Penn State, Texas State and Otterbein all offered walk ins this year at one of the Unifieds and they are all “top tier” as far as statistical competitiveness and I think they are all pre-screen schools.
Other competitive schools that had walk ins were University of Arizona and Ball State and they are statistically difficult to get accepted.
@lojosmo thank you!
Not sure why people are making these lists of how/why department heads have changed. Just do your research and visit the schools, talk to students and look at alumni. CC gets a bad name because of all the unfounded speculation. Vince Cardinal rocks and as you know, Brent Wagner is still there and very much a part of things. How I wish I could take his history of musical theater class!!!
We teach our children to be careful of what they post on social media so that it doesn’t come back and bite them. They learn to be careful what they say in public since you never know who is listening. The same goes for adults especially in the field of education. More than one educator has lost their job because of a social media post. Social media doesn’t show voice inflection so comments can be interpreted in many ways. When I read the posts, I interpreted a couple as leaning toward the snarky side, yet when my dd read them, she didn’t. Off the cuff comments can easily be misinterpreted. At the end of the ruff day, and exasperated “I’m ready to retire” can range anywhere from I’m leaving to it’s time for bed. We have all, at one time or another, say “that’s it, I’ve had it” or “that’s it I’m done” but are back at work the next day but it is from these same time of comments that rumors get started. Imagine saying one of those comments at the end of a Friday and showing up on Monday with everyone surprised that your there since I heard that you quit on Friday. As adults we have heard those comments for years from people and chalk it up to blowing off steam and would be surprised if they didn’t show up the next day. With kids it isn’t as ingrained so their interpretation can be different.
@proudmamajo my S was accepted also for 2023 class MT. Just wondering about the small campus. It seems confined. Does she feel like it’s a true campus experience. My son also likes the big campus experience, but we seem to like the program at viterbo. Wonder if you can comment if you feel like your D will get professional, triple threat training.
Another frustration with this process that I’d like to hear how you all have addressed? Most private scholarship applications are due 3/1 in our area and most want to know what college my son will be attending and costs, ect…and here we are awaiting these final decisions! Grrrrr…I will speak to his guidance counselor Monday, but any suggestions?
Another point of view about MT department heads leaving… the founder of CAP21, Frank Ventura, retired from running the BFA program (after 30 years!) while D was a student. It was all VERY quiet; the students and parents had no idea what was coming. One day Frank was there, and the next, he was replaced by Henry Fonte, who previously led programs at Hartt and UMiami. There was barely a blip in the radar. Let me tell you something, and this is the truth: the program got better and better, in fact, it’s exploded. Molloy College has poured money into the BFA program - the Madison Theatre is state-of-the-art, and the new Manhattan Center is stunning. The faculty is top-notch; many Broadway performers and master classes. Henry Fonte has brought a new vitality to a venerated MT program - the vibe in the Manhattan Center is electric. And are the grads under Henry booking work? You bet they are. Change, my friends, is not always a bad thing.
Kudos to Baldwin Wallace for running a superbly organized on campus audition day. What a change from some of the pressured chaos of unifieds. Excellent and informative sessions, chance for the kids to observe a master class with students in the program, fun dance call, separate lunches for parents and kids, different optional Q&A sessions, tours, etc. Audition was friendly with The-program-director-who-shall-not-be-named-but-who-is-NOT-leaving?? and several other faculty. Needless to say, D loved it. Well done BW
@CanaDad we agree about the bw on campus audition experience. D went for acting but still an great day and awesome experience. We stayed for their performance of cabaret and it was AWESOME
In Q and A - Did anyone ask Vicky how she felt about CC? I would love to hear her answer =))
laugh aside - I really would be interested to hear what she had to say. As @GloriaVaughn said earlier - social media can be tricky - but it’s part of the biz. Would she acknowledge the recent brouhaha? Would she use it as a teachable moment? I am “real life” friends with someone in biz who was part of comments stream - and there is more to story …
Yes I do think she is getting strong professional triple threat training at Viterbo. Coming into the program, she had the least experience in acting and that is becoming one of her strongest suits. The dance program is amazing. Check out one of the dance instructors, Shane Rhoades bio… great instruction and a wealth of knowledge. The students get a lot of private vocal instruction. D vocals have really grown. One of the things I like is there is a lot of focus on training to do things the correct way so that you don’t risk injury in your career; vocals and knees still need to be sting when you are 40.
@singoutlouise – I agree with you that unfounded speculation is not desired (what good does that do?), but I do view CC as a place for its members to share information… although no one has to share, only those who want to.
In fact, without the research shared with me by many CC members, I don’t know where our family would be.
I’m so thankful for everyone who has shared information with me and I attempt to share as well whenever I can. When this process ends, there will be a long list of people to thank. The research shared has been invaluable.
It’s helpful to understand where department leadership is new because I will focus more closely on any changes in those programs that may occur. There are so many programs that our family can’t afford to spend our time evenly on each program; I realize that some families may not face that time restriction, but we do. Every family faces different situations and challenges.
@toowonderful well that piques everyones interest!
@NYKaren - I am a woman of mystery… no, not really. But I want to respect my friend and not throw them under the bus. Short/slightly obscured version: public perception is a BIG deal in this industry. Think about it - whenever a “best theater schools” list comes out there is controversy and consternation (“why is X school ranked so well? why was Y school left off the list”) b/c in the end… there isn’t really a concrete measurement - there is SO much subjectiveness.
Not that any school would have trouble filling their class… but I think schools care VERY much about their reputation, both for students and their tuition paying parents. Social media can BITE you when it turns against you.
@toowonderful I assumed you would want to respect your friend. That’s why I didnt ask you (although I’m sure we woud all love to know). :)) So, enough on that topic!
Yes, reputation means everything, so anything that could hurt/weaken a program’s reputation is definitely undesirable. Social media is a double-edged sword, as everyone knows.
@toowonderful Honestly, the responses on that FB post were unprofessional and immature. Some gave me a real “ew” feeling. Luckily we are not in the game this year. I don’t see CC as being a place of gossip. Sometimes it appears here, but usually is not just generated from someone’s whim to stir up trouble. They heard it somewhere and are just checking. The head of my D’s MT program is leaving this year and I am glad. They needed a change. I really think it will be a good thing. Some head’s are just too full of themselves and think it is funny to put down the parents who pay their salaries. So wrong.
@ourturn2 I checked my son’s portal at Ball State and his information says exactly what you said your daughters said. He hasn’t had his on campus audition yet. Scheduled for 2/23. Unfortunately I think that is just standard wording on portal based on your major chosen on application and you will have to wait for the phone call.
My thoughts on the FB knocking of CC. Honestly, these boards turned me on to research schools that I had never even heard of prior to coming here. Word of mouth is everything. You want to be careful what you “bash” because those that are being bashed are the ones that are paying the tuition AND the coaching fees for those that made negative comments about it.
@ourturn2 Let us know! It looks like my S has exactly the same notation on his portal (no waitlist mentioned), so now I am wondering as well. Academic admission came some time ago…and no other news. Interesting…and confusing! I have a feeling nothing has changed in regards to admission into the program…but don’t know.
Anyone out there with any experience with the MT audition at UCLA? After all of these Unified whirlwind experiences, and then a couple on campus in NY…wondering if anyone has insight on what to expect with UCLA.
All- do not be afraid to contact the schools if there is confusion concerning admission/portals/questions in general. In our experience, we contacted schools last year for all of these reasons and we found that people were very helpful. They understand that this process is overwhelming. As hard as it seems to do, take some deep breaths and hang on! Most of my D’s schools didn’t notify until mid-March…that wait was BRUTAL! Congrats to everyone on their acceptances thus far! For those who haven’t heard anything yet, hang in there and don’t give up hope!