We’ve talked a bit about what happens outside the audition room. Now let’s turn our attention toward what happens between the door and the first note… Greetings Don’t spend a lot of time obsessing about how to relate to the audition panel. Auditions aren’t cocktail parties, and other than avoiding the appearance of being extraordinarily
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Trappers in Chicago
Yesterday afternoon’s opera performances in the windy city included Lawrence Brownlee’s Lyric Opera of Chicago debut in La cenerentola. We are proud to call Larry a Trapper, and I’m beside myself with excitement about sharing the recital stage with him in a few months. A few weeks ago, he was featured on the Fatherly website. If you’ve ever wondered
Read MoreAuditions: Hallway Strategies
You are right to be primarily concerned with what happens inside the audition room. But I encourage you to extend your professionalism to the people and situations outside the door. Trash Talk Singers don’t overtly try to get inside each others’ heads the way professional athletes do, but there are mind games outside the room. Most artists
Read MoreAuditions: Pacing, Props and Proximity
We find that singers worry endlessly about the extent to which they can move in an audition situation. A few thoughts from the other side of the table: Should You “Block” Your Aria? Well strictly speaking, no. You shouldn’t perform your audition in the same way you would approach a staged performance. But the exercise
Read MoreTrappers on Fleet Street
Above, clockwise from upper left: Brian Mulligan as Sweeney Todd, Elizabeth Futral as the Beggar Woman, Heidi Stober as Johanna, Stephanie Blythe as Mrs Lovett, and Matthew Grills as Toby. Photos courtesy San Francisco Opera. What a pleasure it was to see these 5 former WTO singers on stage at San Francisco Opera on Tuesday
Read MoreOur West Coast Family
Above: In the LA Opera audition room with Stephanie Rhodes (guest panelist), Joshua Winograde (LA Opera) and Jeremy Frank (pianist) Opera is a Big Thing, but the opera industry is a surprisingly small network of interconnected families. We’re in Los Angeles this week, and every time we come here, the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion feels more and
Read MoreStairwells & Socks
There are many steps to putting on my audition ears. Spotify-surfing through my favorite recordings is only part of the process. I also have to remember how difficult it is to compare different voices in different acoustics. To wit, consider these extreme ends of the spectrum… 1. The Bathroom/Stairwell Singers initially love the fact that
Read MoreRocking the Audition Look
Having just packed a carry-on suitcase for the first 2.5 weeks of travel in 4 cities with 3 different climates, I am in a particularly empathetic place with you singers who are trying to decide what to wear for auditions. If you’re staring at your closet trying to figure out what to strut during your audition, I
Read MoreAuditionHack: Video Edition
A guest post from Lee Anne Myslewski, Director of the Wolf Trap Opera Studio. This is the first year that we’ve asked for video files for the Studio applications. They’re not required, but I’m heartened to see that so many people have them, and that they’re largely quite good! I’m only about halfway through the
Read MoreAudition Season 2015: The Conversation
OK, singers, this is the time of year when the blog turns the full force of its attention on you. Yes, my friends, it’s audition season. We’ve been reviewing audition applications for 3 weeks now, and we’re almost done. (Final deadline – for auditions in PA and VA – is tomorrow, September 18.) But for you,
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