Stanley 1Nicole StanleyMs. Gardner4th Period Honors English5 March. 2015The Road to BroadwayWhen I was five years old, I learned to read music. Since then music has been a creative outlet for me for the last 10 years and has never failed to lose my interest. As I have grown and tried new thing over these ten years one particular type of music has caught my interest, musical theatre; more specifically, Broadway. My ultimate dream job would be to perform in the limelight on Broadway Street itself. Creating a resume for this job was highly educational as I was able to look into colleges that provided what I wanted for my future, and different ways to put myself out for the world to see, such as Off-Broadway groups.Part of my information that I found most valuable and engaging was the research I accomplished on colleges that provided programs to ear a bachelors degree in musical theatre. Since I heard about Julliard, a college for the arts in New York, I always thought I would end u their. A college for the arts sounded like solid choice to make. As I began my research, I soon realized that Julliard did not have a musical theatre program. Much to my dismay I crossed Julliard off the list and began to look for colleges that included my desires. After searching through endless college-finding sites and websites of schools that at first seemed to have my interest, I finally came across a college with a program described as intense and for those who were ready for a commitment. Pace University, located in New York, New York not only had aspects on campus that seemed to fit my style, but had a popular theatre program that I would love to be involved in. My research may have been solely for a particular college when I began but soon opened me up to a world of opportunity and potential.

Stanley 2Since fifth grade when I saw Idina Menzel as Elphaba in my favorite musical, Wicked, I have been and huge fan and admirer of her talent. E-mailing her was a long shot, but even if the chances were slim that I would get a response, I still wanted to get my questions out there. My questions were theater related of course; such as if she had majored in musical theatre as I wished to, what was her Broadway debut (what show), and how she dealt with rejection, as it is a major part of the theater industry. Even though my response never came, I am not sure if anything she said would have changed my mind about who and what I wanted to be. Music is my passion and there is not a whole lot that could steer me off its path, even Idina Menzel. The theatre business is a rough one for sure, and there is never a guarantee that you will get the part you want, especially if it is your first show. A back-up plan is always necessary for the times when your part suddenly becomes out of reach. In this case, Off-Broadway theaters are always a great option. They arent as popular as Broadway itself, but still well known for producing good quality performances. New World Stages is an Off-Broadway company that caught my interest for a back-up plan as well as a creative outlet. This is another great example of how my research led to positive findings yet again.Overall, this project was a step in the right direction for planning my future. I discovered education opportunities, found an outlet for my questions, and unearth opportunities that would help and educate when my original plan fails. With this information, I feel more prepared than I did before, not just to enter the world of musical theatre as career, but also to survive on my own in college and the real world.