To Doctorjohn

College Majors Musical Theater Major
1

<p>I started to write you a personal e-mail, but felt your answer might benefit others, so I decided to start another thread. Perhaps I could get feedback from others, too.</p>

<p>My dd auditioned for a dance minor at her chosen school last night and I was able to watch. The audition consisted of a very fast, upbeat jazz combination and a lot of ballet technique. It was very obvious from the start that my dd had the most training of anybody there (and I don't say this to be uppity. It's the God's truth). She picked up on the combinations with ease and her technique was clearly the best of all the auditionees.</p>

<p>She is now concerned that perhaps she will be rejected from this minor because she is "overqualified", so to speak, and won't fit in with the class. Is this a possibility? Have you ever dealt with students who you feel wouldn't make good additions to classes because they come with too much experience?</p>

<p>Also, it's obvious to me from reading through this forum that different schools approach their auditions differently. Some are heavy on dance, some are heavy in acting, some are heavy in voice. I was very surprised to hear that Tisch/Cap21, for instance, had very little dance to their auditions. If this is true, then how could they, or any school, truly be looking for good "triple threats"? Also, some schools seem to have an interview phase to their auditions. Just how much does this play in choosing a student? Some schools also seem to have longer auditions than others, giving the student more time to really be able to present themselves. </p>

<p>A few weeks ago another poster said the kids who showed the most "it" were the ones who were chosen. If this is true, and all the schools are different in their audition approaches, then how could the "it" be determined? What if a student shows a lot of "it" in voice and drama, but has two left feet? What if a wonderful dancer shows a lot of "it" by dancing, but can't sing a note? </p>

<p>Thanks for any help.</p>

2

<p>Midgetmom,
I'm definitely not Doctorjohn, but here's what I"ve learned. Maybe this will help answer the question. Example: Ithaca has no dance audition. They specifically said that they are not training chorus members. They want strong actors and They believe that they can teach all the dance technique that is necessary in the 4 year program. Others must feel the same, because there are a few schools that either have no dance audition (like Ithaca) or they just have a dance audition for placement.</p>

3

<p>Midgetmom:</p>

<p>You’ve asked several questions. Let me try to answer them in order.</p>

<p>First, I think it’s unlikely that your daughter would be overqualified in dance. Every dance instructor I’ve ever known has wanted the best dancers s/he could get, as models for everyone else. Good for your d that she could pick up the combinations so well at the audition! That should make the teacher believe that she could do equally well in class.</p>

<p>Sometimes acting teachers don’t feel quite the same way, and I do know that some colleges shy away from students who’ve come from residential pre-professional performing arts schools. Not so much because they’re over-qualified, but rather because they have often done the first-year college curriculum already. That makes for unchallenged students, and unchallenged students don’t help the class. But this is the exception rather than the rule.</p>

<p>It is true that different programs audition differently. Ithaca, as chrism notes, doesn’t do a dance audition because they believe that they can teach singers everything they need to know about dance in four years, at least enough to be competitive for roles. But they admit that they can’t train chorus dancers. We can, and have put resources into our dance program so that our students can compete for that kind of work. Not all of our MTs are great dancers, certainly, but we do want to have some who are, who come to us with extensive previous training in dance. That’s why we do a dance audition.</p>

<p>Shauna put a page on the FAQ site about programs with strong dance components. You’ve probably looked at it already, but for the benefit of others, here it is:</p>

<p><a href="http://www.geocities.com/musicaltheatercolleges/dancecomponent.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.geocities.com/musicaltheatercolleges/dancecomponent.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>Inevitably, different schools develop programs differently, for all sorts of reasons.</p>

<p>As for interviews, I think all colleges would do them if they could. Some can’t, because of the large numbers of prospects who want to audition for them. I hope we never get to that point, because for us the interview is the most critical part of the audition. We get to see what the student would be like in class. Can they change that wonderful performance, or are they locked into what they’ve rehearsed? If they have over-rehearsed their audition piece, do they have something else in their portfolio that we can work on?</p>

<p>You mentioned the amount of time for the audition. Some schools may offer more than four minutes. But I have to say that most professionals can see and hear what they need in less time. That’s why it’s not unusual for an actor to be stopped after a few bars. But as a matter of courtesy, we don’t stop students unless they exceed our 4-minute time limit.</p>

<p>As for “it”, there are as many different versions of that as there are schools. We had a good discussion of that about a year ago, and I’m sure someone can find it for you. (Help, folks.)</p>

<p>But you asked another good set of questions: “What if a student shows a lot of "it" in voice and drama, but has two left feet? What if a wonderful dancer shows a lot of "it" by dancing, but can't sing a note?” In the first case, if the voice is strong, and the actor can play leads or character roles which don’t require a lot of dance, and faculty members think they can work with the student, then that student might well be admitted to MT. We’ve had a few like that over the years, and they’ve done just fine. In the second case, however, if a wonderful dancer can’t sing, then they’re likely not going to be admitted to a musical theatre program. (A dance major or minor, certainly, but not MT.) I think most of us feel that voice is the key element in this training. So when prospects and parents ask what I recommend, if they can only afford one thing, then that one thing is a few lessons with a voice teacher who can show the student how to breathe and how to make clear sounds without straining. </p>

<p>Hope this helps.</p>

4

<p>Dear all, I found this in my notes - unfortunately I don't know the author or the date. I"d guess fall 2004 but I can't find the source now. Maybe someone else will recall when the entire discussion took place. </p>

<p>NB: I am NOT the author! I wish I had made a note of this when I copied it for future reference. </p>

<p>chrism</p>

<hr>

<p>"In response to the question posted awhile back about what you think might have gotten certain kids accepted while others were not and the many questions about what qualifications does a student performer need in order to be considered "competitive" in MT auditions - the notion of "am I/is my child good enough/have enough on his or her resume to even bother auditioning for these programs," I'd like to offer the following food for thought. I'm not sure why I feel compelled to bring up this issue and my guess is that it may be a bit controversial. But because it hasn't really been discussed on this forum (at least not directly), I'd like to bring up the subject of what I'll call the "It Factor." </p>

<p>We all kind of know what "It" is - It's that SOMETHING that draws your eye to a particular performer on stage, a quality in a singer's voice that makes you want to listen to them sing the same song over and over and over again, the energy or grace with which certain dancers move while at the same time connecting with an audience. We've all seen it and been moved by "it", whether or not we're able to put a name to it. Several parents have remarked that after seeing their child perform, everyone says, "I couldn't take my eyes off of your S or D." That's "It." </p>

<p>Now here comes the part that people may wish to debate. My personal belief is that you can't learn "It." You've either got "It" or you don't (apologies for the Mama Rose rip-off....) And I think that's why it is impossible to just compare resumes when trying to figure out who got accepted where and why. I'm convinced that the auditioners for these programs have "It" as one of the things that's highest on their list of desirables when they make the admit decisions. The other stuff, the technique, the history, the repertoire, can all be taught. "It" cannot be taught. It's what explains the kid with not alot of formal training getting in when the kid with a resume a mile long does not. It's why attending one of the so-called elite programs is by no means a guarantee of success and why so many people have found their way to success following such varied paths. </p>

<p>Now the fly in the ointment is that having "It" and being free and confident enough to show "It" in a pressure cooker of an audition situation is what separates the professionals (or able to become professionals) from the never wills. The audition piece of this is also a skill that must be practiced in order to be perfected. HAVING talent and technique and being able to DEMONSTRATE that talent and technique are two very different things. </p>

<p>I believe that it the "It" factor trumps a lot of other factors but in science class or SAT terms "It" is necessary but not sufficient. You also need to work your butt off to acquire technique, have the perseverance and mental toughness to endure multiple rejections and just to make matters that much more interesting, you have to have luck. </p>

<p>So, my bottom line is this - If this sounds like you (students)or your child (parents), if you think you've got "It," then GO for it. Don't let anyone tell you that you don't have enough "whatever" to even try. I look forward to seeing you all bring "It" to the world as the next generation of exciting performing artists.
Best of luck!!! "</p>

5

<p>I confess - that was my post. Reading it more than a year later, I have to say that nothing I have seen since causes me to feel differently today. The only addendum might be that I don't believe that every performer working today has what I call "It." As few jobs as there are, there are still more jobs, albeit at different levels of visibility, and hard working performers who the business would not survive without, than there are people with "It." We all know that there are a lot of things besides talent and hard work that contribute to people getting work, e.g., looks, connections, luck, etc. But I do believe that the performers who really touch us, those who make the hairs stand up on the back of our necks, those whose names we make sure to remember or go out of our way to find, most certainly do have "It."</p>

<p>XOXOXOX,
Theatermom</p>

6

<p>chrism,
Thanks for unearthing Theatermom's wonderfully articulate description of the intangible "it" factor. Her words ring so true for me. Whenever I am an audience member for a live performing event, I almost always gauge the success of the production on whether I've been moved by the work of one or more of the artists. That tingle of the skin, hair standing up on the back of your neck, tears stinging the eyes kind of feeling. It is what I love about live performance. I do believe that natural talent and excellent training and experience can provide the foundation for fine performance qualities. I also believe that those few special individuals who are able to engage an audience member through the additional intangible element - the "it" - those are the ones who create unforgettable moments of live theatre. This has happily occurred for me on many occasions, both at professional productions as well as at those performed by young, novice artists. I'm sure each person might describe these qualities differently, but we all know how it feels when the magic happens on the stage.</p>