The problem is, you also don’t know who your competing against and the type their looking for
One of our friends daughter went to a high school for performing arts. Then went to Park Pointe for dance. Then left after a semester(she’s an amazing dancer). She got an agent. First regional play in Chicago. Now she’s in the touring company of Mean Girls. Did some off Broadway… Really off… Lol…
Other kid same high school got a major Part in Hamilton in Chicago and did the entire run. No college experience… Now I heard he will be on Broadway this year
. He was born talented.
LOL…
Another friend that did one of the top ten and one I added are doing various regional works through out the US and lots of standing in line and seeing each other at auditions…
Anyone that thinks they will be performing on Broadway has seen to any movies… Lol…
As they say… “if it was that easy, everyone would be doing it”…
Yes, I know there are exceptions but they are typically not the rule
@Knowsstuff you bring up an interesting point. Even the “pros” put out a different list of top schools each year. This year’s list did not include Emerson or Illinois Wesleyan but did include more up-and-coming schools like LIU and CAP21.
Just a note - the online blogs survive on “clicks” because it ups their advertising revenue. If they put out a list with the same schools every year they wouldn’t get any clicks so it is in their best interest to put in some controversial/new/lesser known schools each year and imo that’s one reason you see variation in the lists from year to year - the schools themselves don’t rise and fall much in quality in one year although programs may trend one way or another over time.
@actorparent1 Honestly I think there are at least 20 “top tier” schools which is why everyone here shares a slightly different Top 10 list. It’s interesting to see why people choose certain schools to rank as their personal Top 10.
As the parent of a Texas State alumni, here is why I think they are a Top 10 program (in no particular order): (1) the personal attention and sense of community/family is top notch; (2) innovative teaching and practical courses for surviving in the real world; (3) great facilities; (4) bang for your buck - training that is equal to the Big 3 at a much lower cost; (5) San Marcos TX is a great town in an amazing area of the state.
Finally, on the subject of success rate of alumni as mentioned in @CaMom13 ‘s post; Kaitlin Hopkins’ first graduating class that she recruited was the Class of 2014. (That is important because her hiring is when Texas State decided they wanted to build a nationally respected program). As of today, since that 2014 class, TXST MT has about (a rough guess) 50 graduates. As I write this, 4 are in currently running Broadway shows, 2 more recently (in 2019) finished Broadway runs, 6 are currently on Broadway National Tours, 3 finished national or international tours in 2019, and numerous others are working important regional gigs. That’s pretty good results for this program and I’d be willing to put that “success rate” against anybody in that time frame.
Having said that, I’m not sure what “success rate” really means. If you get good training, are happy in what you are doing after graduation and are a contributing member of society, you are a success. You don’t have to be on Broadway to succeed in this business. And Texas State is turning out high quality, caring and kind humans. That’s a win for me!
I saw the onstage Blog list when it came out last fall. To reinforce a couple of interesting points in the article about this years list.
Onstage Blog likes to add new criteria and this year was safety. Yes, as a parent that's a factor but generally (not all metros are safer than rural schools, but generally) favors smaller campuses over metropolitan areas. Do you think kids that like the bustle of schools like Pace care that broader New York might not be as safe as Westerville, OH. I love the Otterbein campus but a kid that thrives in "the city" might find it boring.
Onstage Blog didn't rank the schools. They found that many of them were only a couple of points apart. It was very honest of them to not distinguish between 1 through 10 and then start with #11 through #20 when those schools may be only a few points out of 10th and contain factors that aren't important to your student.
They also point out that this list is not exhaustive or definitive of quality programs across the country. Just like not being able to distinguish between #10 and #15, the same can be said for "their" #30 and "their" #45. "Their" #45 maybe be the EXACT match of what you need in your own development. I bet every kid would be thrilled to get accepted to Carnegie Melon but a MUCH smaller group of kids would actually thrive at CMU.
They summarize nicely at the end of the intro that the "best" school is one that you will feel comfortable and confident attending based on your own needs and goals. I bet there are current Broadway performers from at least 200 different schools (or NO SCHOOL AT ALL). And if Broadway isn't your goal, I guarantee every school ever mentioned in this forum has working professionals that are killing this career path.
One thing that doesn’t often get mentioned is the schools that never appear on MT lists - because they don’t offer MT - but still rank higher than many programs named above in getting working professionals on stage on Broadway and elsewhere. And those are:
Julliard
Northwestern
Yale
UNCSA
Fordham
None of these are easy admits so no “hidden gems” just thought it was worth adding in.
Top school for us is one where my daughter graduates with little to no debt; where she can get roles to add to her resume; where she can have great relationships with her professors; where she is close enough to a larger city to do community theatre; where she has fun and makes good friends; where she feels successful; where she graduates with the tools to continue to pursue her love of theatre either local, regional, or Broadway; where she is happy.
@CaMom13 totally agree. Interesting was at UNCSA a few weeks ago and they made a point of saying they simply don’t separate MT from Drama. They view it more as a subset of drama / acting and the students actually have 4 yrs of voice including singing for MT. Many alum have gone on to do musicals.
Hey @rickle1 - yes, I realized too late that I should have stated more clearly that those programs get alumni actors “on stage in Musical Theatre in Broadway and beyond”. :). It’s a little surprising, to me at least, but quite true!
@CaMom13 Yes they do. Right now, matter of fact, a young alum is playing Hamilton on Broadway (yes that Hamilton - not in it, he is it). They also have an alum as Tony in the revival of West Side Story on Broadway right now. And several others they cited. They made the comment, not in a bragging way, that their vocal training is designed to create leads. When laying out the four years of vocal training, I was surprised how deep they go because it’s an “acting” program. Also do dance. They made a comment that if you are already pretty good, they’ll make you better / Broadway ready, but if you’re just a mover (which is fine), their dance program (within drama - keep in mind they have a separate dance conservatory BFA) isn’t designed to get you on the chorus line.