<p>its coming time for me to find songs and monologues...(i am boy)...but i figured that id start a thread where people could list their audition songs/monologues that they did in previous years or what they plan to do...just so i can see if im on the right track...and out of personal curiosity...</p>
<p>right now...i only have one song: maria from wss</p>
<p>Chrisnoo - this answer is going to totally frustrate you - because I asked the same question last year and was frustrated. You may not get anybody to tell you what monologue/song they did. It's not because they are "guarding" them, or that they want to be unhelpful. It's because monologues/songs must fit both you personality and voice, and nobody who doesn't know you, can help. So, let me tell you what my S did. He asked a director who knew him very well (having worked with him in a couple of productions), what monologues he thought would fit him. The director thought about this for awhile and gave him the name of six plays to read (three contemporary and three classical). He then told him that as he read a particular play, to focus on a certain character. This turned out to be great advise. You see, NO ONE, can tell you the perfect monologue for you. You have to find it yourself. And, you have to really know the play in order to understand how the monologue works into the play in its entirety. But, someone who knows you well, can probably see certain characters that might fit you very well.</p>
<p>Same thing with your songs. If you don't have a voice teacher, find one. Start working with them. Before long, you will be able to build your repetoire and find those audition songs that fit you best. And remember, some schools may require a classical selection.</p>
<p>I respectfully disagree with mtpop - some people DO guard their audition material and are wise to do so - read what I wrote on this subject and how it applies in the professional world.</p>
<p>It's a great idea to ask what people did LAST YEAR (or in years past) and also to ask if certain things should be avoided (because you will hear stories of accompaniment disasters, songs that are "unactable," etc. etc.) People are usually quite willing to reveal what they use after they are no longer using it or, as I stated in the post I just referenced, when they are so confident with that material that they know any number of people can also sing it and still not eclipse their interp/performance. </p>
<p>I TOTALLY agree with what mtpop says about material being specific to YOU and this being the MAIN reason that no one here can "help" you (without seeing and hearing you sing and act). I will say, however, that "Maria" is a really difficult song to coordinate with an accompanist because of the beginning and will also create the highest of expectations within the minds of the auditors: it leaves your vocal technique (or lack thereof) completely exposed. So, if you choose to stick with this song, make sure you REALLY do it to a near-professional level AND can lead it no matter how "unexpected" the accompaniment you get it is - remember, it really changes tempo three/four times (but you won't sing through the whole thing, of course), and the accompanist has to either follow you or nail each of those changes based on your pre-singing instructions. If he sets a tempo that is slower than you are used to, can you still sustain everything well? I don't mean to be negative - this song is just full of traps for all but the most experienced singer and AUDITIONER (being able to deal with unfamiliar tempi, etc.) Yes, most of the college auditions have very experienced accompanists, but some of them take their own tempi no matter what you tell them BECAUSE of their experience, ya know? Will many people do "Maria" in spite if these potential troubles? Sure - because it's familiar, soaringly beautiful, exciting for the listener (when done WELL), and incredibly rich from an acting perspective. But most of the boys who do it will not do it especially well because of vocal, acting, or auditioning technique that is not up to the task. </p>
<p>That all having been said - If you OWN this song, then definitely go for it - cause schools will be impressed. But make sure you are comparing your mastery of this song to a top-notch performer of your age, not just saying "I sing this better than anyone in my school" or even "in my whole area." Sometimes that's a good gauge of true excellence, but often, it's not. </p>
<p>BTW, hobbit, on this same topic - all 3 of the songs you mentioned ("This Is the Moment," "One Song Glory," and "Gethsemane") are quite overdone. And I would especially avoid "Glory" and "Gethsemane" because of the vocal "roughness" needed to pull off that rock style UNLESS you do it INCREDIBLY well (meaning you don't sound like you are straining AT ALL - which frankly is unlikely, but IT possible). Otherwise, schools are going to think you are damaging yourself. Don't think I am at all opposed to rock tenor stuff - one of my very best students (now an upperclassman in a top MT program and working like crazy in rock musicals) is a quintessential rock tenor - but your voice truly has to be MADE to do that stuff in order for you to do it healthily. If yours is, pick something a little less common, because some schools expressly state that you cannot sing RENT or JCS. Something a little more legit that allows you to put rock style into your singing is a safer call - like "Moment," but oh man, unless you are PHENOMENAL, the auditors may throw up if you sing that! :) Why? Because every wanna-be pop/rock tenor sings this, and most young ones - and hey, adults too - really aren't nearly as capable of doing it as they think they are! Again, you might NAIL this song - but if you do, pick something like it that is not as overdone. First, check all of your colleges' websites to see what they DON'T want you to sing (or do monologues from) - I know CCM and UM have this specific info listed, for example - and then learn some new rep!!! :) Read theatre sites online, borrow CD's from a good library (with a big collection), learn about both classic and contemporary shows you don't know, find characters you could play RIGHT NOW - OR find songs that really fit your voice if you change the interp of the character (this is riskier but also shows chutzpah and savvy if you make a good choice).</p>
<p>Picking great songs, songs that REALLY match your type and current abilities, is not always easy (although sometimes the right song can just "fall into your lap"), but it can definitely make a difference in admissions. To be frank, it doesn't always - if you are talented enough, schools can "see through" bad choices, because they don't expect you to be audition rep experts yet. One of the MOST talented singers currrently at UM who already has gotten his Equity card (recently) has a HUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUGE, gorgeous legit tenor voice - and he sang "Kids" from BYE BYE BIRDIE for his audition!!! LOL - that's a non-rangy, almost talk-singing song! I don't remember his other choice, but it was equally not-so-good. However, UM heard the excellence of his voice immediately - but to be honest, even among their crew, he an is exceptionally gifted singer. On the other hand, I know of many instances where students audition for top schools with the "wrong" material and don't get in as MT's but audition again with better material and DO get in (and are later told, once the faculty knows them, that their first choices hurt them).</p>
<p>Moral of the story - having the best audition material for you provides yet another advantage in an extremely competitive process - and the biggest factor is DO YOU TRULY CONNECT TO THE MATERIAL? The next most important factor is does this song truly fit and show off your vocal abilities, including what is healthy and unique about your voice and technique? </p>
<p>Good luck all - hope this general info helps!</p>
<p>I am happy to give you suggestions on how to FIND good monologue material. I am an acting coach who specializes in BFA auditions. My students are attending many of the top schools including Tisch, CMU, SMU, USC, Webster, and Elon. </p>
<p>DON'T use monologue books. Find playwrites that you like and get their collected works from your public library. Find roles that are right for your age and type in the cast of characters and then see if that character has a monologue. If you find one you like, read the ENTIRE play and reassess. </p>
<p>Also, look in the webites of some of the more prestigious regional theatres and see what their season was last year and the year before. That might lead you to something you like. </p>
<p>For new /contemporary plays, looks at Playwrights Horizon and Actors Theatre of Louisville and Williamstown Theatre websites. They are always producing new works. You might have to call New York 's Drama Bookshop to buy those plays or go through the playwrites' literary agent.</p>
<p>And go to the theatre OFTEN. This is a great way to learn about plays and playwrites. </p>
<p>GOOD LUCK!</p>
<p>i understand the concept that a song has to fit you and no one can suggest one for you. and i do agree totally. however, i do think it's good to have a bunch of suggestions so you can start a good list to look at. some of these kids haven't done mt for very long or just aren't familiar with a large repertoire of songs and just need a long list of choices to study. they can then look at them and decide what is best. but, you have to have titles to start with and it's impossible to just go into a music store and just look at song titles. so, i think a list along with hints about the song, such as some of the ones make above would be helpful to a lot of people.</p>
<p>Two good resources on audition material are CCM and Viterbo. I've put their links on here. CCM has an additional link in the article about the list of things they DO NOT want to see in an audition. <a href="http://staging.uc.edu/ccm/musical_theatre/audition.htm%5B/url%5D">http://staging.uc.edu/ccm/musical_theatre/audition.htm</a>
<a href="http://staging.uc.edu/ccm/musical_theatre/dos.htm%5B/url%5D">http://staging.uc.edu/ccm/musical_theatre/dos.htm</a>
<a href="http://www.viterbo.edu/academic/ug/sfa/theatre/muthaudi.htm%5B/url%5D">http://www.viterbo.edu/academic/ug/sfa/theatre/muthaudi.htm</a></p>
<p>there is an old thread that deals with audition stuff. it has some good info on it if you can ignore the mom drama <a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=54659&page=1&pp=20%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/showthread.php?t=54659&page=1&pp=20</a></p>
<p><a href="http://www.accuradio.com/broadway/%5B/url%5D">http://www.accuradio.com/broadway/</a>
freelance posted this on that older thread and i wanted to re-post it. i checked it out and what a wonderful source. thanks a million. we will enjoy this site.</p>
<p>Great resource! And yes, razorback, I agree that it is impossible to go to the music store and simply browse, because you don't get enough info about characters, context, etc. However, I think a "list" is also not a great idea because many students will simply take that list and NOT look beyond it - just like many students will not take Mary Anna's necessary advice and go beyond monologue books to read a whole play, let alone choose a different monologue spoken by the same character (different from the one in the monologue book, that is). In my experience teaching many, many talented high school students, we need to provide them with the TOOLS to be material detectives, because this is what serves them in the long-term. That may be utopian, but anyone who starts their song search now (in mid-July) by listening to the link you provided and the other things have been suggested on this board (getting CD's out of the library, READING THEATRE INFO ONLINE!!!!!!, seeing many many MANY shows, etc.) has plenty of time to find great songs and will be that much more MT-smart in the end.</p>
<p>i thumbed through a book at barnes & nobel that could be valuable for kids that have not been taught how to lift monologues from dialogue. it is called "the perfect monologue." amazon.com has it. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0879103000/qid=1121611575/sr=8-1/ref=pd_bbs_1/002-6281928-6582439?v=glance&s=books&n=507846%5B/url%5D">http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0879103000/qid=1121611575/sr=8-1/ref=pd_bbs_1/002-6281928-6582439?v=glance&s=books&n=507846</a> some of the reviewers didn't like it but i agree more with the last one because lots of kids have no idea how to go about it and either stick to the tired overused ones or make a mess of their cuts. if you do one this way, make sure you run it by a teacher or someone that knows the play whose opinion you trust before you use it for auditions.</p>
<p>My daughter found numerous monologues from the "Humana Festival Plays". Some larger bookstores carry the most current year's collection, but I believe all can be found on Amazon. These plays offer great variety and are off the beaten path.</p>
<p>When helping two boys find audition songs last year, we started with the list of what not to sing on CCM's website. There are also two books that were helpful: How to Audition for the Musical Theatre by Donald Oliver has a great list of overdone songs. Auditioning for the Musical Theatre by Fred Silver has some song ideas. Both boys ended up using songs from classic MT of the mid twentieth century - both were from popular shows. They did have to sing their entire songs at two schools.
If you have access to XM satellite radio or Sirius radio, both have a Broadway station. You can really hear a variety of MT music that way.</p>
<p>I just read Mary Anna's comments. I was wondering if she is in the New York area as I am interested in hiring someone like her. ElaineK</p>
<p>Does any one have any information of the Wonderbread Passion by Christopher Woods?</p>
<p>Having difficulty located the play.</p>
<p>Thanks
lexismom</p>
<p>Lexismom, I've searched the sites that I normally use and came up with nothing for either the play or the playwright. Where did you hear about it? Are you sure it's a published play? Sorry I couldn't help.</p>
<p>This looks like monologues from it - not the complete play though!</p>
<p>This is the table of contents for the book. Looks excellent!</p>
<p>The playwright is based in Houston, but the only place I can find that specific play mentioned is in a monologue book. findaplay.com usually comes up with every play, but not in this case.</p>
<p>ElaineK, I have been out of town and unable to check the board, so I appologize for not responding sooner.</p>
<p>Having said that, let me tell you that I reside in Dallas. But I wish I could meet you! I can advise you to a certain degree via this board. </p>
<p>In addition, I am conducting an open seminar with the Associate Dean of Admissions at SMU's Meadows School Of the Arts the third Saturday in September in Dallas. We will address and answer every aspect of the BFA audition. Wish you could join us.</p>
<p>Thanks everyone for checking. d did get the monolog from book and loved it. She just wanted to read the play. </p>
<p>thanks again</p>