Ask me about USC Theatre!

LunaLovesGood
Sun, 27 May 2012 05:25:16 +0000

dainee- I should preface this by saying I’m not a BFA but I can give you feedback based on what I’ve observed and the applicable experiences.

I did some research into how many “elective” units you would have which is what you can use to take Musical Theatre classes and it looks like (If you double up the diversity requirement with a GE or the one Theatre required category by picking a class that fulfills both) you would have a total of 28 disposable units in your 4 years. That means, in theory, you could complete the minor since a couple of things do count for both but in all honesty I wouldn’t even worry with it. The minor is good but there are classes in it you don’t desperately need. I know the calculations are a bit different from the catalog but that is because USC bases this on a 16-unit course load but you can take up to 18 units without getting charged. Extra units can be purchased (with approval, I think…) and they are like $1500+ a unit if you really want to take extra classes beyond that.

Small rant though. As evident by my research my best advice to anyone reading this coming to USC Theatre is Do not let the advisers tell you want can and can’t do. Research it yourself and plot your own schedules. If you can make it work then it will work. Maybe have them look it over if anything at all. The advisers are used to reading off templates so when a student says “I was thinking of trying this this way” they are like fish out of water.

It falls to you, however, to evaluate your ability to handle the course work you place on yourself. I can’t tell you how the BFA classes are difficulty/work wise but you’ll have to deter main if you can take above and beyond what is required or not.

Yes voice classes are available to theatre students. 30min is 1 unit and an hour is 2 units. You sign up through the music department (you just need to sing a paper to get D-clearance) and a voice teacher contacts you at the beginning of the semester. It cost extra ($350 for 30min. and $700 for an hour) and is usually taught by a grad student. They work around your schedule so you don’t need to worry about that. There is also Class voice. It is 2-units and doesn’t cost extra but I don’t think it’s worth it from personal experience.

I think it’s easy to “take the same classes” which really is just the one class, Musical Theatre Workshop, unless you really want to take Broadway history and Guitar/Piano. You’ll have to audition to get in the class but you’ll probably be fine. There are two levels and you can take the same class multiple times if you want. You can also take Musical Theatre Audition which is a 3 unit course offered by the SOT and there are various 2-unit dance classes. For these you just register (I think there is technically an audition for Music Theatre Audition but I don’t know anyone who got rejected from the class.)

As for shows, I’m not sure how much you’ve looked at the curriculum but shows are built into the BFA program. You’ll automatically do one show a semester starting your second semester sophomore year. It’s usually a play but this year the BFA juniors did a musical so it depends on the class make up. Second semester senior year you do the senior showcase instead of a traditional play.

Outside of that for musicals the Music Theatre Reparatory (aka MTR, a student run organization [- Link](http://www.uscmtr.com/) ) does 2-3 Student Productions a year and there are always other student produced musicals. I’ve seen Tommy and Spring Awakening happen in the past and this year Brand New Theatre did a student written musical. You can usually do student productions and be in SOT shows so if you can get in and can handle the extra hours there’s nothing stopping you. You can also do the SOT (like I said they are very loose with that “no shows” rule) musical your first year because you won’t be in a required SOT show yet. There are also student produced plays you can do and that works the same way as the student produced musicals.

I think it will be hard to do everything (class, 1 or 2 shows, work-study, and have a life). Impossible? Maybe not, but hard. You’ll have to see if you find a job that fits.

IRC is great. It is one of the newest dorms so it’s really nice and it’s right next to Parkside which is (well, before the renovations they are doing now so this might change) the better dining hall. You get elevators and air conditioning so consider yourself as winning. I lived in Arts and Humanities which is really similar but I am told IRC is a bit quieter. I don’t think you should worry though because you will make plenty of friends in theatre classes.

Everyone has a different experience as far as around campus goes. I mean, it’s LA so there is stuff to do. It’s better with a car but you’ll know someone that has one. Directly around campus there are always parties on the row and in other various places. There are also Football Games (buy the season ticket, just buy it.) and other events on campus that are usually open to students. SOT gets discount tickets from Center Theatre Group you can buy ($10-20) and Visions and voices has allot of great events you should check out too.