Hello - looking for advice on whether a major in theater (tech) and lacrosse are even possible to pursue at the same time during college. It’s tough enough in high school.
Also looking for affordable colleges offering well-regarded theater tech majors in PA. Thanks for any guidance!
It will be difficult. My S was a pretty good XC runner and was told that he could run and get a theater degree at Savannah College of the Arts.
Thanks. And how did that work out for your son?
He ended up going to CCPA where it’s impossible to do sports and a BFA.
We asked at Carnegie Mellon, too, and our tour guide told a funny story about a BFA who never mentioned that he was doing a sport and so got away with it for a little while. They would have said no if he asked.
I think most of the BA programs would theoretically allow it, but BFAs have so many classes and rehearsal schedules blocked out that there’s no time for sports (which are also very time-consuming).
I don’t have specific schools, but I might start by looking at smaller D3 schools. I know that at most of the NESCAC schools, for example, close to half the student body plays a varsity sport, and for this reason, there seems to be more coordination between academic and athletic scheduling. Something like Muhlenberg, maybe? These schools couldn’t field teams if students had to choose!
That makes total sense; she’s probably going to end up at a small school anyway, and at her current small high school, the same kind of “sharing” has enabled her to (so far) pull both off. Thanks - it’s heartening to know it’s not completely impossible!
@gatormomma , does the program at Bard appeal to DC? Not a school known for FA, but they are building their lax programs so would be excited about getting a good player.
@gardenstategal - I was all excited, but it looks like they don’t have a true theater tech program. Though, hey, plenty of time for things to change. I’ll keep Bard in mind; thanks.
There actually aren’t a whole lot of schools that offer a BA in tech, at least according to Broadway.com. http://www.broadwayworld.com/studentdegree/Bachelor-of-Arts-in-Design-and-Technology
Here are some others with a BA in production. http://www.broadwayworld.com/studentdegree/Bachelor-of-Arts-in-Production
Thank you so much! I will squirrel these away for future consideration.
Do you mean D3 or do you mean club? The two are very different.
If you mean D3, the time commitment is very heavy especially in season. In season, there is no way a D3 player could pursue anything outside of the sport regardless of the size of the school. My S interviewed with D3 schools all summer. They all talked about intensive schedules - saying there was support for academics and balancing it all - starting practice at 6 am, and then again at 3 pm. They organized classes around the sport, but there were classes you could not choose because the could not fit the practice schedule. Also there’s games, which can take up the whole weekend if away, just when shows are scheduled. Off season, they’re not necessarily ‘off.’ They’re still expected to do training and weights.
Club is different and I think could possibly be combined with a BA program.
I don’t think either is possible in a BFA. Even my D’s BA at Northwestern—she had work study at 10 hours a week, but sometimes had to go down to 5 hours a week as she just had no time. The demands of theatre can be intense, especially for shows. And bear in mind the show schedules may be unpredictable and overlap sports season.
So as for a BA, it might be possible, but understand that even if you could balance the lacrosse, it will curtail tech opportunities and connections. Each ‘side’ - sports and tech - will look down on the other. The student would have to withdraw him/herself from tech consideration during sports season, but would that be possible if the classes included a required show? Club would be easier as that is taken less seriously, but still you do have commitment to your team.
My DD, who is not a Theatre major, looked into participating in her LAC’s fall production (which was theoretically open to all students). They take the performing arts pretty seriously at this school. She was told the commitment would average 6.5 hours PER DAY. If the OP can fit that plus lacrosse plus classes plus sleep into a 24 hour day, my hat is off to him/her.
Thanks, not BFA and definitely not D1, probably club or D3 at the most.
She balances it now with a fall musical (performances end the weekend before lax practice starts). It is doable. Now, if performance schedules are different at the college she goes to – and it’s too early to think about, really – it might not be.
@gatormama, my son also went to a small (rural) school where he could do everything (sports, theater, student goverment, academics, service) and I’m so happy he had that in high school. At the college level, though, he’s had to focus more and give some thing up. The bright side is that he’s progressing much faster at the things he’s focusing on. Your daughter may have to decide at some point.
I agree with Jkellynj17. Again, D3 time commitment is huge–doesn’t matter if it’s a small school. Nothing like high school. My S plays Varsity football and winter and spring Varsity track. All 3 are intensive; hours are about 18/week. My S is now a D3 recruit; he’s been told by many colleges that D3 hours are more like 30/week, at least. Balancing that with the demands of academics is challenging enough.
Then when you balance tech, which also has enormous hours, it becomes impossible. Tech will sometimes have an additional 40 hours/week on top of classes, depending on the show.
If the OP’s D would like to do each as a club, it might well be possible - choose to do one show and not another, choose to play one season and not the other - but if she wants either at a more serious level, I agree that this is probably something she’ll have to choose between when the time comes.
Thanks very much - I’m glad there is at least the club option then, as she’s likely headed to a theater tech career of some sort.