My son is a freshman at BU in the Acting BFA program. I’m trying to help him find something interesting and challenging to do as a actor/theater creator for the summer after his freshman year. We’ve looked at RADA and LAMDA and are considering but also trying to look beyond those as well. He’s interested in creating theater - and is also wondering if there are any great programs for playwriting. Has anyone had experiences or know of opportunities to act or create at a level that will be challenging for someone in an Acting BFA program?
I would guess BU has some ideas for this. I know kids from UNCSA have various internships or programs several kids apply for throughout the NE. There are various theatre companies in NYC where kids have internships and one allows interns to also create a show at the end. I can’t recall the name of it -will try find out.
Your son should ask older students to get ideas. I would guess Boston would have lots of opportunities as well.
Another idea is to create his own work. Many students we know do that too. Of course there isn’t pay with that -but it is creative.
My son is a Acting BFA freshman in BU too! I was a bit disappointed that BU didn’t provide more guidance about summer opportunities this year, but he is looking into some possibilities through contacts we have (we are not well connected but hoping someone comes through…). One program that he might apply to that I heard excellent things about is Shakespeare Theatre of NJ’s apprenticeship program: http://shakespearenj.org/Education/SPTPlanding.html
There are also a number of other open auditions for summer spots like Straw Hat and netconline.org, but not all take straight actors (lots of MT). Summer Shakespeare festivals are good to look at (look into auditions at whatever your local theatres offer). I don’t know as much about playwrighting offerings, but google can be your friend: https://www.larktheatre.org
The fact that BU is not actively helping place students for the summer is interesting and useful information. My D is on the tech side, but every school she has interviewed with so far has made much of their faculty working hard to help kids find summer opportunities. She interviews with BU next week, so thanks for the info and potential question for the auditors.
I’m not surprised a school doesn’t place kids but i would think they can guide them or give support and suggestions. Students have to be proactive and meet with faculty to ask the questions. We have found other (older) students to have some of the best info on summer opportunities.
In my experience (with my kid who is an acting BFA major) summer WORK seems much less of a focus than for MT kids. My D’s school (NYU) passes on TONS of info about internships available in the city - but does not promote group auditions like strawhats, A1 etc.
@aberdeen2017 - my D spent last summer in Boston via an internship with commonwealth shakespeare - and absolutely LOVED it. They prefer upperclassmen (I think all of them were rising seniors or recent grads last year) but it is a good one to keep in mind for future
Hi @aberdeen2017 would your son be interested in living abroad for a few weeks this summer? the Berridge program was Amazing for my son. Although he was just going into his senior year, there were interns that were college age. It’s beautiful. It’s also an acting program with several drama college professors there from the states, France and the uk. My S will consider going back this time as an intern this summer once we figure out where he will be at school. If not, he will be taking some transferable basic courses that he needs so that he can concentrate on theatre while in college:)
if your S is really interested, I’d suggest he reaches out soon, they are always looking to solidify their team around this time 
My son did an internship with Oak Park Festival Theater in Chicago suburbs between freshman and sophomore year. There’s a very small stipend (he worked at a donut shop for money mostly) and though all the interns u/s and have small onstage parts, performance opps vary a lot from year to year. He also got some equity points but this is also not a guarantee (you have to have three equity people in your show to get them and sometimes there are only two). It’s worth considering if your kid has a place to live for the summer in Chicago.
Thank you! That’s really helpful. I’m disappointed too as that was one of the things I thought they were going to be helping with.
Thank you – I will definitely save this info for future summers!
Summer after freshman year is a little tougher for the summer stock circuit. Some freshmen will get roles but auditions are generally over winter break/early spring (freshmen have only one college semester under their belts). S and two friends produced their own show after freshman year; it was quite a learning experience. He also taught at a local summer youth theater camp (also a great learning experience!). D1 came home and did a survival job (golf course during the day, catering some evenings). She’s looking at internships for this summer (summer after sophomore year) but has been told that they like upperclassmen SO - maybe survival or work at youth theater camp type job another summer.
@aberdeen2017 , My D is auditioning this year but went to the National Stage Combat Workshop last summer. It is a three week intensive program and will be on the campus at Louisiana Tech this summer, I believe. It had previously been at UNCSA. There are college kids, a few hs student and working professionals there. There is a BU faculty member very involved in stage combat who might could give some guidance. PM me if you want more info.
NTI could be a good fit.
http://www.nationaltheaterinstitute.org/programs/theatermakers/
my daughter had a great experience at BADA. She has also interned at a couple local theaters during the summers.
I’m bumping this up for any other parents of rising sophomores in BFA programs. Any and all ideas/advice for summer after Freshman year is welcome!
Does anyone have any info./insights on Shakespeare & Company of Lenox, MA or
The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey?
I know this is too late to be helpful for this season, but this might help someone down the road. My son is a rising sophomore with a straight acting BA focus at a Big 10 University in the Midwest. He’s at Commonwealth Shakespeare Company as an apprentice this summer and he loves it. He’s one of only two rising sophomores this year in the apprentice program–most are rising seniors or college grads. The nice thing about the two month CSC summer program is that they break it into stages for different levels of experience, and all the levels interact with each other. They have the Equity actors and the non-equity CSC2 company (pre-professional college graduates) who perform on Boston Common for the mainstage show, and the apprentice program for current college students, recent grads, or actors just seeking more training who perform in auxiliary shows at Babson College, where CSC resides, and in the greater Boston area. Some apprentices are also selected to be understudies for the mainstage show. Equity actors give master classes, the CSC2 company coaches apprentices on monologues and scene work, and other professionals provide extensive training on everything from voice, to text analysis, to movement. Although the apprentices do support work on Boston Common, they’re also performing and training for the entire summer. The summer actor training programs in the Midwest are limited, especially for younger college students, so CSC was a perfect option for our son to train and network on the East Coast during this first college summer break. He’s also earning EMC points, which is nice.
STNJ has a bunch of different summer programs. A friend did an internship there last summer and loved it, hopes to go back in the future.
Thanks for the info @sugarpiehoneybunch. My S will be a rising sophomore looking for summer opportunities. We live in SC and there are not any opportunities near us. Did your S have to audition? Also, did he need a car or do they provide transportation to all of the locations? Thanks!!
I’m sorry I missed your question when you asked it, but was glad to see on another thread that he was accepted! Glad it all worked out!