<p>It’s possible that summer Shakespeare is not technically summer stock, but there are definitely jobs and intern opportunities for straight (I mean non-MT obv.) actors. </p>
<p>@actingmt - If you asked 25 theater professionals what summer stock is, you would probably get 25 different answers. It has evolved greatly over the years. </p>
<p>I define Summer Stock as any professional theatre that operates in the summer exclusively. I also make it a contingency that the theater hires all/most out of town talent. </p>
<p>The term “Stock” does derive from the idea that the same company of actors performs each play in the season.</p>
<p>That means that MANY summer stocks still do straight drama. There are fewer and fewer, because they tend to be harder to sell tickets to. (My company stopped three years ago, we used to do two musicals and two plays. - We now do three musicals.) The only ones that do ONLY plays are usually Shakespeare Festivals or a few other outliers. The outdoor dramas often tend to have many non-musical parts. </p>
<p>Outdoor Drama auditions are held early in the spring and are great for actor-only. </p>
<p>I’m sorry but what does ECC and EPA mean?</p>
<p>ECC is Equity Chorus Call, EPA is Equity Principal Audition. For both types of auditions, only Equity members can get appointments; Non Equity and EMC (Equity Membership Candidates – people who have Equity points because they have worked on Equity shows but not enough for full Equity membership (50) - can be seen at Equity calls if the auditiors are willing, but you have to show up early and sign up and then wait to see if you will get seen. For EPAs in New York, Equity actors are seen first, then if there is room, EMC’s, then Non-Equity. For ECC’s, EMCs and non-Equity are lumped together, so being EMC doesn’t get you anything. Hope that makes sense!</p>
<p>Still not sure if the question was answered about which audition to go for if you have to choose between “dancers who sing” or “singers who dance.” Yes, places like Muny do have separate ones. If you feel you are equally strong in both singing and dancing, which is the best choice? </p>
<p>In my view, I think you should choose dancers who sing. It is a much rarer skill. But you have to be truly competitive. That means many years of rigorous dance training, including ballet. If you are a trained tap dancer, that is also a huge plus.</p>
<p>@Calliene’s D is very good at both.</p>
<p>The MUNY is a rare bird and one many have tried to “Monday Morning Quarterback”. I’ve heard both – try to go in as a dancer if you’re really competitive; but I’ve also heard it is better try to go in as a singer. Who knows. So subjective. This year MUNY offered “optional” video prescreen for the singer call – my guess is they will move to mandatory prescreen for the open singer call to eliminate huge crowds. (But only my guess). My S1&2 would not dare go in as dancers-first there. But the one boy we know who’s gotten placed at MUNY now for two summers in a row has done just that. He’s an AMAZING dancer but a stellar singer, too. So maybe that’s a vote for the dancer call – if in fact you’re amazing.</p>
<p>Awww, thanks, Jkellynh12! ;)<br>
And thanks, MTTwinsinCA for sharing that story! </p>
<p>I consider my son a dancer first. He auditioned this year at the MUY singer call because it conflicted with PCLO auditions. He was cast. I didn’t think it was a good idea but, again, what do I know? (he was also cast from the dancer call Freshman year)</p>
<p>I think @halflokum made the most important point about where you are auditoning partially driving the decision. My D has been cast as a dancer at some theaters and at others she would really be a mover who sings. You have to know the level around you to make those decisions, as well as have a realistic view of your own dance skills. And she is also right that tap is a separate skill and would require an additional determination.</p>