BRIT school 2023

[Lola123456]

Just thought I would start a thread for anyone who has applied for a place at BRIT school

Hi. We’re on the Brit school application rollercoaster! DS had first workshop for Musical Theatre before Christmas and we’re waiting to hear if he’s got through to the second audition/interview stage. How about you @Lola123456 ?

Hi is this KS5or 4? We’re waiting to hear back from our KS4 application!

Oh good point - we’ve applied for 6th form. We thought we’d hear within 2 weeks of the first workshop and it’s now over 4. Where are you in the KS4 process?

Closing date was 9 Jan so just waiting to hear if we have an audition. How long did it take you to hear?

Closing date for us was mid November and I think we heard about the first workshop about 2-3 weeks after that. Which strand have you applied for?

Theatre strand. Hopefully we will know by Beg of Feb is we have an audition!

Good luck to your DC. The waiting is the worst part. We’ve heard of a couple of others who were at the same workshop as DS getting rejections a couple of weeks ago so hoping no news is good news!

Lovely idea to start a thread, thanks Lola123456! We're waiting to hear back about KS4 theatre strand as well. Fingers crossed!!!

We've tried to find some info on how many kids they invite back for an audition and roughly how many apply each year for the 50 theatre places but couldn't find anything other than that it's extremely competitive, which we knew of course. Does anybody have more detailed knowledge?

We got our email for the second stage audition today! It’s at the end of February so a few weeks to prepare 😀Hope you hear soon. I’ve also no idea about application numbers and how many get through. Not sure whether knowing would help or not either!

AMAZING!! Congratulations! You must be so excited - and your son! Best of luck. xxx

Well done! So glad you got though to the next stage!! We’re still waiting….. 🤣

I went to the open day and trying to remember how many they said but I can’t. I know ks4 has less applications than ks5. Hopefully we will hear in the next week!

Jumping on the thread here, my daughter has been invited for an audition in March for Musical Theatre, year 10 strand. Any idea on how many children they audition?

Well done!! When did you hear? Are the audition beginning march? I’ve heard that everyone who applies who’s in catchment gets an audition and then like 10/20 out of catchment get invited. They normally get 1000 applications. Not sure how true this is.

Well done!! When did you hear? Are the audition beginning march? I’ve heard that everyone who applies who’s in catchment gets an audition and then like 10/20 out of catchment get invited. They normally get 1000 applications. Not sure how true this is.

I believe that all Y10 theatre auditions are early March.

We're waiting to hear about the Y12 ones...

No sure if this is the right place. DS is hoping to go to Brit school. We are in catchment, not far. He's been attending musical theatre Saturday school since he was 3. Has real talent and stands out. His musical theatre teachers think he's pretty much guaranteed a place in musical theatre at Brit school. However, I believe his passion is as a singer songwriter. He's teaching himself the piano and guitar. He has an incredible voice, especially in terms of tone, range, vibrato and power.

When applying for Brit school you can only apply for one strand. He's worried on missing out if he applies for music so is thinking of applying for musical theatre in ks4 and, if he gets in, applying for music in ks5.

He's also worried about money. He knows that in musical theatre he's likely to be employed but as a singer songwriter it's much more down to luck and he doesn't want to be poor.

Do you know his chances of gaining entry if he applies for music in ks4? What is required? Is it down to luck as there are so many applications or does talent still matter?

Sorry it's so long and thanks for reading

We got an email last Wednesday. My daughter is so excited but stressing over what she is going to wear to the workshop, she's debating on one outfit for the interview and another for the dance workshop. Anyone have any tips on attire? @Lola123456 have you heard back yet? X

I don't think there's any luck involved in getting places at the Brit. It will come down to talent and showing the right aptitude and mindset for the courses.

I'm intrigued that you think MT means likely employment - it's really extremely precarious. If you consider how many hundreds of new degree graduates there are every year in the UK and how few MT roles there are available. There's cruise ships, and teaching as well as actual theatre roles but very, very few make a living from performing.

Did your son try out for any West End roles as a child? There are literally hundreds who audition - not as bad for boys as it is for girls, but still extremely competitive. A lot of the successful WE kids will be looking at Brit for KS4 or KS5.

On the music side, I know a number of children who are looking at Brit for KS4 and in particular KS5. Most play several instruments and sing to Grade 6-8 standard. They are already writing and doing live performance opportunities on a regular basis and have been focused on this. Songwriting can be a much more steady career - IF you are lucky enough to have the ability to write songs that are commercial and sell, and the right contacts to be able to market yourself successfully. Looking at the kids I know who do this, it's not something they choose to do, it's something they have to do if that makes sense. I would say that KS5 is likely to be extremely competitive for Music as a lot of musicians will be more than happy with what they can access at normal schools and extra-curricular before 6th Form.

In terms of what they want for the Music strand: an interest in music theory, composition, music tech and a high standard of performance in voice and/or an instrument.

If he's not sure, why not wait under KS5 to apply and be sure of going for the right one?

@AnonymouseGCSE Thanks for the information. I don't want to justify why I think he's right for the course, just know he is. He's currently doing 10 hours of MT a week and another 5 hours of music. Started vocal lessons last term. The coach put him straight on Grade 5. The vocal coach also works with children on shows in the WE and feels DS is at least as good as them. We have opted not to go down that route as we have other children to look after and want him to focus on school and having a childhood. Also spends his evenings at youth clubs doing music tech and learning keyboard, drums and guitar as well as singing. Dance and acting are also ok (e.g. got distinctions in his lamdas) and has done BYMT.

Basically he could do both courses at Brit school. When visiting we were informed that, especially as a boy, it's easier to get into MT than music so we are wondering if that's correct and what is expected of a vocalist. They must have umpteen applications, that's why luck was mentioned.

Employmentwise I think he may qualify as a vocal coach/music teacher as a backup.

Thanks for your answer, it gave useful hints.

I'm assuming that you are not applying for Sept 23 entry?

Can his vocal coach and MT coaches not advise you on which Strand they would recommend? In terms of what is required for a vocalist, The Brit School has a list of the current songs for the workshop for KS4 on their website.

I think it probably is a lot easier for a boy to get a place on MT at KS4 - mainly because there will be far fewer boys applying, and because not many boys will have the necessary levels of training in ballet and dance.

How old is your DS, @Savannah5 ? It usn't clear from your posts how much time you gave to decide between strands before you need to apply.

My DS did a lot of professional MT before his voice broke, and I know a few children who are at the BRIT. The ones I know on the MT strand have multiple WE credits and a high level of dance training (Grade 4+). You don't mention what dance training your DS has had - boys tend to be cut more slack and judged on talent rather than attainment, but there still needs to be a strong aptitude.

Competition for the MT strand is still fierce, even for boys. In the nicest possible way, if your DS hasn't been on the WE audition circuit (has he done NYMT?), then you won't really know how he compares to the standard of the sort of boys he'll be competing with for entry to BRIT, and I would be cautious about assuming he'll walk into an MT place there, regardless of what his teachers/vocal coach say.

Has his voice broken yet? That can be a bit of a game-changer, especially if the voice takes a while to settle or he goes through a phase where he really can't sing at all.

If your DS wants to explore songwriting in a more formal way to get some further training, he could try something like
www.songacademy.co.uk/
(Disclaimer: I have no direct experience with them, but have a friend whose DS attends and recommends it highly.)

Hi,
I just found this thread....
We are also waiting for Theatre audition for KS4 for my son.
I know the MT strand and dance received their audition dates.
Hopefully we will hear soon

@TheatreTaxi Brilliant link, thanks 👍