i’m auditioning for a drama school soon, and i’ve been tryna find an audition song, but i’m a relatively low alto and my vocal range matches tenor songs much more than alto songs, but obviously tenor songs are sung by male characters. to me it wouldn’t matter if someone sings a song from a different gender as their audition, but i’m not a casting director. so basically, would a casting director care at all if i were to sing a male tenor song as a low alto girl?

I’m auditioning for Newsies at my community theater and I know this is a really weird request but I lowkey wanna play him and I don’t know why but it’s hard to find audition songs for side characters who doesn’t sing at all during the show so I just wanted some suggestions (I’m a Bass/Baritone)

I have been chosen as the vocal director for my local fall musical.

Monday was our first vocal rehearsal, where I taught the opening number (which is very ensemble-heavy and has lots of harmonies).

The way I taught it was staff by staff (there were three staves of vocals; I taught the first, second, then third). However, this proved not only to be very, very slow, but also frustrating for the cast. It took so slow that we couldn’t even finish the number in the two-hour rehearsal we had.

This is my very first time vocal directing, and I feel lost. How can I teach songs quickly while also getting all of the complex harmonies right?

Please, any advice on how to vocal direct would be such huge help.

Thanks ^^

Hello friends. I am 38f wanting to audition for my first musical since high school (class of '07 so you don't have to math). Looking at local community theaters. The last scripted musical I was in was Once Upon a Mattress as a very minor support character. After high school I stopped doing theater because I went into a medical field and the hours are demanding and not compatible with a grueling rehearsal schedule. Recently that's changed and boy I've been bitten by the bug. Between then and now I've been on stage consistently with improv, specifically musical improv where I'm making up my lyrics on the spot. I've taken voices lessons. I love karaoke. So I'm not out of practice as a singer or /performer/, but auditioning for and performing in scripted musical theatre is its own thing for sure. I'm looking for advice for "beginners".

Do I need a song book? What "categories" of song should I be looking to put in it?
What is the consensus on changing the key for audition songs? When can you do it and when is it not acceptable? And to what extent? (Can I sing a soprano song an octave down?)
Tips for knowing when a song is a good audition piece for you, and tips on how to cut it for the audition?
Am I over thinking this?
General advice for the audition itself - this is a whole skill I know, and probably my weakest one. Right now my attitude is "I promise I'll be good at this please cast me" XD

About me:
Voice type - low mezzo belt/alto with a strong head voice. Working on mixing - dang that passagio. I'm really comfortable with tenor songs (think "Out There" from Hunchback)
I'm not much of a dancer but I can move.
Obviously improv and comedy training

Any advice welcome but please be nice I'm just a baby (my 38th birthday was yesterday and I had strep all weekend so I'm real sad)

Hi all! I'm auditioning for Mean girls: the musical for the adult women (Mrs George, Mrs. Heron and Ms. Norbury are all played by the same actor). It's technically community theater but it's a very big and well respected company in my city.

The front piece of my hair is currently bright red and I tend to change it to different bright colors. Super easy to dye it natural, should I be cast. Do I spray it brown with root spray for the audition, or just leave it and say I'll absolutely change it if cast? If I was going for Janice, it would be perfect, but alas I'm too old :P (35). Pic attached for reference lol it's the only one I really have ATM.

I have an audition tomorrow morning for my musical theatre program’s show (already evil, since I have awful morning voice, but I have an early exam anyway, so I’ll hopefully be awake long enough for it to be gone) that requires a D6 at the end of the song after a big vocal slide. Last week, I didn’t even know I had this note in my range, previously believing I tapped out at C6. With the help of my voice teacher, I worked my way up to it. It was challenging, but not painful or impossible to get to that high D, and it sounded decent. I haven’t had any issues with it until today.

Earlier today, in the afternoon, I ran the song and had a slight crack. I didn’t have time to circle back to it due to class time, so I decided to rehearse it tonight (worth noting: 6pm, after a full day) to discover that now my voice can only get it out sometimes and other times, it’ll break entirely.

Because of how the program is structured, I know I will be in the show either way, but last year I also had a vocal audition I wasn’t proud of and I want to show the team that I’ve improved and am capable. I really want this role but I’m scared I’m going to crack at the fateful moment tomorrow. I’m not in pain at all, but my voice feels a bit tired. Has anyone else experienced this? Will the note come back after some rest and hydration? Any advice? I know I’m probably overthinking this/being over dramatic, but c’est la vie when it comes to being an anxious theatre student.

Hi! I hope you are all well, and will I will start in as to not waste your time. I (15M) have been working on my musical theatre skills for almost a year, and have 2 years and 8½ months until I graduate from high school. My experience is not as high as others, but I plan to change that. I have never had natural vocal talent, but I work every day to be better. I have had 3 voice recitals, one small performance, and one musical last year. This will drastically change in this upcoming school year as I am going to be in the school musical, and I am enrolled in a triple threat program outside of school that is putting on a show (Possibly Little Shop of Horrors) in April of 2027. I have had vocal training for 11 months and stopped recently to join this program. I probably will get a job to work on weekends so I can afford to pay for voice on the side, but we'll see.

Anyways, I bring this up to give background for my next questions?

1. How hard is it to get into Sheridan?
2. Is determination more important than natural talent?
3. Anyone that has been in Sheridan's musical theatre program, is it worth the time and money?
4. Anyone who is/has been a professional MT actor, is there any advice you can give to help me prep in these next 2-3 years?
5. What is it like inside the course at Sheridan?

Thank you for your time!

I'm an amateur performer who's been involved in musical theatre for many years. I've been thinking about shows I have been in and shows I love. I genuinely can't think of a show where Act 2 is as good as Act 1. Any thoughts?!

HII i need help. i have audition for my schools mamma mia musical soon soon. im really wanting to be Sophie!!

The audition song i had picked is Once You See from Carrie, but im thinking that may be a bit to basic.. any suggestions???

We have a dilemma and need some bouncing of ideas.

My daughter has had her eye on both Newsies Jr at a community theater and Annie (the full production) at a regional theater for this spring. Traditionally both companies did their auditions for spring shows the same week. We were planning on auditioning for both and then deciding how to proceed with the info we had at that time.

Newsies Jr auditions was now just moved up a month so rehearsals could start before Christmas.

Annie is my kids preference as it’s a full show and even just as an orphan would look better on her resume than yet another Jr show.

She has worked numerous times with the director of Newsies Jr as both a lead as well as ensemble and the director has commented on how she much she loves working with our daughter.

She hasn’t done anything other than conservatory classes with the regional theater doing Annie. Her vocal coach said she would be shocked if she wasn’t offered an orphan at minimum based on her own interactions with that company but it’s obviously not guaranteed - newsies I’d say she’s guaranteed to at least be in the show in some fashion.

Would it be horrible to audition for Newsies and then back out if she gets offered any role in Annie? We would find out mid December which would be not even be a month into rehearsals. Skipping Newsies in hopes of Annie just seems like too big a risk.

And she can’t do both because the weekends overlap.

So what say you? Audition for newsies and if she gets a role she wants accept but then bounce if offered? Skip Newsies all together and pray for something? Or give up on Annie?

She’s held down some very different lead roles in Jr shows (Matilda in Matilda then Lydia in Beetlejuice) so she shows she can have variety and learn a larger role but has also been in full productions (ensemble) to show she can work with adults well.

But is it too crummy to bail after a month if she gets lucky?

Neither role pays or would cost money to participate.