#15: Weekly Recap: Coachings, Auditions, Show/Song of the Week
Friday 7/19/24
Welcome to FRIDAY! Another weekly recap of coachings, auditions, and SHOWS I SAW! This week will be pretty boring because I have been off since Sunday BUT I’ll recap the end of the week last week for you all.
COACHINGS
Keep considering author intent and character while selecting audition material EVEN for high school and college production auditions. I personally have made the choice to refuse to work on material with students who want to sing from shows that do not align with their race, ethnicity, or religion (if religion is a driving force of the show). To preserve anonymity, I’ll just say that this student had to prepare 2 songs to audition for her colleges fall productions. Of her two choices, her first song was fine. And the second was from a show that is famously based in Southeast Asia. I do not like to assume, so i just reminded her “first choice good but i just want to alert you that the other song is sung by a Southeast Asian character and it is integral to the plot and story. If you do not consider yourself Southeast Asian, we can’t work on that song together. Let me know what you want to do!” She responded so nicely (remember, these students are 17/18 and are just starting to pick audition material themselves, we can handle these conversations kindly) and said “oh got it! I’ll find something else!”. This is not a regular student of mine, I worked with her 2 times TOTAL last year in 2023 and haven’t heard from her since. So, hopefully this can be a moment she recalls and will challenge herself to make better choices.
I heard from a student at the Paper Mill Summer Conservatory that after she sang her cut of “On The Other Side Of The Tracks”, Mark Hobee asked her “that was a great cut… WHO MADE THAT CUT FOR YOU” and she said “MY COACH JULIE GALORENZO”. I just want to say that out loud to you all.
MONOLOGUES - oooo let’s just chat real quick. I’m going to challenge everyone to always try to choose audition material - songs or monologues - that are about something happening NOW - NOT something that has happened. If it tells a story, it is inactive. It means the actor has to really work against the material to make it alive. What’s more interesting… watching your friend tell another friend a story you already heard 3x? Or, getting to watch the story happen in real time? This is critical to success, especially as a young person. Don’t mistake “reflective” for “story”. These are different :)
AUDITIONS
Oh, I don’t think I had any. I have an audition tape due TODAY but it's just a preliminary vet. I will say that I am SO BUMMED because I was hoping to audition for (and book lol) a show I LOVE that would be happening late fall but I hear through the grapevine it is not happening any longer and I’m sad. Will have to keep my eye out for a Christmas time show in the area!
SHOWS
I went to see SISTER ACT with Pleasant Valley Productions at the Oskar Schindler PAC (OSPAC) where I have done a bunch of shows and concerts! I’ve gotten to do several PVP shows since 2014 with so many amazing friends and colleagues - Company, Nunsense, Starmites - you know, all the one word title shows. I’ve also worked as a dialect coach for 2 shows in addition to some concerts sponsored by OSPAC with Encore Orchestra of NJ or with a small combo. We also did a new musical by my friend Dea Thatcher in the spring of 2021 just after we all got vaccinated!
Anyway, I LOVE SISTER ACT SO MUCH. I love the music and the book is so funny. If you didn’t know, the music is ALAN MENKEN which blows peoples minds haha. I loved seeing this show and it is a PERFECT choice for outdoor theatre. It’s fun, it MOVES, the music is catchy, and there’s only a moment or two where it takes itself too seriously. The perfect choice!
SHOW & SONG of the Week - ALICE BY HEART
So the good news is i STARTED this! I overbooked myself on this a bit. I’m going to listen to it on my drive home tomorrow I PROMISE. I hope you’ve had a lot of time to investigate it in my absence :)
Dreams Don’t Die
Julie