How to Choose Your Musical Theatre Audition Pieces

One of the biggest parts of pursuing musical theatre in college is the audition process. One of the biggest parts of the audition process is choosing your audition pieces. There are hundreds (if not thousands) of musicals out there that all have 20+ songs to pick from. And there are so many qualities to consider: vocal  type and range, character, style, etc. How do you even start?

Don’t worry, I’ve got you. This process can be daunting, but if you attack it with a plan (and start early enough), you will end up with an audition portfolio of pieces that you love and that show you off!

• Know the requirements

Before you even start looking, you have to know what you need. Each college will have different requirements for your audition. Some want 16-bar cuts, some want 32-bar cuts. Some want entire songs. Do you need an uptempo and a ballad? Or do you need a Golden Age classic and a more modern song?

The requirements for each school should be clearly posted somewhere on their website; find these first! Make a spreadsheet that has every school’s audition requirements listed. Then, see if there are any overlaps (there probably are). You want to have a few different options in your book, but you don’t  need separate songs for each school. You can even have different cuts of the same song. Finally, make your music shopping list. It is good to have about 5-6 songs ready for your auditions, even if all those are not required. You never know when you will be asked to sing something else!

• Play to your strengths

Think about all the musicals you know or have seen; what characters do you feel similar to or can you identify with? Perhaps you are tall and have a commanding energy- I bet you’d make a great Mary Poppins. Are you a character actor with great comedic timing? Maybe look at a song from Something Rotten! There is so much great rep for every kind of actor out there. You just have to know who you are as a person.

You may have heard that actors  should “stick to their type”.  I never want to place someone in a small box, but this can be good advice to follow. Your job in your audition is to make it easy for the people behind the table to choose you. If you come in showing them that you would be perfect for a specific type of character, they will know exactly what to do with you. Specificity is key! Rather than thinking of it as limiting yourself, imagine that you are giving yourself a clear path through the auditions lined with neon signs that say, “Put me in, coach!”

• Good rep hides in Google rabbit holes

Don’t just pick the first, second, or even third song that comes across your path. The best thing that you can do to find good audition pieces is to research. And the best kind of research involves looking everywhere you can. Go on YouTube and look for videos of your favorite actor singing in cabarets. Find the name of the composer of a show you love and see what else they have written. This is especially important when it comes to Golden Age or pre-1965 musicals. You can discover songs from shows you never even knew existed that might be perfect for you.

• If you have range, show it

That being said, if you can do many things well, it needs to be a part of your auditions. Schools have you sing more than one piece for a reason; they want to see different sides of you. Play around with different character types, vocal styles, and song tempos. If your Golden Age piece is a patter song, pick a contrasting song  that shows a longer vocal line. If your ballad is from a classic ingenue character, maybe your uptempo can be from a quirky dreamer type. Don’t forget to balance your songs with your monologues as well!

• Keep your voice type in mind

You want your audition to be a snapshot of you on your best day. Therefore, you need to choose songs that show off what your voice has to offer. Flaunt what you’ve  got! Can you hit those deep, sultry bass tones? Amazing! Do you have a jazzy bend to your voice? They want to see that. A soprano with super high notes will do a disservice to themselves if they think they have to belt their face off like Elphaba to get into a good program. Also, pick songs that are easy for you to sing. It’s okay if you need to work with your voice teacher to polish things, but if you can’t consistently sing a song well in practice, don’t leave it up to chance in your audition.

• Consider your age

I don’t mean that you can’t sing a song from a character that is older or younger than you. Teenagers are played onstage by 30-year-olds all the time. You just don’t want to choose a piece from a point of view that you have never experienced before. For example, I never want to see an 18-year-old singing “Send in the Clowns” from A Little Night Music. You may be the best dramatic actor in the world, but I will never believe you singing it. “Send in the Clowns” is sung by a middle-aged woman, past her prime, who has seen a lot and been disappointed by it all. This will never be believable performed by a high-school student. And if “Send in the Clowns” is your favorite song ever, I bet that you can find a dozen age-appropriate alternatives with the same feel and vocal range. Challenge yourself to look for them.

• Think about your audience

The people you are auditioning for will have seen hundreds of songs by the time college audition season is over. The last thing they want is to see 100 renditions of “Astonishing” or “Santa Fe” in a row. Choose your pieces wisely. You don’t have to arbitrarily choose unheard-of songs because you don’t want to be a repeat performance. Strike a balance between choosing pieces that are right for your type and pieces that are not sung all the time.

The best news, though, is that the people you are auditioning for do not expect you to be perfect. You are not auditioning for Broadway. You are auditioning for a college training program that will prepare you for your life as an actor. If you were perfect, they probably wouldn’t accept you anyways, because you don’t need their help. They are looking for potential just as much as they are looking for talent and ability.

• If you don’t love it, don’t sing it

It will be obvious if you hate your audition pieces, I promise you. You may have found the perfect song for your type with the perfect vocal range and the perfect show-off note. If you don’t really like it, though, it is not worth putting it in your book. Passion and connection to your pieces are a thousand times more important than what you think is the right song for you to sing.

Take your time with this process! You may go through several different variations of audition pieces before you find the right mix of songs. Don’t get discouraged, there is no one perfect piece out there. As long as you know yourself, your voice, and your strengths, you can set yourself up for great success in your college auditions!

6 Reasons Why Performing Arts Degrees Are Still Worth It

In today’s crazy world of AI, STEM, and other hard-to-remember sciencey acronyms, it can be hard to think that the arts still matter, especially performing arts. I will readily admit that, even though I got a degree in musical theatre, I am no longer working as an actor. Off-off-off Broadway was the closest I ever got to performing on that famous street. 

However, I AM going to make the argument that it is still worth it to major in performing arts in college. Whether or not a student is able to make a living in the performing arts after college, there are so many benefits to this type of degree that will help students in their future careers and lives. Here are six of the top reasons why:

1. Performing arts jobs DO exist!

Believe it or not, there are lots of performing arts jobs out there. Yes, very few people make it to Broadway, the NY Philharmonic, or American Ballet Theater, but those jobs are just at the very tippy-top. Many actors make a living doing national tours, working at regional theatres or on cruise ships, or starting their own small theatre companies. There is a whole community of freelance dancers of all styles, mostly in LA and NYC. Instrumentalists are always needed for all kinds of performances, including for recordings for albums, films and TV commercials. It takes some hard work to find these opportunities, but a life in the arts is definitely possible.

2. Culture matters.

It is upsetting when people say that a degree in the arts isn’t worth it and then go home and binge Netflix or listen to the newest album from their favorite singer. The arts matter. Culture matters. People use the arts for so many different things in their lives, be it escaping from their 9-5 workday or sharing an experience with their friends. Our society is strong when the arts are supported and appreciated. If no one decides to pursue a life in the arts, the wonderful music, TV, films, and performances that we all love will disappear.

3. Creativity is important for more than just the arts.

One of the most valuable skills that students in performing arts programs develop is creativity. Students will constantly be asked in their arts classes to make something new or to find an original way to do something. This has more real-world applications than just in the arts. Many of the people that I went to college with have started their own businesses in fashion, education, or marketing. Successful performing artists may need to discover other streams of income and have to be creative and flexible in finding or making them. Even if a performing artist has to find a day job, their creative skills will serve them well in solving problems and other daily tasks.

4. Artists possess more skills than just creating art.

OK, so it turns out that a student got a performing arts degree and decides not to be a working artist. Have no fear! Artists can do more than just art. 

No matter what kind of performing artist you are, you have to be able to get up on a stage and perform. It is non-negotiable. This practice creates a comfort with communicating and speaking in all sorts of situations and with all kinds of people. Artists are also skilled at taking criticism. Actors, dancers, singers, and instrumentalists are all constantly getting notes on how to improve their performance. It’s no big deal when, at their day job, their boss tells them to fix something in a written proposal or change how they present themselves to a client. It comes with the territory. And, when it comes to working well with others, performing artists have got it down. Very infrequently are you the only one on stage. Performing artists have to collaborate with other artists to make the best kind of art.

One of the most valuable skills that performing artists possess is a strong work ethic. Being able to sing, dance, act, or play an instrument well does not happen overnight. It takes so much hard work and dedication to their craft to be able to perform at a high level. Students who pursue performing arts degrees need to have years of experience under their belts before they even think of applying and auditioning. This practice hones their work ethic, which can then be applied to any situation. Need to create a polished presentation in two hours? No big deal. Artists are many things, but they are not slackers.

5. It’s better that a kid is passionate about what they are studying than getting a degree they hate.

I understand completely that parents want their kids to be well equipped when entering the workforce. However, I don’t always agree that parents should force their kids to get a “practical” college degree in order to “be successful”. Like I have said previously, getting a performing arts degree gives a student many practical skills. Even more important, though, is if a student is engaged in their college learning or not. If a student is getting a college degree that they don’t really want, they are not going to be happy or determined to do well in their classes. If they are not engaged, they are not learning. To me, getting a degree that some say is impractical is better than getting a more traditional college degree as long as the student is passionate and engaged.

That being said, I don’t think there is anything wrong with having a back-up plan. If a student wants to apply to some colleges for performing arts and some colleges for another major, more power to them. The most important thing is that a student wants to learn whatever they are learning. Yes, all students have to take the basic gen-ed classes, and some of those might be “boring”. Overall, if a student is getting a degree they are excited about, they will have the most success possible.

6. It’s a college degree

At the end of the day, no matter what a student is studying, they will have a college degree. Congratulations to them! Only about 38% of people over the age of 25 in this country have one. Whatever the major, a college degree looks great on a resume.  Employers will know that an applicant with a college degree can handle college level work, including meeting deadlines, communicating well in writing, handling multiple tasks at once, and thinking critically. Sadly, these abilities can be hard to come by today. Your student will automatically have a leg up just because they went to college.

Students have to do what is right for them and their situations. It may not be possible for a student to major in performing arts for many reasons. Getting in requires years of hard work, practice, and many auditions, not to mention the standard, hard-for-anyone college application process. I just don’t think that a student should say no to a performing arts degree because they think it’s not worth it. If a student is talented, driven, and passionate about their art, then they should be able to consider continuing to be a serious artist in college.