University of Michigan Information

College Majors Musical Theater Major
21

<p>Coach C</p>

<p>The amazing freshman you mentioned, and he is TOTALLY amazing, did work with my D last summer. He was in two of the three shows my D was in. As a matter of fact, they were dance partners in Beauty and the Beast and also worked together in Mame. If there is such as thing as a quadruple threat (the tumbling being the fourth threat), he's it. According to me D, he is also a really, really nice, down to earth kid.</p>

<p>Mary Anna,</p>

<p>While some perspectives do take the time to go to Ann Arbor and meet with faculty or admissions staff prior to auditioning, certainly EVERY auditioner doesn't do this. And there is no formal interview as part of the on campus audition. So while I agree that the standard is very high at UM, I don't believe acceptance hinges in any way on an interview. Also, the music theory and piano performance parts of the audition are for freshman placement and not really a signifigant part of the admit decision except perhaps as a "tiebreaker" between otherwise like, qualified candidates. But thanks for clarifying your thoughts. Much appreciated.</p>

<p>And, of course, you are right about the LOCATION. Can we say "gotta love the cold and snow" boys and girls????? I have one word for Ann Arbor from November through April: BRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!</p>

22

<p>What a great program. And YES, loving cold weather is a must!</p>

<p>My student certainly was interveiwed at some length during a couple of the audition elements. This could be because those faculty were known from the summer. Although there may not have been a formal "interview" , it is where they determined the personality behind the application, essay and audition through talking, asking and answering questions and generally shooting the breeze..</p>

<p>Wow, it's just a great and thorough and thoughtful process.</p>

<p>xxx,Mary Anna</p>

23

<p>The informal "interview" process as you describe it (extended coversations with faculty in the various audition rooms) is common at UM - no prior knowledge of faculty needed! :) (I just don't want students who did not attend the summer program to be worried...) This also happens at CMU a lot and somewhat at OCU, occasionally at NYU and even at CCM (although much less extensively). My students' experiences and those of their now-classmates are that UM and CMU spend the most informal "interviewing" time. Penn State, by the way, has an ACTUAL interview at their-on campus auditions after they make a cut.</p>

<p>At UM, they certainly do want to get a sense of the personality behind the application, but they also want to probe further into unique elements of a student's artistic life. For example, my students who are outstanding pianists (UM MT boasts several of these, students who play at the level of professional accompanists and in fact can train in this element of MT during their time there) were invariably asked about that by Brent Wagner, as he himself is a pianist and LOVES to discuss such things! He has also asked my students about things such as demonstrated interest in writing, choreographing, etc. - as well as of course their vocal training. Mark Madama, the head of acting for MT, often will ask students about their pieces, their training, or a name he recognizes on a resume...It's always a warm environment where the students truly do get to show more of "themselves" than their pieces could possibly reveal. Students who are reading this and auditioning at UM, DO NOT worry if your discussion with faculty is not "lengthy" or they don't seem to ask you to "right" questions. Sometimes they have already seen a lot that they love because your personality shines through IN your material - your resume, essays, and recommendations have painted a vivid picture of you(they DEFINITELY read them CLOSELY at UM - trust me, I have had the recs I wrote quoted to students in post-admission offer discussions with faculty!!!) - and they may be running a bit late! Generally, their January and Februray auditions are those in which you will spend less time talking informally with faculty because they are the most "crowded" auditions - not OVERcrowded, just those that most people request and therefore the "busiest."</p>

<p>Good luck to all, and ENJOY your UM audition experience - it is almost always positive and FUN!</p>

<p>P.S. Check out my posting time, stressed students - 5:01 am and CoachC is STUDYING FOR FINALS!!! :) I feel your stressed-out pain!</p>

24

<p>Coach...you are amazing to give so much of both your knowledge and sharing of experiences AND during finals! Good luck to you on those! My D at Brown shot me a note last night while she was studying for an exam of all the papers, projects and exams she has every day for the next ten days and it even overwhelms me so good luck and know that vacation is coming soon!</p>

<p>I'm not sure what you mean by an "actual interview" at PSU after cuts. My D made the cut at PSU and was also admitted. I would not call it a formal interview but really like at many schools where they talk to you and ask questions. Perhaps they did it longer or had more questions than some other schools as it varied from school to school. I don't think what UM does in this regard is THAT different than a lot of schools, but it varies a bunch from school to school. As you say, an auditor may look at the resume and notice someone you worked with....this happened at Syracuse regarding my D's voice teacher or may bring up something on the resume, and I recall the Tisch person commenting on All States and some probe why you want to go to their school or something in your background.....at the barre at UM, the dance teacher came up to my D and asked where she trained (my D was thinking she'll never have heard of it as we live in a rural state!) and so on and so forth. At UM, it's true that there are less people auditioning in the Nov. round. It is also true that they cannot accept many at all in Nov. until more auditions happen as the program is not THAT big but a good outcome would be to get a deferral at that point. I do not think many got in last Nov. before some winter auditions occurred. But one thing you do point out that is true at these schools is that beyond skills and talent, they want to accept PEOPLE and many programs indeed read the essays, recs and talk a bit to the students. However, for those reading this, don't read TOO much into what they did or did not do with you. It varies a lot and also from school to school. I don't recall the Ithaca people saying a lot or working extra with my D as much as other places and she was accepted. I recall the person said they liked her outfit! :D Some schools, however, do have more of an "interchange" with the candidate. </p>

<p>Susan</p>

25

<p>Several of you have indicated that a good result for a November UM audition is a deferral, and that decisions are more often made after the January and February auditions. If a student receives a "deferral" in November, when is he/she likely to receive a more concrete decision? Would the student receive it after the January auditions, after the February auditions, or later? Does having received a deferral for a November audition push back the time they will receive a final decision (because they already have received some formal communication from UM)? Would this argue against auditioning in November? Please advise if any of you know the answers.</p>

<p>Thnaks,</p>

<p>vocaldad</p>

26

<p>Vocaldad,</p>

<p>I wish I could tell you that there is a pat answer to your question but there isn't. As Coach C mentioned, students CAN be and have been accepted from a November audition although the most likely positive outcome is a deferral. After that, it's anyone's guess when you might hear back with a definitive answer which can still be a yes or a no. I'm thinking that it depends on the caliber of students they see in January and or February. I don't think that having had some formal communication (by way of the deferral) will push you back any further than those who audition in Jan or Feb. It would be an interesting question to ask the folks at UM directly but I think that it would make most sense to ask it once you have a deferral in hand. </p>

<p>So why would someone choose to audition in November? I can think of some reasons why you might want to and others why you might not:</p>

<p>Reasons to CONSIDER AUDITIONING IN NOV:
- If you are doing many, many auditions, getting a few out of the way in the fall might free up some time for others in the winter.
- There are fewer people auditioning in November so you might have a more relaxed audition with more time to chat with the auditors and more time to make a positive impression.
- If you wait until January or February you are not going to have an answer until early February at the EARLIEST so waiting that long on the definitive answer on a deferral from November is not really that much different in terms of when in the year you may get your answer and the audition will be done. If you are rejected, at least you have an answer and decide to perhaps add some other auditions to your list if you choose to and have time to do so.
- You might not want to risk travel to Ann Arbor in the dead of winter. It can be problematic if you can't allow enough time for weather related delays.
- And of course, you might actually get in!! and if it's your first choice you can get off the audition merry-go-round and enjoy your holidays and your senior year (not to mention putting your parents out of their misery.......lol)</p>

<p>Reasons to CONSIDER NOT AUDITIONING IN NOV:
- Being on the fence, where a deferral puts you, makes you absolutely insane!!!
- UM is one of your top choices and you want to audition a few other places further down your list to test your audition material, perhaps work out the kinks and have time to choose different material if necessary.
- You want as much time as possible to really work on your UM application and essays, as they are an important part of the admit process.
- Your audition may be fresher in the mind of the auditors when they start making decisions.</p>

<p>These are only a few of the reasons I came up with quickly and maybe there are more for either choice that someone else can offer.</p>

<p>Hope this helps!</p>

27

<p>Soozie,
Regarding the "actual interviews" at PSU, I do recall the faculty at PSU calling them interviews. On my D's audition day, students did a group dance audition then did their individual singing and acting auditions. Some students were asked to return later for an interview with the faculty. Seems like my D did talk a bit with the faculty when she did her songs and monologue, but most of the discussion took place later in the day when she had her interview. Students were very aware that day that some people were being "called back" for interviews.</p>

<p>I'd type more detail, but I'm not supposed to be typing at all. I slipped on my icy stairs Sunday (didn't see the ice on the edge of the steps) and dislocated my elbow and sustained a hairline fracture. C'est la vie!</p>

28

<p>Theatermom, you outlined the pros/cons of that decision very well! There are benefits to auditioning on either date, as you can see! </p>

<p>Dancersmom, yes, your D's experience at PSU is quite similar to mine. Yes, PSU was the only school that had "callbacks". They eliminated the majority and so those kids knew if they were not asked to stay for a "second round", that they were not going to be admitted. This is not how it was done at other schools we went to. Then at the "callbacks" she got to do her songs and acting again, if I recall but this time for the director of the program. And yes, there were "interview" sorts of questions as part of that callback. </p>

<p>My main point was merely that what UM does in terms of talking with the student is not that unusual and that it varies from school to school but for a lot of schools, there ARE some questions and chatting with the student. PSU is a good example though that was only for those in callbacks. But some other schools also talked with the student, some more than others and some not at all. My child was accepted at some that asked questions and some that barely asked questions so I did not want anyone to read too much into things at auditions (though naturally everyone does!! LOL). My kid got in some places where she only did her material. Others vocalized her. Others had her do four monologues or had her be called back to see directors and other faculty. Others asked her to redo her monologue another way. Others asked one or two questions. Some gave positive feedback yet she was not accepted. So, lots of variation out there. But surely be prepared to answer questions at an audition. </p>

<p>I am so sorry about your accident! That's too bad! Yikes. I slipped on my icy steps once and it did not turn into what yours did but I still feel a soreness where I fell on my calf of my leg. Not fun. I hope you heal quickly and that something nice happens for you to offset this injury!</p>

<p>Susan</p>

29

<p>So basically what happens if someone doesn't turn in the titles of their pieces three/four weeks beforehand? Or what if someone changes one of their songs? I don't want to make a bad impression, but I'm having a very difficult time with deciding on my ballad (it's down to two songs). I'll decide though...I'm just making sure it's absolutely positively necessary lol. Thoughts?</p>

30

<p>Aspiring Actress,</p>

<p>Have you emailed or spoken to the audition coordinator at UM? His job is to help you with things just like this. His contact information should be at the bottom of your audition confirmation and may also be on the UM MT audition website.</p>

<p>My instincts tell me that you are better off sending in the names of the songs/monologues that you think you are going to use so as to comply with whatever deadline you have been given. Then if you have to change them, you can update your info by email before you arrive or tell the auditors when you get there. But this is just my INSTINCT. Contact the coordinator to be sure.</p>

<p>Whenever you audition, break a leg!!</p>

31

<p>Thanks theatremom I emailed him tonight. I had totally forgotten that his contact info was in the email, I kind of read it, got excited about my audition date and closed it haha. Hopefully he'll email back before Friday, the deadline to mail my pieces in.
Thanks again!</p>

32

<p>I’ll re-post some of what I wrote earlier today, before the posts were lost. My son auditioned at UM yesterday, and I thought I’d pass along some of what was learned at the parent meeting. (Some of this has been mentioned in past posts):</p>

<p>(1) Laura Strozeski confirmed that two females have been accepted so far – one new applicant and one who couldn’t attend last year for personal reasons. No guys as of yesterday, 1/20. Several maybes (deferrals) have been sent out.</p>

<p>(2) They usually end up waitlisting only about 5, since the majority of those accepted end up enrolling.</p>

<p>(3) They offer 4-year talent scholarships to the top 6-7 acceptees, with the amount being determined by the audition, as well as the tuition burden on the family (in-state vs. out-of-state). If a talent award isn’t offered the first year, it might still be offered in subsequent years. Amounts can range from $1500-full tuition, with upperclassmen often getting the larger amounts.</p>

<p>(4) Even though some academic screening is done prior to auditions, they definitely look again at academics along with audition results when deciding admittance. They said GPA and test scores sometimes come into play early on in the decision process, and sometimes they’re used as a tie-breaker, if more than one person is equally qualified to fill a particular “type”. She said they've been very impressed with the academics of this year's applicants.</p>

<p>(5) Interesting but unconfirmed… another parent mentioned hearing a faculty member say that when evaluating auditions, the dance and acting portions count for one unit each, and vocal counts for three. Unconfirmed, but it wouldn’t surprise me after hearing several similar comments during the day.</p>

<p>It was a very enjoyable day – stressful for those auditioning, but still quite an experience. UM is one of the most welcoming, warm campuses we’ve visited. We were sorry we missed Professor Wagner (MT chair and vocal auditioner who was out of town with a family emergency), but there are so many reputable faculty members there, we felt we were in good hands. From the time we arrived, the atmosphere was one of openness, humor and professionalism, and anyone who is accepted there should be so proud to be a part of that.</p>

<p>Good luck to all of you!</p>

<p>g</p>

33

<p>when will they let people know?</p>

34

<p>If you mean when do they let people know about acceptance decisions, I think they've been sending them out within 2-4 weeks of the auditions (someone correct me if I'm wrong). About scholarships, I'm not sure, but I think at UM those come later.</p>

35

<p>I think you are in the ballpark with regard to when the majority of people will hear something (acceptance, deferral, waitlist or the "r"word) - maybe a couple in 2-3 weeks and more in 3-5 weeks I think. Last year some waited a good deal longer but I hope not this year. As has been noted, Professor Wagner, Chair of the department, had to miss this past Friday's auditions due to a family emergency, but will review the videos made of the singing auditions (which he ordinarily oversees). This may delay decisions a bit so I hope everyone will take that into consideration on the daily trip to the mailbox (I know how you feel - been there, done that).</p>

<p>Scholarship meetings do not take place until all the auditions are complete so do not expect scholarship notification until probably April at the earliest.</p>

<p>Thanks, edmondsg, for taking the time to repost your audition impressions!</p>

36

<p>Regarding Edmondsg's post-</p>

<p>That is the same information that we were told (not confirmed by Laura Strozeski, but by students) at the Jan. 13th audition. They might have not accepted anyone from thsoe auditions or they haven't made any final decisions yet. So, I think/hope everything is still up in the air! </p>

<p>Can't waite to hear
-Zal</p>

37

<p>Theatre Mom</p>

<p>You mentioned that you have a daughter in Musical Theatre. Any thoughts on their drama department. My son auditioned in early december and was deferred. He has since been accepted for drama at CCM and Evansville. I was wondering how the drama department stacks up.</p>

38

<p>anyboy recieve new on their Wolverine Access???</p>

39

<p>What is this wolverine access thing and how can i be on it?</p>

40

<p>? ?</p>