<p>My own kids also went to the local public high school, and a PA school would have been a boarding school for them–not just undesirable but completely unaffordable for us. </p>
<p>That said, I do think Fishbowlfreshman has a point. You can view the top PA schools just like elite boarding schools and other elite private/magnet schools. There is just no denying they give you an edge–statistically of course, not on a case by case basis. But though it gives you an edge, it’s not a be-all or end-all, and it may not be appropriate for your own child. </p>
<p>To use an analogy: My non-actor daughter got into a top LAC from her regular public high school, with no tutoring, training, expensive programs, etc. A significant portion of the student body went to elite private schools or boarding schools. They also form a clique - not in an intentionally mean way - and keep their connections during break, over the summer, after graduation. </p>
<p>The same is probably true of theatre. That doesnt’ mean you need to be in a PA school, though, and probably my own kids wouldn’t have cared for one even if we could have afforded sending them away, which we couldn’t. Far more Americans are unable to make use of PA schools than those who can. To bring up another topic, what I worry about is the increasing attack on the arts in our Orwellian “Race To The Top.” Arts programs are being slashed and downsized and diminished all across the country. It’s awful. I feel like we just squeaked by, but I worry about the upcoming generation, a great deal. Public schools have been such an incredible equalizer of opportunity and taste for theatre & music.</p>