<p>I guess you really have to adapt to what your type is, but be versatile. A few years ago I (and others) would have considered my voice more classical but somehow I learned to belt! It’s nice to be able to do some of both, although I still have a looooong way to go. Also, finding pre-1960 soprano songs that show off my upper register is tough as more of a character actor. I’ve been lucky to have voice teachers who aren’t completely opposed!</p>
<p>(to belting I mean!)</p>
<p>When this comes up in my D’s voice lessons her classically trained teacher likes to use Kristin Chenoweth and Idina Menzel as examples. While both are fabulous, she says Chenoweth will be singing at 100 while Menzel has had vocal damage. </p>
<p>As a side note, my daughter auditioned at Otterbein last week and the students were told that all new MT students get an ENT exam their freshman year. I like the idea that a school is looking out for their students’ vocal health!</p>
<p>Sorry to be joining this thread late but my d is also classically trained. She has a wide range (low e to high f…music theory is not my forte so I don’t remember the number designators). She had her first professional adult role at the age of 15 (found out later they thought she was 25----she looks and sounds older). Anyway, the show was Mikado and the reason she was selected was precisely because she could sing legit. Subsequent roles have also been for legit productions of ragtime, secret garden, les mis, and little women (Meg). Currently she mainly sees ensemble roles but her roles have included alto to soprano 1. She also has a great healthy belt and has seen some success there but only at a lesser degree. Conversely competition and scholarship money has been typically won with belt songs. If there is an audience element, they responded better to belting. </p>
<p>Her audition pieces vary depending on the show, but her legit soprano is my white knight from music man and her go to belt is divas lament from spamalot. She’ll also use moonfall, superboy and the invisible girl (for contemporary shows) and everybody says don’t (for specific Sondheim productions). It really depends on the show and the talent she sees and sometimes hears at the audition. If she thinks there’s a ton of sopranos at a legit show, she breaks out moonfall which has a much lower range to try and secure a mezzo or alto spot. To be honest the bigger issue has been the ability to hold tight harmonies, especially when cast in those ensemble roles. That’s usually what’s been the disqualifier for other great singers. </p>
<p>She is entering college this year and at the urging of a previous director has opted to pursue vocal performance instead of musical theatre. She did audition for the cmu lottery (which by the way she loved the experience). She did my white knight and diva’s song to showcase her vocal range and acting versatility and received really nice compliments from Gary and the accompanist. </p>
<p>Nevertheless she has opted to audition for mainly vp. That being said she is auditioning for vp at places like otterbein, Baldwin wallace, boco, etc. with the hopes of gleaming some of their musical theater prowess (taking acting and dance as electives–maybe she’ll get to audition for a mainstage my show) while at the same time improving her strength. </p>
<p>We r in the la market (not the taudry streets of broadway) but not a small pond either. Thats her gameplan and who knows if it will work out. cmu is still the needle in a haystack opportunity, but they have to choose someone. </p>
<p>Best of luck to everyone and I would recommend you do what feels right for you, what your good at and let’s those chips fall where they may (without accruing a mountain of debt). </p>
<p>Great thread. Thanks for asking and sharing! </p>
<p>Sguti40, break a leg to your D. There are so many paths to success in the business-it sounds like your D has a fabulous voice, so it makes sense to rigorously train it. She can always take acting classes in the summer or at her school if she wants. There are several successful B’way actors who majored in vocal performance. Kristen Chenowith is one example, but there are many others. Keep us posted!</p>
<p>We learned during the Chicago Unifieds that the answer to the question asked by this thread is a resounding YES.!</p>
<p>Our D’s confidence was lifted all week when time after time the auditors would say “Thank God, a soprano. We’re tired of the yelling.” In one of her songs she hits a clean high E flat and holds it for as long as she wants. I watched many people in the halls stop what they were doing and look at the door when she did it. </p>
<p>One of the schools actually called my wife into the room afterwards and offered our D a position on the spot. It was amazing, and a huge relief.</p>
<p>This particular song is very difficult and has to be done technically correct or it sounds awful. We tried to talk her out if it, but her instinct was to work hard and get it right. She was correct.</p>
<p>As a side note, when one of the auditors asked D if she could hit all the notes she said “I’m no Kristin Chenoweth, but I can hit the notes.” His response was “Well, she’s not that good anyway.” </p>
<p>Needless to say, we don’t expect an offer from THAT school.</p>
<p>So to all you sopranos out there - be bold, be brave, and be yourself. There will always be a place for you in MT.</p>
<p>@cheeseheadmike, cutting and pasting this right into an email to my 2 soprano daughters who have been feeling a bit inferior to their belting counterparts. They are going to LOVE this. And then they are going to declare mutiny bc they didn’t go the MT route.</p>
<p>Here’s a great article on this subject from the Journal of Voice. “Trends in Musical Theatre Voice: An Analysis of Audition Requirements for Singers”</p>
<p><a href=“Dropbox - Error - Simplify your life”>Dropbox - Error - Simplify your life;
<p>Very encouraging to read these comments. My D is just a freshman so has a few years to go before her audition process but hearing these stories really help. She has also found a demand for her soprano talents in local theatre and has been blessed to play a number of really amazing roles at her young age.</p>
<p>The answer is yes. D, a legit soprano, has been out of college for almost 2 years and has had steady work in NYC in musical theatre.</p>
<p>Did you people read the article posted by zazz81? It said legit singers are only 5% of the jobs out there, and these kids need to learn how to belt and have other voice types to be competitive. </p>
<p>The Legit voice is also in demand for tradiional muscial theatre such as Oklahoma and Chicago. Legit singers often excel in this type of mixed genre uping the percentage to 45% (5% Legit, 40% Traditional). Wicked, although listed as contemporary, has many chorus rolls that require Legit sopranos, and Glinda can be Legit as well. There will always be a place for Legit sopranos in musical theatre. </p>
<p>Veritasmt, no I haven’t read it, just going off personal experience-mine and my d. Statistically speaking the total number of jobs will depend on which shows are being produced and where. If your only dream is to be on broadway, than there are probably more belters at this time. Who knows what will happen in 5 years? Classics populate a large number of regional and tort theaters. Check out actors equity in any region and youll see an ample need for both. </p>
<p>I agree! Everything goes in cycles. The notion that there is no room for sopranos in MT is crazy to me, as is the notion that there is no room for a bass-baritone male. There are always going to be revivals on Broadway and Summer Stock theaters do those shows all the time. </p>
<p>I liken this whole thing about learning to belt even if it isn’t your natural style to kids pitching too much baseball as teenagers. Injuries to those kids who overthrow are a matter of when, not if. Same for those ballet girls who have hip and knee surgery to rival the gang down at Rolling Meadows Personal care Home. And for what? I’ll bet you there are more vocal cord issues now among MT women in the 18-25 age group than ever before. I have nothing to go on, but I would bet on it.</p>
<p>My daughter just finished up The Light in the Piazza which is a dream come true musical for sopranos! And while it it isn’t exactly new, it was on Broadway within the last ten years which makes it somewhat current compared to the Golden Age musicals. As has been noted, everything trends and perhaps the pendulum will swing back at some point. But if my daughter’s only dream was just to work on Broadway I would likely discourage her from this path with such a narrow focus. Of course Broadway is the pinnacle of most MT dreams, but there is so much more out there in terms of opportunity.</p>
<p>I’m just going to throw out another thought for you guys to toss around. You have to look appropriate for your sound. A legit soprano who not a “Laurie” type is going to have it a lot harder. It’s an ingénue voice which is great but not so much if you are not an ingénue type.</p>
<p>Actually, there are more roles for sopranos that are not ingenue roles than I would have guessed. They are usually not leads, you generally have to “play older,” and some may be mezzo roles, but they are out there. Also, don’t forget that there will potentially be chorus roles for non-ingenue sopranos - somebody has to sing the high parts in the chorus and every soprano in the show doesn’t have to look like the ingenue. Flossy is correct, it won’t be easy and it is certainly a niche-within-a-niche (and a tougher road in an already incredibly tough business), but a non-ingenue soprano still can get work.</p>
<p>I went through StageAgent and pulled these non-ingenue soprano roles (granted, some go back aways). Most of these are older roles because of the age range that I used for the search, but I think the list makes the point.</p>
<p>Alice - The Addams Family
Ellen Manville - What About Luv?
Lady Thiang - The King and I
Mrs. Vera Simpson - Pal Joey
Rhoda - A New Brain
Caroline Neville - Titanic
Claire - The Secret Garden
Claire - Bare
Jenny - Company
Lilli Vanessi/Katherine - Kiss Me Kate
Lily - Annie
Lucy - All in Love
Rafiki (Baboon) - Lion King
Cladwell’s Secretary - Urinetown
Glinda the Good - The Wizard of Oz (Prince Street Players’ Version)
Mrs. Millenium - Urinetown
Ms. Darbis - High School Musical
Agnes Gooch - Mame
Cordelia - Falsettos
Asaka - Once On this Island
Denise - The Baker’s Wife
Mrs. Darling - Peter Pan (Chater-Robinson)
Cassandra Trimble - Western Star
Patricia Fodor - Crazy for You
Sister Chantelle - Bare
Mrs. Sprague - Jack and the Beanstalk
Jessica Cranshaw - Curtains
Liza Elliott - Lady in the Dark
The Queen - Sleeping Beauty
Aldonza (Dulcina) - Man of La Mancha
Carolotta Giudicelli - Phantom of the Opera
Fauna - Pipe Dream
Greta Fiorentino - Street Scene
The Blue Fairy - Pinocchio (Prince Street Players’ Version)
Dean Elizabeth Hawkes-Bullock - All American
Evil Stepmother - Cinderella
Anna Maurrant - Street Scene
Mrs. Anna Smith - Meet Me in St.Louis
Begger Woman/Lucy Barker - Sweeney Todd
Donna Lucia D’Alvadorez - Where’s Charley?
Fosca’s Mother - Passion
Jack’s Mother - Into the Woods
Miss Watson - Big River
Mrs. Sowerberry - Oliver!
Sister - Damn Yankees
Elizabeth - Aspects of Love
Idella - Purlie
Mrs. Pavlenko - A Day in Hollywood A Night in the Ukraine
Mother Abbess - Sound of Music
Gabrielle - Dear World
Mrs. Thistletwat - Avenue Q
Donna Sheridan - Mamma Mia!
Madame Marie Dindon - La Cage aux Folles
Widow Corney - Oliver!
Sally Durant Plummer - Follies
Aunt Em - The Wizard of Oz (Prince Street Players’ Version)
Mrs. Bedwin - Oliver!
Mama Mizner - Bounce
Miss Jones - How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
Rosie - The Wedding Singer
Marjorie Taylor - Allegro
Mother Burnside - Mame</p>
<p>Well, it’s not as though as the belters and mixers can’t hit the high notes. lol. It’s limiting, that’s all I’m saying. And, specifically we’re talking about legit singers, not all soprano voice types, right.? To clarify. </p>
<p>Making sure type and rep match has been a big thing around here lately. Good luck to all. </p>
<p>I thought we were talking about legit sopranos, too. For those of you that did not read the article, it is worth reading. Here is the conclusion: “young musical theatre performers need a versatile palette of vocal abilities to remain viable in today’s market. If the vocal qualities requested at professional auditions during this 6-month period are typical, singers who use legit or classical voice techniques alone are inadequately prepared for over half of the available jobs in musical theatre and especially those jobs at the highest levels of pay.” So, of COURSE there is a place for legit sopranos. We all know about Light in the Piazza, Into the Woods, Jekyll and Hyde, Phantom, West Side Story, Sweeney Todd, Millie, Les Mis, etc. etc. that require legit soprano singers. The point is though, that these legit singers need to do more than sing legit IN ORDER TO REMAIN COMPETITIVE in the field. And to get paying jobs. Isn’t that the whole point? </p>
<p>BTW, cheeseheadmike, sounds like your D sang Glitter and Be Gay for her audition song. My D sings that too, but I think she’s kinda young for it. It was a bold move! Can you tell us where your D got an on-the-spot acceptance? I don’t see it on the acceptances thread. And it sure would help those of us who have these legit soprano Ds to know who appreciates them! Thanks.</p>