The Class of 2026 – Sharing, Venting, Discussing! MT

Might be academic? Have to pass both but maybe they don’t view videos unless they get a green light from academic review, or it’s under the 30 seconds.

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That was my thought, or something else in the application?

No very academic 34 act 4.0 gpa

I would be very upset to see zero views. Maybe call and ask?:woman_shrugging:t2:

Most school directors will tell you that they can make a decision in 10-15 seconds for prescreen. I know this sounds horrible but if you think about the number of applicants x the length of the videos they receive, there is no way they could review all of them in their entirety. They know what they are looking for so if they don’t see it, they don’t pass them. As I tell all the kids I work with – take every rejection as a positive. That is you finding the right program that recognizes what you have to offer, who sees that “spark” and wants to work with you. That is you not wasting your time on callbacks for a school that doesn’t. I had a student pass the callback for Michigan last year. I had doubts about her making it because she has had no dance training. I knew that was likely going to be a dealbreaker for Michigan, regardless of what they say. During her callback, the adjudicator gushed over her and said she had an absolutely “perfect” audition. He actually said, “I would love to give you some feedback but your choices and audition were absolutely perfect.” Except they weren’t. She didn’t make it in. But I also assume that they had many other “perfect” auditions. And many of those other auditions had dance. She ended up in the absolutely perfect place for her. Somewhere that saw she needed dance and actually talked to her about that on her callback day. Told her if she attended there, they would make that a priority. And she is wonderfully happy. I know you have heard this before — they will be where they are supposed to be. :slight_smile:

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Thanks! Yes I have another child who
Passed umich prescreens twice (due to gap year) and my dc has a early acceptance elsewhere already. Just thought it was odd and wondered if others experienced it.

I believe these things happen all the time unfortunately. Did the letter from UMich say something like, “if you believe this was an error, let us know?”

Also, was this for UMich BFA Acting or UMich BFA MT?

Acting
What do you mean if this was an error message? where would that be found?

On the MT letter, they sent some people wording in the body of the letter that said something like, " However, if you feel an error has been made, please contact the SMTD Admissions Office directly at 734-764-0593. I thought that was interesting.
What do they mean by “error”??
This process is so frustrating!!

What? Thanks for tip will call!

I second what Onette says…PLEASE try to take what is said in the audition room with a grain of salt. The adjudicators are trying to be positive and kind because they know how this process affects a 17-18 year old’s self confidence.

I’ve had two kids through this process now and have a few examples of auditions where the adjudicators were crushing all over my kid, only to get a rejection, and others where they barely said a word and got accepted. It’s a crapshoot, for sure!

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Does Accreditation Matter when it comes to Music Theater

Doing a deeper dive into Music Theater Programs I have started researching the accreditation for Music, Theater and Dance for the programs my child has applied to.

To my surprise, many MT University Programs are not accredited through the National Association of Schools in some of the disciplines considered to be a “triple threat” school. For instance, there are only 83 accredited dance schools in the country.

I understand that a program “could” be high quality, without accreditation, but it could also be below average too. I wonder if this is a useful tool when trying to understand the emphasis and quality of any given program.

Anyone else concerned that with all of these auditions being shifted to virtual, they will now all be asking for an additional dance audition video to be learned and recorded over the next few weeks. Doing a dance call live with an instructor is one thing, but having to teach yourself in your bedroom while also preparing monologues and songs and doing regular homework is going to be very stressful. My D has 19 auditions in the next 6 weeks, so that means possibly having to learn and record 19 different dances! Prescreens are different because you submit the same dance to every school. This seems really unfair and almost impossible.

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I wish they would just create one agreed uplon universal pre screen dance video to learn and call it a day. My D just finished uploading one and has 2 more she needs to learn and upload before Feb 1st, and one more that she has to choreograph herself (honestly I said use one from another school at this point) :slight_smile:

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Yeah it’s already happening. My daughter did 5 videos for 3 schools (two schools had ballet and jazz) over holiday break and is working on 2 more for another school now. She’s been told more are coming soon.

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Sheet music / singing audition advice? My daughter is just preparing for her first auditions next week. Several of hers ask only to bring her own accompaniment, but a few want sheet music. I’m wondering a) how to prepare the sheet music. I understand we mark the cut and print double sided in a small binder that is easy to turn. I’ve read elsewhere suggestions for taping the pages to make them easier to turn. b) also wondering how the interaction goes with the pianist. Do they talk about the music at all, give a tempo, etc?

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For those auditions that provide accompaniment, make sure your D takes the time up front to review the cut (speed, tempo, etc.). Only take a minute and they are more than happy to have that exchange. Mine didn’t at her first audition (which happened to be one of her very top choices) and it was awful. He played at a different tempo then she wanted. She got in late and never caught up. Said it was her worst audition and felt miserable afterwards. She didn’t know she was allowed to give them instructions. Guess what, it’s your kid’s audition (not the piano player’s). She can do whatever she wants to improve her chances. Of course be pleasant about it and kill them with kindness.

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what she said :slight_smile: positive vibes in audition room mean nothing. detached vibes mean nothing lol. it is all unpredictable!!

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Ok, here is another question for you all. We were surprised to find that the song my daughter chose for a pop/rock selection has no sheet music. I found the melody and the guitar chords and can probably put together a lead sheet. Are lead sheets acceptable?