BFA Theatre Programs and Conservatories (long)

[tar heel]

Western Carolina has a beautiful performing arts facility, but I don't know anything about the program. One of my kids spent two years there, in visual instead of performing arts. The isolation was fun at the beginning, but he got tired of being in the middle of nowhere after a while. He finished up his BFA elsewhere. It can't be said strongly enough what an intense degree the BFA is!

My youngest will start a theatre major next fall at UNC-Chapel Hill. It was exactly the kind of program *I* was hoping for but not what your daughter is wanting. It is a BA in a liberal arts tradition. He'll get a broad education, but his theatre classes will be taught by the same people who teach in the MFA program and he will have opportunities related to the presence of the equity theatre on campus.

My son also liked UNC-Wilmington. It's easier to get in than Chapel Hill, but still pretty competitive. It might be worth checking out.

 

[tiggger1]

what part of technical is she looking at? Stage managing? lighting? sound? scenic design? Being a theatre nut, I have tons of friends who have been there done, that....I would suggest somewhere where there is a good theatre community that she could intern with while in school. most of my friends got their in by interning....the lighting designer who did all of my high school shows is currently working on Broadway on Porgy and Bess.

 

[Green Tea]

The academic standards for admission at Point Park are pretty low, so that might be a good one to look into. Same with Shenandoah. I do not know how they are in the technical theater side though. With a BFA the number of non department classes will be lower which it sounds like might be a positive thing for your DD.

 

[Green Tea]

Look at Emerson to see how their academic requirements look. Wonderful for tech training. VCU's theater department is really hard to get into. The school not so much, but the fine arts programs are really competitive.

 

[cornflake]

I too think the issue with your list is location. She should go where the theatres are - yes, she's working in school at the school theatre but if she were in NY or Chicago, there are plenty of small theatres who will hire or take volunteers for single nights or backup work or interning or apprenticeship positions or etc.

Also she wants to do this, she's going to need union membership, better to be someplace where the people will know what it takes to get it and will know people who can maybe get her foot in the door.

Have you looked at the CUNY schools? Marymount Manhattan? They have a major theatre dept. As you said places like Julliard and NYU might be great but if the academics would be too much for her to keep up, not helpful. Look at those and see? I'm not as familiar with smaller Chicago schools but I'm sure there are similar there and a number of ppl have mentioned the Boston ones.

 

[sandramaac]

Oh, there are definitely some core academics required, but the number required vary greatly from a BA to a BFA, in most cases. I've done so much research pulling course requirements for so many schools. The list I have now has schools where the core is something she will realistically be able to handle. Motivation is as much an issue with her as academic ability. She just isn't motivated in normal academic classes. Her GPA is going to be in the 3.0-3.3 range. She has some "advanced" classes but AP or Gifted level classes.

Interestingly, even with her ADD, she is very organized when it comes to stage management. This past year she has been SM for one show and Director's Assistant for the musical. Again, it has to do with her motivation, I think. If it's about theatre, she's all over it. If not, ehhh....not so much.

I'm also looking carefully at what the graduates of these programs do after finishing the school. Obviously, Webster, UNCSA, etc have pretty amazing statistics for placement after graduation.

It's interesting that you mentioned teaching because that is actually something that she might pursue in the future. So, all of that comes into play in the long run.

You seem to be ignoring one core comment a few of us made. I think that the 'college education' part of this is of great importance. It is a huge investment. However, given her background academically that you mentioned, the importance of interning and gaining practical theatrical management experience is a hugely important aspect of your search here. Do not ignore the practical experience aspect portion here. It might be the biggest part of her strength.

 

[SydSim]

My Dd will be pursing a BFA in theatre (either Musical Theatre or straight theatre/acting).

We toured Shenandoah last month and she fell in love with it. Like your DD, mine isn't the best student (3.0 unweighted/3.7weighted), so she does take some honors classes. BUT, if she never saw another academic class, she would be in heaven! Theatre is her life!

She's a big rah-rah type of girl, I we always thought that a school that had a lot of sports stuff (football, school spirit type of school) would be right up her alley (think U of Alabama or Temple), but for some reason, she felt so comfortable with the intimacy of Shenandoah.

We really enjoyed the campus and the theatre faculty.

We are also looking at Montclair, East Carolina, Western Carolina, Coastal Carolina, James Madison (big in rah-rah for her, but a little too much, she said), American and Elon (long shots for sure) and a few other small schools.

We started early - Dd is only a sophomore, but we know how intense BFA programs can be in the admissions process.

 

[Danibelle]

I am originally from Oklahoma and have attended classes at Okla. City University. This school is known for its excellent theater programs. They do offer a BFA in Theater Design and Production. They produce many quality stage productions each year and have top rated faculty.

 

[sandramaac]

One more comment/insight---I urge your daughter and you to look ahead in the industry. Don't study and train for today, but what new things are ahead in the industry.

Here is a story for you. We have a local restaurant owner. He use to be a puppeteer. He as the original puppeteer for the London and New York versions of Little Shop of Horrors, then he went on and did the movie version. He was the puppeteer for the Flinstones movie, as well as all kinds of flims. He has tons of photo's on his restaurant walls from the movie sets, and pictures with John Goodman who was in the Flinstones. But guess what CGI came to be in a big way. And before he knew it he was out of work because now they could create the same thing and a fraction of the cost and it looked better. Like he said he remembers seeing Star Wars, but he never thought CGI would put him out of work!!

Theatrical Stage Craft is an evolving industry. Being on the cutting edge and gaining experience is what is ahead. The type of stage manager from 20 years go could never work on a broadway production such as Spider Man because of all the technology involved. That is why it is so important to go to school somewhere that has all the up and coming industry people and crafts.

 

[lastminutemom]

Are you familiar with the Common Data Sets that each college publishes? While it won't help you predict the BFA admissions, it can tell you where your child's stats put her for simple admission to the college or university. To find this information, simple google common data set and the university name and then explore the data.

I know many BFA kids end up disappointed because academically they can't get into the schools of choice even if their auditions were great.

I don't know if SCAD has the degree you are seeking, but it is very expensive.

Finally, consider tuition. If she is HOPE eligible will that free up money that you can leverage later for her -- either to allow her to do non-paying internships or live in a big city after college while she is just getting started.

University of Memphis has the degree you are looking for and a surprisingly strong communtiy theater community outside of the university.

http://www.memphis.edu/theatre/academics.php

 

[cornflake]

One more comment/insight---I urge your daughter and you to look ahead in the industry. Don't study and train for today, but what new things are ahead in the industry.

Here is a story for you. We have a local restaurant owner. He use to be a puppeteer. He as the original puppeteer for the London and New York versions of Little Shop of Horrors, then he went on and did the movie version. He was the puppeteer for the Flinstones movie, as well as all kinds of flims. He has tons of photo's on his restaurant walls from the movie sets, and pictures with John Goodman who was in the Flinstones. But guess what CGI came to be in a big way. And before he knew it he was out of work because now they could create the same thing and a fraction of the cost and it looked better. Like he said he remembers seeing Star Wars, but he never thought CGI would put him out of work!!

Theatrical Stage Craft is an evolving industry. Being on the cutting edge and gaining experience is what is ahead. The type of stage manager from 20 years go could never work on a broadway production such as Spider Man because of all the technology involved. That is why it is so important to go to school somewhere that has all the up and coming industry people and crafts.

I agree making sure the school is in a theatre area is key but... stage managing Spiderman isn't so different at all, and I think your restaurantuer friend is kind of misplacing blame. Puppeteers are still used all the time, even with CGI. Aside from obvious stuff like the Muppet movie, tons of movies use puppeteers.

Real Steel, that fighting robot deal, is a good example. Those were puppets and a bunch of 'em. Lots of monsters, aliens, etc. and stuff are too - even if there's cgi sweetening. It's a combo deal unless you're Michael Bay and just don't give a crap, heh.

 

[Disneycrazymom]

If you are coming up to StL to look at Webster (a very good school btw) include a tour of Lindenwood and even Mo Baptist as both have really nice theater programs. DS looked at all 3 and decided on MBU as he is interested in choir also.

 

[ugadog99]

Thank you for all the information. I am on my way to her Variety Show(chorus) so I don't have time to respond right now, but I'll get back to the thread soon. Thanks again!

 

[Simba's Mom]

One plus of University of Central Florida is that many students from there seem to perform at WDW. Does University of North Texas have a major in technical stage management (I think that's the major you mentioned)? DS went there for music performance, jazz studies, and was very pleased with the opportunities, contacts, etc.

 

[smschex]

I am originally from Oklahoma and have attended classes at Okla. City University. This school is known for its excellent theater programs. They do offer a BFA in Theater Design and Production. They produce many quality stage productions each year and have top rated faculty.

My daughter just graduated with a BFA in theater from OCU and loved every minute of it. Over the last 4 years we have seen some amazing productions. She has friends in the design and production side who have been very happy with the program.

 

[TinkerBelled]

As someone who worked in theater for a few years, I can't emphasize enough how important it is to have practical experience. I agree that she should be spending as much time as possible interning, ASM-ing, or even running front of house. During the school year, this might center around productions on or near campus, but summers should be spent in a professional setting. This can start during summers while she's still in high school--it might well be unpaid, but it's critical experience.

If she knows where she wants to end up, it would help for her to do as much work near that city/area as possible. It's not just about connections--it's about reputation. (Unless she's worked at one of the top 20 theaters in the country, an ASM credit at an unknown random venue isn't going to indicate much to a theater company--they need to know the level and professionalism of the company she's worked with. Otherwise, it could be glorified community theater, which is fine, but leads to fewer jobs.)

In addition to NY and Chicago, she should think about cities with really strong regional theaters, like Philly, Seattle, Boston or San Francisco. Also, surprisingly, Minneapolis has some of the best regional theater in the country (especially children's theater, if that's an interest), and Cincinnati actually has a pretty strong scene as well. Fewer southern cities have nationally-renowned regional theater...New Orleans actually has an interesting scene, and Savannah and Atlanta have some, but it's not as vibrant as the coasts.

One of the nice things about going to a school near or in one of these big cities is that she'll have a chance to make some money working in the theater while also in school. Even if she works part-time in the front-of-house (box office, for example, or coordinating ushers), she'll meet people, get a sense of operations, and learn about an important area of theater work--while getting paid.

Honestly, though, if she knows that there's an area of the country where she really wants to live, she should find the nearest big city and work there as much as possible, summers or otherwise. So, if it's the South that's really important to her, it's better to work in Savannah or Atlanta than make herself miserable in Chicago. (There are also some really good summer theater festivals in the South, where she might be able to intern.) Truth be told, if she's really good at what she does, stage management is one of the easiest areas to find constant work.

What I would say, though, is that it's not hugely well paid. Thus, you should really think long and hard about taking on lots of debt for this. Not because you won't learn a lot--you will--but because going out into the theater world with a lot of debt puts a huge amount of pressure on you, especially in the first few years. It's hard enough to break into the business without worrying about loan payments--something to consider.

Good luck!

 

[leebee]

DD is a dancer, and she looked quite seriously at Point Park in Pittsburgh. We went out, toured, she auditioned, we hung out with students, etc. I was horrified at first- Pittsburgh?- but it's actually quite a nice school. Sure, it's "vertical"- it's in the middle of a city, after all- but it's a nice area of Pittsburgh, there are lots of shops and cafes, a nice outdoor mall with small specialty shops (coffee shop, coffee/spice store, boutiques, etc) and the city was surprisingly clean and not too big. She loved Point Park; it really is arts-oriented, and there's money here for things she didn't find as frequently in some of the other dance programs she looked at (top notch sprung dance floors, superb studios, etc). What was most impressive to her is Point Park's connection with the professions. YOu could see the job connections, the number of summer and touring companies that came to campus for auditions, etc. She chose NOT to go to PP because of the academics; she was a top-notch high school student who didn't think PP's academic program- even their honors program- would be challenging enough for her. We really liked the school, though, and there are many days when she still considers applying as a transfer student. HTH.

 

[Danibelle]

I live in the Savannah/Hilton Head area and do not see a huge theater presence. There are productions by SCAD and local theater companies in Bluffton and Hilton Head, SC. SCAD seems to be more visual arts focused (painting, drawing, etc.) than theater focused and is quite expensive. I believe that Atlanta has more in the way of regional theater. Many of the plays presented in Savannah are by touring companies, not local talent.

 

[goofy4tink]

Look at Emerson to see how their academic requirements look. Wonderful for tech training. VCU's theater department is really hard to get into. The school not so much, but the fine arts programs are really competitive.

Emerson is ridiculously competitive. We were pretty sure dd wouldn't meet the criteria but allowed her to apply and audition. She wasn't accepted. Neither were the others from our high school that applied, and they have higher gpa's than dd....in the high 3/low 4's.

 

[Robinrs]

I have my BFA in Speech and Theatre from The Davis Ctr of Performing Arts in City College of NY. I agree with the PPs that said it's a major plus to attend a school with a vibrant theatre community, we were right in the middle of it and most of our professors were working theatre people.

I would also agree with the a PP that experience is much more important than school in ones' resume. Unless it's Juilliard, Carnegie Mellon or AMDA it's not as important as real life work.

I loooved studying theatre, it was my passion. My mom would not allow me to declare it as a major so I declared English Comp Lit but took enough credits to get both degrees. I didn't even plan it! Good for you for understanding and supporting your child's dream. My parents never got it!

My son's passion is film and television production. He wanted to go to Full Sail or SCAD but the tuition is ridiculous. I have a co worker who graduated from SCAD and she suggested I have him do his core classes at a state school instead of at SCAD to save money. It's one route you might consider.

Good luck!