Mel Rose

Hey everyone! 

It does not feel like it should be application season again. It feels like it's been a week and also like it's been three years. 

I just wanted to say hi to all first time applicants, but also wanted to give a special shout out to people whose names I've seen on this forum for literally years. Whatever reasons we all have for applying a third/fourth/maybe fifth time, I draw on that collective strength as January approaches.

Hi! I'm a current second year at Hunter College (on here because I'm applying to Juilliard, as many MFA students do!). Christine is an amazing person and I love having my program run by a dramaturg! She's kind, funny, and a wonderful teacher who gives great feedback and is also INCREDIBLY organized (which I think is an extremely rare combo). The way the program is structured is Christine bookends teaching you in two semesters: one is a class on adaptation in your first semester, and then the other is basically gearing you up for your thesis play while also analyzing plays and preparing you for life after the program. Each semester you take a playwriting course w/ a visiting professor that's either focusing on generating pages or revision. Teachers of the last few years have been Lisa D'Amour, Clare Barron, Lloyd Suh, and Maria Striar to name a few. You take 3 courses a semester (on top of the above mentioned: History of Theater for 2 semesters, Play Analysis, and then electives of your choice) and then also have 3-hour master classes w/ different writers every few weeks, and when there wasn't covid, we were seeing plays around New York every 2-3 weeks w/ heavily discounted $10-15 tickets. Your thesis presentation is a weeklong 29-hour workshop with a great director and NY Theater actors. They've been trying to make changes to the program so that your work is heard out loud more and are given more practical experience throughout. The program is all about presenting you with different ways to approach theater instead of forcing you into one mode, and the 5 of us all have really different styles of writing. I've really loved my time in the program and have found the transition to be very smooth...I definitely feel "heard" and they're very open to what students have to say. This website has a bit more info:  https://www.huntertheatre.net/mfa
Feel free (anyone) to message me if they want more info on Hunter!

Hi hi -- if this is helpful, I did a panel with Playwrights Realm a couple weeks back about MFA Playwriting programs, and they just posted the panel here. Schools represented: UCSD, Brooklyn College, Yale, and Ohio U. It taught me a lot about those other schools and how different the programs are. Tanya's take on Brooklyn might be particularly helpful, based on previous questions on here.
Though we all agree: Do not go into debt for your MFA.
 
 
 

Hi all!
First-time applicant as well. My list is:
- Juilliard
- UT Austin
- Columbia
- UCSD
- Hunter College
- Brooklyn College
- NYU Graduate Musical Theatre Writing
I’ve read through all ten years of this forum (felt a bit like 100 Years of Solitude in its cyclical, epic nature!) and really appreciated what everybody shared, so didn’t want to just keep lurking!
@Mel Rose  @Agez@Coffee&Flowers Looking forward to going through the process with you. I invite anyone else who’s applying this year to come out of the woodwork and say hello!
@brillantina I similarly would love to hear more about Brooklyn College’s program, and if there’s a sense that Tina Satter and Anne Washburn will stick around or are only interim?
I’ve found Hunter and Brooklyn are the two programs hardest to find current info on. If anybody has info on what Hunter’s program is like under its current leadership (Christine Scarfuto), that would be much appreciated.
Also wanted to express gratitude to all the past applicants, current MFA students and graduates who continue to share your insights on this forum! Thanks for looking out for us!

Hey there! I finished my MFA at NYU in 2018. I don't know if much has changed since then, but I'm guessing it's still fairly similar in terms of available funding, etc., given the department leadership hasn't changed. SO ... SOME people get full funding, but it's a very small handful of the class (which is roughly 24 students, a third of whom are playwrights--the rest are TV writers and screenwriters). I had to fight for my funding. As I was deciding which MFA program offer to accept, I asked for a meeting with the chair at NYU and he put me on a "needs more money" list. They wound up offering me a little. (Ask for what you want.) I decided to attend, mostly because of the reputation, cross-training emphasis, and quality of faculty and peers. I was given more funding as a surprise in the middle of my first year, and more on top of that as I started my second year--this was based on merit, I guess. I was very happy with the experience, BUT I was in a good thesis cohort, working intensively with Lucas Hnath for a full year, and Lucas was wonderful. My group had great chemistry and we loved, respected, and supported each other, too. Our cohort has done pretty damn well since graduating. The class ahead of us and the class behind us had a different thesis mentor (I'll share in private message if you like) and were unhappy with the experience. So, always pros and cons ... overall I had a very good experience and highly recommend the program if you don't have to take on debt. I'd be happy to speak about any aspect of it anytime, if that would be helpful. Feel free to reach out. And good luck!

So I ended up getting into Northwestern last year. I highly recommend something that shows a bold, unique voice.  I did select excerpts from a longer work, but I feel like I got to cheat because they were such short scenes, that didn't have a sequential order so just the strongest scenes I put together. But I think they're much more interested in the strength of your voice within those pages, than where in the play they live.

Can confirm that Erin is now at Northwestern. This year we have Tina Satter and Anne Washburn co-leading the program together. Happy to connect with folks that have questions about the culture etc !

You might be interested in The New School. They look to be hybridizing an MFA around playwriting, directing, and acting. I swear I was served an ad about it but can't find much on their website other than this for now:
"The School is in the process of developing a new MFA aimed at transforming advanced performing arts training for dramatic artists."
If you head to their website you can see there's an email to reach out to. They weren't accepting applications for 20/21 school year. 

^^I have the same question as @Mel Rose, except mine is actually for a full blown musical. It's my latest work and I feel it's my strongest. I wrote all the words (book, lyrics,) and I even wrote parts of some songs, but for the most part a composer/friend is writing the music. 
 What are the views on submitting a musical to a dramatic writing program? Yes it's a collaboration, but  they would be able to see my voice and style pretty clearly. I have straight plays that I could submit, but I would prefer those to be secondary. Thoughts?

Hello! 
I just discovered this forum, as I've been on the hunt for information regarding MFA's in Dramatic Writing/ Playwriting. I've done a bit of research on programs but have a lot of questions.
I've never really identified myself professionally as a writer, though I've always written. Professionally, I've been working primarily as an actor and teaching artist (Shakespeare, Voice/Movement, and Dramatic Structure). I have become increasingly interested in changing trajectory and focusing on writing/creating, and have a strong desire to cultivate my craft and voice with guidance. I know there are many avenues to do so, but really would like to consider going back to school for dramatic writing, as everything about the MFA seems to speak to what I am looking for in terms of artistic development. 
I have never yet submitted my work for development, festivals, or production, and am worried that my lack of a playwright's resume (outside of a few workshops, etc) will work against me in the application process, despite being an active theatre artist. It seems that most MFA candidates have already been developing work at major theatres. I plan to begin submitting my work and pursuing different approaches but honestly I want to develop my voice more than I want to have professional productions of my work at this stage. I am looking for information on what would constitute "readiness" in an applicant for the MFA. I feel confident that I have stories worth telling and that I can polish drafts of my work for application, but am worried that the work alone is not the deciding factor in admission. 
My main questions are:
 What (other than writing) must be done to become a viable candidate for the MFA? What steps can be taken to ensure that you are "ready"?
Does anyone here have any experience with acceptance to an MFA program who has had a non traditional path to playwriting or a very limited resume as a playwright?
Lots of curiosity about this process but I will start there! Thank you for your time.