Search:

Home | Entertainment


Your First Musicals Audition And How To Deal With It

By: Jeremy Fisher

It's your first private call for a musical. You've not auditioned before, so you don't know what you need to do. What should you aim to achieve?

First, let's explore what an audition is for. For the casting panel, it's an opportunity to see new people, or to remind themselves of familiar people. It's a chance to see who and what is out there, to make decisions about casting, and to match up different actors to make a company. For you, it's an opportunity to let the casting panel get to know your performing ability, hear you sing and see you in your choice of character.

Now let's explore what the first audition is not. It's not a 'real' performance. There's no applause or feedback, the panel hasn't paid to see you, there are no sets or lighting, and you don't have costumes or make-up (except what you are wearing). It's not a complete show either, as the panel will expect to watch you come in as you, then change into character in front of them. And finally, the first audition will not get you the job. That may seem odd, but Broadway and West End auditions can drag on over several months with up to 9 recalls. And with the larger musicals you definitely would not be cast on how good your first audition was.

Remind yourself that the panel wants to know your level of skill, how good you are at staying in character, whether you look comfortable on stage, and if you are the right professional level for their production. So the key points are to appear professional, well-prepared and confident with your material. And for the first audition it's vital for an actor, singer or dancer to use song material that's suitable for their casting, voice and abilities.

Let's examine some of the common mistakes that auditionees make. Singers might be confident of how they sound, but don't think about character or story. In musical theater, this is a complete no-no. Yes, you might have a lovely voice but we're interested in your character's journey through the song. Musical Theater differs from opera or song recital in that the music serves and heightens the text, and characterisation is vital. Conversely, actors might be very confident of their subtext and characterisation, but might not have a solid vocal technique. While strong character decisions can carry an actor through dodgy vocalising, remember that this is a musical genre, and usually you will be performing 8 shows a week or more. For your own sanity (and the sanity of those around you), it's imperative that your vocal technique is strong and clear enough for you to sustain and repeat what you are doing accurately and without strain. If not, a single cold can knock your performance sideways. For dancers who are used to expressing themselves in movement, using words and music can be a real challenge. And since many dancers start very young, learning a solid technique in a new discipline can seem like a mountainous task. It's important for dancers to find voice, text or singing teachers who are able to adapt their teaching styles to the dance-trained body and mind. Pick songs that you have a real connection with, pieces that you think you can have fun with. And don't be afraid to move during an audition - you don't have to stay rooted to the spot!

If you're a singer dancer actor in a coaching session for a first audition, the focus is usually on finding suitable songs for your physicality and energy. Then the coach can help you find and maintain the best performance you can give. We will also deal with the various problems surrounding auditions using your own-choice songs - presenting YOUR version of the song to the pianist in 15 seconds or less, how to find the focus of your song and get into character instantly, interacting with the panel, even altering your performance of your familiar repertoire to suit the style of that particular show.

Sometimes you can alter the subtext or storyline of a song to fit the show that is currently casting. If you are singing a cut version of the song, or doing a 16bar cattle call, the storyline will be different for both - it's not really possible to play the song journey for the complete song if you're only singing half of it! You might focus on the one aspect of the character that appears in that extract, or impose a journey on the music, or bring an event that happens later in the full song into that particular musical moment. So if you are using the same song for the cattle call and the first full audition (also known as the privates), you will almost certainly need more than one mental map of the song.

Once you have found good songs, a session from a qualified coach can help you find your own version of the material, and lead you to create living, sustainable characterisations that use your best talents and assets. With songs that match your casting, good performance skills and a professional attitude, you will definitely be noticed.

And what do you aim to achieve in the first audition? To get the first recall.

Article Source: http://www.newagelivingarticles.com

Jeremy Fisher is a performance coach and author of Successful Singing Auditions. For more articles and free downloads on cutting-edge singing techniques, check out Jeremy's company Vocal Process, the voice training company that's "revolutionising the way singing is taught" (LINK magazine) www.vocalprocess.co.uk

Please Rate this Article

 

Not yet Rated

Click the XML Icon Above to Receive Entertainment Articles Via RSS!
Additional Articles From - Home | Entertainment


banner











Sign Up for a free account or learn more.
Article Directory Software
Click here to download the exact software that powers this directory for FREE. Start your own article directory today!
Google
Top Authors
Submit Articles
Member Login
Most Popular Articles
Submission Guidelines
Ezine Notifications
Article RSS Feeds
Little Book Of Becoming
Masters of the Secret
The Singularity Is Near
Distribute Your Articles to 1000's!
Wildwind Enterprises
Bookstore
About Us
Link to Us
Contact Us
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service
LINKS

All Links DirectoryAll Links Directory is 100% SEO friendly Directory and Human Edited.

Dominate The Search Engines with this software

Make Money Being an Affiliate with this software it's easy!

Learn How to Make Daily Profits Online starting Right Now!

Idiot Proof Clickbank Trick Makes $6,513 In 24 Hours

Submit Your Articles Quick and Easy with this software!

Get Keyword Elite and never hunt for keywords again!

Gaiam.com, Inc
Spiritual Cinema Circle
Visit the metaphysical directory for a complete list of metaphysics related websites.
Royalty Free Images
NewAgeLivingArticles.com » Copyright © 2007 WildWind Enterprises
Terms of Service | Submission Guidelines | Contact Us | Link to Us| Privacy Policy | About Us | Article Submissions With A Click 100's of Sites!

Powered by Article Dashboard