<p>Clarifying a few things…</p>
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<p>The courses that are not the studio/training classes at Tisch, are divided between liberal arts subjects and THEATER STUDIES. At NYU, besides training in theater/performance skills, you also must study theater itself (more so than I have seen at some other BFA programs that may have one or two theater studies type classes). But these classes are still about theater and not other subjects. Basically, each semester, you train full time three days per week…not sure if that adds up to about 24 hours per week? and then take ONE liberal arts class and ONE Theater Studies class. So, while theater studies is not training itself, it is still courses about theater.</p>
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<p>This is only PARTLY true. Tisch owns theater space in the Tisch building (my D’s mainstage musical was in a Tisch owned theater space). For even bigger productions, it does rent out Skirball. However, for studio productions put on by each studio, each studio has its own performance spaces (but these are not that large!). So, CAP21 or Playwrights Horizons, for example, put on shows in their own studio spaces set up for performances. Student run productions like GAP shows are put on in small spaces in the Tisch building. Mainstage shows are either in Skirball which they rent out or in the Tisch building’s performance spaces. I’d say that the issue is not so much their own spaces but that many of these are small. </p>
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<p>NYU/Tisch does have support systems in place for post graduate career building. But further than that, ONE advantage with NYU/Tisch is that there is NETWORKING while STILL IN SCHOOL. While I do not believe that one needs to attend a theater program in NYC, now that my child does, I have observed some clear advantages and one of these is that there is networking from day one right in the city. I know my kid is constantly involved in things in the city (many for professional pay) because she is right there and constantly one thing leads to another and the opportunities are right there. Not a week goes by before she tells me of a new opportunity she has due to networking with professionals in the city and at NYU that comes up due to being there. She told me of one just last night…someone saw her perform at Joe’s Pub last month…then hired her for a professional gig in ten days and then she rehearsed for that yesterday and was asked to record on a demo CD of a new musical along with some well known recent graduates from BFA programs who are currently on Broadway. Things like this happen a lot to her by virtue of both being at NYU and the contacts/networking there and also by being in NYC now for the four years of school and not arriving on that scene after graduation. She has enough networking in place that she can get paid work upon graduation…she already does now. CMU of course has fantastic networking once students graduate and move to NYC or LA.</p>