Interviewer: 60 Minutes presents a live interview with Artistic Director of the Talent Development Project, Mary Lopez.
Interviewer: Mary thank you for talking to us tonight, in our live online chat room.
Mary Lopez: Thank you for having me tonight I'm looking forward to the questions.
Interviewer: Now we will go to the questions from our guests.
TipTipTap asks: Mary can you tell us what the purpose of the Talent Development Project is?
Mary Lopez: It is to discover and develop the talents of young performers so they can take their first steps into the entertainment and music industry.
Renee asks: For you, what is the 'it' factor that you look for? And do you find it hard to turn away all those who don't have the 'it' factor?
Mary Lopez: For me, the "it" factor is about something you've not heard or seen before, it's an emotional reaction. You have to be very attracted to the person from the start. I find it hard to make the decisions about how goes on, and because it might be what I think i don't want to take dreams away. The 'it' factor is not just recognised by me but by others. It's not just my opinion but consultants from the music industry who come in have their say and we usually find everyone feels the same way.
elizabeth asks: Could you please tell me where your school is located?
Mary Lopez: It operates out of the Sydney Entertainment Centre, the best thing to do is look at the website which is http://www.talentdevelopmentproject.org.au . You can only enter the school by audition and it's for public school students only.
dancingqueen asks: Hi I'm wondering if the Talented Development Project is for dancers too. I'm a really good dancer and there is not much around for us.
Mary Lopez: I feel sorry about that but the only time we would take a dancer is if they are also a singer and there is a possibility for them to enter the world of musical theatre. They must be able to sing. Knowing how hard it is for dancers you have a better chance if you develop your singing and acting skills to go with the dance.
laurasdad asks: What do you have to do to audition for this program?
Mary Lopez: The best thing to do is to look up the website but you have to prepare a DVD audition and that must come through your school. The forms for the audition process are on the website. It's very important that you make an audition tape or dvd which will show your talent. It doesn't have to be an expensive dvd at all, but it should do you and your talent justice.
lily asks: Do you have age restrictions for the Project?
Mary Lopez: We do. We will look at performers from the ages of 13 upwards and the oldest is 19. The main requirement is that you have to be attending school or TAFE. In other words you have to be school age. You can call the Talent Development Project for more information or, check the website.
Renee asks: Why is this course only open to public school students?
Mary Lopez: Because when the project began it was offered to the Department of Education as a way of giving opportunity to students who otherwise may not have the opportunity to enter the entertainment industry. We wanted to be able to give that chance to those young people. The Dept of Education is the major sponsor to the programme which is one of the only reasons the programme can exist due to the sponsorship. It is a free programme and it operates on the sponsorship from the Dept. and also corporate sponsorship. These sponsors want to enable young performs who may not have another opportunity.
Theresa asks: What can I do to help my son? He is that way inclined but we live 8 hours from a major city? Any suggestion to help him, he is only young, but I don't want that to prevent him from his nature ability?
Mary Lopez: Make sure that he has the tuition to develop his skills and if you don't have access to teachers, then have him listen to performers and whilst not copying them, try to understand why they are good and work as hard as possible by accessing the internet or whatever might be available to find tuition offered. If he goes to a public school, he could ask his teachers to send some tapes in to us. Country students are catered for in this course, the boys in the band are from Deniliquin are 10 hours from Sydney. We can help with transport and accommodation when here. It's what the performer puts in to developing their skills that makes the difference. Attendance is only 2 days each month at the Sydney Entertainment Centre.
tandar asks: Hi Mary, where is the best place to start if you feel your child has performance talent?
Mary Lopez: By giving them the benefit of good teachers who develop their skills and talents. Test out the talent. Get them to perform in front of family and friends and the local community and see how they go. That's a good place to start. Have them perform in front of other people. They need to be able to communicate and have the audience enjoy the performance. It's not just about a good voice, it's also about communication and uniqueness.
yepppppppppp asks: Is the program just for singers/dancers or can musicians join too?
Mary Lopez: Occasionally we have musicians but they have to be the sort of instrumentalists who have a potential to be soloists. For example we graduated this year a wonderful guitarist. He showed from the beginning potential to take the stage as his own.
Lorraine asks: What is the cost of this school??
Mary Lopez: The Talent Development Project is a foundation and there is no cost to the students.
Siobhan asks: Does the course branch outward to other entertainment fields other than music?
Mary Lopez: It's all musical, although it covers a number of genres of musical style, from country to opera. We don't take actors or dancers unless they have a musical talent. We also work hard on song writing, and even song writers need to be able to sing and perform.
coreyk.B asks: Mary this program is all about teaching talented kids like myself to be prepared for the real world of the music industry right ?
Mary Lopez: That is what we do you are exactly right. That's a good summary of what our programme is all about.
Luke asks: Your school sounds interesting are you the main judge or do you have others?
Mary Lopez: I'm the Artistic Director for the Project and I create the training programmes but we have over 100 consultants from within the music and entertainment industry who work with the young performers to develop their skills and prepare them for a career and it's very important that it's not about judging, it's about providing advice and assistance and direction. Students are only judged against themselves, they are not judged in relation to anyone else. There is a panel for the selection process for those who get to attend the course and I am on that panel along with others from different genres.
MustangSally asks: Do you run any business development as part of the Fame school, or is it purely talent based? thank you
Mary Lopez: it is talent based but we provide consultants who discuss the business side of the music and entertainment industry. They provide career advice and the aspects the young people might need. This ranges from PR to lawyers, managers, agents, psychologists.
singfulnotes asks: Do you know if there any other programs like this that I could enter because I attend a private school?
Mary Lopez: I'm sorry that we aren't able to make the programme available to everyone. Depending on what state you live in, I can only really talk about NSW. There is no single school I know of that has a broad range of topics, but there are some like the Australian Institute of Music. I'm sure there is no other free programme, but there are some commercial programmes, depending on the genre. You could look at the Talent Development Project website and find the co-ordinators name and give her a call, and we could provide you with the names of suitable establishments, if you're in NSW. http://www.talentdevelopmentproject.org.au . The phone number is 02 - 9320-4245, ask particularly about the course that is run by William Forsyth and they can give you details.
aaron asks: Do you have to be in a NSW school to do the program?
Mary Lopez: Yes at this stage you do. You have to be in a NSW Public School. We would very much like to be able to reach further afield but we are limited by our sponsorship and the amount of funds available to run the programme.
nameinlights asks: Does the project put on any showcases or performances for the public?
Mary Lopez: Yes we just had our recent graduation which was open to the public with an audience of about 1800. This was the largest of the graduation showcases that we've had it was held at the Sydney Entertainment Centre. It was on 26th August. You can also see the graduates and current students in the Schools Spectacular at the Sydney Entertainment Centre on the last Friday and Saturday of November and also on ABC TV. The Graduation Show called "Start Me Up" is held every year in July or August. The dates for the School Spectacular by the way is 27th and 28th November and will be shown on tv nationwide usually 2 weeks after that.
Sandrea asks: How long does the audition process take?
Mary Lopez: The first process is to send in a DVD of your performance. Then you could be selected for a live audition probably about 3 weeks after seeing the dvd. Then you stay in the programme for usually 3 months where we have another audition to see if you are suitable to continue in the course. There is then another audition usually 3 months after that when we select those who we consider are ready for graduation. Which means we feel they are ready to take their first steps into the industry. If you are asking how long does the "live" audition take, it's usually the length of two songs. You would need two pieces prepared. That is the same for the electronic auditions also, dvd or video. You can get this information regarding the processes on the website also.
HELLO- asks: How long are the courses?
Mary Lopez: it varies from student to student depending on the age that we take them in. It is important to realise the workshop happens for 2 consecutive days once a month. For some students the course is 1 year long which we call the graduation year, but juniors are taken into the programme who may come over a number of years to selected workshops.
Miss_Kate asks: I think its great that you give these kids an opportunity to perform and graduate from a "fame" type program ... but what support do you give to them once they have graduated .. do you encourage them to seek further entertainment training i.e. the conservatorium or Nida
Mary Lopez: We remain in contact with the students who graduate and depending on which genre they are in we encourage them and assist where we can to either pursue further studies, but that depends on the genre, for example, music theatre or classical. We try to help them find their way through the various support networks, for say country music, contemporary music, as they are all different requirements. We find that the TDP Network of past graduates is very helpful for students who graduate from the programme. Not only do they continue to have the support of those who run the programme but they also have an incredible network of graduates, it's like a big family. Yes we do encourage them to keep developing their performing skills through additional training and we help them as much as we can in other genres. We would like very much to be able to spend more time on the period after they graduate, that's where it is incredibly important that the self-drive kicks in.
Interviewer: I am sorry we are out of time, do you have anything else you would like to share before we finish tonight?
Mary Lopez: I'd like to say to everyone out there who has a talent and a desire to have a career, to never ever give up. If you are prepared to put in the really hard work required and place yourself in a position where you would be able to move the career onwards, never ever give up. I absolutely love and admire talented people and I have so much respect for them because they are prepared to stand up on the stage and share their thoughts, feelings and talent with us. Thank you so much for having me tonight.
Interviewer: Once again thank you and goodnight.
Interviewer: This concludes our chat with Mary Lopez, Sunday September 27, 2009.
