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Audition Help 101 -- READ THIS FIRST!
I know that someone (Kasee, I think) made a thread about this, but I can't find it, so I'm making a new one. I wish there was a way to make this sticky so it would stay on the first page, but we may have to just keep bumping it. Also, we should all feel free to add to it, which will also keep it in plain view.
So, here are tips on auditioning and--more importantly--asking for audition help.
What voice part do you sing? The more specific the better. If you say "soprano," we can help you out. If you say "lyric soprano" versus "coloratura soprano" we can narrow the search even more. If you can say, "My top note is an A above the staff, I can mix to an Eb and I have a strong chest up to about C," then we can really help you out.
What role are you going for? This, of course, only applies if you're auditioning for a show, but it gives us a good idea of what you want to show the director, musical director, casting director, etc. If you think you'd be right for two roles that are very different (say it's Into the Woods and you could play either Cinderella or Little Red) then think judiciously. Which role do you want more? Which role are you more likely to get. Even if you want Cinderella, if there's a girl who looks like a cartoon princess and sings like an angel, you might be shooting yourself in the foot to audition alongside her instead of going for Little Red.
What's your personality? Let us get to know you a little. Because that's what happens in the audition room. This goes especially for college/university/acting school/agent auditions or auditions for a season or a panel of directors. Since you're not auditioning for a specific role, you just want to show your talent in a way that lets them see who you are. This also goes if you're auditioning for a show, because the director wants to feel that he not only knows what you can do, but that he knows the kind of person he'd be dealing with if he casts you. And not just your three adjective OKCupid profile, either. Let us know what you bring into an audition room as a person. This is also a good place to let us know what roles you've played or songs you regularly sing, so we have an idea of what types fit on you.
What are the stipulations for the audition? Most places will tell you not to use material from the show, be it a monologue or a song. Generally they'll give you some specifics on what they want. How long (generally about a minute or 90 seconds, never over 2 minutes), how many bars of music, what kind of song or monologue. They may even specify a few authors or songwriters. Please pass this information on to us so that it narrows our search. Many of us know the shows you're auditioning for, but if the director gives explicit stipulations, please let us know what they are.
Please put some effort into this. We assume that you want us to put some effort into our responses, and we won't be that inclined to if we don't see that you put some effort into your request. Remember, you're asking for help and we're doing you a favor. On that note, please come back and say thank you. It's a nice sign of appreciation and it lets us know that you're reading the advice we post. A lot of people have come here asking for help, and then never post again. And, I repeat, people here are putting effort into these responses as a favor to those asking for help. Show your appreciation.
The idea behind this thread is to give people the tools they need to best ask for help, and then get a discussion going. Don't bother asking for help if you don't plan on putting in the (very little) legwork required to give us the information we need to best help you. Also, this is a discussion forum. It's here to get people talking and bandying about lots of different ideas so that you make make the best decision for yourself. Please do not message me directly with audition questions. If you want private help, we can discuss how to go about it and methods of payment, but I do not do private sessions for free. This forum is here for discussion and advice, not private audition coaching.
So, here are tips on auditioning and--more importantly--asking for audition help.
The biggest key thing to remember when asking for help is this: We don't know you!!! And audition song or monologue is a very personal thing, so we can't just throw things at you and hope something sticks. We need to know a little bit about you. Things like this:
What voice part do you sing? The more specific the better. If you say "soprano," we can help you out. If you say "lyric soprano" versus "coloratura soprano" we can narrow the search even more. If you can say, "My top note is an A above the staff, I can mix to an Eb and I have a strong chest up to about C," then we can really help you out.
What role are you going for? This, of course, only applies if you're auditioning for a show, but it gives us a good idea of what you want to show the director, musical director, casting director, etc. If you think you'd be right for two roles that are very different (say it's Into the Woods and you could play either Cinderella or Little Red) then think judiciously. Which role do you want more? Which role are you more likely to get. Even if you want Cinderella, if there's a girl who looks like a cartoon princess and sings like an angel, you might be shooting yourself in the foot to audition alongside her instead of going for Little Red.
What's your personality? Let us get to know you a little. Because that's what happens in the audition room. This goes especially for college/university/acting school/agent auditions or auditions for a season or a panel of directors. Since you're not auditioning for a specific role, you just want to show your talent in a way that lets them see who you are. This also goes if you're auditioning for a show, because the director wants to feel that he not only knows what you can do, but that he knows the kind of person he'd be dealing with if he casts you. And not just your three adjective OKCupid profile, either. Let us know what you bring into an audition room as a person. This is also a good place to let us know what roles you've played or songs you regularly sing, so we have an idea of what types fit on you.
What are the stipulations for the audition? Most places will tell you not to use material from the show, be it a monologue or a song. Generally they'll give you some specifics on what they want. How long (generally about a minute or 90 seconds, never over 2 minutes), how many bars of music, what kind of song or monologue. They may even specify a few authors or songwriters. Please pass this information on to us so that it narrows our search. Many of us know the shows you're auditioning for, but if the director gives explicit stipulations, please let us know what they are.
Please put some effort into this. We assume that you want us to put some effort into our responses, and we won't be that inclined to if we don't see that you put some effort into your request. Remember, you're asking for help and we're doing you a favor. On that note, please come back and say thank you. It's a nice sign of appreciation and it lets us know that you're reading the advice we post. A lot of people have come here asking for help, and then never post again. And, I repeat, people here are putting effort into these responses as a favor to those asking for help. Show your appreciation.
The idea behind this thread is to give people the tools they need to best ask for help, and then get a discussion going. Don't bother asking for help if you don't plan on putting in the (very little) legwork required to give us the information we need to best help you. Also, this is a discussion forum. It's here to get people talking and bandying about lots of different ideas so that you make make the best decision for yourself. Please do not message me directly with audition questions. If you want private help, we can discuss how to go about it and methods of payment, but I do not do private sessions for free. This forum is here for discussion and advice, not private audition coaching.
ALSO: Please reply only to the threads pertaining to each auditioner, and for new threads please start in the top box. I ask this because I think some requests have gotten lost in the past, and this is the easiest way to lose a thread. If you reply to someone else about something discussed in a different thread, we may not find it. If you start a new request as a reply to someone else's thread, we may never get to you at all. It makes it very difficult to read, and it looks like you're replying to people when you're really not. I'd hate for someone's question to go unanswered just because no one could tell if it's a new question or not.
Best of luck to everyone!
Views: 3382
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by David Rigano on -
I found Kasee's original thread, so I'm condensing it down into this post:
DO:
*List your vocal range on your resume. Same as I listed above when you're asking for help. Whatever you know about your vocal range, put that on your resume and the more specific the better. Don't count on your audition to show off everything you can do. If they want to hear more, they'll ask for some scales for your top and bottom notes, in the event they are not in your song.
* Sing a song that shows off your personality. Ditto the above message. We want to get to know YOU so we'll understand why YOU are right for the role and what YOU will bring to the production. We don't want to get to day one of rehearsals and meet someone we've never seen before.
* Sing a song that you like. Don't sing it because someone else thinks you should, because then your audition comes across as fake and we don't cast you.
* Sing a song that has something to do with the show your auditioning for. If you sing "The River Won't Flow" for you Mikado audition or "Green Finch and Linnet Bird" for you Rock of Ages audition, the casting directors won't know where you fit and you won't get cast.
DON'T:
*Sing a song from the show unless you are asked to! Why you ask? It can make you seem desperate. It also makes you look lazy. In general you should know which shows are like others, so if it's a 20s show, find something from another 20s show, etc. If you don't know off the top of your head, do your homework. Also: We don't want you to tell us how to do our job. Our job is to look at the talent you bring to the table and cast you (or not cast you) as we see fit. If you sing the song of the character you want to play, then you're basically telling us how to cast the show. No, thank you.
*Sing something from a show still on Broadway. No "Popular" or "The Wizard and I" for auditions regardless of how well you sing them, especially if you're in middle school or high school. It's so overdone. There's a small window of time to sing a new Broadway song before it becomes overdone. You don't want to sing the same thing every other girl or guy is singing and get lost in the shuffle. Pick something that makes you stand out.
* Be afraid to start over. If something goes wrong, no one cares whose fault it is, just ask politely to start again. We want to see you at your best more than we want to see you do it all in one take.
* Come right up to the table to thank us or ask us a question. We have papers and papers of notes you're not supposed to see. If you have to ask a question privately, ask permission to approach the table, so that we may flip over our papers, or even better, come to you.
* Sing Sondheim unless asked specifically. Sondheim's music is difficult for an accompanist if he's sight-reading, and there are a damn lot of audition pianists who can play just the basics. Sad but true. You don't want your audition screwed because the accompanist can't play your song. Additionally, the auditioner either loves or hates Sondheim. If he hates Sondheim, you're screwed. If he loves Sondheim, he has a very specific idea of how the song should be done, and you're probably not doing that.
I'm sure I have more DOs and DON'Ts, but this was just copied and condensed from the other thread. Anything that anyone has to add, please feel free.
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Permalink Reply by Kristina Hughes on -
These are great!
Also performers focus too much on the material and not on other things that are just as important.
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Permalink Reply by john atkinson on -
hi i would like some info for my son. he is thinking of auditioning for hairspray . He will be auditioning for Link Larkin. As i dont know much about music i can only say that he can sing most songs comfortably i.e why god from miss saigon, all because of you by ne-yo, rock dj robbie williams, flying without wings westlife, i'm a believer the monkees. are just a few that he sings well. He is a little unsure about which songs are suitable for the audition. They are asking for an upbeat song from a musical in the style of hairspray and an upbeat contemporary pop/r&b. He's not sure whether they want something up to date for the pop/r&b number or something from the 60's
He is only 5"7 so his height can sometimes be a problem but he is a super dancer, trained in tap,ballet,contemporary,and commercial &jazz. He is also quite comical and has a really good personality. Any advice/suggestions would be most welcome.
thanks, John
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Permalink Reply by Catherine L on -
Sing from Miss Saigon-- First lesson NEVER sing from a non musical for a musical audition. You'll only be laughed at. Try looking at Bye Bye Birdie, there are similar scores are characters and even plots.
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Permalink Reply by john atkinson on
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Hi thanks for that he did look at got a lot of living to do which would have suited him however he has decided that as he is only small that the part is not really suitable for his build and looks and that it would really be a waste of time. His college tutor has agreed that he should focus on auditioning for things that suit his look.
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Permalink Reply by David Rigano on
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That doesn't mean he may not be right for other male roles in the show. Or another show that the same producer is casting. It's best not to get paradigm paralysis about things like this. The entire point of auditioning is to be seen, and I know people who audition all the time for shows they are completely wrong for, just to get their names out there. And sometimes that audition leads to being called in for another show down the hall.
And just because he thinks he's auditioning for Link doesn't mean the casting director might not see him as a Corny Collins, or maybe one of the Nicest Kids in Town. It's important to audition, audition, audition. And most importantly don't make up the casting directors' minds for them.
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Permalink Reply by Damon Mctoy on -
Ummmm that is not true. You should sing something that shows off personality and or range. If you audition for Memphis they do not want to hear musical theatre they want to hear R&B. So I mean keep the song you sing show specific. If its hairspray you could sing something like Ruby Baby or like a rock pop song.
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Permalink Reply by Bryan Landrine on -
I disagree with Katherine. He should sing something that is appropriate for the character he's auditioning for. I'm a Believer is a perfect choice...."when I saw her face...." It's more '60's material, but it's upbeat and tells a story, perfect for Link. Just make sure he connects with the words and not just the notes. Telling a story while singing is the most important aspect of an audition. I wish him luck!
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Permalink Reply by Elizabeth Scott on -
One other piece of advice I would like to add....
As difficult as it may be, try not to treat an audition as an audition. Treat an audition as a PERFORMANCE. Concentrate on giving the best performance you can possibly give. It really changes your mindset, and puts you, as a performer, in a more positive frame of mind.
If you give the best performance you can possibly give, you should feel good about the experience. Musical Theater is extremely subjective. If you get turned down for a role, that doesn't mean that you are not talented. It just means that for whatever reason, the director had a different vision in mind for that particular role. It could also mean that the director simply saw a chemistry between a group of performers that worked well together during a reading, etc.
Always continue to learn, and work to perfect your craft.
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Permalink Reply by Monica Ubungen on -
I love how you said "As difficult as it may be, try not to treat an audition as an audition. Treat an audition as a PERFORMANCE. Concentrate on giving the best performance you can possibly give."
So true! =] thank you!
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Permalink Reply by Tiffany Nowlin on -
My name is Tiffany Nowlin. I am going to audition for Amy March from Little Women in about three days. So I have about five monologues picked out and two songs picked out but I'm freaking out that I'm making bad choices. Thus why I am so unprepaired. I'm normally not like this but this is my first College audition and I'm not even in the drama department. I mean hell I've done some professional work and I wasn't this freaked out. Anyway, more information on me. I sing anywhere from alto to soprano, wide I know. I'm also comfortable belting. I have been in dance all my life, tap, jazz, ballet, modern, lyrical, musical theater, even trained by Cincinnati ballet Company's Meridith Benson at De La Arts Place Ballet Company. Basically what I am asking for is some suggestions on a good comedic monologue, one minute and a comedic/contemporary song, 32 bars. Ususally I tend to play the busty, annoying dames, i.e. Lily St. Regis, Bonnie-Anything Goes.playing mean haha. Also very good at I know I can play young. I already look like I'm about 14. Also I tend to do different voices very well. Hoped that helped? Thank you for your help.
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Permalink Reply by David Rigano on
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Tiffany, I have not yet read your post. Before I do, please repost using the box up at the top of the thread, because your post is going to get lost on page one the second someone else posts a new one. I asked in my main post that people not post a new request in a reply to someone else's post, because that's how things get lost. So, please, please, please repost using the text box at the top of the thread, and I'll be happy to read your request and help as best I can.
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