Thanks, goldfiftyone. I appreciate that you took my question seriously, as it was a serious question. It does sound like grads from U of A are working in their chosen field and making a name for themselves, which is terrific and the outcome we all hope you all have. Please let us know about what you yourself are doing, now that you have graduated! Congratulations! (Or, as they say in Wicked: congratulotions.)
I was a little intrigued by something you said. You stated:
<<...the school owes it to the students and to the paying public to make decisions that keep the productions at as high a level as possible.>>
I agree that the school owes it to the STUDENTS to keep training and programs at the highest possible quality. But why does the school owe it to the "paying public" to keep the productions at a high level? Certainly, I would agree that anyone handing over any money for a ticket ought to expect to see the best production a theater company/school, etc. can put on. And certainly, a school trying to make a name for itself wants to present the highest possible quality production.
But a school's (and University of Arizona and all the other college level BFA and BA and BM programs in musical theater are based at schools!) absolute priority obligation is to its *students*, who are the people that the admissions committee has decided to take on for the purposes of educating them. This is true whether a student is attending college to study astronomy and physics, or musical theater. Of course, colleges want the best possible students, both to keep work at a high level, and (more practically) so that those students will be achievers who will later go out into the world and bring prestige, etc. to the name of the school.
It's a very complicated subject. Thanks for sharing your experiences and for answering my questions!
NMR