Too late too edit the above but of course I mean “their”, not there, thing 
And I also just realized I didn’t answer your second question fully. I think all of the things I mention in #2 above have made the talent pool more competitive: more students who already have talent and skill now interested in/aware of theatre who may not have been before social media; YouTube and other media sources showing students how high the level of competitiveness is among their peers and in top college programs, so they are training more to match those levels; and the artistic training provided by some coaches, who are in large part teachers (like the MTCA coaches), increasing the the technical skill levels of auditionees.