The Juilliard Audition Stories..

[Unknown User]

Posted: 11/8/04 at 7:21pm

My friend is going in for one, hopefully, and he wants to know wut exactly goes down at these auditions and what to expect. Anyone one been through this process before?

[munkustrap178]

Posted: 11/8/04 at 7:22pm

At mine they ushered in all the boys and girls and before and of the girls even got to audition they said "thank you, but we're only looking for men at this time." And all the girls had to leave and didn't get to audition.

[Unknown User]

Posted: 11/8/04 at 7:24pm

Are you for serious? Man, that is crazy. Like you had an audition date and stuff and they just turn all of the girls away? WOW

[munkustrap178]

Posted: 11/8/04 at 7:25pm

That's what they did.

[Borstalboy]

Posted: 11/8/04 at 7:29pm

When I auditioned in San Francisco about ten years ago, they did a sort of improv with the whole group--about 25 or so--then called people in individually to do the monologues. When everyone is finished, they then call who they want to see back in to audition again, this time with a song. NO ONE from my group was called back. They aren't particularly friendly or responsive to audition material. Just pretend you are doing your monologues to Mount Rushmore.

[Amneris]

Posted: 11/8/04 at 8:51pm

When I was 16, I went to a private acting coach for Months and Months to train for my Julliard audition and the morning of my audition, I refused to go. My parents were VERY upset but, I told them that they need to respect my feelings (which they did and do) and I didn't want to possibly spend the next 4 years of my life hating something that means so much to me as a professional choice. I didn't want to be treated like I was in an acting concentration camp as sick as it sounds. And i'm so not regretful with my decision. My friend Sarah however did go through with it and said it was the scariest, worst audition of her life. They are angry people and make you feel like dirt. She said they told one girl she wasn't fit to be in this profession. WHY would they say that to someone? Just simply say you're not right for our school. Basically, you have to be ballsy to attend these auditions and while I am ballsy..it just wasn't for me.

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 11/8/04 at 9:18pm

Well, no 16 year old has ever gotten into Juilliard anyway, so don't sweat it! The youngest ever was Val Kilmer, who was 17.

[Amneris]

Posted: 11/8/04 at 9:22pm

LOL! Well it was going to be for college when I was 17. But, life turned out okay.

[Unknown User]

Posted: 11/8/04 at 9:23pm

i didn't know val went to julliard.

[Amneris]

Posted: 11/8/04 at 9:24pm

is it true that Robin Williams was asked to leave?

[munkustrap178]

Posted: 11/8/04 at 9:25pm

Yes.

[Unknown User]

Posted: 11/8/04 at 9:30pm

i was looking into julliard, but after everything im heard, its all VERY intimidating!

[BlueWizard]

Posted: 11/8/04 at 9:52pm

Michael Arden went to Juilliard....

*sigh*

[PJ]

Posted: 11/8/04 at 9:53pm

I strongly condidered auditioning. But, I decided against going forward with it because I don't go to a performing arts high school. Oh, and I didn't feel the need to embarass myself in front of those who are "fit" to attend Juilliard.

[showstopper]

Posted: 11/9/04 at 8:05am

I went, I totally agree with borstalboy, that's exactly what happened in NYC. All 600 students applying. We were there from early in the morning until a good part of the afternoon. They said they would post callbacks at 3:00. We all waited around and out of that 600 applicants 2 boys got called back. They knew they were only looking for boys that year because a senior who was taking the parents around told them. What a waste of time.

[Speed]

Posted: 11/9/04 at 8:33am

Here's my advice:

DON'T BE INTIMIDATED BY THESE PEOPLE WHO ARE PRETENDING THEY ARE IMPORTANT!

After all.... don't you think it's a little suspicious that they only pick the "most talented" people to go to their school? See... perhaps they have very little faith in their actual ability to teach you anything at this school... so if they pick people who are ALREADY good... their school is going to look really good when those people go into the real world and become stars!

And in the end... THESE PEOPLE at the college auditions are NOT the people you need to connect with to have a successful career. You need to connect with AUDIENCES... and well, to do that... you have to connect with VARIOUS directors, all of whom have different opinions of what is good.

Now, I'm not saying that school can't be a great experience. It can be a productive transition period from childhood to adulthood. And it can be a protective environment in which to work on your craft. So, by all means, work hard, prepare fully, and do your best.

Respect them like you would anyone else... but don't give the people in the audition special power by thinking that they hold all the cards to your success in this business. They don't.

And remember... what YOU are doing (baring your soul in front of strangers) is much easier than what THEY are doing (sitting at a table). Updated On: 11/9/04 at 08:33 AM

[cocoloco]

Posted: 11/9/04 at 11:20am

I went a couple years ago in Chicago. There were about 15 of us in the group for the time frame we signed up for. We were called into a conference room, had to pretend we were ANIMALS and crawl around the room as animals (yep). Then they called us in one by one. It was Michael Kahn, a woman voice teacher, and a male acting teacher. They all looked over 70 years old. Anyway, when you came in, they talked to you for like 2 min. Michael Kahn was totally rude. The other two were fine. Then you do your two monologues. They barely watch. No comments. Then they say thank you. They post call backs after your whole group goes. One boy got called back from our group. I remember he wrote one of his monologues he performed.

Anyway, it was a pretty degrading experience. I am still convinced that Michael Kahn is the anti-Christ. He had an air of real nastiness.

[Borstalboy]

Posted: 11/9/04 at 12:09pm

SPEED be preachin the TRUTH! These arts colleges have to be taken with a grain of salt...these are people who have been shaping talent for years and years and all that can go to their heads. Training is soooo important for any actor, but if you get into that mindset where they know everything and you know nothing, you're in a dangerous place. I finally went to North Carolina School of the Arts, and was cut from the program after two years. It's a devastating, ego-crushing experience, reeeally fawking hard! But you can either get sad or get angry...I started to look at the people who were at NCSA who either got cut or called bullsh*t and left: Jennifer Ehle (left after one year), Jada Pinkett (left after one year), Danny Hoch (left after two years), Parker Posey (got cut from the program), Mary Louise Parker (graduated, but frequently reffered to by teachers and staff as a "bimbo who got lucky"), Joe Mantello (graduated, but was told he'd never be a director). The list of people who got screwed over or were given bad advice by arts colleges is endless. Go for the training and the experience, ignore the "guidance".

[Mimi Imfurst]

Posted: 11/9/04 at 12:20pm

don't bother. Julliard auditions are horrible and the people who administer them are evil. It's a horrible process to go through.

My favorite Revenge story is this. I was watching Sex and The City ...does anyone remember the episode where the sandwhich( a guy dressed as a huge sandwhich to promote some deli) was saying "eat me" to miranda? Well watch it with the commentary. The guys is like "this was his first job out of Julliard." I like to think in my mind that julliard kids end up playing sandwhiches. Everytime I walk by Julliard I proclaim "eat me"

[erinrebecca]

Posted: 11/9/04 at 12:33pm

Juilliard is a great school and I have a couple of friends there who love it. There are crazy audition stories from every college program. I have my own at Tisch. Cranky auditors should never stop you from auditioning at a school where you think you might be happy and where you'll get excellent training. And if you think that all Juilliard kids are playing sandwiches, have a look at this.

https://www.juilliard.edu/update/alumni/anews.html#drama

[Mr. Tuttle]

Posted: 11/9/04 at 12:35pm

But what about their musical theater program? I hear the Juliard MT program is great.

[TheGaIsSilent]

Posted: 11/9/04 at 12:36pm

LOL @ the Julliard Shill.

A Julliard degree is worth about as much as the paper it's printed on.

[erinrebecca]

Posted: 11/9/04 at 12:42pm

What's the matter, guys? Did Juilliard reject you?

[TheGaIsSilent]

Posted: 11/9/04 at 12:47pm

Nope. Never even applied. Can't dance or sing for the life of me.

The thing about arts schools is that unlike Harvard and Yale, the prestige of where you went to school does NOT get you a job. Talent does.

[Amneris]

Posted: 11/9/04 at 12:49pm

yeah erinrebecca julliard rejected the entire board.. Just because you go to a certain school , it does not mean you are more talented then someone..you are simply LUCKY and the chosen one. I hate to bring this up but, my parents are in the business and they had to run an audition for a show that never made it to bway but, did go to the Helen Hayes 5 years ago with Julie Harris and several actors came in to read for them FROM julliard and from what they saw, they wondered if these actors ever learned their ABC's... half of these so-called julliard actors couldn't cold read for the life of them.