Cmu Summer Program Questions - Page 3

dramachick25 · 05-10-2006, 03:58 PM

Hi Everyone. I just called in last week and found out that I was admitted into the Drama school for Acting. I now have a few questions...

1) How many people are in the acting portion of the school, I understand that between 100 and 150 kids are normally accepted into the Drama school, but I asume many of them are MT kids, so how many are in specifically Acting?

2) Will I have classes with JUST the acting kids, or will many of my classes include MT kids?

3) How much Homework is there and what does it consist of? I have heard you spend A LOT of time in the library researching plays, but what all does that entail.... script analysis? character work?

4) Do you have all different teachers or are many of them the same? Also, are there multiple teachers for each subject?

5) and finally, I understand there are night work shops you can take, but many people don't actually hear about them. Where do I find notices for the workshops and how do I sign up?

Thanks so much for all your tips and info.

BroadwayWannabe · 05-10-2006, 04:46 PM

There are definitely fewer people at CMU pre-college for acting than musical theater. I'm gonna say there were about 30....but I honestly don't remember exactly.

Some of your classes will include MT kids....those classes would be Acting, Audition, Improv, Directing/Playwriting, and Dramatic Literature. Your other classes (voice and speech, movement....) will just be acting majors because Musical Theater majors do not take those classes.

In terms of homework, you have to read a play once a week for Dramatic Literature. There is also some reading for the book you read in Audition class. It varies from teacher to teacher what kind of assignments they give you. Some might say on Friday, "Okay, meet with your scene partner and be prepared to do X in front of the class on Monday." others might do something else. But it's all fun and good.

You will have different teachers for everything....Some teachers teach more than one subject, so you may or may not have one teacher for two things. I had the same teacher for Audition and Directing, but he was amazing, so it was great!

Anyone who spends anytime hanging out in Purnell will see the notices for evening workshops. There is a huge board in the lobby that has notices about everything and that's where there are sign-ups for the evening workshops.

dramachick25 · 05-13-2006, 11:25 AM

Hey guys. Thanks for the help, but I have one more question. Where are the drama kids typically housed? What kind of rooms are typically given to the drama kids (standard/prime, double/single)?

BrendanN · 05-13-2006, 11:58 AM

Everyone is in Moorewood Gardens, regardless of what department you're in. From what I gathered, they didn't try too hard to put drama kids together (I was in with a science major) but that's totally fine. The rooms really vary. I was in a split-double with a private bathroom, which was great. I had friends in a suite (2 open bedrooms, 2 people in each, sharing 1 private bathroom). Some rooms had 3 or 4 people in them, while others had only 1. There's really no way to tell. I would say that the best rooms I saw were D tower, I think the 6th floor... They generally had 3-4 people in them, were fairly spacious with hardwood floors and high, vaulted ceilings, which made them much cooler than the rest. The worst, in my opinion, were the rooms in E tower. They were pretty utilitarian and had only communal bathrooms. I was in B tower and liked it a lot.

BroadwayWannabe · 05-13-2006, 12:04 PM

yay D6! that's what i was in lol!

BroadwayWannabe · 05-13-2006, 02:38 PM

the wings seemed to be alphabetical. all the girls in my wing were the same point in the alphabet as i am.

dramachick25 · 05-13-2006, 03:18 PM

hahah I hope it's not, cuase if it is, my last name starts with T, so I'd probably be in E tower.

dramachick25 · 05-14-2006, 09:50 AM

Hahah, sorry guys, YET ANOTHER QUESTION!

I was looking at the calandar and noticed that July 4th is on a Tuesday, and I was talking to my parents about possibly coming back home July 1st (Sat) and going back to CMU on te 4th (Tue). Is this possible? I understand that there is no classes on July 4th, but there will be class on the 3rd, so I'd be missing a day. Is this allowed? Am I allowed to leave for a few days and come back? Or is this not a wise decision at all.

Oh, ok, another question.
My best friend is also involved in theatre, on the tech side, and would love to come spend a weekend with me. My mom is under the impression that it would probably be okay with the people if my friend stayed in my dorm for the weekend, but this seems really weird to me. So am I allowed to have a friend come up for a few days (we live outside DC so it isnt a bad trip, plus I have tons of family in the Pittsburg area) or is this not allowed at all? My friend is going to miss me a lot, and was one of the only people (okay the only person) who didnt reallly want me to go to CMU.

Thanks for your help guys.

BroadwayWannabe · 05-14-2006, 11:31 AM

in terms of the leaving, i can't speak for whether or not you have class July 3rd, but if you don't, you are allowed to go home for the weekend as long as the proper paperwork is in from your parents. a lot of people went home during parents weekend and came back sunday night. you definitely won't have class july 4 (unless maybe you didn't have class July 3, but did on july 4). you'll get a day off no matter what lol...i must advise, though, you do get a lot of homework over the weekend. the weekend harry potter came out, my friends and i read the whole book in one day (started 1 pm, finished 11 pm)....while we were glad we read it, it did put us behind on some of our work....all this work is great fun, but it still is a lot...so while i was still spending a lot of time over the weekend hanging with my friends, i still was practicing, reading plays for dramatic lit, etc

as far as your friend staying in the dorm, i have recollection that they said outside friends could come visit the dorms and could be in the dorms until curfew...i don't think friends were allowed to sleep in the dorms, but i'm not positive. you might want to call the school about that.

dramachick25 · 05-14-2006, 11:37 AM

Thanks for that info. After I posted it I realized that I could just have my friend drive up with my parents during parent weekend. But I will still ask about her sleeping in my dorm (just getting like an aeromatress or sumthing) cause I'm sure she would love to see what I'm up to.

kaysmom · 05-14-2006, 06:43 PM

It does say in the handbook that there could be NO over night guests. So I am guessing that they are not allowed unless some kind of exception is made or something.

In terms of 4th of July, there is a field trip to the amusement park that day for all of the students who want to attend. It will probably be crowded but my daughter really wants to go!

dramachick25 · 05-14-2006, 07:04 PM

I really want that handbook. When did everyone get theres, because I overnighted all of my paperwork (I think) on April 28th, and they had recieved my stuff and accepted me by May 4th (within 6 days!)

But now I am anxiously waiting for my letter/invoice and that handbook. At least I know I got in, but I'm tired of waiting for that handbook. I really want all of my information so I'm not in the dark (although everyone has helped me immensly.)

kaysmom · 05-15-2006, 05:40 AM

We got our handbook a few weeks after sending in the $200 deposit. Which was back in the beginning of April. I'm sure you will be getting it soon!

MotherMoo · 05-15-2006, 10:09 AM

dramachick25,
We sent our deposit via Express Mail on 4/19 and received the handbook about 2 weeks later on 5/3. My guess is that you should be receiving the handbook either today or in the next couple of days.

evasmom · 05-15-2006, 10:35 AM

dramachick - Also some of your questions can be answered on the CMU pre-college web site. Look under "parents", they do suggest that leaving the program for a weekend is not a good idea.