Expert: Arlene Schulman - 12/17/2006

Question
Can you recommend a school in the Midwest; hopefully one that is not a private university.  I do not qualify for free student loan money and cannot afford a private school without taking on some serious debt. (even if I would get the available scholarships)  I am willing to borrow the money if necessary should the school make a difference.  In your experience does the school and training a person receives determine whether are not a person is given the chance to audition? I am currently taking my prerecs and had planned on transfersing to Southern Illinois University Carbondale as a theatre major.  

Answer
Hi Peggy,

Sorry for the delay in answering your question.  Computers are great, but computer problems come with them and I'm still trying to catch up.

Actually I can't recommend any specific schools.  There are hundreds of great schools all across the country and each has their own different programs.  What might be a great program for one person might be totally wrong for another.  Without know alot more about what you are looking for in a school and in a theatre training program I couldn't even begin to recommend any schools for you, even if I did know all the schools and their programs, and I don't.

But I DO have a great book to recommend to you that can do what I can't.

THE DIRECTORY OF THEATRE TRAINING PROGRAMS is a wonderful resource.  It lists almost 500 college, university and conservatory programs all across the country and beyond.  For each entry it give you their size, location, curriculum, faculty, facilities, philosophy of training, shows, admissions and financial requirements, and more.  The Directory also has several essays on how to choose the right training program for YOU.  It can be ordered at:
http://theatredirectories.com/training.html

In my experience, the school you go to will usually NOT determine whether you are given a chance to audition.  BUT it may affect whether you are cast or not.  The kind and quality of training you have will influence a director's expectations.  There are some premiere schools (such as Yale, or NYU Tisch, or Carnegie-Mellon, or Juilliard, but there are others) which have such highly rated reputations that most directors will assume that a graduate of their programs have the skills they need to act and work professionally.  Essentially they will react to those names on a resume in a positive way.  There are some programs (such as William Esper's program at Rutger's Mason-Gross School of the Arts which is decidedly a Meisner based program, or the Actor's Studio MFA which is a Strasberg/Method program) which some directors may react positively or negatively too.  

But basically, if you are good, the school you trained it is simply an "indication" of the level of training you have received.  It will not determine whether you get cast.  However, the purpose of a theatre training program is not to be a "reference" on your resume, but rather to give you the skills you will need to develop your acting talent, and give you the skills and techniques you will need to allow you to pursue a professional acting career.  And a good program will give you the best training.  Getting cast doesn't matter if you can't do the job, because then you won't get cast again!  So pick a program that will give you the skills you will need.  Just remember that price and "reputation" isn't always an indication of the best programs.  There are some great ones that are not overpriced.

I am not personally familiar with Southern Illinois University Carbondale, but from their website it looks like a really good program.  I have an older copy of the Directory of Theatre Programs and what it describes sounds very good.  You might want to see what it says about them in the current Directory as well as checking out other schools in your area.

I wish you all the best in your search for a university and lots of fun in your university studies, Peggy!

Best,
Arlene (MsDirector)