BA Music Theatre at Uni of Ballarat

Does anyone have any info on the credibility of this course? Do you know anyone who has graduated? How long has the course been running etc... Cheers

Hi I've just finished First Year of the BA in Music Theatre in Ballarat. It's an excellent course, not as well-known as WAAPA but certainly a good school nonetheless. The Ballarat University has been running Performing Arts courses for a long time, and the BA in Music Theatre has been running for approx seven years. Two of this year's graduates have already been cast in Guys and Dolls (opening in Melbourne next year), several received callbacks for places such as Tokyo Disney and Universal Studios Osaka. Next year's second years (my year) have been invited to work on the debut production of a new Australian theatre piece - but I'm not sure how much I'm allowed to say about that project so I'll not go into any more detail. All of the teachers and lecturers are successful performers/directors themselves; people such as ex-NIDA teacher Ross Hall, ex-VCA head of voice Stephen Costan, Kim Durban, Lisa Minett, Tracy Bourne. We also get regular visits from other working performers from Melbourne - an advantage of being in the eastern states - for both lectures, classes, and mock auditions. If there are any more specific questions, please feel free to PM me and I'll do my best to answer them. As a side note, Ballarat Uni hosted the ANATS inaguaral Music Theatre Forum earlier this year. One of the guest speakers was WAAPA singing coach Liz Pascoe, who, when asked about the WAAPA course, said that if you're from the Eastern States, why go all the way to Perth when Ballarat is just as good?

I attended the performance by 1st year music theatre students and would have to say I was blown away by the talent. Cant wait to see how they develop further. They were so professional at this early stage. The Arts Academy Ballarat is the new Eastern States WAAPA, the third year performance was outstanding and equal to any touring musical and no wonder some were already cast for musicals by the attending agents. I believe that since BAPA has acquired the teaching staff as specified by me@ballarat it has gone ahead in leaps and bounds. I totally agree, why go to Pert when the Eastern States have BAPA

Thank you so much for taking the time to reply. Its sounds fantastic. Thanks again and best wishes for your future endeavours

BAPA auditions in Adelaide today, heaps auditioning. Anyone get a callback.

I auditioned in Sydney and got my letter yesterday. Hope to see you there!

Congratulations Jen Jen! I've just completed first year of BA in MT so if you or anyone else has who has got in or are curious about the course, I'm more than happy to answer any questions about the course, the teachers, the town, where to live, etc... please ask, I'd be more than happy to help you as I know what it is like!

Oh! Thank you. Yeah, I was just wondering where you came from previously. I'm from Sydney and it's a bit terrifying leaving everyone and going to somewhere I've never actually been!

Hey congrats! We have ppl from all over come to do the course. Syd, Adelaide, Perth and obviously Melbs. We even have a couple from Alice Springs. We actually only had one guy in our year group this year from Ballarat. Don't be terrified - I was too untill I finally moved over and got started. Trust me, this year will totally change your life! Once you find some mates during O week, you'll be set. If you have any questions, let us know!

Thanks. Nothing was going to stop me from going, I know there are people from all over, it's just scary and I just wanted to know if it gets better. Thank you. That helps. If I think of any questions, I'll let you know. Thanks again.

It really is great. I'm not from interstate but there are are fair few that are and they all seemed settled in and as happy as the rest of us, apart from missing their family of course. But everyone at the uni, from both MT and Acting, all year levels, form a family away from home. Everyone really is fantastic. Look forward to making some awesome friends who share your love for performing! Looking forward to meeting you in O-Week!

:D Thank you! Looking forward to meeting you too! Very excited.

Hi all, I also got an offer for MT! Pretty Exciting. Was wondering if anyone can tell me the best places to consider living in? ie. Whats good, whats cheap etc? I'm from Newcastle NSW and have never been to Ballarat. Cheers

Yay for you! My advice to you is rent a house with other first yrs or second yrs or something. Try to avoid living on res (campus) at all costs because it's very expensive and it's not for everyone. But it's best to suss out housemates first, or if you're interested in living with 2nd or 3rd yrs we could ask around for you. Haha I was a little scared about moving to Ballarat too but don't worry - there aren't dirt roads or anything to that extreme. I'm betting that once you arrive you'll be pretty surprised at how wrong your expectations were. And the best part is it's only an hour and a bit from Melbs! So congrats on getting in and good luck with housing! None of us can wait to have new firsties to play with!

i got in as well :) very exciting! i couldn't wait for the letter so i rang them. will be good to meet everyone who got in...anyone know how many people were offered a place? what i'd really like to know from someone who's completed first year is what is the schedule like? i heard it is 9-3 each day, is that correct? is it 5 days a week? how much time do you spend on uni, contact and rehearsal hours combined? i've got a few evening commitments in melbourne, and would like to work. i think that may make for a busy schedule! let me know what your experience of the time demand has been. looking forward to it luci

i got in as well :) very exciting! i couldn't wait for the letter so i rang them. will be good to meet everyone who got in...anyone know how many people were offered a place? what i'd really like to know from someone who's completed first year is what is the schedule like? i heard it is 9-3 each day, is that correct? is it 5 days a week? how much time do you spend on uni, contact and rehearsal hours combined? i've got a few evening commitments in melbourne, and would like to work. i think that may make for a busy schedule! let me know what your experience of the time demand has been. looking forward to it luci --somehow i posted this in the middle of the discussion...so putting it in again at the end.

Oh congratulations!! Looking forward to seeing you. Did you get in for MT? They had 25 spots, apparently. Are you from Melbourne?

I saw the first year performance and was blown away by the talent. OMG - and they say WAAPA is the best-- well watch out for Ballarat. Its been going for about 7 years but the past 3 years has been phenomenal. Its attracting the best teachers and producing amazing talent- like me@ballarat says some 3rd years are in musiclas for next year. Grapevine has it that a number of waapa kids will be joining as 1st years. An ex waapa is going into 2nd year next year too. According to her WAAPA is fantastic but BAPA is equally as fantastic.

The schedule is pretty full on, even in first year. Contact hours are about 22, thats just for lectures and classes, and depending on what dance streams/tute groups you are in your day could begin at nine and not end until 4. This doesn't include personal practice time, homework (not that there's a lot of 'written' homework) and after-hours group work etc. You'll need to find a flexible and understanding employer. There's a fair bit of work in Ballarat for students, mostly in the hospitality area. I worked in retail for a while bt got 'let go' because I couldn't work as much as they wanted me to :-( Commuting to Melbourne will be a tough slog, too. Most people I know only return to Melbourne at weekends. We were rehearsing in Melbourne towards the end of the year, and having to leave ballarat at 5 and not get back till 11 for a 90 minute rehearsal was not fun! The expectation is too, that your commitment will be first and foremost to the course. It is full-on, especially once you factor in that most people have to re-locate to Ballarat so you may have to re-evaluate what of your other commitments are able to be let go. I don't mean to sound negative at all, but I know a lot of people who struggled to study, work and keep up other commitments, so I just want you to be prepared! Best of luck, and I'll meet you all in O-Week!!!

Thanks Music Theatre fan! I was so proud of our year and the performances and well as the shows that we produced! In answer to what you asked hellodolly, me@ballarat is right. It is quite full on. From what I experienced this year, from monday to wedneday we would have our dance classes in the morning which go for an hour and a half then maybe a short tute for singing or music theory which would only go for about 45mins, then in the after noon voice or critical studies which also go for about an hour and a half. Then on Thursdays we had acting for two hours then singing for two hours an hour for lunch and then music theory for about two hours. Friday is a full day 9-4 for project which you do a range of different things in. Anytime free time that you get during the day is usually used for stuff like song learning, line learning, scene rehearsing, journal writing, essay writing, dance practising etc etc.. Then all you want to do when you get home from uni is to crash but even then you're expected to be doing voice exercises (working your speaking voice) or singing exercises and catching up from anything else you didnt get done during the day. Also hellodolly, if this is your first time living out of home you will also have to worry about what you are going to cook for tea and all that sort of domestic stuff. I know it might sound like not much fun and its hard, but its worth it. Anyway I guess the point I am trying to make is that you dont want to have any stress on you or anything else that is going to make you more tired than you already will be. I didnt work this year as I found it hard to get a job that suited me. I wanted to go home every weekend and I found it hard to find jobs having such little availability in my home town, and then I couldnt find jobs for just week nights in Ballarat. Do you plan on going home on weekends? Congratulations to all you guys for getting in! Really excited about meeting you all!

It took WAAPA more than 7 years to get recognised as the best training ground for MT. However, WA seems so far away for the eastern stater's and BAPA or the ARTS ACADEMY as it is known, has stepped up to reach the same level of excellence. An injection of capital and new teaching faces who have a wealth of experience from other recognised institutions are making a name for itself.

The Arts Academy has begun its great journey into becoming recognised as one of the best institutions Third Year graduating students have performed at Melbourne’s Princess Theatre and Theatreworks, and this year took their production of "The City Wit to London". Graduates include Sebastian Bertoli and Wil Greenway (The Pacific) Eliza Brian, Claire George and Josh Piterman (Tokyo Disney), Chris Durling (Bindi the Jungle Girl), Adam Stafford (Neighbours), Libby Tanner (All Saints), Peta Brady (Mullet), Michelle Pitcher (Oliver) Adam Lubitz (We Will Rock You), Glenn Quinn and Matthew Heywood (Mama Mia).

oooh i love hearing what it's like :) yes i will be doing MT. the time commitment you described sounds pretty much the way i thought it would. what a lot of energy i can see will be required! i really can't wait, performing thrills me no end and before i auditioned i was just dreaming of the day i could spend my time being so physical/vocal! this isn't my first time out of home - i graduated (in geelong) in 04 then studied law and psychology in canberra for 2 years, got really straight with myself that i missed being on stage and wasn't getting a whole lot of satisfaction studying high court judgements. so i moved to melbourne at the start of this year, acted in 2 plays (the director of one who became my bf and is now my fiancee!!!), took singing and dancing lessons and auditioned for BAPA! --side note..thought we weren't to call it BAPA anymore?-- so i won't be living in melbourne next year, but won't be living in ballarat either, i'm going to live in caroline springs with my fiancee cos he has a house there, it is still a 50 min commute by train but i don't mind; time to learn lines, listen to music, sleep. this year i've worked as a nanny 40 hrs/wk so my energy levels are high anyway. then in the evenings i lead introductions to a life-transforming education called Landmark. i can see those evenings may be cut down a fair bit but i will keep one night a week for that. absolutely my main commitment is to MT and i have been delighted to read how AWESOME the course is, and the level of recognition it's gaining! imagine what it will be like in 3 years time when we graduate... i can't wait to meet everyone. it's clear those of you in 2nd and 3rd year are entirely friendly and welcoming as well! muchly too good to be true. luci

Uh, I'm 17 and only graduated this year. Hellodolly graduated in '04. Is it pretty common for people who only just graduated to start right away? Apparently at WAAPA it's pretty uncommon for them to accept someone right out of high school. It all sounds so great. Thank you for all of your help. I'm very excited.

Nah it's not really uncommon. Even waapa are now starting to take younger ones. You'll find that some of your classmates are fresh from school and others have a little more life experience. We have ppl that had started other degrees before coming to bapa (haha you're right - it's now the arts academy and not bapa but I find it's hard to shake), but it really makes no difference how old you are once you start. The best way to think about it is that they wouldn't have taken you if you weren't ready for it!

You're all very helpful. My nerves have calmed down with all your advice and answers. Thank you!

Glad your nerves have calmed down. Dont worry about age its only a number. You will be part of the Arts Academy family. Everyone made me so welcome in my first year, its amazing and exciting. Like minded people striving for the same goal. You'll get to know everyone at te academy and not just the first years plus you'll have a mentor from a higher year to help your through and answer any questions. Its a great atmosphere and you'll love it.

Yes waapa do take young ppl now, they have over the past couple of years. Likewise BAPA takes younger ppl. If your talented you have every chance and thats how it should be, well I think they like you to finish year 12. The major problem with WAAPA was that they were taking younger kids but they couldnt hack being away from home and left the course. Then they stipulated they liked the under 20's to have some life experience before getting into the course. Last year a young girl accepted WAAPA then turned it down a couple of weeks before the course started. I dont think David King likes being stuffed around.

Hi,thanks for responding. I am moving down with my partner so I was not really thinking about sharing a place. also even though I'm in NEwcastle I lived in Maitland for the first 20 years of my life which is smaller than Ballarat so I'm not expecting dirt roads:)I cant wait to meet you all too! Thanks again

Melbourne is only an hour away by train and about six bucks for student concession. Some ppl live in Melb and go home on weekends. Occasionally on weekends we will go shopping or party in Melb, we had a couple of birthdays of students who live in Melb and some of us put in for a hotel room or stayed with other uni friends. It depends how tired you are and how much study you have. Some guys have singing teachers in Melb so its not really a great hassle to hop on a train with a couple of friends. There is the airport bus that leaves from the train station that takes you straight to the airport also

>>> well I think they like you to finish year 12. For any tertiary degree, you have to have completed your HSC or equivalent (such as your STAT). Only in certain special circumstances can you get into uni without year 12.

>>> plus you'll have a mentor from a higher year to help your through and answer any questions ... you might even get me ;)

Wow I am so excited for all of you guys! I am having flashbacks of how I felt last year! To you younger guys I seriously wouldnt worry about it. I think about 50% of our class was straight out of school, including myself. I have always felt that everyone in our class is the same age, and if their was a difference is seems to be because of a person's maturity not the amount of years they have been alive. I just wish that 2008 would start already!!! PS Second years for 2008, when do you think we'll find out what show we're doing?

Our show... maybe three days before auditions ;) Seriously, I'm not expecting to find out any time soon! -M

I knew WAAPA took younger people but I heard it was rare, my dance teacher wasn't very supportive when she found out one of the yr 12 girls was auditioning for WAAPA. She actually told my class she thought the girl wouldn't get in and she ended up getting a call back but not getting in. Well, it's all good to know and thank you for your help! Sorry if my questions are a hassle! Haha. :) Thank you all again.

Your questions really are no problem at all! Keep them coming, don't hold back!! I hope they dont leave it too long to tell us what show we're doing so that we can prepare audition stuff!

What do the second years do??? You said auditioning for a musical, what does your year entail. Is it only the second years in the musical. Some one mentioned you are doing a professional musical- is that the one your auditioning for

For the last few years, second years have done three major productions - a scene study, have filled out the chorus in a combined show with the third years, and then a full production of their own. In 2007 these were a scene study based on "Baby" (Maltby and Shire), Ensemble in "Anything Goes" and then "Jane Eyre". 2008 hasn't been finalised yet, to my knowledge, but what we have been told is as follows; - we'll be doing a scene study of some description, - Then instead of joining the third years, we are working on a new show by Donna Jackson and Mark Seymour (that's the pro one, DUST), - then we'll do a 'full' production of a musical. The order of these is not known - the 'DUST' project isn't likely to be until late in the year, and we have to audition for parts in the other shows. The auditions we're talking about are for the term one show. In my opinion that'll be the scene study, as we're probably not quite ready to do a full scale production.

forgot to mention also, First years don't do a musical per se. They do a concert-style presentation of various ensemble works at the end of Semester One, and in Semester two you get to write a group musical (about 45 mins long) and produce that.

i think the term one show is our full production coz wasnt the scene study later in the year with tracs broadway friend? Arts Academy is awesome too btw, trying not to repeat what everyone else has said but as another student i've found it to be a very friendly and family atmosphere and the work we do is definately of a high standard, they expect alot from us there!

Thats what makes the Arts Academy so special, the atmosphere is great, its a real community- a great family as others have said. Plus the fact we have the advantage of our teachers bringing talent from Broadway etc.

Hi, Not sure if this will actually get to you as I've never been on this before, but I've just graduated from WAAPA doing the BA over there in Music Theatre and before that I finished my 2nd year at BAPA doing the BA in music theatre...I could probably give you a good insight to both courses if you needed help in choosing what suits you. Email me at calebrixon@hotmail.com, I'm also on facebook. Let me know if i can help! merry christmas!!! Caleb

Hi Guys, Its been a while since I logged on... Am now living in Ballarat, 10 mins from Camp St. Cant wait to get started!! Was wondering if anyone could tell me, in terms of the specific dance wear required, do we need to have all of it straight away? What specifics will we need before we start? Any help would be greatly appreciated, before I go off and spend a heap of money :) Cheers

Hey! if you have dance shoes that are in good condition, then don't go and buy what's on the list just because the brands are different. But everything on your dance list is needed pretty much straight away coz you have your dance streaming in the first couple of days during o week. do you have anyone you know with you? or do i need to hook you up with my fellow 2nd yrs who are in town to show you around?

You'll probably be alright for a little while with any dance shoes you already have, the uni understands they're expensive and students are poor! You will need to have your 'uniform' - your leotard/ballet skirt/jazz pants because they're pretty strict about that (especially in ballet) BUT they'll be pretty easy on you for the first couple of weeks. They don't expect you to know everything before you've even started! I'm in ballarat now too, if any new students would like to meet up for a coffee/general intro to being in the Rat, let me know - I'm pretty free and very willing to help y'all out =) - Megan

Hey, Thanks for the quick reply! I was wondering mostly about the shoes, cause I do have most of the basics in that department so at least I know I can buy a bit of time. I dont know a single soul in Ballarat. I moved here with my partner about 3 weeks ago. I know my way around fairly well now I think, but to have some peeps show me around in O week would be fantastic. I haven't had a good look at the time table yet. Any help would be great! Cheers,