NYMT

[aplo]

Hi, have just joined here so hope I am posting in the correct place. Just wondering if anyone here has a child auditioning for NYMT or similar groups this year.
My DD (age 11 ) is auditioning next sunday

[aplo]

Well DD didn't get in to the cast this year. She is disappointed but ok, to be fair to her she handled it fairly well. She is going to do the summer course and perhaps the Easter course too and is already thinking about what to sing at audition next year.

Bluelilles the email came at about 2.15 and I gave it to her after school at 3. She has gone to her flute lesson now which is followed by tap and ballet so she has a busy day!

[Biscuitsneeded]

Really, really sorry to read that aplo. It is such tough, tough competition. I hope she knows how well she's done. Sounds as if she's pretty resilient and determined - good for her. No news here... yet. I am fairly sure we will be getting the same email...

[Bluelilies]

Sorry to hear that - they do need to learn resillience if they're to go on with stage stuff though don't they? Always lots of rejections, just inevitably. Sounds like your DD has got lots to keep her busy though anyway aplo

My DD has her hopes pinned on the next school production meanwhile, as she thinks she did at least impress her teacher who's involved with NYMT - so that's one good thing come out of it. I'm preparing mentally the list of reasons why I'm not paying for her to do the course though - there's a non-residential one she can do local to us instead, which is a fraction of the price. I think the deal will be no course, but she can audition again next year for the shows.

[EvilTwins]

I'll have to wait until tomorrow to ask my student. Has everyone heard now?

[Biscuitsneeded]

No, DS still hasn't heard. Don't know if that is good or bad...

[EvilTwins]

Which show was he up for?

[spudmasher]

We had a yes email a couple of years ago which came through at 10.30 on the dot. Good luck everyone!!!

[NotEnoughTime]

Hi everyone

Just to let you know my DS didn't get through

He is very disappointed but will try again next year.

I have told him how proud I was that he had a recall.

Good Luck to all still waiting-no news is good news as they say?

[Biscuitsneeded]

Just heard. He got into Boat!!!

[EvilTwins]

Oh well done to your DS!

for yours NotEnoughTime

[NotEnoughTime]

That's great news Biscuits-Congratulations to your DS

My DS are going to go and see Boat so you will have to let us know which one your DS is and we will look out for him.

Thanks EvilTwins-I really hope your student has good news for you tomorrow.

[Biscuitsneeded]

Really sorry to hear that NotEnoughTime (love your name by the way, that's how I feel permanently...). My DS said everyone at the recalls was really, really good and the casting team said it might just come down to whether you looked right for a particular part, as they were all good enough to cast. So I hope your DS is feeling very proud of how he did.

[EvilTwins]

He just emailed. Didn't get it He seems ok. It was his first attempt at NYMT. They said Spring Awakening was 16+ and he's only 16. Still v proud of him though.

[NotEnoughTime]

Thank you Biscuits I always seem to be chasing my tail hence the name. I will tell my DS what your DS said.

What a shame EvilTwins It was my son's first attempt this year too. I hope your pupil goes for it again next year-I know my DS will.

[aplo]

Well done to your DS biscuits, a fantastic achievement.
I heard too late last night that one of my former students who is now in sixth form in Arts Ed got the lead female in spring awakening.
Commiserations to all of the rest, we went to see wicked last Friday night and my dd and her pal went to the stage door afterwards to get their programs signed and Emma Hatton (who plays Elphaba) told them that she tried three times to get into NYMT and never did!

[Biscuitsneeded]

And the director of Boat even tweeted that NYMT turned her down at 16 too - and now they let her run its shows!!
Emma Hatton is seriously talented. Good job she didn't let the rejection stop her pursuing her dream (although I did make a point of showing DS when we saw it that it says in the programme she got an English degree before training as a performer!!).

[aplo]

Biscuits that was one of the first things I pointed out too, and also told my eldest about when we got home, he is 18 and has one more year of school and is trying to make decisions at the moment if he will carry on in theatre / music or go to uni! (Guess which I'm promoting!! )

[FANTINE1]

It is disappointing when youngsters are not cast. Recalls etc mean that hopes are raised. Having studied casts over the last few years, a few things do stand out to me.
It would appear that many of the successful kids already have a "profile". Last year the female lead in Sweet Charity had been in a BBC series, and this year, one of the leads in Spring Awakening is an X factor contestant.
This person has featured heavily on NYMT Twitter feed for several weeks now.
At the very least many of the successful cast members already have agents, and are already at schools such as Arts Ed. I think that once you are in you often get cast the following year.
I am in no doubt that these kids are extremely talented, and I believe the production teams when they say that they could cast these roles many times over. However, with a few exceptions, i think that they will always go with the kids who have profile, rather than rather than taking a chance on an unknown/ordinary albeit talented child.

[aplo]

Fantine I'm not 100% sure about that. There have been four people from where I'm from in Ireland have got into NYMT in the last five years and none of them would have had any kind of profile before they auditioned it have ever done anything in the UK before. Two of them went on to be cast in further shows and would have been in top colleges/ schools then. One of the other two have gone on and has an agent and appeared in a few professional productions and the other is back in Ireland doing her final school exams, looking to uni.
Obviously if you get in once you are good enough to get in again and if they know you very well then this will happen maybe more easily but that is the same with all casting.
NYMT tend to retweet everything that is tweeted to them so most of it seems to me to be self publicity.
I know when my student got into west side story a few years ago his friends here went crazy on Twitter and NYMT re tweeted most of it which gave him a profile before he ever got on a plane to rehearsals.

[aplo]

Also the female lead in sweet charity last year didn't "land" the role until the end of the Easter week of rehearsals and was head to head with another girl (who is Irish!) for the week and only on the last day of Easter rehearsals were the parts finally decided.

[anotherguiltymum]

The person who was in the x factor ( Nat) was in NYMT West Side story way before their X Factor exposure. D
D has been in NYMT and there is definitely a 'clique' but they are mostly hugely talented and able.

[FANTINE1]

I know that they are all super talented, but I too know that there is a clique.
I noticed that a few hours before the cast list came out, the Curve Leicester, [the venue for SA]tweeted a photo of Nathanael on stage, just having finished singing a song from SA!If I was one of the other hopefuls, not sure that would have filled me with confidence!.
However, well done to everyone who did get cast, and I hope you enjoy your experience at NYMT.

[Biscuitsneeded]

Well my DS, having just got in, has no profile, no agent, and doesn't know anyone involved. And he met people at recalls who had done NYMT before and it looks as if they haven't all got in again. One of the leads in SA had done previous years but didn't get a part in anything last year. I honestly think they cast the kids who best match the parts available once they get to recall stage - they're all talented. If the same names crop up over and over it will just be that they are so very castable. It doesn't prevent newcomers from breaking in though.

[FANTINE1]

I know that your points concerning your DS are valid, Biscuits. I think that the profile thing becomes more of an issue as the kids get older.
I do think, however that NYMT are seriously naive/foolish to re tweet a photo from the Curve of the person who would subsequently be given the male lead singing a song from SA, whilst standing in front of a huge advertisement for the show. All this before the official cast lists had come out.
I may be missing something[and if I am, i apologise], but presumably there were others being considered for the part? Just seems a little wrong to me.
I wonder how the other kids felt on seeing that?

[EvilTwins]

I don't know FANTINE, there was a lot of publicity the day before about Leicester Curve and NYMT becoming official partners and a launch event at the theatre. It was inevitable that they were going to advertise Spring Awakening at the launch event - presumably it was planned way in advance and since that boy has worked with them on other productions it was an easy option to get him to do a song from the show. I would imagine it was planned well before the recalls last weekend.