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Graduate2015PremiereProductionofDRACULA…themusical

FrequentlyAskedQuestions BA(Hons)MusicalTheatre WW45BA(Hons)MusicalTheatrewithFoundation 312W

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AUDITION REQUIREMENTS BA(Hons)MusicalTheatre(UCASCourseCode:WW45)BA(Hons)MusicalTheatrewithFoundation(UCASCourse312W)Auditionfee:Thereisa£40auditionfeefortheabovecourses.YourauditionwillbeinTWOsections.Youwillberequiredtoattendfrom10am.Itisimportantforthosetravellingalongdistancethatyoumakesuitabletravelarrangementstoenableyoutostayuntil3pmatthelatest,duetothenatureoftheselectionprocess.MusicalTheatreAuditionFirstsection–youwillberequiredtoparticipatein:

• Ashortmovementsession• Ageneralmusicianshipworkshop• Ashortvocalworkshop

Secondsection-youwillberequiredtoprepareandperforma:

• Monologue*fromacontemporaryplay(post1980)–20lines(maximum)• MusicalTheatre*songofyourchoicefromoneofthefollowingcomposers:IrvingBerlin,

GeorgeGershwin,ColePorter,RodgersandHammersteinandJeromeKern(approximately32–64bars)

• MusicalTheatre*lyricasadramaticmonologueN.B.FortheMusicalTheatredegreecourseyouwillalsoberequiredtobringtotheauditionashortpieceofwritingdiscussingthepreparation/rehearsalprocessofthemonologuetobeperformedatthisaudition(1,000words.)DoNOTsendthiswrittenworkinadvanceoftheaudition.*Donotconsiderpresentinganymaterial,sungorspoken,fromaplayormusicalcurrentlyrunningintheWestEnd.Pleasebringwithyou:

• Arecentpassportphotograph• loosecomfortableclothingsuitableforanaudition• appropriatefootwear• copiesof:

1. monologueandsonglyric.2. annotatedvocal/pianoscore(sheetmusic)forthechosensong.3. 1,000wordessayoutliningtheprocess,preparationandperformanceof

monologue.NBNowrittenfeedbackwillbegiventocandidatesfollowingtheaudition.Clearverbalresponsesregardingworkobservedwithintheauditionwillbeprovided,whereappropriate,bythepanelthroughouttheauditionprocess.Youwillneedtopayanauditionfeeof£40(non-refundable).Pleasetelephoneourautomatedpaymentlineon02089363205.YouwillneedtoquoteyourStudentIDnumber.

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CLARIRFICATIONofAUDITIONREQUIREMENTSWhatdoyourequirefromtheessay?Thepurposeofthistaskistoassessyourrehearsalapproachtothechosenmonologuepreparedforthisaudition.Thewritingisencouragedtobefromapersonalpointofviewidentifyingyourinterestinactingandtoprovideclarificationastowhyyouareappropriateforanundergraduatehonoursdegree.Yourwritingmightwellbethebasisofsomediscussionwiththepanelabouttheideaspresentedwithintheperformanceofthemonologue.Pleasedonotsubmitcourseworkeditedandmarkedbyyourtutors.Shouldwesendthewrittenworkinadvanceoftheaudition?NO.Pleasebringwrittenworkexplainingyourpreparationworkrelatingtotheperformanceofthemonologuewithyouondayoftheaudition.Stapledandnameon.Whatdoesitmeanto‘...prepare and perform a musical theatre* lyric as a dramatic monologue?’Youareexpectedtoworkonthetextofasonglyricandthenusethistextasaspokenmonologueinordertocreateacharacterandsituationthatisappropriatetothewordsspoken.Whyonly32-64barsofasong?Thepurposeoftheauditionistosellyourselfinthemostpositivewayyoucan.Whenyouprepareyourauditionsongaimtosingforoneminuteandbeabletodisplayasmanyfacetsofyourvocalskillaspossible.Ifwewanttohearmorethepanelwillrequestthis!Dowehavetobringcopiesofauditionmaterial?YES.Pleaserememberthatthisisnotbecausethepanelisuncertainoftherepertoireyouhavechosen.Itisadvisedforyourownwelfareandwell-beingwithintheauditionprocess.Tensionisoftenhighandthereisatendencyformemorytoletyoudown.Withthepossibilityofapromptthesituationisrelieved.Whatisinvolvedinthegeneralmusicianshipworkshop?Inordertobesuccessfulinthefieldofmusicaltheatreitisessentialthatyouhaveagoodearforthemusicandcanbereliablewhenworkinginachorusorsmallensemble.Youdonotneedperfectpitchbutastimeisalwayspreciouswithintherehearsalroomtherepetitionofinstructionseithermusicalortextualarenotcommon.Therefore,werequireyoutohaveaquickmindandtobeabletoanswersimplequestionsrelatingtopitchandintonation.Werequestyoutosingsimplemelodicandrhythmicphrases,recognisemajorandminorchords,numbersofnoteswithinachordplayedtwiceonthepianoandothersimpleauralexercisesthatwouldbeappropriatetothejourneyofanactor-singer.Ifindoubtseekguidancefromyourpresenttutororteacherastohowtoprepareforthisaspectoftheaudition.

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Ismake-upallowed?NO.DefinitelynotrequiredornecessaryDowehavetowearblack?NO.However,itisnecessarytowearappropriateclothingandshoesforashortvocalworkshop.Avoidsparklytopsandhotpants.Aimforasenseofneutralitytobeobservedinorderforthedifferentcharactersyouperformandtheirphysicalitytobecommunicatedinanobjectivemanner.Werequestthatnojewellerybewornfortheaudition. Canweuse‘backingtracks’?

NO.Youmustbringcorrectlypreparedsheetmusic.Aimtophotocopythesongtobeperformedandmakecertainthatitissuitablypreparedfortheaccompanist.Singlesheetswillinevitablyfalloffthepianoandtheaccompanistwillbespendingmoretimepickingupyourmusicthanaccompanyingyou.Sellotapethesheetstogether.Donotstaplethemusic.

DoIneedtobringthepianoscoreformysong?

YES.Youmustbringcorrectlypreparedsheetmusicinthecorrectkey.Canweusetransposedsongs? YES.Buttheremustbeasignificanttechnicalorartisticreasonastowhythisisnecessary.Whyareyoutheonlyuniversitythatappearstorequestapplicantsforthemusicaltheatrecoursetoprepareasonglyricasadramaticmonologue?

Perhapsyoushouldaskalltheotherinstitutionstowhichyouareapplyingastowhytheydonotthinkthispreparatoryworkisimportant.Webelievethatbeforeyoucansingasongyoumustunderstandthelyric.Bybeingawareofthestructureofthewritingandcommunicatingthespecificvocalpatternsandthoughtsofthecharacterwebelievethatthisprocessenablesboththetexttobespokeninameaningfulmannerandthelyrictobecommunicatedeffectively.

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Howwilltheauditiondaybestructured?

Theauditionwillbequiteintensiveandwillrequireyoutobeavailablefrom10:00amuntil3:00pm(approx.).Pleasemakesuitabletravelandpersonalarrangementstoallowthefullprocessoftheauditiontobeconsidered.Intheopeningsessionyouwillberequiredtotakepartinashortmovementsession,anaural/generalmusicianshiptestandashortMusicalTheatregeneralknowledgequiz.YouwillthenberequestedtotakepartinashortvocalwarmupFollowingthisyouwillbeaskedtosingyourpreparedsong,performyourpreparedmonologueandsonglyric.Pleasebeawareyouwillbere-directedonanyaspectofyourpresentedworkasobservedbythepanelthroughouttheentireauditionday.Therewillbeanaturalbreakinthemiddleofthedayandtherewillbeanopportunitytotakerefreshment.Thereareseveraladditionalcafeswithintheareainadditiontothoseontheuniversitycampusitself.Youareadvisedtobringwaterwithyouforthedurationoftheaudition.

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Afewextrathoughts:Bringcleanunmarkedtextstotheaudition–thisisforyourbenefitjustincaseyouforgetwordsetc.Wearealsomoreinterestedinwhatyoudoatthemomentofperformingratherthantryingtoworkoutwhatyouintendedtodoinyourperformanceencouragedbythecommentswrittenonthepage.Neversetyourselfa‘challenge’intheaudition.Thisisyourmomentto‘shine’andshowthepanelwhatyoucando.Alwaysperformmaterialwithwhichyouarefamiliar.Ensurethesongisinthecorrectkeyforyourvoiceandthatyouareawareofthepianoaccompaniment.Aimtocutpianointroductionsandinterludesofmorethan2bars.Thepanelwanttohearyousing,nottheaccompanistplay.Donotchoosesongswithdifficultaccompaniments.Youhavebeenworkingonthissongforseveralmonths,butthepianistissightreading.N.B. Avoiddownloadingmusicfromweb-siteswhereyoucannotguaranteetheaccuracyor

editingofthepianoscore.Ifyoudodownloadthemusic,pleasemakesureyouhavecheckedthescorewithatutorforaccuracyofkeyandvocalrangebeforebringingittoanaudition.

Useappropriateauditionmaterialsuitablefordemonstratingyourstrengthsinthefieldofmusicaltheatre.Avoidusingmonologuesandsongsfromshowsthatyouhaverecentlyperformed.Whenre-directedthesecandidatesoftenresisttheinstructionorguidancetheyaregivenandsoshowareluctancetoacceptdirection.Alwayskeepyourmindopenduringtheauditionandacceptdirectionasapositiveaspectoftheday.Donotsittopresentyourpieces.Ifyoufindapiecethatcannotbeperformedunlessthecharacterisdiscoveredsittingdown–CHANGEIT!Thisisanauditionandweneedtobeawareofyourentirephysicalityandskillstocreateandembodycharacter.Pleasehavedetailedknowledgeoftherepertoirechosenforyourauditionplusgeneralknowledgeofmusicaltheatretoidentifyyourstrengthswithinthisfield.Makeboldactingchoiceswithinallaspectsofyouraudition.Beawareofcharacter,relevantbackgroundandhowtocommunicatethisinformationwiththepanel.Ifyouinventinformationtosupportyou’retheunderstandingofthecharacter,ensurethattheinformationisrelevanttothetextandsituationyouarein.Toomanysongsappeartobesungbycharacterswhoareindulgingindrugsandarelonelyinaprisoncell.Aimtousebackgroundinformationthathasrelevancetoyourowncircumstances.Alltoooftenthebackstoryishardtocorrelatewiththeactualtextofthesong.Ideasarenotenoughtheyneedtohaveaconnectionwiththelyricsungordialoguespoken.Wordsarespokenandsungwithsomeinterestbutitisthemeaningofthetextthatneedstofullyrealisedwithinthedeliveryandactionsofthecharacter.Referencesmustbeunderstoodandfullyresearched.Besecureinyouruseofmaterialandifyouusetextthatdrawsattentiontothesexualnatureofacharacterensurethatyoufullyunderstandtheimplicationsofthiswork.Bebraveanddon’t

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apologisepriororduringtheauditionprocess.Thereneedstobeagreaterunderstandingofwhatyouareachievingwithintheworkandthedemandsbeingmadeuponinrelationtothedeliveryofthecharacter.Oftenthreechancestodisplayaworldofcontrastsandtheperformancesremainrigidandfullofpersonalhabitsandgesturebelongingtotheactorratherthanthecharacter.Choicesareimportantsopleasemakesurethatyoudisplayasmanyvocalqualitiesandstylesaspossiblewithintheshorttimeavailabletoyouwithintheaudition.Ensurethatyourbasiccommunicationskillsaresecurebeforeembarkinguponsomeoftheorecomplexrepertoirewithinthefield.Sometimestheabilitytosingasimplesongeffectivelyandwithasenseoftruthisworthmorethanbarsandbarsofamorecomplicatedandtestingsong.Trytoavoidsongsthattesttheaccompanistmorethanthevocalistataudition.Performwhatyouhaverehearsed.Donotsitinjudgementandcommentonthecharacterbeingplayedasifyoudidn’tlikethem.

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SomebasicrulesYOUMIGHTLIKETOCONSIDERwhenauditioning:

• selectsongsthatsuityourvoice• theverseisneverbetterthantherefrain• pickthesectionofthesongthatshowsyouatyourbest• showyourbestqualityinthesong• donotcarryanyextramusicwithyouthatyoudonotwishtosing• makesurethatyoursongisinthecorrectkey• befamiliarwiththepianoaccompaniment• bringthecorrectversionofthesongwithyou• knowthecorrecttemposothatyoucancommunicatethistotheaccompanist• getenoughrestatleasttwodaysbeforetheaudition• trytoavoidmilkordairyproductstheeveningbeforetheaudition• stayfocussedonwhatyouhavetodo• warmupsilentlybeforegoingintotheauditionroom

AtyourauditionyouwouldbeadvisedtoconsiderNOTTOsinganything:

• thatisoutofyourrange• thatyouhavejustlearnt• thatismusicallytoodifficultforyou• whereyouareconstantlyawareofthetechnicalrequirements• thatgoesonfortoolong• thatistooself-indulgentortoonegative• thatisoverdone• thatisemotionallytoodifficultforyoutohandleor• toodifficultforanaverageaccompanisttosight-read–thisisyouraudition!

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HOWCANYOUBESTPREPAREYOURSELFFORAUDITION/INTERVIEWS?

Ifyouare15minutesearly,thenyouareontime

Ifyouarriveontime,thenyouarelate!THINGSTOCONSIDERBEFOREAPPLYINGTOAPLACEOFSTUDYQUESTIONSTOASKBEFOREYOUAPPLY?

• Whatspecialgiftsdoyouthinkyoupossess?• Howawareareyouofthecompetitivefield?• Areyoupreparedtoworkharderthanyoueverhaveinyourlifetobesuccessfulinyour

studies?• Areyounervous,scared?• Doyoualwayswanttohearpraise?• Whatplansdoyouhaveifyoudon’tgetinthisyear?

WHATAREYOURPOSSIBLEOPTIONS?AMIMAKINGTHECORRECTCHOICE?

• Acting• Theatre• Dance• Drama• MusicalTheatre• Directing• StageManagement• VocalPerformance(sung/spoken)• Music/DramaEducation• Music/DramaTherapy• TechnicalTheatre• MusicIndustry/MusicBusiness/MusicAdministration/EventsManagement• Audio/RecordingTechnology

RESEARCHTHEDIFFERENCESBETWEEN

• conservatoireanduniversityeducation• thevariousconservatoireswithintheNCDT• eachconservatoireanduniversitywithregardtoauditionguidelinesandrequirements• curriculumcontentanddelivery

KNOWYOURSELFANDBEABLETORECOGNISE

• yourstrengths• yourweaknesses• thequalitiesyourequiretosellyourself

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THINGSTOTHINKABOUT• GototheUniversityorthewebsite• Talk: tostudentsorgetintouchwiththemviaAdmissionsOfficeandStudent

Ambassadors(atUWL)• Read: prospectusonline;On-lineforums;www.prospects.ac.uk• NeverseeREJECTIONasapointofnegativity.Bebraveandstrongandrealisethatthistime

itisnottobe!Askquestionsandreconsideraplanofaction.• Donotgoforsecondbestandjustapplyforanythinginclearing.Weareallgrownupand

wearealllookingforsuccessfulconclusions.Youwantaplace.Wewantstudents.• Youshouldwantusforlifeandweshouldwanttoteachyouandbewithyouforthenext

threeyearsofyourlife.• Weshouldbeencouragedtowanttonurtureyouthroughyourstrugglesandhighs.Thisisa

two-wayjourneyandbothyouandtheUniversitymustbepreparedtonegotiatealongtheway.Thisisalwaysseensomuchmoreinperformancesubjectswheretheconnectionsanddreamshavetoberecognisedinaverypositiveandyetlearningenvironment.

• Itisunderstoodthatwearehinderedbyarecentdevelopmentwithineducationwhereeveryoneseekspraiseforthenorm.Ifyouwereanathletethefactthatyouwereintrainingmeansthatyouaregood.Whydoyouwanttohear‘welldone!’whenyouneedtotakehalfasecondoffyourrunningtimeoraddanextrainchtoyourjump.Whyisitnotthesameintermsofperformanceandtechnicalandcreativeability?

• Howtogetthereisimportantandthatjourneyneedsstrengthanddetermination.Toconstantlyseekpraiseisanegativeandinhibitingfactortopersonaldevelopment.

• Youshouldalwaysaskwhytheuniversitywantsyouasmuchasyouwanttostudywiththem.Theauditionpaneloftenaskwhatisitabouttheauditioneethatwelike,wanttoworkwith,educateandencouragetowardstheirlifecareer.

• Fromeveryadversitycomesanopportunitytorefocusandre-engagewiththefuture.• Realiseyourpotentialandadmireyourselfforwhatyouhaveachievedratherthanregret

whathashappened.• Rememberno-onefailedyou–youweretotallyincontrolofthesituation

(audition/interview)andsoyouhavetoremainincontrolofthesituation.• Haveaplanforwhatevereventualityinlife.Neverbetakenbysurprise.• Thedevisingofaplanofactiontoachieveagoalisanexcitingprojectandyoushouldrelish

itwithenthusiasmandjoynotsadnessandregret!• Basicallytosucceedinaninterviewyouneedtogivethepanelwhattheywant!Doyou

understandwhatthatis?• Donotbesurprisedtorealisethatauniversity/collegemightwantyou.Youstartwithfull

marksfromthestartoftheaudition/interview.• Atallpointsoftheadmissionprocessyouneedtohaveattractivequalities,charmand

charisma.• Behonestandrealiseyourweaknessesandstrengthsandbeabletoanalysewhathappened

toresultinthisspecificaudition/interview.• Whyareyouthere?Theywanttohelpyou–letthemdotheirjob.Bepositive!• Youneedtocommunicateasoulandpersonalitytoyouraudience.Beaperformeratthis

pointandenjoytheplatform.Wanttobethereandnotashamed.• Nobodyisscoringpoints.• Avoid‘Xfactor’language,‘Ithasalwaysbeenmydream/passiontobestudyingthissubject’,

beabletotalkaboutthejourneyandhowyougottothatpoint.Avoidsuchwordsas‘like’,‘passion’and‘love’.Findalternatives.Bedirectinyourlanguage.

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POINTSTOTHINKABOUTWHENPREPARINGFORANAUDITION

• Knowyoursubjectandreasonsforchoosingthecourse.• Haveatleasttwoorthree16barsongs(musicaltheatre),halfup-tempo/halfballad• Knowtheentiresong• Knowtheshow,thecharacter,thesituation,andtrytowatchorreadtheshow• Knowtheplayyourmonologueisfrom• Knowwhoyouaretalkingto,whatyouwant,whatisinyourway,andwhatyouaredoingto

getwhatyouwant• Ifyoutakethemonologueorsongoutofcontext,beabletoalsodoitincontext• Workwithanaccompanistwhoisn’tyourregularaccompanist• Doyourmonologueandsongsinasmanydifferentrooms/situationsaspossible• Haveatapeofyourauditionpiecesincaseyougetsick• Practicedoingitdifferentways• Bepreparedtotakedirection• Whatisyourtype?• Dressyourtypeandpicksongsandmonologuesthatfityourtype• Wearsomethingyouarecomfortablein,thatfitsyourrepertoireandauditionmaterial,and

isrepresentativeoftheREALyou• Avoidlogosonallclothing• Whatthepanelwanttoknowiswhatyouwouldwanttoknowifyouwereinterviewing

them.THEAUDITIONITSELF

• Alwaysbeoriginalandunique• Whatmakesyoudifferenttoeveryoneelse?Findoutbeforeyougointothe

audition/interview.Thinkaboutthiscarefully.Askotherpeoplewhattheyseeinyou.Fivepeoplefriends,familyetc.

• Postureisimportant–bealertandalivewhenseated.Beopen–don’tcloseoffwithbodylanguage.Communicatewithyoureyesandbeattractiveandcharming.

• Senseofindividuality.Whatmakesyouthispersonandwhy?Backgroundfamilyfriends-expressyourexperienceandskill.

• Reliabilityandprecision.Attentiveness,prepared,knowledgeofthesubjectbeingauditioned/interviewedfor.

• Geteverythingfromtheseexperiencestoincreaseyourawarenessoftheindustryyouareenteringandyourownplacewithinthatareaofstudy.

• Don’ttrytoimpressandbesmart• Bearealpersonwithgenuineemotionsandreactions• Lookthepanelintheeyeswhenyoutalktothemandbehappy• Iftheydon’tlikeyou,youhaveclearlycommunicatedtothepanelthatyoudon’twanttobe

there• Beamazingandcharming• Youarenervousaboutgettingin,we’renervousaboutgettingouridealclass• Wewanttohavefunworkingwithyousowearelookingforinteresting,intelligentpeople• Whenyouwalkin,wehopeyouareIT!• Itstartsfromtheminuteyouleavehometogototheaudition• Thisisyourtimetoshine• Smile• Havefun

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ALWAYSHAVEAQUESTIONTOASK• Whatdoyoudotohelpyourstudentsfindwork?• Whatisthealumninetworklike?• Whatisthestrongestelementofthecourse?• Whatperformingopportunitiesarethereinadditiontothemainstageshows?• Aretherestudentprojects?

AFTERTHEAUDITIONPleasebeawareyouwillbeconsideredforthefullsuiteofcoursesweofferinthePerformingArtsdepartment–MusicalTheatre,MusicalTheatrewithFoundation,Acting,ActorMusicianshipandActing,WritingandDirecting.

• Makesureyougatherallpre-courseinformationbeforeleavingtheaudition• Inpreparationforotherauditionsworkoutwhyyouwere,orwerenotsuccessful:

♦ Whatdidyouwear?♦ Whatdidyoustartwith?♦ Didtheyaskforanythingdifferent?♦ Whatwereyourfirst/finalimpressions?♦ Whatdidyoulove/hate?♦ Whatistheoverallvibeoftheinstitution?

• If yougetotheroffers, followupwith the conservatoires anduniversities youare stillwaitingtohearfrom.

FinalProductionofWORKING,2011-ourfirstgraduatingyear.