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Creative Writing
Dance
Interdisciplinary Arts
Moving Pictures
Music
Theatre
Visual Arts
All applicants must satisfy the following audition requirements according to his/her arts discipline. We highly encourage all students and their families to schedule an on-site visit after the application is submitted to become familiar with our campus and participate in a live audition/interview.
Creative
Writing
The Creative Writing major at the Idyllwild Arts Academy
is designed to encourage the creative powers of gifted
young writers, teach writing skills and techniques, introduce
the discipline of close reading and practical criticism,
and to prepare students for college and the many paths
a professional writing life may take. Students are expected
to study literary history, think critically, and experience
the process of literary creation and revision firsthand.
• Candidates for admission must submit a portfolio
for evaluation that includes several representative writing
samples of poetry, fiction, and nonfiction. The total
submission should be at least fifteen pages total. Applicants
are evaluated on overall academic achievement as well
as their writing skills and experience. Due to the large
amount of reading required, applicants should have a high
level of reading comprehension.
Dance
The Dance major at the Idyllwild Arts Academy is designed
to provide students with the technical and artistic versatility
required to advance in the professional dance world. Ballet
plays a crucial role in the education a Dance major receives
with a focus on classical technique emphasizing healthy
movement habits. Dancers are also required to take modern
and jazz dance each year they are enrolled in the program.
As a performance major, the dance department puts on two
main stage dance productions as well as studio works throughout
the year, including student choreography.
• Candidates for admission to the Dance major are
encouraged to audition in person for members of the Dance
faculty or during an audition tour. If a live audition
is not possible, candidates must submit a standard format
video recording containing the following auition requirements:
Exercises at the barre (10 minutes):
Students should stand sideways in relationship to the
camera. Females should not wear skirts. Pliés,
Battements tendus, Battements dégagés, Ronds
de jambe a terre, Battements fondus, Battement frappés,
Ronds de jambe en l’air, Grands battements, Développés.
In the centre (5 minutes): Pirouettes
en dehors and en dedans, Adagio with développés,
a combination with chainés, a combination with
small jumps and, if possible, beats, a combination with
big jumps.
For females who have worked en pointe:
Exercises performed at the barre and/or a center variation.
Jazz or Modern Combination (5 minutes):
We are looking to see present technical level, body potential
and movement quality/love of dance.
Interdisciplinary
Arts
The Interdisciplinary Arts major (IAM) at the Idyllwild
Arts Academy is designed to expose students to a wide
variety of experience and training in all areas of the
arts – writing, dance, film, music, theatre and
visual art. Students’ schedules are tailored to
their individual interests, encompassing intensive training
in at least two areas of the arts. Students enrolled in
the IAM program also study the relationships among various
art forms, as well as new traditions and movements in
the arts. This exploration includes the cultural, social,
political and philosophical connections to and between
the arts with a goal of cultivating a community of thoughtful,
creative and aware artists. Due to the scholarly nature
of the IAM curriculum it is important that applicants
maintain an overall GPA of 3.0 or above.
Candidates for admission to the IAM must interview with the department chair and must submit two essays in addition to the required application essay. All applicants must also schedule an audition or submit a portfolio for review.
Essays: How will your education and development as an artist benefit by an interdisciplinary arts curriculum? Please describe your future as an interdisciplinary artist.
Candidates will be evaluated on their overall academic and artistic development.
Moving Pictures
More than any single art form, the motion picture is an amalgam of all the arts – which makes Idyllwild Arts a unique environment for the study of film. It is our philosophy that the basic, most important element of any film is the story; therefore, all Moving Pictures majors are required to take a screenwriting course every semester while enrolled at the Academy. In addition, students must also participate in workshops and master classes given by top professionals in areas such as producing, directing, screenwriting, production design, cinematography, editing, post-sound, film scoring, Panavision and Arriflex cameras, Steadicam, etc. Classes are also offered in Acting for the Camera and Directing.
Candidates for the Moving Pictures major must interview with the department chair and submit two essays in addition to the required application essay.
Essays: What are the effects of film on today’s society? What effects have video and multimedia had on film?
The department chair may request additional supporting application materials.
Music
The Music department of the Idyllwild Arts Academy prepares talented musicians for successful professional music careers. The faculty auditions serious and talented young classical and jazz musicians from around the world and within the United States. Private instruction is offered by the finest teachers and performers in Southern California. Instrumentalists have the opportunity to participate in orchestra and small ensembles; pianists study piano literature, keyboard skills, accompanying and ensemble playing. Jazz students work on improvising and playing in combos while developing their own style. Guitarists can participate in classical and jazz ensembles. Singers study diction, ensemble singing, and the history of the art song and opera. All students meet and hear guest artists perform and participate in master classes throughout the year.
Candidates for the Music major are encouraged to audition in person for members of the Music faculty either during their campus visit or on an audition tour. If a live audition is not possible, students must submit a standard, American format videotape recording containing the following audition requirements:
Classical
Piano Three prepared pieces representing contrasting styles from the standard repertory. All works must be performed from memory.
Orchestral Instruments and Guitar Three prepared pieces representing contrasting styles.
Voice Two contrasting songs or arias from the classical repertoire. Both must be performed from memory. For on campus auditions, applicants should bring music for an accompanist that will be provided.
Jazz
All Instruments Three prepared pieces from memory: a blues, a standard and a jazz standard. Students are asked to demonstrate his/or knowledge of scales, inversions and chords.
At the audition, we are interested in seeing the applicant’s level of accomplishment and musical knowledge. Students will be asked to perform any technical studies they are studying, major and minor scales. All students are asked to sight-read and demonstrate their knowledge of music theory. In addition to the above skills, jazz students are asked to improvise.
Theatre
The Theatre Arts major offers concentrated pre-professional training in theatre. Training is Stanislavsky based and incorporates self-use techniques to guide students toward greater self-awareness and knowledge of the potentials of their own resources. The program is geared toward the serious student of theatre and affords students the opportunity to experience disciplined training as exemplified in conservatory theatre training programs on the college level. Students are asked to declare an area of concentration in acting, musical theatre or theatrical design/technical theatre at the time of admission or in their junior year. The Theatre Arts curriculum includes classes in acting, mask characterization, Shakespeare, stage combat, Alexander Technique, stage movement, music fundamentals for musical theatre, acting for the camera, improvisation, scenery and costume design, stage management, musical theatre repertory, voice and diction, lighting and sound fundamentals, class voice and drafting for the theatre.
It is highly recommended and preferred that candidates for the Theatre Arts major audition in person for members of the Theatre faculty either during their campus visit or on an audition tour.
*If a live audition is not possible, students must submit a standard, American format videotape recording containing the following audition requirements:
Acting or Musical Theatre Two prepared monologues from memory of no more than two minutes each. One must be a Shakespearean verse monologue and one must be a monologue from a contemporary play written after 1900. Applicants must also sing sixteen bars of a song
a capella.
Theatrical Design/Technical Theatre All students must interview with the design faculty and/or submit a portfolio for review.
*Please note that students may be asked for a phone interview and/or a live audition may be required by the factulty based on the videotaped audition.
Visual Arts
The Visual Art major at the Idyllwild Arts Academy emphasizes
the practice of studio art by helping students develop
a sensibility and commitment to the hands-on, experiential
process of art making. Students are exposed to a variety
of ideas, methods and materials to promote an expansion
of their visual literacy. Students are also asked
to enter into a critical and analytical investigation
of the meaning and practice of studio art. All courses
supplement studio practice with historical, cultural and
philosophical backgrounds of various periods and styles.
The department also works to have students understand
that art is a way to think critically and creatively about
the world in which they live.
• Candidates must submit a portfolio of a representative
number of works (approximately 10-20 pieces) including
a description of the type of project and/or title, description
of mediums, size and date. Works should be submitted on
either CD (no more than 200 dpi), digital photo images
of work in a bound folder, or slides in plastic sheets.
Please do not submit original works. The portfolio should
include approximately 5 drawings and/or paintings from
direct observation of an object (not from photographs)
and 5 works that investigate a specific theme or conceptual
idea. This can be from any medium as long as the works
suggest a consistent investigation of your idea. Please
include a paragraph describing your thinking and intentions
underlying this body of works. (Additional works may be
requested.) All applicants should interview with a member
of the Visual Art faculty either during
their campus visit or over the phone. If an interview
is not possible, the following questions must be answered:
1. Do you intend to pursue visual art in college and/or
as a career? Considering your answer to this question,
what do you expect to gain from your experience at Idyllwild
Arts?
2. Where do you see yourself in ten years?
3. List your previous experience with visual arts; i.e.
courses, workshops, summer programs, mediums your interested
in, etc.
4. Describe the role of the artist in today’s world.
