Center Stage Theatre
"Theatre For Life"

Know The Show

Knowing the show helps you tailor your audition to the show.  You can choose music that is similar in style, and your cold readings are improved by knowing the characters.  There are a number of resources available to help you familiarize yourself with the story and music of the show.  You can usually find a synopsis of the show on the Internet by doing a search for “showname synopsis”.  Most musicals have cast recordings, many of which are available at local libraries as well as for purchase.  Finally, many shows have movie versions, available at libraries, video stores, and for purchase.

Choose Your Music Wisely

·      Match your music to the style of the show --  Decide if the show is mostly up-tempo, happy music or slow and more serious (generally called ballads).  Choose a song that is similar the style of the show.

·      Choose a song in your range – You want to show off the best parts of your voice, not notes that are so high or low they are a struggle for you.  Younger singers should choose songs that are specifically written for young voices (see Resources below). 

·      Choose a section that is not too long – You don’t need to sing the entire song.  Choose the part that you sing best and avoid singing repetitive sections. 

·      Do not sing pop songs – The songs you hear on the radio are almost always wrong for an audition.  Pop songs tend to have limited melodic ranges, are highly repetitive, and are usually very dependent on a particular voice type and fantastic sound engineering.

Practice, Practice, Practice

Your voice is an instrument, and just like piano, violin, or clarinet, you must practice to do your best.  Most young singers do not practice nearly enough.  We recommend you choose a couple of songs, usually one up-tempo and one ballad, prepare and practice them regularly, and then you will always have an audition song available.  If you choose a particular audition song for a particular show, choose it ahead of time and practice it for at least a few weeks. 

Bring Proper Accompaniment

We want to hear your voice.  Do not bring the latest popular Broadway or pop CD and sing along with the star.  If you bring a CD or tape, it should have instrumental accompaniment only.  You may also bring sheet music, and we provide a professional accompanist.  He is very talented, but remember that he is sight-reading everything.  Some songs have very difficult accompaniments that frequently change keys, time signatures, and have loads of accidentals.  The musical Wicked is a prime example of this.  If you want to sing a song with that kind of accompaniment, it will be best for you to invest in an accompaniment trax (like karaoke).

Resources

There are many, many musical theatre books that come with both printed accompaniment and CD with recorded accompaniment.  They are fun and a great investment.  Some come in just book or book/CD package.  Be sure to order the CD package.  You can purchase these through local music stores or order them online.  Here are some web addresses:

www.sheetmusicplus.com
www.amazon.com
www.musicnotes.com

(Music Notes also has digital music that allows you to buy single songs in sheet music form and print them on your own computer.  You can also transpose to different keys before you print.)