Summer programs and intensives
A local camp and a pre-college intensive can be very different summers. We compare the options we looked at in 2023, including costs. Check current prices before making plans.
Summer Intensives and College Prep
Steve West of NYC College Audition Coach helps us sort out summer camps, intensives and pre-college programs. Which kind makes sense for your child, and how does it connect to a BFA application?
Listen to episode 17
Answers from the show
Do summer theatre camps require an audition?
Local high school or studio camps are introductory, so there's usually no audition. You register and your child goes to learn about acting and the parts of making theatre.
Episode 17: Summer Intensives and College Prep
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There's probably not an audition you just kind of register your kid and they go and it's an introductory experience to to acting or to the lots of parts of the process of making theater.
What kinds of summer theatre programs are there?
Options run from local camps, to sleepaway arts camps that are expensive and immersive, to regional theatre camps with a higher level of training, to pre-college programs. The most intense ones are by audition, mostly through video submissions now.
Episode 17: Summer Intensives and College Prep
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These are usually fairly highly priced and they're very intense because you send the kid away and they're doing eat breathe living theater all the time.
Do pre-college summer programs help with college auditions?
Steve West recommends pre-college programs because you can work with faculty you'll audition for later. He acknowledges the cost and calls it pay-to-play. They're helpful in a competitive process, but they aren't required.
Episode 17: Summer Intensives and College Prep
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They're the same exact people that you're going to see six months down the road when you're auditioning for their school right and so they know who you are when you walk into that room.
Why should my child do a summer theatre camp?
A camp lets a child find out whether they truly like the process, and build relationships with people who may cast shows later in the year.
Episode 23: Summer Theatre Fun for Kids
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To see do I truly like this and see what the process is like and the people you build relationships you get to meet people that will probably be casting shows later in the year.
What age is a summer intensive for compared with a camp?
Camps suit younger kids, while summer intensives are geared towards older kids or those who are really serious, partly because intensives cost so much.
Episode 23: Summer Theatre Fun for Kids
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Geared towards like older kids or you're really serious about and then and I think the reason behind that is as I I get further along in my research is because they cost so much.
How much does a summer theatre intensive cost?
When we looked in 2023, musical theatre intensives ranged from about $1,000 to $5,000 for two weeks or more. Housing and meals affect the total, and a parent travelling along has their own costs. Check the program's current prices.
Episode 23: Summer Theatre Fun for Kids
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Cost of summer intensive programs for musical theater can vary widely from a thousand to five thousand dollars wow for a two week program or more.
What is a New York summer intensive like?
One New York intensive for high school students runs sessions from one to three weeks. The package they looked at included shows, a couple of dinners and free time, and you apply by submitting a video.
Episode 23: Summer Theatre Fun for Kids
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Highly respected summer intensive program for high school students interested in musical theater it's held in new york city it offers several different different sessions ranging from one to three weeks.
Are there scholarships for summer theatre intensives?
Ask your high school about summer scholarships. Some schools offer them, and the programs themselves may have scholarships or financial aid.
Episode 23: Summer Theatre Fun for Kids
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A lot of these programs offer scholarships as well to help bring the students in so even though it may cost you know twenty five hundred dollars it may not actually.
More on summer programs and intensives
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