Veteran Parents...First Summer Experience Recommendations After MT Freshman Year?

vvnstar
Sun, 14 Oct 2018 16:18:06 +0000

Our D, along with several OCU classmates, did BDCs professional semester the summer after freshman year to amp up their dance training. Although they get wonderful dance training at school, she usually had one dance class per semester. To be competitive, she felt she needed more intensive training. OCU does have 10 different levels of dance in each discipline, and when she leveled at the beginning of her sophomore year after doing the BDC program, she had jumped a couple of levels in each. So she felt that intensive training was invaluable. She also was able to work for a temp agency while in NYC and got a good idea of what it was like to live on a survival job and fit her training in around that. Since they did that (about 5 years ago), it has become a very popular and recommended thing to do in the summer for kids from this program.

I think after being away at college for a year too there is much to be said for going home and spending time with family, perhaps being involved in local theater during the summer in some way. After all, for most, this is probably the longest they’ve been away from home. There is nothing wrong with going home for the summer!

Subsequent summers found her doing summer stock at various theaters. She participated in A1s, Midwest Theatre Auditions, the MUNY, Music Theatre Wichita, Lyric Theatre of Oklahoma, Casa Mañana, The LEX< SETC, UPTAS and Strawhats – different years, different times. She also reached out directly to some theaters. I would say most of what she learned about summer work came from students a grade or two ahead of her They kept them informed of when the registration sites were going live, helped find group accommodations and shared car travel when possible, etc… School helped prepare their actual audition material, but did not do a lot in the way of securing summer work. There were some, like MTW and The LEX, who held auditions on campus. But other than that, the kids were on their own to decide what was best for them.

I would say hands down A1, although the newest, was probably the best experience of the big unified type auditions. She probably got the most offers, however, from SETC. You can audition for the MUNY at A1s now so it would not be necessary to make that a special trip unless you just wanted to.

I know several of her friends at Michigan chose to stay in Ann Arbor for certain summers and took academic classes to help free up their schedules during the school year Our D stayed at OCU one summer to be a counselor for their summer musical theater camps so that is something else you could look into – what needs does your school have during the summer, or what classes can you check off your list? If I’m not mistaken, a lot of kids at Utah stay that first summer because it establishes their residency which qualifies them for in-state tuition. So each school is probably different as to what it’s students choose to do.

I think Baldwin Wallace probably does the most at actually helping place students in summer jobs. They seem to be well connected and do make a concerted effort to place some (not all) of their students in highly regarded summer gigs.

Other things to be aware of: D got offered a contract at Hershey that she had to turn down because the contract dates extended past when OCU started back to school. She would not be allowed to miss. Some people turn their noses up at theme park work. It can be long hours and you really have to learn to take care of yourself both physically and mentally. But I think for college kids its great money to do something they love, and a fun place to be for a couple of months. I would not discount them. As far as those scheduling conflicts go, friends at BW had a similar contract issue and were allowed to start their Fall semester a few weeks late in order to finish their contract. So different schools will have different policies about this. Check before you sign any contracts!

Also, if you get offers, make sure you understand what is expected of you. At some places, actors just act. At others, they can be expected to clean, wait tables, teach classes, etc… All of which is fine. Just make sure you are clear as to what will be expected of you. Also clarify if they provide housing and if so, find out more about it. Some housing is great, some is kinda awful. If that is important to you, ask the questions before you sign the contract! There are also some intern companies where you actually pay to participate. In addition to getting to act, some of these have interns take classes. And/or teach classes to youth. Oftentimes you are limited in what MainStage experience you may get. But you may have the opportunity to earn some EMC points. So to some, they can be worth the expense. Some of these are fantastic (I’m thinking Williamstown, Weathervane, Hangar, etc…) Others not so much. So again, really check out the places under consideration and make sure you are happy with what you will be doing

if you go to a site called audition update they have a section there called gig and tell. There there is a list of all sorts of theaters and summer stock places. Check it out and see what’s been written about any prospective employers. Just be mindful, sometimes one disgruntled employee can write something really bad when everyone else has had a great experience. So don’t let one bad review turn you away. Just check each place out thoroughly.

There are lots of wonderful summer opportunities out there. Enjoy the process!