<p>So my D got rejected from the BFA program but accepted into the BA Theater Performance. Does anyone know if everyone is accepted into the BA? Is the BA a non-audition program? She is disappointed - feels it’s 2nd class. She got a sweet scholarship so we’re trying to convince her to consider it. Any info you have is MOST appreciated. </p>
<p>You should be able to find the 4-year plan for each major on the Rider website to see the differences and the similarities.</p>
<p>Thanks - my husband did that so we did the course requirements - wondered if the BA students can audition for the musicals? Can the BA audition at a later date for the BFA program? Are the BA students in class with the BFA students - same ballet ? Tap? etc.? And finally, is there a lot of interaction between the two groups? And what is the culture like between the two? Are the BFAs considered the elite and the BAs are less than… in some schools it’s a significant shift - in others it’s barely noticeable because they are in the same classes. </p>
<p>I would email Robin and/or Mariann, they are both very responsive. I believe a few of the BA’s chose to stay BA and not audition for BFA, isn’t that correct MTTwins?</p>
<p>My S is sophomore MT and I believe his particular dance classes are only MTs. Not sure if that was the case freshman year. Check with the school. I do know that the BA students can audition for the musicals and the MTs can audition for the plays. There were several MTs including my S in the recent play OUR TOWN, and I know several BA students were in last year’s spring musical SEVEN BRIDES. (Sorry I don’t keep up on all the exact casting out here on West Coast.) I don’t know about any culture difference or elitism, but I do know that the MTs are kept very busy with their MT classes and curriculum, as I’m sure the theatre performance kids are. However, in terms of “interaction” I will add that my S has four other roommates in his suite-style dorm this year, one is a BA theatre student, one is a pop music major and the other two are MTs, so they definitely socialize and interact on campus and at parties, etc. Best of luck in your decision making. If you PM me and are OK with connecting outside of CC, I can put you in touch with some theatre performances students I know via Facebook.</p>
So, I know this is a super old thread (my apologies if we’re not supposed to post on old threads), but I’m a current freshman Theatre Performance major at Rider, and can answer any questions people might have!
The BA Theatre Performance is auditioned, though not as selective as MT, from what I know. You can re-audition for MT later on–one of the people in my class re-auditioned last semester and got into the MT program. Theatre Performance is an acting degree, but we can sign up for voice lessons (you have to pay extra though) and can take dance classes if there’s room (there wasn’t this past semester). We do end up in the same acting classes though; there’s both TP and MT majors in my acting class right now.
As far as interaction/culture difference, there doesn’t seem to be that huge of a separation between the two. At least from my perspective, the Fine Arts department feels very much like a family. While we do have different classes and things like that, you end up seeing and interacting with people from other majors a lot, and everyone’s been really kind. I’m in a hall with a bunch of other freshmen fine arts majors, and we all seem to get along well. Every now and then, it feels like there’s a little bit of elitism coming from some people, but it really isn’t that noticeable or that big of a deal, and honestly, I think you’d probably find a little bit of that at any school you went to. But in general, it doesn’t feel like there’s much of that sort of separation between the two majors.
I know this response doesn’t really help with regards to the rest of the post, since those questions were asked so long ago, but if there’s anyone reading this in the future, I hope it helps a bit! 
Hi - do BA Theatre Performance majors get to audition for musicals and plays? Does the program offer more acting than the BFA MT? Thank you so much… my D just got accepted into the BA and trying to compare it with all the other options.
Hi, and congrats to your D! We do get to audition for both the musicals and the plays. Since TP is an acting degree, we’re required to audition for all the mainstage plays (except first semester freshman year), and auditioning for the musicals is optional. TP does have more acting than MT; there’s acting courses we take that the MTs don’t. And I haven’t looked at them in a while, but the School of Fine and Performing Arts page on Rider’s website has required courses lists for both majors, so those might also be helpful with comparing the two.