Musical Theatre - Page 2

jonesy67 · 09-24-2006, 09:28 AM

I think your son made a great choice in universities.
I do disagree that "well rounded" education in the Arts is neccessary.
Arts is a different world, a person either has talent or doesn't, it is not a ingredient that can be taught. It can be honed but not taught.
Passion and natural ability is much more important in the arts than traditional ciricculum. As for a "Plan B" , I would agree it is important to have a more well rounded education. My experience has been that unless you are in a really specialized area in the work force, ANY degree is all you need.
Most employers use "the degree" as a weeding out tool rather than a guage of someone's true abilities. A person can lack common sense, logic, experience and be of below wverage intelligence, still pull good grades and have the degree.
There is no substitute that replaces experience.
JMO.

MusThCC · 09-24-2006, 10:00 AM

Quote:

I do disagree that "well rounded" education in the Arts is neccessary.

I totally disagree with this premise. Smart, educated actors are far better able to make smart acting choices. Knowledge of history, sociology, trends in other arts in the period of the piece can provide crucial information for their formation of character.

texmex88 · 09-24-2006, 05:37 PM

i completely agree with you musthcc

kenmarksnj · 09-24-2006, 07:55 PM

i agree as well... which is why conservatories are NOT for everyone.

often, people decide to go to conservatories because they are not good with academics and just think they should dedicate themselves to performance. this is a major problem. i think if anything, people who are generally very good on the books should be the ones attending conservatories whereas people who are not as academically inclined would benefit from a liberal arts musical theatre curriculum.

edmondsg · 09-25-2006, 03:17 PM

I definitely agree with the above three posts. Jonesy67, I agree that much of "talent" comes naturally, but I don't see how you can deny that the more varied a performer's knowledge base, the more likely he is to understand various characters and be able to react appropriately during dialogue. This isn't to say that someone who doesn't have a 'well-rounded' education can't be an excellent performer and have long-term success in the industry, just that their odds aren't as good, in my opinion.

kenmarksnj · 10-02-2006, 02:32 PM

it all depends.

there are many peformers who allow their ego to get in their way and don't care to think outside the box. these performers NEED a well rounded education.

but there are some performers who just have what it takes and aren't quite as ignorant and really understand the way things work. and these people, who have been observant and embraced their intelligence from a young age, can enter conservatory programs if they choose. the extra education is always nice, but for some people, they have what they need in terms of brains. now it's time for the training.

Emonade · 10-16-2006, 07:54 PM

I am an interested transfer student. I am looking for a good fit for myself. I know I want to study MT and am therefore extremely interested in BFA's, however I love intellectual stimulation and am academically motivated so I feel I could thrive in a program that requires education outside of the major. I love how Northwestern is interested in educating the whole person and auditions musical theatre students after the freshman year. I have taken classes in my school's theatre department, but I have taken numerous general education classes as well. Transferring into Northwestern's program seems like an ideal fit! I know that I want to transfer into a MT program for next fall. I would love to attend Northwestern if this were possible. While I am willing to start over as freshman with a BFA, it would be so great to transfer into such a good program and not be behind! Would I be able to audition/be accepted into the program as a transfer student for this next fall (2007)? I know that it has been said that the freshman year with the theatre faculty will have an influence on the MT auditions. Would this put me at a significant disadvantage? I have spent one year without a MT major already, I really want a program that I can start this fall.

accept · 10-30-2006, 02:17 PM

I have a question for edmondsg. Is your son in the MT certificate program at NU? Or planning on applying this spring?

msd317 · 05-30-2007, 09:06 PM

Wow. I really enjoyed what you had to say, edmondsg. I am currently a student at CAP21 but my dream school is Northwestern. I like NYU's program, but its very confining. At NU, you make your own conservatory, so I've heard... I would choose NU over NYU any day...
p.s.- the students at NYU think they are so hot because they got in... but as someone on here said, it is based on a four minute audition! (Some kids couldn't sing when they got here!) I would prefer to get into a program (the MT certificate) because of my work ethic and talent, rather than off of a first impression.

CharlotteStarlet · 05-30-2007, 11:58 PM

It is interesting to hear all these great things about NU, it sounds like a fantastic program, but something that concerns me is what happens if you are going there planning on/hoping to study MT, then come freshman year you audition and don't get accepted into the certificate program? Does that happen often, or does it seem like the people who are really interesting in pursuing MT end up getting in? It just seems like a big risk to enroll in a school without any idea what you will be studying, especially if you know when you start that you want to do MT.

edmondsg · 05-31-2007, 12:23 AM

Yes, 'accept' -- my son is thrilled that he just got into the MT program at NU -- auditions were a couple of weeks ago. He is finishing up his freshman year and loves it there.

Regarding possibly not getting in after spending a year at NU, yes, it's a risk, but in my opinion not as upsetting as getting cut from a program at the end of freshman year, as some colleges do. Also, even if you don't get into the MT program at NU as a freshman, you're still a Theatre major, and can always try again the following year or transfer to another school.

edmondsg · 05-31-2007, 12:53 AM

It's very much a personal choice whether it's worth it to risk going to NU and hoping for MT. If U Mich is your first choice, for example, and you get in, then of course you wouldn't risk NU. But if it's a tough call, such as it was for my son (he didn't get into UM, and NU and Cap21 were pretty much tied for 2nd place), then things get more complicated. He was beyond thrilled to be accepted to Cap21, but for reasons mentioned above decided to risk NU.

As soozievt mentioned earlier, it's such an individual thing, and everyone has different motivations. As anyone who has been through the stress of auditoning for MT programs knows, it's a blessing to have choices at all. Good luck to everyone.

soozievt · 05-31-2007, 01:07 AM

edmondsg...it is so great to hear from you and the update! A huge congrats to your son for getting into the MT Certificate program at Northwestern by audition at the end of his freshman year. YAY!!!!!!!!

edmondsg · 05-31-2007, 01:44 AM

Thanks, Susan!! I haven't been on CC as much since the college decision was settled, but I still get my notification emails now and then when someone posts questions about NU, and little by little my interest in CC is coming alive again. I'm finding I still love reading the boards, just from a different perspective. Wish I had more time (work, parents, etc.), but I always get my CC time in when I can! Hope all is well with your daughters!

I was thinking about you this weekend when we visited NYC. We were looking for one more show to fill the fourth day of our visit, and I was wishing NYU had something running. It just isn't a college production time of year, I guess.

soozievt · 05-31-2007, 02:17 AM

G....the school year is over at NYU and so no productions are going on. I know of several productions in the city in which almost every cast member, director, or even writer, are Tisch students or recent alums. None of these took place this past weekend, that I know of. I hope you had a great time. Did you catch a Bdway show? I was there earlier this month and saw Spring Awakening.