Reds

No problem. Yale certainly does make things interesting! I was the same way with that audition, no callback. Which I knew seconds into my audition anyway since one of the teachers who was auditioning me never once looked up from his paper on the desk. Or maybe he was texting on his phone, I'll never know. I found it a bit rude to be quite honest. But hey, you live and you learn as you said, and programs who aren't willing to take the time to see you aren't worth your time. The URTAs are definitely an experience too. My year it was all very organized and for the most part things ran very smoothly. Funny thing though there was a blizzard in Chicago at the time of the NY auditions and the organizers were freaking out because the Chicago auditions were after the NY auditions and I think that year they had to postpone them. That's awesome you got offers from the URTAs! Congrats on those! And if you think DePaul's your top choice don't wait to hear from anyone else. I was in a similar boat this year. I applied to two MFA playwriting programs (Indiana and University of Texas at Austin) both rejections and also two MA programs for research (Villanova and Illinois State) I got an official acceptance from Villanova and a tentative one from Illinois, but I didn't give the decision much thought time since I had a gut feeling about Villanova. So I accepted their offer of admission and also the financial aid package I got which is VERY nice for the next couple of years. ^^ I'm excited because just from the interview I did with the entire faculty I can tell the program is awesome and that I'll really enjoy working with everyone. Plus you get to get your hands dirty in just about anything you want while also having a focus for your graduate degree. So definitely trust your gut on these things!

Just updating ya'll. Got my Indiana Rejection letter in the mail. It was a very nice letter and actually it took me by surprise. General and not personalized of course, but still nice compared to the no letter from Texas-ouch! How is everybody else faring? remains: afraid my knowledge of scholarships isn't that great. I know a couple of years ago I found a register of general scholarships you could apply for towards any school...and I think I found that through The New School's website but I'm not entirely certain its there anymore. I'll double-check.

That sounds like a nice message they sent you then! I'm all for brownie points so kudos to you! And also congrats on your writing projects! I've got...oh lord, probably five or so started and in some form of progress already. Some have first scenes. Some have close to first acts. Some are all over the place with scenes in sequential order but just needing things filled in between the others. Sometimes working on more than one project at a time can be a real mess. But it's in the mess that I find I work best though. Double-edged sword I suppose. Keep nursing those ideas! I try to write every day, even though some days I wind up only writing a single word or maybe a sentence, but then I have the good days where I write ten to fifteen pages and those make the struggle and frustration all worthwhile ^^.

I hope you hear something soon! If it helps I haven't heard anything from Indiana either, maybe they just take longer with all programs. Ah performance studies! Awesome stuff. I'll admit I had a love for acting in undergrad but somehow all the theory between Stanislavski, Meisner, etc. went over my head and jumbled everything up to the point where I was questioning every choice I was making-thus making it no fun anymore. I have hopes I'll find that love again someday. Maybe it can come back with the right teacher, who knows. But the one book I had to read where everything made sense: The Art of Acting, by Stella Adler. THAT for whatever reason clicked in all the right places! You know, a fellow drama major in undergrad for her senior thesis, she took her production to the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and she brought a play from over there back to give to another major who had a nation and probably world premiere for her senior thesis in acting. Pretty cool stuff now that I look back on it. Devised theater is awesome. I've never been a part of a project like that myself but I've always wanted to try it. We had writer's theaters in undergrad where we'd also have workshops and give feedback and such, but that was about the gist of the free project reign around the department and the student groups. That sounds like an excellent thesis project for you !

failsafe: that's odd you haven't gotten a rejection from yale yet-not that I would know since I didn't apply, but I'd give them a call to see what's up. Does Yale waitlist people? Awesome project ideas! I say bring on the variety. I think what these people look for in plays is something different and new, you know? Something memorable and distinct so I say go for it and have fun doing it too!

There's so much love and support here I think that is such a great great thing. Let me add to the pile and say CONGRATS to acceptances and waitlistings! Waitlistings aren't acceptances I know, but they're definitely not rejections and the sentiment is nice. Sometimes people do get in off the waitlist so you never know, but I'd caution against waiting too long if there are already good offers with funding on the table. Rejection finally from UT Austin! And I am completely at peace with the decision since I'm already committed to Villanova. I did wind up getting a tentative acceptance with funding from Illinois State, but in having to turn down their offer I did get a very nice email from the head of the program to stay in touch and talk research ideas which I think is completely awesome ^^. Contacts are everything so never underestimate the power of knowing someone or keeping the lines of communication open! Because grad school is only half the job if you can't find a job yourself once the program is over. teethwax: some of the greatest plays in theatre literature delves into the darkest parts of the human experience. So I say kudos to you for being brave enough to venture into that territory. Many writers don't explore the ugly parts of life because of how difficult it is to write or how taxing it can be on the writer. But I am of the firm belief that we'll never learn or grow if we don't confront obstacles and challenges in life head on. Plus theatre needs to be shaken up once in a while too. I say the warm reactions are signs that you're on the right track. Sometimes the world isn't as logically sound when it comes to new plays and actually getting them properly recognized / produced / etc. But the only way you can beat the nonsensical odds is to keep putting yourself out there because someone WILL eventually say yes. No matter what you do it will always feel personal, but it gets better over time and with experience too There ain't no question about your talent! Never doubt that for a second.

Sorry to hear about yale, teethwax But perhaps you'll get better news soon! Keep those spirits up! tjack that is absolutely excellent news, to not only be an alternate but also a first alternate! Congrats! And it's as failsafe says in that some candidates may in fact be accepted to other programs and might not want to spend 3 years out in the midwest so you never know! Also congrats to plumsandpears, remains, k-hotspur on your acceptances! All this suspense is killing me! I wish news would come out sooner.

Every school is different in when they hand out rejections and acceptances. I'm already committed to a program for the fall - Villanova. And the only other MA program I applied to was Illinois State University, to which I also was accepted. I did apply for the playwriting MFA at Indiana though and have not heard a single peep since I sent in my application in december! Other schools have kept me updated throughout the way, which I've appreciated, but I understand the frustration of waiting! Which is your top program? Also, I was wondering what your research areas of interests were? Mine at present are tied up in colonial theatre history and plays around the revolutionary era. Hope you get good news soon!

Hey guys, still nothing from Texas or Indiana. Feel better teethwax! longwalktonever: sounds like an awesome trip! Congrats on the interview, usually that's a good sign! Buckminster: Welcome and congrats on Juilliard! What's the oneill? A scholarship? Sounds awesome! Congrats on that too!

Hello, StuffedPepper! Well I'm not an MFA Acting candidate for this year and nor will I be in the coming years but I was in the past and boy do I feel like I have a lot to share about this area! I've auditioned for Yale in the past which was an experience let me tell you. And I also auditioned for the URTA program that goes on in January/February in New York City every year. Have you heard of the URTAs before or had experience with them? That's excellent that you got an offer from DePaul University so congratulations on that! What did you like about the program at DePaul? I have to admit I don't know a lot about DePaul myself. When I was applying in the past the schools I considered were all over the board (Yale, Florida State University, University of Delaware, The New School for the Arts in NYC, Pace University...I know there were others but its escaping me at the moment). How much is tuition a year at DePaul and how long is the program? I completely understand the worry over money because that is a very important factor in considering MFA's believe me! I've heard a lot of mixed opinions across he board from acting MFA students and prospectives over the years and the cons that seem to keep cropping up are those that say they're stuck trying to pay back the crazy loans after school without finding the work they were trained for. That was eventually the deciding factor for me to take another track that I'll be doing this fall-research, teaching, and playwrighting. I don't want to discourage you either because if you think the risk is worth the training then absolutely go do it. I feel like MFA's are what you make of them. If you've got the drive to make it work, then you'll also do well once you graduate. One thing you might look at before committing is how the University's relationship is, or the department's relationship is, with their alumni and what success stories they have to offer. Is their alumni a pretty close knit group? Have they found work after graduation? Have they gone on to other programs? Do they come back to offer advice to current students? Would love to chat with you more on the subject. What other schools did you apply/audition for? -Reds

Wow! Lots of good news since I checked in last! Congrats to everyone who got acceptances and interviews and such! I've got good news myself. I got accepted to Villanova's MA program and after much deliberation (which really only took a day) I took it. The faculty and the department I just fell in love with and I came to a bit of an epiphany myself when I was interviewing with the department. College professor is for me which means I need to go on and get a PhD. Maybe sometime in the far future I may reconsider getting an MFA in playwriting, but for now I figured I would keep writing in the background and focus on my teaching career which is my long term goal. Not to mention Michael Hollinger (Incorruptible) is part of their faculty as well ^^. They just started a brand new playwriting competition at the University too so that tells me they're opening roads for student playwrights. The crazy thing is I haven't heard anything from Indiana or Texas yet, but I doubt its good news by now. And, even if I did get a better offer from them I wouldn't take it to be honest. Illinois never got my letters of recommendation (even though they were sent out months ago)-and funny enough I got that email from them not even two hours after the Villanova acceptance. Funny how things work out isn't it? I'm still in disbelief myself and I don't think it will sink in until I get my official paperwork in the mail or start getting emails, but this playwright will keep you guys informed when she hears word from Indiana or Texas. Congrats again to you guys!

Also sorry to hear about the Brown rejections. Haven't heard anything from UT Austin either.

Thanks everyone for the welcomes! It's nice to finally meet some like-minded people, fellow writers, and especially playwrights. I'm a bit of a history writer myself, so period's definitely my thing. Back when I was trying to figure out whether I was gearing more towards fiction or playwriting I found myself writing a lot of period pieces and not so much modern day things too. So, that stuck with me. I just finished a play that quite literally took me six to seven years of research and a few years to develop a first draft. I know that sounds insane, but I'm a self-proclaimed history nerd and in wanting to get things as accurate as possible definitely takes time. The one I just finished is set during the latter years of the Revolutionary War and the reason why it took so long to write and research was because every character in it is based on a real person, and not any famous historical figures either, at least none to which people can easily recall from a history book-more local and contained historical records which can sometimes be a royal pain to find. Most of the characters are my direct ancestors whose crazy stories I came across over the course of several years of genealogy research. So I completely understand your frustration, themirandatragedy! Period pieces require a LOT of patience and attention which definitely takes some getting used to-in some ways I'm still getting used to it myself, but everyone is different. Sometimes though when I feel like I'm getting bogged down with the research I jump ship to another project just to let the info sink in over time. I tend to work on a handful of plays all at once. Other than that I do like working on adaptations and I've got a couple original pieces I'm also working on, one's set in the '20s and the other one is in the '90s (the most modern one I've ever attempted and ironically its the one giving me the most trouble!). History aside, I find I tend to steer more towards subjects that involve family, friendship, sexuality (specifically LGBT issues), religion vs. faith, and more recently some fantasy or sci-fi themes. I'm a drama person through and through, I think. Dark plays mostly, but with the light at the end of the tunnel of course. I hope everyone hears news soon, in terms of interviews and other such good news.

Hello all! I've been reading along for a few weeks and finally decided to join in on the conversation. I myself applied to two Playwriting MFAs this year (University of Texas at Austin and Indiana U) and also two regular Theatre MAs (Illinois U and Villanova). I just got done auditioning and interviewing with the faculty for Villanova's assistantships and scholarships this past friday and I think it went well. Haven't heard anything from the others yet and from what I understand no news is good news. But who knows. Congrats to you guys who got called for interviews! And also kudos to everyone for being so positive and supportive in all this I find myself needing a bit of that as well these days. Bit stressful but also very exciting!