@owensfolks - my S doesn’t have a car and didn’t seem particularly interested in going off campus to the usual social gathering places (probably why he actually keeps a positive bank balance). When H and I visited, it was mostly to grab a meal (a few good local Indian, Middle Eastern, Mexican and Thai restaurants) and see MT/Theater productions. One exception is the amazing Wright-Patterson Air Force museum - if you go, allow PLENTY of time and wear your walking shoes.
@mom4bwayboy, thanks for explaining how the thread naming works. I get it now! @skieurope, now that this thread is renamed to cover 2018, feel free to remove the other thread I started. No reason to keep it out there. 
@MTfamily1 - In the past - unlike threads for non-MT/Theater college majors - the year of naming for the WSU “Talk” thread has corresponded to the fall of application/audition for rising HS seniors. Not the year of HS graduation or freshman entry to college. For us outlying MT/Theater types, the real nitty-gritty, getting down to brass tacks has been all about the pre-prep for applications, pre-screens, and auditions. This generally occurs WAY before the majority of muggle HS seniors have even realized they need to ask for their first letter of rec. That’s why the year on this thread title seemed to be “in arrears”. It was a precedent started before I took up the torch. Perhaps future thread starters will come up with something snazzier - maybe with jazz hands 
D is locked and loaded to spend a day at WSU in early April! I haven’t seen the itinerary that she received: But from what she told me about it, it is jam-packed and well organized. We are so excited.
Have a great trip. We went back in Feb. and my D had a great time and loved the program! We didn’t have enough time to look around Dayton which was unfortunate.
@owensfolks - hope you’re there on a day Edwin Drood is being performed and you scored some tickets. Have fun!
@mom4bwayboy sadly she’s gonna miss Drood. She is in a community production 4/6-8. But we have been very lucky to be there for the Fall musicals the past two years, so we KNOW that WSU’s productions are amazing.
If your senior ultimately decides to accept their place in the program, we have a great WSU MT/Acting parents group on Facebook.
My D is an accepted student for next fall in the BFA MT program. She and her father are their today sitting in on classes and meeting faculty and students. So excited!
@onewaytobroadway Congratulations to your D! Hope she has a great day.
@onewaytobroadway - hope your D had a great visit!
Thanks for your comments MT moms! I’m still in my decision making process. This an acting degree with singing and dance tacked on? I’m a little confused on the difference. The website and my acceptance says BFA in musical theatre. Can you help me understand?
Also, how is the vocal training? I think this would be the point that would be really important for me. I am a classical soprano but can also do some belt.
I’m very far from Dayton, so, I don’t know if I will be able to visit. I really wish I could. I know there’s a lot that can’t be measured without actually siting in.
Also, does everyone go to showcase? Are they still doing it the way they did recently where they went to workshops and made connections in NYC?
@mom4bwayboy can tell you for sure about this year’s Showcase - my D was last May & that’s what they did. All MT’s & Acting majors went. You can choose not to do it, but everyone is included.
It is definitely a BFA in Musical Theatre - you get training in acting, singing & dancing, but the degree is officially a BFA in Acting with a Musical Theatre emphasis. They train actors who can sing and dance.
The vocal training is phenomenal. Freshmen sing/dance for placement before classes start and get placed with a voice teacher and put in dance classes (if you end up in the wrong one, they’ll let you switch). You stay with that voice teacher the first year, and if it’s a good fit you can stay, or switch if it’s not. My D adored her voice teacher and stayed with her all 4 years.
Thank you for your quick response @MTmom2017! Good information.
@sparkledolphin - Ditto what @MTmom2017 said above. My S also loves his voice teacher and feels he has grown tremendously as a vocalist under his tutelage. I can’t say enough about the strength of the acting training in the MT BFA being what really sets these graduates apart from many of their peers from other programs (even nearby “top-tier”). Yes, they learn to sing very well. Yes, they learn to dance as well as the effort they choose to put into it. But strong, clear acting is the heart that brings the storytelling to life. A beautiful voice is a wonderful thing, but if the characters on stage don’t connect to each other and with the audience, it might as well be a concert with costumes.
If by, “does everybody go to showcase?” - you mean “do all the seniors go to NYC?” - the answer is that every senior has the option to do so. I believe one of S’s classmates is choosing not to go b/c he is not interested in going. Even those who will not officially graduate this April will be going. Yes, they will be doing workshops and networking during their time in NYC. I believe Casting Director Michael Cassara was at WSU this week giving the students feedback on their showcase material.
Good luck with your decision.
@sparkledolphin Good luck with your decision! My D is a freshman MT there and absolutely loves her classes and her professors. She has grown tremendously this year. She has dance every day, a 1 hr. private voice lesson each week, and classes in acting, movement, and speech for the actor. In her sophomore year, she’ll have an additional 1/2 hr. voice lesson w/ the voice teacher of her choosing. Make sure you check out Joe Deer’s Musical Theatre Initiative project. They bring in some fabulous talent to work with the kids!
Just heard from S that one of his classmates is no longer planning to participate in the NYC showcase b/c he just booked a national tour and will be joining them on the road. Anyone interested in this year’s seniors and their showcase plans might want to check out “WSU MT/Acting 2018 NYC Showcase Preview” on fb.
My D has been accepted and has a friend on the WL. Can anybody comment from years past about the likelihood of getting off the WL and when it starts to move? Thanks.
We know one current freshman girl who came off the WL last year but I can’t remember when. It was probably mid-April. When people start committing to schools is when spots start opening up.
My D is also on the waitlist. She auditioned in November - seems like a lifetime ago!