projects and Tisch Grad School MT Writing musicals and so on. Kids from Strasberg are in musicals. </p>
<p>My D’s BF graduated Tisch last May. He is a MT actor very much so. He did Strasberg for three years and then did CAP21 his final year at Tisch (remember that your D could do another studio by audition such as CAP or Playwrights which has a MT track for her advanced studio years). He also auditioned and got into the Tisch MT Industry Showcase. He got an agent from the showcase. He was in the Broadway Rising Stars (MT) showcase in NYC last summer (recent MT graduates from various colleges were in it). He was cast immediately for an Equity tour as a lead in a family oriented musical. So, clearly this is but ONE example of someone pursuing MT who was in Strasberg. </p>
<p>Can your D talk to more Strasberg students?</p>
<p>racmom, I am not personally knowledgeable about Strasberg, but let me draw your attention to a previous post from soozietvt, who said:</p>
<p>“Strasberg puts on its won plays AND musicals. But as a Tischie, you can be part of any of the 100 or so productions per year. Every musical on campus is open to you except the CAP studio ones or if another studio has its own musical for its own students (such as ETW had a musical this fall). So, there are Strasberg musicals, GAP musicals (student run musicals that are very good), Mainstage Musicals, Playwrights Horizons has many musicals put on by senior directing students, Tisch Graduate Musical Theater Writing has workshop level musicals, and so on and so forth.”</p>
<p>If Strasberg puts on its own musicals – and soozie knows a lot about Tisch drama, so I am sure this is true! – then it seems to me that your daughter will definitely be exposed to musical theater training at Strasberg, though acting is certainly at the core of the training there. (To be honest, though, acting is also at the core of the training at CAP, which trains “actors who sing.”) In addition, I remember soozievt has posted repeatedly about kids she knows who came out of various acting studios at Tisch and have gone on to book good jobs in musical theater. </p>
<p>It is really going to come down to your D’s preference. Best wishes and congratulations on her acceptances. :)</p>
<p>I don’t think the concern is for acting/mt opportunities as much as will she get enough training (classes). We are trying to get in touch with a few Strasberg students. I think that is a good idea too.</p>
<p>I understand your concern and question. But look at your D’s alternative. MM, a fine school…has a BA with a MT Minor. It is not even a BFA program (which is fine of course) and so put the curricula side by side on these two programs. Is your D’s amount of training gonna be more in the BA with a MT Minor at MM or at at BFA program in Tisch? That would be important to examine. Same with performance opportunities and the overal education in liberal arts as well.</p>
<p>It is not CAP21 but it is not a BFA that is only straight acting and it is not a BA like MM. </p>
<p>Are you aware that a student could audition for CAP21 for advanced studio? Are you aware of the MT Track in Playwrights Horizons that your D could do in junior or senior year?</p>
<p>Here is the page that mentions the MT Practicum which is two semesters in Playwrights Horizons…scroll down to “Music Performance II”:</p>
<p>My D has talented MT actor friends in Tisch studios other than CAP and in fact, some have done the Playwrights Horizons MT Practicum for a year. I can think of someone who even played leads at Tisch in musicals from that studio who did that practicum as well. In fact, he recently graduated and is ironically playing a lead in a musical at a small Equity theater where my D did summer stock a few years ago. For that matter, he also was selected last summer for Broadway Rising Stars showcase in NYC.</p>
<p>The thing I’ve heard is that Although you can transfer after 2 years, it is not guaranteed. I’ve heard that it depends on how much space the studio has and on a pretty competitive audition. But I know that Strasberg does something with the NYU Graduate Musical Theater Department, like a new musical festival.</p>
<p>But I’m concerned that I won’t be getting some musical theater specific training. Like Music Theory, Vocal Performance/Acting a Song, and Musical Theater Scene Study.</p>
<p>clay, you are right to understand that the ability to transfer is not something to count on. If I were your parent, I would be advising you to choose between Tisch (Strasberg) and Muhlenberg based on the relative merits of those two institutions and the programs for which you were admitted (namely, at Tisch – Strasberg – and at Muhlenberg, the whole college, as you can pick and choose classes). I wouldn’t think it is a good idea to <em>count</em> on transferring. </p>
<p>NYU Tisch has a graduate program in Musical Theatre Writing, but I just looked around the NYU Web site and can’t find the graduate level musical theatre department to which you refer. Are you talking about the MT Writing program? I think that must be what you are referring to. If Strasberg does something with that department, well, that’s cool!</p>