Playwriting MFAs

[Starsandsound]

Cathergirl CONGRATS!!!!!

[Starsandsound]

Oh and thanks guys!!! I'm hoping to get my info packet soon. I'll share what I know with everyone once I know more! ( I want to hold the acceptance in my hands so I know it's real ha!)

[cathergirl]

Cather, congrats!  It's a really cool program.

 

(p.s., when did they tell you that you were on the wait list, and do you know if they've got their whole class set yet?)

 

Thanks theotherlilly!

it was sooo surreal

I talked to the assistant head of the program on monday, then on wednesday the head of the program told me to call him today

and they just told me!!!

 

I think they have most of the program picked  but I dont think completely, they mentione don the phone theyre still getting everything together

[Starsandsound]

Hey lurker did you check northwestern's site? That's where I found out.

[GlenwoodRed]

Congrats on your acceptances lurking! I'm at NYU right now, and I think the program is pretty great. The faculty aren't universally great but some of them (George Malko, Martin Epstein, Sabrina Dhawan, Charlie Rubin, Gordon Farrell) are really excellent teachers of writing and writing theory.

 

Thotherlily, if you don't mind, I know you mentioned you were currently in an MFA program - where are you?

[lavendercloud]

Lurking32, I second the motion that you do NOT go to Columbia. I've heard the program referred to as a "degree mill" and haven't heard anything good about it, and have been actively discouraged by theater professionals from applying there.

 

Theotherlily, good call that the specific programs I mentioned are not that helpful for making general theater connections, and I don't know a ton about what Yale looks for in applicants. (I did at last get my official rejection from there, and it wasn't extra-special like I was hoping. Le sigh. I'd have loved to go this year since one of my good friends is finishing his first year there and it would be awesome to overlap, but oh well.) I can't say that I recommend targeting one school relentlessly, but passion can definitely show through in an application, so I'm sure there are upsides. But yeah, we all have different points of view from which we can offer advice, so that's the beauty of being on this forum!

 

In really exciting news, the theater I'm currently interning at has offered to keep me on next year and continue the internship stipend, but use it to support my writing rather than the full-time internship! I'm floored by the opportunity and planning to accept it. They'll do a reading of one of my plays, provide dramaturgical support, help me out with housing if possible, and hire me for company management work if I need extra funds. The theater itself is in a lot of turmoil and doesn't do the most exciting work in the world, but I don't want to move again until I go to grad school, so I was already planning to stay in town anyway. I also have a play that I'm hoping to try to get produced on college campuses, so I'll start working my connections and see if I can make that happen next year. Over the summer I'll be teaching playwriting for their high school drama camp. All in all, I'm feeling pretty great about the possibilities of the upcoming year even though I won't be in school for a while yet

[Guest]

Wow. I'm quite surprised with the thoughts on Columbia. I don't really have an opinion, but the school really sold me at their info session. Chuck Mee is one of the playwrights who inspired me to do this in high school so when I didn't get in it actually hurt the hardest. One aspect of Columbia is that they really sold to everyone they wanted international playwrights. Chuck Mee even echoed this when he was speaking to us. There's nothing wrong with this at all except I understood that they were saving quite a few spots and my chances were even smaller. Overall, I got a warm feeling from them. It seems everyone I know at Columbia wears different hats: they act and write, direct and design, direct and write. As far as alumni goes, I mean there's Clarence Coo, Mark Schultz, Winter Miller, and Adam Szy..... (the guy who does those playwright interviews). Also, Jenny Schwartz who went there for directing, but is still a phenomenal playwright. Clarence got into New Dramatists directly out of grad school, but I do agree that when I see where awards are won it's not necessarily filled with Columbia grads. Does that make or break a school? I dunno. I'm not promoting the school (I'm still a tad bitter I didn't get called into an interview), but I would like more specifics to discourage me from applying next year. At this point I've heard good and bad about every school I've applied and it's difficult to sift through it. 

 

On a different note, congrats cathergirl! That's great! No news here. Still waiting on Brooklyn, Iowa, and got the same email from Juilliard. 

 

What are some great opportunities for playwrights in the summer? Mine is completely open right now, but I wanna make something happen!

[cathergirl]

Thanks barista!!!

In terms of summer things, i know that the samuel french off off bway fest is a fun thing to do for up and comers. Also so many play development places like orchard proj, ojai, playpenn, page 73.

I also probably am going to keep doing readings of my new play wit some actor friends.

[theotherlily]

@cathergirl

 

I pm'd you, but then I went into the private message section and realized I had messages from a year ago that I hadn't even read yet, so I'm asking again on the forum! My friend has an acceptance at another school, but he still hasn't heard anything from Ohio, and when he sent a message to Charles the reply was kind of cryptic, so he's trying to figure out how their wait list works:  Are you saying that you found out about the wait list on Monday, and then got accepted on Wednesday?

 

@glenwood- at the risk of compromising my ability to talk smack, I'm at Michener UT.

 

@barista and lurker32- I feel like I was way too harsh in my assessment of Columbia- I mean, I stand by my advice, but I was phrasing it the way I would talk to someone I knew- not a stranger.  If my friend had a fully funded offer at NYU and was considering an unfunded offer at Columbia instead, I would lobby hard for the funded offer.  Obviously Columbia has a lot of strengths as a program, but unless you are independently wealthy, I don't think it's offering enough above what NYU can offer while being funded.  As for the alumni- Clarence Coo does seem to be doing really, really fantastically well.  As for the rest, I don't think Mark Schulz and Winter Miller are early career (I think Schulz got his MFA in the early 2000s, when the program was different), and Jenny Schwartz, having gone through a different program, isn't really someone to consider- she went to Julliard afterwards for playwriting.  I'd forgotten that Adam S. was a Columbia alum since I always think of him as a Julliard person.  At any rate, here are some of Adam's ambiguous thoughts on having gone into major debt for his MFA: http://aszym.blogspot.com/2009/01/daisey-on-mfas-for-theater-artists.html

 

I do think it is cool that they are actively recruiting internationally.  I mean, that might have something to do with the price tag, but I've often thought that my own program needs to do more active recruiting instead of waiting for people to come to us- we could have a much more diverse class if we worked harder at it.

 

also @Barista- there's a ton of summer stuff, but I think you've missed the majority of the deadlines for this summer.  I can't think of anything that you can still apply to.  Certainly everything Cathergirl listed is gone... I think OOB is over also, but there's some kind of warning on their website, so I'm not gonna check. 

[theotherlily]

p.s. don't forget to read the comments in the Adam S. linked blog post.

[cathergirl]

Hey otherlily, sent ya a message!

I would also look into playpenns cool summer internship program

[theotherlily]

Cathergirl you are awesome!

 

Good tip on the playpen summer internship.  The deadline is 4/1 though so you'd better hop to it if you're interested.

[secondact]

I've been reading from afar for a while now and hoping y'll might provide some insight:

 

For those of you who have gotten in, was this your first time applying?  If not, how many rounds did you go through before you got some hits?

Has anyone on this blog gotten into a program straight out of undergrad?

Is Cathergirl's experience getting off the waitlist typical?

 

Thanks in advance for any input.

 

 

 

[cathergirl]

Hey!

I will say I just graduated this past spring and this was my first time applying.

But i did visit and make alot of effort to show ohio they were my top choice.

[Singsalot]

Hi All.

 

Officially waitlisted at Columbia.

[Starsandsound]

This was my first time applying. I am a year out of undergrad but I was also a return student- so I'm 27. Took a lot of time off to travel etc. I also have my own theatre company, which some schools like smith- responded to positively, and others like Yale- did not. I had not had that many productions. I write mostly one acts. A play of mine was done in Hawaii as pop up theater, I've got one coming up in LA, and various shows around my home state- but nothing likenthe resume of some applicants. I've also put up a few of my shows through my company, alongside other playwrights. I think different schools are looking for a different mix. I'm incredibly happy that Smith responded to my portfolio. I was definitely handicapped In the app process since I didn't send out any full length plays. Ultimately, I think it's important to remember to have good contact with the school so that they know your name.

I also sent a new play along about a month or so ago. I asked if I could, and it was only about fifteen pages, but smith took it. I'm not sure (not having really talked about it with them yet) if that was a factor or not. I'm glad I did though, and I think it can't hurt to ask if you can send some of your newest work along even after the gates are closed so to speak. Schools want to see your progress as a writer.

Other than that it's mainly he writing sample more than anything. Certain schools look for political work and things that tackle contemporary topics. They all want you to have a strong, identifiable voice. You may not be some schools cup of tea, but just remember, ultimately you want to go somewhere that wants you.

[Starsandsound]

This was all in answer to secondact's question btw. Ha!

[secondact]

Starsandsound/Cathergirl

 

Thanks for the advice.  I was under the impression that I shouldn't contact the schools unless they contacted me first, but from what you are both saying, this may have helped you stand out. 

[Starsandsound]

Yeah I think we all juggle walking tht fine line between showing passionate interest vs insanity/desperation ha but honestly for as stressful as grad school will probably be, it might be good to get a vibe for how the school you're aiming for will deal with that stress. Like I said, smith was amazing to talk to the entire way through the process. I couldn't have asked for more.

[Starsandsound]

Hey!

I will say I just graduated this past spring and this was my first time applying.

But i did visit and make alot of effort to show ohio they were my top choice.

Oh yeah, and smith was my top choice. I heard they didn't do interviews but was encouraged to write an email so I sent a sort of personal stream of consciousness love letter to them in which I declared my love for Len berkman, Andrea Hairston, Northampton, AND caryl Churchill. My thought was basically- if I'm goin down, I'm goin down swingin.

[theotherlily]

I wouldn't think about it as striking a balance between passion and desperation.  I'd think about it as making it clear that a school is one of your top choices while also demonstrating that you can act appropriately.  It's like dating a sane person, if any of you have ever done that: don't hide your interest in an attempt to seem cool, but don't act like a psycho stalker.

 

Smith encouraged starsandsound to write an email, so it was appropriate even if it was gushing-( btw congrats STarsandsound, I somehow missed your celebration post!  yay!  You must have showed a lot of awesome in the plays that you submitted.  I think not having a full-length play is a substantial handicap, since you have to write full-lengths in most programs.  I know someone who got into Ohio with no full-lengths in her portfolio, but the program head MADE HER WRITE A FULL-LENGTH before offering her admission.  (She also had a friend in the program advocating for her.))

 

I agree that it's good to have some contact with the schools besides the app.  I think that (most of the time) it's less about standing out than about proving that you are trustworthy and together. Your writing should make you stand out but if you're going to commit to someone for three years, it's really useful to have a sense of them as a solid person who knows how to operate in the theatre world. Here are some random points on how to do it.

 

1. Leverage any genuine personal connections that you have.  Have you worked with an alumn of the program?  Take them out for coffee and ask them questions, and see if they'd be willing to write the program head and say "Hey, this great playwright I know is applying."

 

2.  If the teachers have any readings or talkbacks in your area (anything where they are supposed to interact with the public anyway), attend and introduce yourself.  "Hi, I'm a playwright.  I'm actually thinking about applying to x school."  Don't follow them or approach them if they're not in "required interaction with the public mode."

 

2.  If you have time, visit in the fall, but don't be a high-maintenence visitor.  A good trick is to write one of the teachers and say "I'm coming into town on x weekend, are there any classes I can sit in on, or can I drop by the office to talk about the program?"  Most of the small, funded programs don't have info weekends, so if you write and say "I'd like to come visit- do you have any programs?  When's a good time?  Can I stay with a student?" it's like you are asking them to arrange a whole thing just for you.  If they DO have an info weekend, or if they want you to stay with a student, they'll reach out.  Caveat: if you are a finalist, or you are wait listed, DEFINITELY visit in the spring, and feel free to ask for more help.

 

3.  Follow the program's lead.  If you get a chilly response, chill out, and stick to following the application guidelines.  Keep in mind that schools are very different.  Yale gets over 500 applicants.  A lot of other schools will get less than 50 (if that doesn't sound like a lot, remember that 3/50 is six percent, which is a very low acceptance rate.)  Again, if a school perceives that you're going to keep asking them to hold your hand throughout the application process, you are going to get iced out, especially if they have a lot of low-knowledge applicants (which is going to be true of a famous drama school like Yale- I don't mean dumb applicants, I mean people who haven't done a lot of research and are only applying to the most visible schools).   It's like hitting on someone.  Never be afraid to take the first step boldly, but only escalate when you get the green light.

 

4.  If a program has a march deadline, APPLY EARLY.

[Guest]

theotherlily, thank you for the pointers.

 

This is my first time applying (well I applied to Fordham/Primary Stages last year, last minute-probs not the best choice), but this is definitely feels like my first crack at it. It's really interesting to me certain applicants don't write full-lengths, even short full-lengths. I'm the complete opposite. Writing one-acts and ten-minute plays is always tough for me. There's definitely a strength in writing one-acts (I wish I was better at it), but it's striking how many people I knew this year who applied trying to squeeze out a full-length before the deadline.

 

Networking is really hard for me. Definitely something I have to work on. 

 

Still waiting to hear from Iowa and Brooklyn. Any news? Weekends have become torture.

[mcw98]

Barista, I am waiting on Iowa too.  Wondering if they have contacted people for interviews yet...

[wrighter]

Hey everyone! Just wanted to let you know that I got my rejection from Brooklyn this morning via email. 

 

I'm going to accept my offer for CMU, and I'm super excited about it. 

[Guest]

Maybe mine's on the way from Brooklyn. Just checked my status. Nothing's changed. Does Brooklyn do interviews?