AMDA

[jenoa]

Posted: 1/16/05 at 10:59pm

I am auditioning for AMDA this weekend, the rumor is that they accept EVERYONE, but is that true?

HAs anyone out there heard of anyone being rejected?

Any advice for a girl whos never auditioned for anything???

[GypsyRoseLee]

Posted: 1/16/05 at 11:02pm

You're going to hear A LOT of bad stuff about that school on this board, let me tell you right now.

[greenifyed]

Posted: 1/16/05 at 11:05pm

I know a girl who got rejected from AMDA. Because she was THAT BAD. *giggle*

But seriously. Duck and cover. AMDA - where the losers get their BA in theatre.

[Amneris]

Posted: 1/16/05 at 11:09pm

it's not known in the "biz" to be the best school yet , a great majority of students get professional work... almost everyone in the rent tour has AMDA in their bios. I heard they do accept almost anyone.. and then reject the "anyones" for 2nd year. You do what you need to do. I wouldn't say it's a school for losers because that is a little too strong. Even though most of our opinions on the board are neg. towards this school. It might be a place you like.

[Joshua488]

Posted: 1/16/05 at 11:19pm

Yeah, it's not that difficult to get in. I remember, for a while there, I was thinking of AMDA as a school to go to. Then, my sister saw some performances with AMDA students. Let's just say that I was told that I was too good. It's definitely a MEAN thing to say, but, hey, my sister doesn't lie.

I know some people that went to/are going to AMDA. They don't HATE it, but they're definitely not ranting and raving about it.

[millie_dillmount]

Posted: 1/16/05 at 11:23pm

I'm no performer myself: what does AMDA stand for?

[Crazy4MattMorrison52]

Posted: 1/16/05 at 11:25pm

american musical and drama acdemy i think

[erinrebecca]

Posted: 1/16/05 at 11:25pm

I was interested in Amneris' comment about the Rent tour because that didn't sound right to me. I had a look and only Genny Padilla went to AMDA. A few didn't attend any college, and the other colleges attended were Berklee, U of Arts, Princeton, UMiami, Clark, PSU, Ithaca, UNC, BoCo, Wright State, Hartt and Shenandoah.

AMDA does not have a good rep here, or in the city. I wouldn't recommend it.

greenyfied, even if you went to AMDA, you wouldn't get a BA. It's not an accredited university.

[jenoa]

Posted: 1/16/05 at 11:32pm

I am an older student (31), and never took my SAT's which NYU school INSIST on, so for people like me AMDA is the best we can do. I might hunker down and take the sats, but I heard that there are alot of other students in their late 20's attending AMDA.



thanks for your input y'all!

[MV]

Posted: 1/16/05 at 11:37pm

I am an AMDA Graduate...and I am currently starring on Broadway. Heres the thing..you are going to get alot of opinions..no school gives you a career and no school can give you drive. you get what you put into it..no they dont accept everyone and you are there for you..no one else. I say give it a shot do some research on who the faculty is and go with the success stories because alot have come from AMDA .
Also everyon on this board has their own experiences. I am a success story and I busted my tail to get to where I am and I think AMDA gave me an immense amount of knowledge and information. I had great teachers and I loved my class. Good luck to you and keep on going,,, Updated On: 1/16/05 at 11:37 PM

[musicgal04]

Posted: 1/17/05 at 3:01am

As a current AMDA student, my opinion is yeah there are better places to go, but you will learn if you are here. Unfortunetly a lot of students come here to get connections and put it on their resume assuming that alone will get them a job, when the opposite is more likely. They are VERY big on typing and you will get annoyed real fast if you can belt and sing legit, they don't really know what to do with you. One thing I will say is that no matter what level of dance you are when you come in, you are filled with dance by the time you get out, doesn't mean you will look great doing it, but you at least know how it is done. After two semesters it is great for me to watch the lower level dance classes and see how far they have come along. Look into lots of schools though, that is my advice to anyone getting ready for the college search. I was screwed when I didn't get into the music education program that many people thought I had in the bag, so I was left with no where to go and voila AMDA was still having auditions. So said screw the backup career for now and just try to do this for awhile. Also AMDA has a connection with New School University to come out with a BFA in Musical Theatre. If you have any other questions, feel free to PM me.

[ShineOn]

Posted: 1/17/05 at 10:46am

Ugh, I promised myself I would never respond to another AMDA thread, but something musicgal said really made me realize the MAJOR reason I hated AMDA.

I HATED my time there... despised it. In my first semester I actually had teachers privately telling me I should start auditioning THEN (anyone who knows anything about AMDA knows that's a big no-no... you're not technically allowed to start until fourth semester, even though plenty do...). They are HUGE on "type"... I fall into the category of singing legit and being a belter... my first semester I was given three of the most different "type" songs you could possibly think of and at the same time getting lectures on "knowing what your type is to know how to market yourself". To my way of thinking, WHO wants to be pigeon-holed??? Isn't that what you strive AGAINST as a performer? I mean, that's great if you ARE a one-trick pony, but what if you can do more??? If you do one better than the other, why waste all this time and money working that when you should be improving on your weaknesses instead?! I sang "A Call from the Vatican" for my final in my first semester and from thence on, they decided they liked my "smokey voice"/belt best and that was the "type" I was labeled. They seriously had me so focused on type I was limiting myself. I think that's a major problem with the school...

Oh, yeah, and the fact they let in everyone and their deaf, blind, and crippled mother. The truth is, there ARE some talented kids there (in fact there were quite a few in my class), but on the whole, there aren't.

But eh, to each their own! As it was previously stated, a school doesn't make your career. In fact, I'm very disappointed by all the cookie cutter alums schools like CCM and Michigan are producing. They are all "good"... but they're all the SAME. Who wants SAME???

Some of the best advice ever given to me was to just be myself and not worry about what mold I SHOULD fit into. The same person also told me the best way to learn is by DOING. So, you can absorb all the information in the world from the top schools but it's a whole new ball game when you're in the real world. In the end, they don't care if you have a BFA or where it came from... they care if you can deliver what they want or if you're what they're looking for.

That said, I heard a wav of a recent CCM grad... and she was horrendous (I don't know her on any personal level, but Lord... I hope the girl can act...). Schools are all subjective and political. You have to do what you feel is right for YOU and not listen to everyone else. In the end it's your life and your career. :)

[Amneris]

Posted: 1/17/05 at 11:04am

The only thing that pisses me off is,their students go to auditions and are mainly (for me) the ones we've discussed in the audition rudeness thread. They are like a cult at open calls. Plus, if you get the joy of sitting next to an amda student at an open call, they will stand up, count how many people are in the room from their section or school and then proceed to rip them apart.. 5 minutes later go over and hug them.

[ShineOn]

Posted: 1/17/05 at 11:42am

Welcome to my life. I was like an alien in my class... people were catty and two-faced to the MAX. It was like one big high school environment. SOOOO clique-y.

[erinrebecca]

Posted: 1/17/05 at 1:28pm

daisy, I'm sorry you had a bad experience at AMDA. That seems to be the norm of everyone I know of who's gone there. And it's definitely true that they will take just about anyone. The thing I can't understand is that I've seen AMDA ripped and ragged on in forums for the past 5-6 years, just like it is here. Why on earth anyone still is interested in going there, after reading all that's said, is beyond me.

[Amneris]

Posted: 1/17/05 at 1:31pm

oh back to the rent comment lol i should have said that it was in peoples bios throughout the run of the tour.. not this cast lol. Not like it matters. People could have gone there and left w/o graduating. One thing about Amda is.. they tend to send you letters about your audition when um.. you didn't even apply there.

[musicgal04]

Posted: 1/17/05 at 1:35pm

Not everyone who attends AMDA reads the boards and knows. Many of the kids in my class are completly unaware of the school's bad reputation. I auditioned knowing the rep but I also talked to many people who I trust about my future and it just made more sense to spend my time learning what I can than being stuck in a town that had pretty much wiped out musical theatre from its existance. Sure I could've waited a year and auditioned for multiple schools, but I guess I'm just impatient. I won't say that I am the happiest AMDA student around, I have had my fair share of problems and as daisy said earlier, its like being in high school all over again, but I'm learning something. I work my butt off everyday to prove that I can get something out of this experiance.

[BalletGirl85]

Posted: 1/17/05 at 2:17pm

I just went to AMDA for half a semester. It was okay... my teachers, for the most part, were GREAT and had tons of Broadway experience and professional experience, so there was a lot of professionalism in my classes.

Something happened to me in November and as a result of it, I had to miss three days of classes to "recover." I had already missed one day of classes earlier in the semester when I had bronchitis, so since I had missed "so many" they said if I didn't defer until the new semester started, I would most likely fail most of my classes and not get invited back for the second term.

It's a HUGE scheme for money. We had the WORST housing (which is why I moved out halfway through... over $3000 a semester for a TEENY little room in a crappy welfare hotel shared with a disgusting roommate). Something happened to me that I couldn't control and they were NOT willing to take it as a case-by-case thing. They said it didn't matter, it was my fault (ummm which is why I really want to SUE THEM because TECHNICALLY it was their fault because they had NO security for the building I lived in and just let ANYONE in...) Anyway. If you're going to go there, definitely just get an apartment. It's cheaper. The housing is NOT worth it.

My class... eh. Some were talented, some DEFINITELY were NOT. I was literally sitting there like ?!?!?!?! for HALF of them when they sang in my musical theater class. About typing... mmmmhmm!! I'm a short chubby girl. The first song they gave me? "Good Morning Baltimore." The second song they gave me? "In Some Little World" from Henry Sweet Henry. I wasn't around long enough for a third song, but omigosh, could we BE anymore type-casting??? I wanted to sing "Notice me Horton" from Seussical just because I have a strange attraction to that song, lol, and they were like "Do you look like you could play a tall, lanky bird?" ?!?!?! LMAO.

My voice teacher SUCKED!! She was HORRIBLE!! I never really had a voice lesson going into AMDA and just kind of trained myself while watching other belters, because I loved it. This teacher decided I should train more LEGIT and put me up into my soprano range. It's THERE... but it's not what I'm comfortable doing. I was willing to change, but then I went to Liz Caplan. She took me as her student and said what they were doing to me at AMDA was ALL WRONG and that I was a "belter with a great upper register," NOT a soprano. So she had to basically unteach me everything that my AMDA teacher did wrong- including breathing. She taught me to breathe BACKWARDS lol. Great.

I really did love my acting teacher. First of all, because he was really good friends with Julia Murney, who is my GODDESS of musical theater, so he'd always tell me little anecdotes HAHA. He knew I was obsessed. AND because he was a really amazing teacher and really broke my habit of acting that I learned as a kid and helped me learn more of a method- he especially helped me with listening. I loved him and his work.

The dance department is ...EH. Only about 1/5 of the students at AMDA are actually good dancers. I was in all level 5's, which is the highest level, and it was easier than training I had gotten elsewhere. Maybe because I'd been dancing for so long... but it just seemed like stuff I already knew. Although I will agree with what another poster says... they may not come out as GOOD dancers from AMDA, but they learn basic necessities that will help them get ahead. I took a third semester level one tap class and those kids who I'm sure had all started out as bumbling bad dancers ended up being decent at what they were taught... like time steps in tap, the positions in ballet... nothing ADVANCED, but at least they knew the basics.

My biggest complaint about AMDA is with the administration and their voice department. Liz said that she was offered to teach in their voice department but turned it down quickly because they do a specific curriculum that she did NOT want to follow because it, for a lack of better words, sucked.

I didn't really fit in with the whole "AMDA ROCKS! LETS HAVE AMDA PARTIES!" crowd. They were really obsessed with the fact that they went there. My roommate was HORRENDOUS. She'd call home to her parents and be like "I really am going places, mom. They make us do yoga every morning. (lie- she NEVER did yoga) I'm really training to be a serious actress (ha) and they said they definitely see a career for me in Hollywood." LOL. She was NUTS. She had a five year plan and it was like "When I graduate from AMDA I want to start working in TV and movies. After one year, I want to be starring in my own TV show, and have at least three big budget movies out. Two years after that, I want to be an Oscar winning actress making multi-millions in film." Okay, the girl did that "Mr Cornell, AH have tried to be neighborly..." monologue and was HORRIFYING. She was laughable. Ahhhh. I couldn't stand her.

But MOST of the people were like that. They figured after two years at AMDA they'd be Broadway stars. I HATE that attitude. A lot of shows do have people from AMDA... but it's because 85 billion people graduate. Really, there are usually about 48 people in each graduating class... but I went to some fourth semester showcases over the fall and they were literally BAD. In one group, only one girl had any amount of talent so she sang like, six songs, and everyone else just introduced her, lol. So bad.

I definitely have mixed feelings. Don't go to AMDA thinking you're going to be on Broadway. Go there if you want to learn the basics, if you've never really had major training before. You will come across a LOT of pompous little "I'm the BEST!" people. Very annoying. I hung out with a couple of AMDA kids who were pretty decent, but I basically didn't like a lot of people I came across. Everyone who goes there thinks it's the cream of the crop musical theater school. It's not. I knew it going in. I got accepted to Emerson for musical theater out of college, but couldn't afford their tuition so I had to go to a local university. After two years, I thought AMDA would be okay because I really wanted to do musical theater, and I'd rather do it in New York than some stinky little university in my hometown. AMDA was basically my ticket to NYC. I got half scholarship and paid the rest with loans and money I had saved up. But it wasn't worth it. And when they told me they wanted me to DEFER until February and start over as a first semester when something happened that I couldn't control? UMMM, HEEELL NO. They only gave me back less than HALF of the money I had paid, and I was not going to work my ass off to pay for an extra semester.

They are ALL about the money, which is why they let so many people in. There were 320 people in my class. They get all that money from those people, and then kick out more than half of them before the second semester. It's a huuuuge scam. BUT if you are an adult, I think it is a good choice, because a lot of people who are older and out of college go there when they need a break from the worklife, or want a new experience. Really no other musical theater schools will let you do that, so that's kind of a good thing.

I have many MANY more opinions but those are a bunch that I think are off the top of my head.

[Justice]

Posted: 1/17/05 at 2:55pm

AMDA is a preference, just as isloated acting classes. Not everything works for every actor. I know many people who went, there, and are working actors (Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Kate Pazakis are two). Some people have a great time with their experience there, while others hate it.

And to the person who says AMDA is the BA for losers - Marissa Janet Winoker (sp) (who went to AMDA) won a Tony. How does that qualify her as a loser?

[erinrebecca]

Posted: 1/17/05 at 3:05pm

Everyone should listen to balletgirl's comments and take them to heart. Her post was the most honest post I've seen about AMDA from someone who actually attended. She's right about them accepting way too many people, many with very little talent, about it being a money grab for tuition dollars, about the sketchy housing they put their students in, and about the variable training, some is good but most is not.

balletgirl, I'm sorry to hear that you had something happen to you. I know of so many girls this has happened to in that awful housing that AMDA has. It's horrible and no one should have to live like that with the money you're paying. I hope some good things happen for you, it sounds like you deserve it.

[MV]

Posted: 1/17/05 at 5:43pm

I will start this by saying..I am a working leading lady on Broadway today...who graduated from AMDA
I guess the school has changed over the years.
My graduating class consisted of 15 people.
Our showcase was incredible and almost everyone out of my class ended up having successful careers.
If their standards have gone down that is too bad because I really loved my time there. I learned alot of original choreography from teachers and it benefited me later on when I auditioned for shows that required the original works..I booked the shows and landed leads. Of course it would be incredibly dissappointing to be in a school around attitude and childish energy from kids who are there to goof around and claim they are making it...remember this is a tough business and not everyone makes it because they have the most talent.. you have to be a very smart business person as well...the thing AMDA gave me was knowledge and the chance to be in NYC. There is nothing like it..you cant get any better training that seeign great theatre in the world right in your own backyard. If you are going to be putting your energies into what other students are doing or how they are behaving..one will always be discouraged.
There are some of us that really learned alot and were proud to attend AMDA. I came out of there with a very positive experience , sorry to hear some of you did not.
NO SCHOOL GIVES YOU A CAREER!!! but knowledge and tools. I attended AMDA too being one of the strongest dancers in class, but I guess I was lucky enoguh to have a teacher there who pushed us to work harder and to be a performance level .
I didnt have the time to look around and see who was good or not.I was there for me..and no one else. In fact i learned most of my stuff wtachin the other students, that was a joy to see what other people brought to the work. Sometimes they didnt have a great voice, or were not a strong actor, but they brought something of their own and there is nothing like learning through observing. taking that attitude gave me direction and got me further ahead.
I say all this because to some attending a shcool in Manhattan is a dream come true. then they come to the boards and they are discouraged by the negative things said. They already have a an idea in their head. I feel this gets done all the time with the shows on Broadway too that get discussed as well as performers.
IF AMDA has gone down...I say to anyone goign to any school...there will be good and bad said everywhere. There will always be that one girl or guy who urks you and think they have all the talent in the world...there will always be that one or two or maybe 20 kids who shouldnt be there beause they dont work hard enough type of thing...blah blah blah
I wish anyone the best of luck. When I got accepted I didnt think that they took me because they needed my money..I believed I had something and a chance to perfect my craft over time. I felt lucky and honored...at 19 years old I arrived in NYC and at 21 I left AMDA feeling like I had a real chance of doing somethign with my career. I did and I have...
so be open about all that is posted. We are all entitled that is for sure.
I dont post here often if ever...because I tend to find alot of the postings negative. But I think if this can help someone who has hopes at attending AMDA...well I would want them to see that there is alot of good that an come out of it as well.

[pab]

Posted: 1/17/05 at 6:14pm

Actor training is not an exact science. There are many people who went to acting school and came out not very good but they were not very good when they got there either.

You can't teach talent. You either have it or you don't. You can only focus the talent that someone has and that is what most acting schools and acting teachers do.

I'm sure that the teachers in most acting schools are quite qualified and I think the slam at AMDA might better be focused on the admissions department. Maybe a stronger audition process is needed and less focus made on the number of students needed to fill a quota, if that is the case as I have heard suggested.

Some actors need that structure of a school to guide them while others don't. I think each person should look at what's best for them. For some people, the best way is to find an acting teacher, a voice coach, a dance instructor and a singing teacher and take all of their classes privately because that affords them the personal interaction that they might find lacking in an acting school. Others need to work in a class structure because it's what they are used to.

At the end of the day if you don't have any talent to begin with, no acting school is going to help you.

[Amneris]

Posted: 1/17/05 at 6:36pm

AMEN Pab!! Some schools really do need stronger audition plans.. some schools SHOULD JUST PLAIN AUDITION!!!! The Neighborhood Playhouse was once a godsent for actors... Now, they let anyone in without an audition. I was there 45 people IN MY CLASS.. My acting class had 45 people!! We got to work 25 minutes tops out of the entire week!!! It was insane.. and mind you we had acting everyday. First off I was one of the youngest in my class and seemed to have more "sense" then others. Most only cared about which bar was going to be the hot spot that night. When I asked one of my scene partners if they'd like to reherse, I was basically laughed at.., kids found it cool in ingest cough medicine as "fun" instead trying to get work done. Standards have really gone down along with the teachers. Acting teachers who degrade young girl students should not be teaching. When they try to use curse words and sexual things to try and be cool or get our attention, no wonder why most of the smarter students asked for a refund and went elsewhere.

[BalletGirl85]

Posted: 1/17/05 at 11:40pm

I agree with MV on a lot of things. AMDA does teach a lot of things necessary to work in the business. A lot of the basic dance steps taught in the lower level dance classes have been extremely beneficial to most of the kids who go in their with absolutely NO dance training.

Something else I noticed is the attitude of the professors. Most of my professors were great and I LOVED them, specifically my acting teacher, and my jazz teacher. I learned a TON from them and love them to death. But a couple of my professors seemed to be sick of teaching annoying students all day. My musical theater teacher would often make snide little comments about certain kids in the class who didn't "get it." Also, Theater Dance was a class hated by many, and our amazingly accomplished teacher would always instruct with a bored, "I'm too good for this" attitude that made everyone hate it even more.

Like every school, it has its good and its bad. I went there knowing that they accepted everyone, and knowing that they were looked down upon by lots of people. I even posted on this board about a month before I went, defending the school, and saying that you get out of it what you put into it.

I learned a lot in the classes that were beneficial to me. I didn't put much into my voice lesson because I was being taught WRONG. But I put my all into the other classes, got great comments back from teachers, and pushed myself to learn. I worked very hard and took lots of notes, and the things I learned most from AMDA were definitely professionalism and how to present yourself at auditions- but I will also agree with someone else who mentioned AMDA kids at auditions. They are VERY cliquey and obnoxious at auditions. I have professional experience in a national tour when I was 17 and I've been on many auditions in NYC and the one that stands out the most was an open call for that Atlanta Theater of the Stars tour of "Annie" and "The Sound of Music." There were four girls sitting in the lobby of Chelsea Studios with me and were SO insanely annoying. "We go to AMDA. It's the best school for musical theater in the WORLD. It's the hardest school to get into." At AMDA I was taught to always act professional, from walking in the door of the lobby, to presenting myself and my music at the audition, and walking out of the audition. They also help a great deal with where and how to get headshots and resumes done, etc. That was my favorite thing about the school, and I definitely conduct myself differently now. Even on the little things, like, how to stand and smile, where to focus your eyes when speaking, etc... we had a 45 minute session on that and as stupid as I thought it was at the time, it helped me a GREAT deal because I never noticed before that I stood with one hip jutted out. It's a small detail, but it matters and that's the one big thing I am grateful to AMDA for.

Like ANY school it has its good and its bad and you should definitely know varying opinions before spending a LOT of money on tuition. Now I am just studying privately with Liz Caplan and taking dance lessons at New Dance Group and sometimes Broadway Dance Center... and taking acting workshops here and there because I do believe no matter how talented a person is, you need to continue practicing and taking classes because a performer NEVER knows it all, no matter what they think.

It's unfortunate what happened with me and AMDA because I believe I would still be there and would be finishing my four semesters if something hadn't happened to me, but I'm not at a point in my life right now where I can afford an extra semester. I'm happy with what I learned and accomplished there, minor a few classes I didn't really "click" with, and I think they are great for accepting people who are older and want a chance to study the performing arts. Just keep a good attitude and stick to yourself and you'll be fine. Not every student there is obnoxious... I made two amazing friends in my group who I am still close with. But you will undoubtedly come across the annoying people who usually leave because they go there knowing they had all the lead roles in high school, and were their high school musical theater director's prize pig, but now are getting constructive criticism and leave the school because they are "too good" and don't belong there. I didn't like that attitude from people at all, and unfortunately, it's all over the place at AMDA. All my life I've been a performer, and criticizing myself more than anyone else has done, and I've been harsh on myself and knew that coming to NYC I'd receive my share of comments on things I need to change. So it was really shocking for me to see these people who are like "Mmmhmm, I am SOOO good. I can be on Broadway right now, without this stupid school." That was my biggest pet peeve and I really couldn't stand it!

I hope you make a decision based on what YOU want to do, and know that even though it has its cons, it definitely has its amazing professors and attributes. Just remember that you only get out what you put in, so if you work hard and stay positive, you'll have a great experience.

[sipos]

Posted: 1/17/05 at 11:49pm

I was unaware of some who have attended AMDA, other than a few friends, who have gone on to some success on Broadway. Glad to hear it.

I wondered -this was all I heard in the 90s- why AMDA was nick-named SCAMDA by some?