<p>My whole life I have been very confident. I have ALWAYS known I've wanted to be an actress/singer ever since I was 3. There was not one time in my life I ever considered doing something else. Because of my immense passion for the arts I started taking acting class when I was 6 and voice lessons when I was 7. I've also had a few years of dance. In addition to that I've taken Drama in high school all four years and chorus for 3 years (and chorus in school every single year from 4th grade onto 8th). I've been in an obscene amount of shows, and I've never gotten an ensemble part. I was cast as Sarah Brown in Guys and Dolls as a sophomore in a hugely competitive school. I feel as if I think I am good enough to get into a theatre school, and I know that's all I've ever wanted, but for some reason right now only 2 months away from my auditions I can't help but to feel massively worried that even with all of my rigorous training, maybe I'm not good enough and maybe there was something more I could have done. When I look at this list I've made just now, it seems as if I am more than qualified, but it's kind of completely out of my hands. I worry that the monologues/songs I've picked, while difficult and interesting somehow aren't going the extra mile musical theatre schools are looking for.</p>
<p>I don't really know what this post was supposed to accomplish, but I do know that I want this more than anyone could ever imagine. </p>
<p>I'm only applying to 2 schools, Marymount Manhattan and Pace. </p>
<p>I strongly advise that you apply to more schools. Although it sounds like you are indeed highly qualified, every year there are some very talented students who don’t receive the desired acceptances because they did not apply to a well-balanced list of schools. </p>
<p>Any school that requires an audition cannot be regarded as a “safety” school, and you need at least one safety school on your list that you would be happy to attend. </p>
<p>Please understand that I am not suggesting that you are not “good enough”. Just keep in mind that MMC, for example, reportedly auditions about 1,000 students each year. Only a very small percentage can be accepted. </p>
<p>And please don’t think that a school must be in Manhattan to be worthwhile. If you prefer to stay in the Northeast part of the country, there are many excellent schools within driving distance of New York City.</p>
<p>I suggest that you take some time to read through the threads on the Musical Theater forum here. There is one called “How Many Schools Should You Audition For?” that is particularly interesting. Most well-informed posters on this forum advise that you audition for at least 6 schools. Good luck, and feel free to stay in communication – there are many well-informed posters here who will be happy to help and advise you.</p>
<p>I think if you want a career in musical theater, you should learn to live with worry. Off the top of my head, here’s a list of things that an actor can worry about:</p>
<p>Am I good enough? How many people out there are just as talented as I am? How many people out there are just as talented as I am, but with more dance training?</p>
<p>Am I the type they’re looking for?</p>
<p>Am I too short or too tall to be paired with the actor they’ve already hired? Am I gaining weight?</p>
<p>Will I get injured? What will I do if my knee goes out? Will I get nodules on my vocal chords?</p>
<p>Do I know how long this job will last, or what my next job will be?</p>
<p>I want to be on Broadway, but am I willing to settle for Tulsa, if that’s where I can find work?</p>
<p>Am I willing to forgo having a family if it comes down to that? It’s hard to raise children if you’re working from 7:00-11:00 p.m., plus a couple of matinees, and you’re taking dance classes and going out on auditions during the days. It’s even kind of hard to have a love life.</p>
<p>Honestly, I think worrying about being good enough is appropriate, but it’s only the tip of the iceberg. A little bit like those posters elsewhere on CC who want to go to Harvard, Yale and Princeton, you have to worry not only whether you’re good enough, but also whether you’ll be selected from among the glut of actresses who are “good enough.” Assuming that you have sufficient talent, you can have a lot of control over the kind of training you get; in many cases, talented actresses can ensure that they’re “good enough” to do the work. What they can’t control is whether they’ll be selected–whether they’ll be selected for college musical theatre programs when they’re 18, and later whether they’ll be selected for roles.</p>
<p>Not to make you worry more, but only applying to two schools seems VERY risky. What if those two schools already have your type in their program? I think that you also need to realize that the majority of the girls auditioning are going to be really talented (as you seem to be as well). </p>
<p>I don’t know anything about Marymount and a little about Pace. Do you know how many audition at each? What about acceptance numbers? </p>
<p>My D and I watched last year’s audition cycle closely as we knew a lot of the kids going through the process. We were really surprised by which kids got into which programs and even more surprised by some really talented girls not being accepted into more programs than they were. It was VERY eye-opening. </p>
<p>Whatever your decision, best wishes to you!</p>
<p>I agree that you need to be able to handle the uncertainty and worry of being a performer. Nothing is set in stone. Everything is subjective. The better you are, chances are the better your competition will be.</p>
<p>At orientation as a freshman, D sat down next to a girl who was in her program. They got to talking about high school and what they did in terms of shows and ec’s.</p>
<p>Their conversation summed it up:</p>
<p>What was your favorite role? --both answered Belle in Beauty and the Beast.</p>
<p>What ec were you most proud of? --both were proud to be President of their high school.</p>
<p>So, if you think it is competitive to get into a program, just wait until you have made it in! Your classmates will all be accomplished and you will no longer be the shining star you were in high school.</p>
<p>And I am not talking about students being cut throat or crazy competitive. I think students in my D’s program are very supportive. It’s just that with programs being so selective, all the students who have made it are very talented.</p>
<p>Like mentioned above you need to apply to at least 8 - 10 schools. As of today, there is only one thing you can do to improve your chances. DANCE. DANCE, DANCE. It is the only performance skill where additional intensive work will benefit you in the least amount of time. </p>
<p>Dance was very intense at Pace last year. My daughter is more singer/actress and had we known what she was in for…and since it really wasn’t a school she wanted to attend anyway at that point…we would never have bothered. Be warned.</p>
<p>No matter how good you are, you need to apply/ audition to more than 2 schools, especially if you want this so much! The percentage of applicants that these and most other MT schools accept is so small, and girls have it even tougher than boys. Is there some reason you are limiting it to just these two schools?</p>
<p>I agree with the majority here, you need to consider applying to more than 2 schools. It is crazy competitive and I have seen kids who in the past two years applied to a very limited number of programs and did not get in anywhere because they had only auditioned at 2-3 schools. You never know what the schools are looking for, and as others have said, I have seen extremely talented kids not gain acceptance to the program of their choice.
This board is a wealth of knowledge and people are more than willing to help out in whatever way they can in disussing the programs their children are in, how they like it, what they wished they had done, etc.</p>
<p>Regardless of how many schools you’re auditioning at (though I agree that you should audition for more), sadly fear and insecurity is a part of this business. It’s always going to be present when you’re auditioning for schools, when you get to school, and definitely once you graduate. I’m a junior in a BFA program now, and I still struggle with it! However, I have learned that being scared will NEVER help you. Worrying about not being good enough will only stunt you. So I know it’s hard, but try your best NOT let fear take over. Be proud of and gain confidence from your strengths and accomplishments, and be humbled (but not defeated) by the things you still need to work on. And whatever you do, do not compare yourself to other people. Remember that schools are not looking for finished products. No one can EVER be a finished product because there’s always things to work on. All you can do is show the best “you” that you can. And, like said above, if you have a balanced list of schools, there will be a a place for you! Sorry if that sounded a little “preachy,” but it has helped me SO much over the years. If you need any help or have any questions about auditions or anything else, feel free to contact me. Good luck!</p>
<p>My daughter and I just saw “Kiss Me Kate” at Pace. The women were all terrifyingly talented. I would heed everyone’s advice and apply to more schools. Also: have you done any mock auditions or had any coaching? If you want some professional feedback on your song and monologue choices and can afford it, I would recommend MTCA or ArtsBridge.</p>
<p>jrose, it’s all part of a journey-- you’re journeying toward your dream/goal, and along the way you want to love what you’re doing even as you meet obstacles and disappointments. Apply to more schools, and plan what you will do in the worst case scenario-- maybe a year off to prepare better, maybe an acting studio in New York…as long as you’re making progress, learning, finding ways around, over, and under the obstacles, you’ll feel great. Don’t give yourself too few options though!</p>
<p>My son has the same fears. Here is what I told him: Every single high-school senior who walks into an audition or a sports sports/academic competition where they are being evaluated on talent has the same inferiority complex.
Guess what: You may not have it. You may not be good enough. But you know what’s worse than that, NOT KNOWING and forever looking back and wondering “What if…?.”
I agree with others that you need to audition at some safety schools - and preferable before the first-choices…But you need to chase that dream.</p>
<p>You really should apply to more schools as everyone here has said, and for many programs the deadline, I think, is December 1. Of course you could always take a year or semester off as has also been suggested. Getting in will only really be step one. So many students go down that road and don’t “make it” to broadway or end up “in the business.” </p>
<p>I think it is only natural to wonder after doing really well in high school whether you are “good enough” on a bigger scale. I hope you will apply more places and I hope you did the early audition at Marymount as I believe that means you would find out sooner there rather than later. Even so, if you get it there you owe it to yourself to apply other places, see what happens, and then compare options. Many threads here advise applying to non- audition programs as well. Those colleges probably have a January 1st deadline or a deadline even later than that. Maybe spend your energy looking into more options so you feel prepared for whatever happens. Getting and being prepared can go a long way toward taking focus off of your fears :)</p>
<p>DONT WORRY! Its easy to get yourself in that place, but you are a theatre person, so i promise you that you have an edge on the rest of the world in life already. What I mean by that is if you dont get into any schools at all (as i am sure after all of these helpful posts you will realize that 5-8 would be a much better number) you will be able to pick another major and succeed exceptionally. So go audition, enjoy it, learn from it, and be prepared to accept any results.</p>