NYU/Tisch MT Questions

hapey123
Mon, 22 Sep 2014 16:51:01 +0000

Hi, I’m a current sophomore transfer doing Musical Theatre at NYU Tisch. Although I am only in my fourth week of first year, I can still clarify some things for you.


First off, Tisch and Steinhardt are not studios, they are colleges within New York University. Tisch is the school of the arts, while Steinhardt is the school of culture, human development, and education. They do both offer a musical theatre program. The main difference is do you want to study musical theatre from a focus on acting or a focus on music. Steinhardt offers a Bachelors of Music degree so naturally you’re training would be focused more on music and you would take less dance and acting classes. In Tisch, you get a Bachelors of Arts degree in Theatre. Thus, the training is more focused on acting, although there is a good amount of voice and dance mixed in there (more so than Steinhardt). In short, if you want to focus on voice go to Steinhardt. If you want a more equal balance of all three disciplines, go to Tisch. Note: You can only apply to one school within NYU so you will have to choose.
There is no degree in Musical Theatre in Tisch. In the department of drama at Tisch, the only degree they give is a B.A. in Theatre. They do have a musical theatre studio however…


…3. Tisch drama has 6 acting studios: Meisner, Strasberg, Stella Adler, Playwrights, Experimental Theatre Wing, and New Studio on Broadway. To clarify, New Studio on Broadway (NSB) is one of six studios, and is the only one to offer a Musical Theatre program at Tisch.


The formula basically is : Grades/SAT score (50%) + Audition/Interview (50%) = Admission Decision (100%)


When I auditioned April 2014 the director of admission told me there was a 30% of getting in.


PRACTICE. Hone your skills, and figure out what strengths and weaknesses are. If you never took a dance class, I highly suggest you take as much dance as possible. While, NYU takes many non-dancers, they need to see that you are teachable. Also, get as much experience as possible. Do shows at school and in the community. Really just learn as much as you can. Once junior year comes or maybe even sophomore year, choose your auditions songs and monologues that are gonna show you off, but also be comfortable for you to perform under pressure.
As for my first impressions of the program, it is really great. It’s hard…especially in the beginning when you are adjusting. They are training you to learn how to work outside of class so you will have a good work ethic as a professional. They have high standards and it forces you to rise to the occasion. From what I can tell, if you put in a lot you get a lot in return. PM if you have more questions.


I hope this was helpful.