Viterbo MT Program

<p>Hey all!
I last posted on here almost a year ago when I was going through my decision process, which ended in my choice to come to Viterbo. I just want to share a little bit about my experiences thus far and to hopefully give some of you who are in the audition process right now some info about Viterbo.
I am currently a BFA Musical Theater major and dance minor at Viterbo and I COULD NOT BE HAPPIER about my decision. Going into the process of choosing a school, I admit I was drawn to programs with big names and prestigious programs. Viterbo was not on my radar until a little later in the process. Now that I am here I am positive that I am much better off as an artist, performer and individual at this smaller school with a killer program than at a large school with a cut throat competitive atmosphere. It’s what I needed personally. We all receive very individualized personal attention from the start of our time here. Viterbo is where I am supposed to be, hands down. And it might be the right pick for you too:)
Dana McConnell, who runs our MT program, is possibly the most remarkable individual I have ever encountered. Her understanding of our art form, of the body, of life, and of what we need to be effective, nurtured artists is truly astounding. The program is evolving, for the better, and she is the driving force behind it. As MT majors, we get to have a class called Musical Theater (or MUTH) Lab 3 times a week for all 8 semester we are here. This class includes all 4 classes of MTs. The course includes individual performances, cabarets, mock dance calls, and some very rich, diverse artistic explorations in other forms that inform our work. Another great aspect of this class is that it breaks down the barriers between grade levels. In our collaboration together, freshman are valued as much others in the process, which helps our learning curve immensely.
The dance program here, headed up by the wonderful Nikki Balsamo, is very strong. Most of what we do here, especially our dance program, finds its basis in the Alexander technique and the need for release and efficiency in the body. I have encountered an entirely new way of looking at dance that feels much better in my body and is producing greater results for me. I am also developing an understanding of how to embody rhythms in my body through jump rhythm jazz dance technique. There are opportunities to have a free dance tutor for every class you are taking. There are also opportunities to take classes at Nikki’s studio in town for an extremely discounted rate if you want more dance than you can fit in your schedule.
For voice lessons, we have 2 half hour lessons each week with our voice teacher for the entirety of our time here. We have a midterm voice recital and juries at the end of the semester. We have three MT voice faculty members, all of whom are specifically trained in teaching musical theater voice. My teacher, Karla Hughes, is the head of musical theater voice, and is an exceptional vocalist who is still performing professionally in the Opera world. She also has a very strong background in teaching belt in particular.
These are just a few areas in particular that I wanted to touch on. Viterbo is one of those programs that isn’t talked about a lot yet but it’s a sort of diamond in the rough and I think people will be hearing about it more and more. I am so thankful that I ended up here. Hopefully this lets some of you know a little more about what this program offers. If you have any questions at all, please let me know. I would be happy to address any inquiries:)
Best of luck to all of you in your process!</p>

<p>Hi CentralMT! Hope you will also post your information in the Freshman Experience thread. There are currently no posts on Viterbo and I think it would be great to have you information there. Glad you are having a great freshman year!
<a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/musical-theater-major/1067706-freshman-experience.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/musical-theater-major/1067706-freshman-experience.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Great post! Thanks Central MT!</p>

<p>Oops Viterbo actually is represented in post #98!</p>

<p>Thanks austinmtmom for the suggestion! I wasn’t aware of that thread.</p>

<p>Thank you so much for your information - this was exactly what I needed!
I did a walk-in for Viterbo at Chicago unifieds. I have a few questions:</p>

<ol>
<li>How many people does Viterbo accept a year?</li>
<li>Any information you could provide about Masterclasses/Guest artists coming into Viterbo?</li>
<li>What are the showcases like? </li>
<li>Do you know if they’ve been sending their decisions out yet? Is this done through mail or email?</li>
</ol>

<p>Thank you so much!</p>

<p>Hey thekindagirl! I’m also a freshman MUTH and Dance Minor at Viterbo so I will gladly try to answer these questions for you as best I can! :)</p>

<p>P.S. I auditioned for Viterbo at Chicago Unifieds, too! </p>

<p>All right, answers!</p>

<ol>
<li><p>This varies a little bit each year. Our freshman class is 7 girls and 4 boys. I think they aim for around 6 and 6 or 7 and 7 each year.</p></li>
<li><p>We have had A LOT of really great master class/guest artist opportunities this year! We had Linda Balgord, who was Patti Lupone’s understudy in Gypsy on Broadway and the original Queen Elizabeth in The Pirate Queen, come and play Mother Abbess in our production of Sound Of Music this fall. She sat in on acting classes and gave feedback and also had many Q and A sessions. She is a Viterbo alum! Right now we have a guest artist named Postell Pringle with us who does a lot of work integrating hip hop and Shakespeare. We’re all getting a chance to do some rapping in MUTH Lab and we’re currently in the process of creating a brand new work involving Shakespeare and rap.</p></li>
<li><p>Each of our MUTH and Theatre Performance seniors is responsible for creating a show of about 30 minutes with works from musicals, plays, Shakespearean sonnets, dance, etc. They perform these at the end of the year (we just had our first batch go on Friday night) in our recital hall for anyone who wants to come. We don’t bring in casting agents or anything for these but they are extremely beneficial for the seniors to get experience with creating and carrying a show all on their own. The shows this Friday were incredible and we definitely have some extremely talented seniors! They all had great success at SETC auditions and Strawhats in New York and a lot of them have professional jobs lined up after graduation already.</p></li>
<li><p>I don’t know if decisions are being sent out yet! I know that for me personally, I got a phone call and then an email the next day and a letter about a week later. I think this is slightly different for all of us. I know a boy in our class only got an email because he auditioned very late in the season. </p></li>
</ol>

<p>I hope that was helpful at least a little! Please don’t hesitate to ask any more questions that you might have! I know either CentralMT or I would be happy to answer them! :)</p>

<p>thank you so much!</p>