Auditions are a big part of any musical theater experience, and will give us a sense of your performance background and comfort level with performing. Every camper entering 2nd grade or above should sing a short excerpt of a solo song on day one of each session. If you strongly resist the idea of performing a song, we understand, but we really, really recommend it. You’ll feel very proud and confident when you do! The “Littles” (entering grades K-1), are welcome to sing as well, but we’re not expecting it.
Ideally, we’d love it if you would choose your own selection for the audition. We want to hear YOUR favorite audition piece!
Just follow these rules, and remember to HAVE FUN:
• The song must be from a Broadway musical.
• You should perform an “audition cut” of the song — not the entire song. The cut should be about 16–32 measures. This roughly equates to about 30–45 seconds. No audition cut should last more than one minute.
• No singing “a cappella” or with a backing track recording. We will play the piano for the student, so campers need to bring piano sheet music of the song. Please mark the start/stop location of the audition cut on the sheet music.
• We need to hear you sing by yourself, so no duets, trios, or group audition pieces.
• Campers will also learn a brief group dance routine during First-Day Auditions.
We realize, however, that some campers may be new to choosing audition material. If you aren’t comfortable bringing in your own audition piece, simply select from one of the following songs. If you choose one of the songs below, there is no need to bring in sheet music. You’ll be singing to the piano accompaniment, but we’ve included a vocal guide for practicing:
Good Morning (from Singin’ in the Rain)
Lyrics: Good morning! Good morning!
It’s great to stay up late.
Good morning, good morning to you!
When we left the movie show,
the future wasn’t bright.
Come the dawn, the show goes on
and I don’t wanna say goodnight.
So say good morning! Good morning!
Rainbows are shining through.
Good morning, good morning to you!
When I Get My Name in Lights (from The Boy from Oz)
Lyrics: I’ll sit on a flagpole
Whatever the rage
Just to get my picture on the front page, and
Just to get my name
Just to get my name
Just to get my name in lights
Just to get my name in lights
In My Own Little Corner (from Cinderella)
Lyrics: I’m a girl men go mad for,
love’s a game I can play
With a cool and confident kind of air
Just as long as I stay
In my own little corner
All alone
In my own
Little chair
Heart (from Damn Yankees)
Lyrics: When your luck is battin’ zero
Get your chin up off the floor
Mister, you can be a hero
You can open any door
There’s nothin’ to it, but to do it
You’ve gotta have heart
Miles and miles and miles of heart
Oh, it’s fine to be a genius, of course
But keep that old horse before the cart
First, you gotta have heart
Upright bass, also called string bass or double bass, is a member of the orchestra family. Just as often, however, it appears in jazz, bluegrass, folk, and other genres. With a large hollow body and 4 thick strings, the tones produced by the upright bass are low and rich. The instrument is capable of long, expressive tones when played with a bow; and short, percussive tones when plucked with the strings. String bass is a dynamic and impressive instrument to play!
The oboe is a woodwind and a member of the double-reed family. It is played by blowing air through the reed, attached at the top of the instrument. The reed consists of two very thin pieces of cane, pressed together with a small opening to allow air to pass through. The sound can be high in pitch, but it has a variety of colorful tones, from bright and piercing to low and mysterious.
