for a younger actor, is a little awkward and goofy
and also deals with some deep subject matter. I
re-read it a couple times, made some new choices
and it was ready to go. The song, on the other
hand, was a much trickier selection.
Any musical theatre actor has their “book” or
catalog of songs they’ve col lected over the years
that fit their voice well, show it off or are just
particularly right for them.
I started looking through my book and couldn’t
make a choice. “I’m Alive” from “Next to Normal”
is usually my go-to, but I felt it wasn’t the fit for
this audition. “Moving too Fast” from “The Last
Five Years” was another option, but it also seemed
wrong. “This World Will Remember Me” from
“Bonnie & Clyde” almost became my selection,
but Derby actually did that show not too long ago
and I wanted to avoid comparisons. After further
deliberation, I settled on “Corner of the Sky” from
“Pippin.” My only hesitation was that it can often
be seen as an “overdone” audition song, but I knew
it fit my voice and was an appropriate choice for
the venue. Right or wrong, the decision was made.
I worked with a friend of mine who is also a
vocal coach a few days before the big day, and we
selected the portion of the song I’d be performing at
the audition. Derby asks for 16 bars or one full song,
and we both thought it safest to go with 16 bars to
save myself from the possible embarrassment of
being cut off mid-song. We tweaked a few things
here and there, and the cut – the last minute or so
of the revival version of “Corner in the Sky” – was
as ready as it would ever be.
I started audition day at Please & Thank You
(a coffee shop in Louisville) reading over my
monologue and trying to keep my nerves from
getting the best of me.
I swung by FedEx to pick up my resume and
headshot before heading home to make possibly
the hardest choice of the day: my audition outfit.
I looked through button-downs, t-shirts, dress
pants, jeans and, at long last, settled on an open-
collar henley (Google it) and dark, skinny jeans.
My “type” in musical theatre is usually on the
edgier or rock side of things, so I wanted to give
that off while also not looking like an actual
rocker (my torn-up black jeans did almost make
the cut, however).
Driving to Derby, I sang “Corner of the Sky”
once, but knew I was just going to psych myself
out if I beat it to death. So, as I crossed the Second
Street Bridge in 30-degree weather, I threw the
windows down and blasted David Lee Roth’s “Just
Like Paradise,” singing it all at the top of my lungs.
Maybe not the most conventional audition prep,
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