An American in Paris

College Majors Musical Theater Major
1

I am a new poster here, but have read extensively and have found CC to be a very valuable resource. I am the father of a junior interested in MT and we are just starting to put together a list of potential colleges and developing audition materials. The “Big List” topics have been immeasurably useful as we are completely new to this process. Oddly, my first question is a fairly specific one.

My daughter is very interested in using “Shall We Dance?” from An American in Paris as one of her audition songs. I’ve read many of the overdone songs topics and have never seen it mentioned, but it was on Broadway about 5 years ago. Are there any issues with using this song for auditions?

Also, I’ve looked at several college websites and have yet to find any that list “do not perform” songs. Do some produce actual lists of these songs and, if so, where does one find such lists?

Many thanks for your help!

2

I’m not sure if that is overdone, but it would technically have to be a golden age song since it was written in the 1930s, even if the musical debuted 5 years ago. You’ll need a song after 1970 as well as golden age, and make sure you contrast the two (one ballad, one uptempo). Also the audition songs for prescreens are cuts (you’ll have to check the requirements but usually the cut is a minute and a half), so it’s recommended to show some kind of arc in the song, and anything your kid wants to highlight (belt, range), etc. Choosing the right songs was so stressful!

3

Thanks, I had kinda discerned that the year a song was written is the deciding factor for the pre/post 19XX criteria but it is definitely nice to have that confirmed. Are there any issues with using a song that wasn’t originally written for a musical but has since been included in one? Thanks again!

-Brim