<p>I have d who is interested in MT, and even though she's done a good amount of theatre, I'm wondering if her lack of experience in a lead role might be a factor. I'm also curious how many shows and what sorts of parts MT applicants have had going into this process. Anyone want to share? (Looking for # of leads, supporting, chorus roles, etc. and whether they were with school shows, youth theaters or community theaters, etc.)</p>
<p>D has done done:</p>
<p>5 community theatre shows since she was about 8. She had a small featured part in a two of them (one with lines, the other without). In the others, she was part of the children's chorus.
Several mini musicals at church and had speaking and solo parts in a few of those.
2 youth theatre productions (one play, one musical) - one with a speaking part and the other in the chorus.
2 choir solos through the years and made it into All-State this year.
3 high school shows with just a featured part in one. </p>
<p>She will audition for the next high school show in May (we home school and they do their show in the summer). If she doesn't get a lead role this summer, I'm wondering if she'll have the experience (or confidence!!) she'll need. </p>
<p>Don’t get all worked up on how padded your child’s resume is. I think most people will agree that the single most important factor in getting a college acceptance is your child’s audition. Period. That being said, the more experience on stage, the bigger the knowledge base and confidence level of an applicant. Each year the pool of applicants includes kids who have multiple Broadway or Tour credits to kids whose only experience is high school drama programs. Can schools tell the difference? Of course, they can. However, each year offers are made to kids with a wealth of experience and to those with little. Some schools pride themselves on finding “raw talent”. Worrying about it won’t change reality, so focus on the positives. Give your child as many opportunities to get training and stage experience as you can. Summer is a FABULOUS time to do this! Summer stock, community theatre, summer camps and intensives (local/instate/out-of-state), etc… Sometimes amazing kids don’t get into a school simply because the school, which acknowledges their amazing talent, simply does not need any student of their “type”. Sad, but true, So, I would just focus on the variables you can control and disregard those you have no control over. I wish you and your D a happy journey!</p>
<p>Totally runs the gamut. Don’t stress over it.</p>
<p>Thanks. I’m not really stressing or getting overworked. 
Not over this anyway. 
I was just curious and wanted to give some background for my curiosity. Sorry if I sounded like a panicked mom. Some times it’s just nice to get some perspective and I thought this would be a great place to get it. </p>
<p>What training she’s had is probably more important than the number of shows she’s been in.</p>
<p>O no worries we know want panicked parents sound like, that will be next year this time for you LOL</p>
<p>From what my S has experienced so far the resume is a good place for the auditors to start a conversation. I’m not sure how heavily his experience has been weighed. He belongs to a teenage performing arts group that performs at nursing homes, hospitals etc so far most of the schools have asked him about this.</p>
<p>How old is your D? Her experience level actually looks pretty good. She has stuck with it since she was young, understands how to be a part of a cast, conduct rehearsals, etc.</p>
<p>From our experience the things that will help your D the most are to find private voice and acting coaches and getting her in dance classes. Make sure that the voice and acting coaches are results-oriented and challenge your D to work towards improvement and growth. This can also be a test to see just how much she wants to study MT in college. </p>
<p>Our D has a strong resume after 10 years of performing in youth, high school, and community college summer theatre. She has shown steady progression from ensemble to lead roles. It has made her a better performer in that she knows what is expected of her and she takes it seriously. </p>
<p>However, of the roughly 20 schools that she’s auditioned for this season only a couple have actually remarked about her resume. In the end all that really matters is her performance during the auditions.</p>
<p>My point is that you should do everything that you can within the constraints of time and money to get her the skills that she will need to perform well at audition and prepare her for college. I don’t mean simply training FOR an audition; I mean building the foundation skills that make her a better, more confident performer. That work will show through when she’s ready to show her stuff.</p>
<p>Break a leg, and keep us posted.</p>
<p>@MTMajorCook - good point about the interview </p>
<p>@cheeseheadmike - She’s a junior. Up until a month or so ago, I thought she was mainly interested in the design/tech/costume degrees. I have a feeling we have a few areas to explore before the final applications are due, but MT came up recently as a possibility.</p>
<p>The main area she could use some brushing up in is dance. It’s been a while since she’s taken classes. She does take voice lessons and most of her acting coaching has come from me. I’m by no means a pro, but I’ve done theatre and directed musicals when I taught in a high school ions ago. She’s a decent actress with good expression and comedic timing. </p>
<p>One small thing that has been a problem with her in terms of casting in some of the shows has been her height (story of my life). She outgrew the “kid” parts before her time and is in that weird gap for community theatre where she basically would have to play an adult role - but obviously that doesn’t really work either. We’ll find out next week what show her choir is doing this summer and if it doesn’t work out, she has an option “b”. Another issue is that she is a non-belting alto. She has a decent range, but will probably never play the parts of the traditional soprano lead. So, that also cuts down on the casting options. </p>
<p>I understand completely that the audition is key and that the “resume” is not really what matters. Again, it was just a curiosity. </p>
<p>If she wants to pursue a performance MT degree, she really needs to work with a private voice teacher that knows how to teach belting. Does she have one? Experience has taught us that most choir teachers are clueless on how to teach safe,nhealthy belting - a necessary skill these days. Apparently, the vowels and the “placement” (whatever that means…) is different between the two styles. I listen to my D talk 2 her voice teacher & it’s like they’re speaking a foreign language! We know several kids that switched majors in college from MT 2 straight acting cuz they couldn’t compete vocally for lead roles.</p>
<p>Some schools would prefer to teach a strong “legit” singer how to belt. So make sure it’s a really top teacher if you want to pursue it now.</p>
<p>My D went to a very big HS (over 4500 kids) and never was a lead in any high school or summer stock musicals. And she was accepted to three different programs. And having gotten used to that level of competition has actually been a benefit her first year of college. Some kids with her are struggling to find their place after being the big fish in a small pond. </p>
<p>Someone above mentioned making sure she can belt. Again, my D is a soprano who did not belt in HS. In fact her voice teacher specifically did not want her to learn to belt during HS. And now she is acquiring that skill under the guidance of her voice professor. </p>
<p>So the lessons here? First, your child does not have to have had a specific resume before auditioning. Second, while there may be programs looking for a belter it is not a prerequisite to get into a good MT program. As others have said have her focus on dance, get a voice coach, have someone work with her on monologue pieces. And then go for it.</p>
<p>@jeffandann - Thanks for your input. </p>
<p>My d will continue with her voice teacher for now in classical training. I think that foundation is more important. It’s not that she will not sing broadway repertoire, but I’m happy with the more classical approach right now. I’m also a “legit” soprano who has aged and worked vocally into a better mix to belt through the years. I still prefer to sing soprano, but when you’re middle-aged (did I just say that??), there aren’t a lot of soprano characters to play. </p>
<p>I agree about the dance classes. I am definitely encouraging that. </p>
<p>She is very excited about tonight’s announcement for the summer musical she’s done for a few years. It’s kind of a “small pond” situation, but with a good deal of competition nonetheless. </p>
<p>There is a great thread on this site that asks the question “Is there a place for sopranos in MT” that might interest you. It has some great information and even a research based article.on this subject. Ultimately, its a numbers game. The more a student can do, the more versatile he/she is, the better the changes that he/she will be accepted into a MT program and the better the odds that he/she will be employed in an industry that has a 95% unemployment rate. Hats off to all of us who support our children’s dreams in spite of those odds!</p>