but can you belt that?

Happy New Year!

Here comes the audition season in full swing!

So - how's your terminology?

This is why I ask:  there is a great deal of terminology in craft, and singing is no different.  We toss around words like "belt",  "mix",  "placement",  and hear "breathe low",  "project" and on and on.

Do you REALLY know what these mean?  Or are they just getting in your way.

First thing,  you have to know your instrument.  Your physical instrument.  Where are the damn parts?  What do they actually do?  How are interconnected?  How athletic do you have to be to access what you need?

Second thing,  you have to figure out how to translate what you are being told.  Many of the words we use, or the words we hear,  are not literal,  but as singers, many of us translate literally.  At least I am guilty of that.  It got me into lots of trouble.

Then I studied anatomy and acoustics and said "DUH".

I am not saying you have to do that - but I am saying that if you say you are a singer, you better know some stuff,  not just toss around the words.

So many of the terms we use as ass-backwards anyway.  Just like stage direction.  Until you really understood "down stage right"  you went the wrong way and had to think about it!

The "terms" are thrown around by singers, teachers, coaches, casting directors, directors - everybody in the industry.  You are not going to tell me that they all have the same definitions.  They don't.  After 30 years in this business, THEY DO NOT.

So,  what's a singer to do?

You MUST find the reality of your instrument.  What happens physically?  How do I translate that?  How do I access that?

You ask questions:  of your teacher  (you DO have a voice teacher, yes?),  and then translate with your coaches and then further translate when you are in the audition room and a casting director, or music director, or director asks for something and you have to be present enough to figure out what they are asking and then what they are REALLY asking.

You have a set of vocal cords.  One larynx.  Resonators that are shaped by YOUR body structure and soft tissue.  Breath.  Physicality.

You don't have a bunch of "different" voices to "put it into".  YOU HAVE ONE VOICE.  You have numerous registers,  but ONE VOICE.  Until you fully discover how to access this,  you can be frustrated when you are asked to sing in different styles.

Style informs tone.  Your voice FIRST.  Wrap the style around that.  Don't think you have to change your voice to access a style!

Learning to find this authenticity gives you authority in your audition and in your performance.

So,  I dare you to toss out terminology that is getting in your way;  embrace terminology that allows you to access YOU fully and consistently;  Develop the physical awareness of HOW you sing;  Explore what defines a style as opposed to "putting it into an xyz voice" to sing a style.  The stylistic definition will then give you permission to still sound like YOU!

When you are given an adjustment or asked for something in the room,  be present enough to figure out what you are REALLY being asked to do.

Industry/Casting are not pedagogues.  We cannot expect them to have the detailed knowledge of how a voice functions or how it develops or how it works.  So guess what?  YOU have to have it.  You have to know how to translate casting language,  which often uses the same words pedagogy does,  into the language YOU understand to access the end result they are looking for.

An ongoing issue is being asked  "can you belt that?"

What do they really mean?  Really belt?

Not necessarily.  If you try to do what they SAID,  you will often be met with "no, that's not what I wanted."

So, guess what? YOU have to figure out how to translate what is being asked.

Often times,  "belt" is associated with a vocal INTENSITY.  If the voice is lacking energy/intensity/vibrancy,  casting or a coach will say "you gotta belt that more".  They don't know what they are asking, but they know it if they hear it.

YOU have to translate that,  figure out how to discover that intensity and vibrancy,  and adjust to show them you can translate it.

And on and on it goes...

Make a list of those "terms" or those "adjustments" you are told or being asked for;  then see if you can explain them out loud or in writing for yourself.  If you can't, take them to your teacher and riddle it out together.

You aren't in this alone!  We all want you to succeed!  Casting wants YOU to be the person they can hire - they really do.

If you aren't prepared,  if you can't translate,  if you haven't found your authenticity yet,  you need to keep discovering that.  You must learn to KNOW YOU; to DO YOU;  to BE YOU in the audition room and in the coaching studio and in the voice studio.

Learn to listen;  learn to translate;  learn to stay present;  learn to see exactly where you are, and
what you need to do in access everything you are growing into.

Your voice and where it resides is all about YOU.  It's not about mimicking a voice;  it's not about putting it into a voice;  It's about finding YOUR voice and how your voice can begin to inhabit the styles you wish to sing in.

Do you and keep committing to that while you study and discover,  while you audition and discover,  while you perform and discover.  Don't dial it in - stay present and engaged!

Putting yourself in the best light!

It's nearing the end of summer...shhhhh....

Many are in denial but there is an excitement that the fall season brings.  I won't lie:  fall is my favorite season.


So enjoy these last few days before the schedule shifts, and the evenings hopefully get a little cooler, and you have time to re-assess how you want to be seen!

How do you put yourself in the best light?

I was asked by Classical Singer Magazine to adjudicate some of the singers who applied to participate in their first Online Voice Competition.

Obviously,  the competition is working out its kinks as to how to make this idea work effectively, but for a first time, it was very successful.

However,  what was disappointing as an adjudicator is how many singers simply didn't put themselves in the best light in their recording process.

My colleague, Claudia Friedlander, graciously sent me the Carnegie Hall Musical Exchange guidelines for Joyce DiDonato's masterclass series.  You can peruse it here.

For an online competition,  however,  may I suggest some things for you to consider to put yourself in the best light to be seen and heard?  These are observations,  and in our new digital age,  we are constantly learning together!

First, you do not need fancy equipment to record with.  You just need your smartphone.   Look to see what the requirements are - some competitions do not want additional microphone attachments.  Follow the guidelines.

If there is an option between a video and an audio - ALWAYS choose video.  Why?  We want to SEE you.  You are a singing actor - the story telling, the technical behavior resides in your body.  As an adjudicator,  I want to see you!

Do NOT send in a clip of a live performance.  Make this specific for the competition you are submitting for.  We don't want to see an audience member filming you between people's heads where you are not front and center in the frame!  There should be NO distractions.

Please use live piano.  This should be a LIVE recording.  Pre-recorded tracks do you NO favors.

Learn how, or get someone to edit the recording for you.  You don't want to walk in and out of the frame and send that in.  When the video opens, it should be YOU in the frame prepared to slate your name and what you are singing,  or giving yourself those few seconds to let your name/selection come up on the screen if you are really fancy and can add that feature to your finished product.

Where should you record?  Somewhere with a piano that isn't cluttered.  Again, too much distraction doesn't let us stay focused on YOU.  The piano/pianist does not need to be in the frame.  This is about YOU delivering the performance.  You don't want the focus to be so tight that all we see if your head - we want to see how you gesture and use your body.  Full body,  or 3/4 length is fine.

Make sure you don't cut off the top of your head in the frame.  Seriously.

Try to use a neutral wall/space behind you if possible.  Stand away from it - not against it.

Wear clothes and colors that enhance you!  Dress as you would for an audition:  no props, no costumes.

Get your hair off your face so we can SEE you!

Make sure the literal lighting doesn't create shadows on your face.

Give yourself a 5 second count before you start and after you finish so the recording isn't cramped or clipped.

Don't get someone to record by holding your device - even the most steady hand can get a little wobbly!  Create a flat surface that captures you comfortably.

Don't start walking around.  You aren't blocking,  you are presenting an audition-like video.  If you are moving in and out of the video frame,  this doesn't work.  If someone is working your camera for you, (as in, pressing "record" and "stop"),  they shouldn't be shifting it around to find you.  STAY PUT and know the perimeters of space you are working in so you don't wander out of the frame.

If you aren't used to doing this - practice!  Just start recording yourself regularly - so you get to know what your camera does,  what height you want your recording device to be at,  how far away/close up can it be so it captures as much of you as necessary,  what colors look good on camera,  what your "ticks" are - over-gesturing, shifting your weight,  looking down, looking up - so you can learn HOW to be in the frame and in your best light!

As an adjudicator,  I want to see and hear the best YOU - and not see possible potential that just wasn't captured due to a poor recording,  or not knowing what is expected in a general audition/competition.

Reveal yourself in the most professional way you can. We are all in your corner, but we can't do it for you.

Start researching,  start watching,  just start experimenting to see what you can do.

I am a techno-idiot, so if I can do it well,  so can you!

Put yourself in the best light you can!

NO EXCUSES!

happy snow day on the east coast of the US!

Self-sabotage:  Such a loaded phrase, isn't it?

We all do it, or have done it,  or fall into it.  None of us are immune to this at some point or other.

So,  when are YOU going to release it and follow through?

How does it start?

A simple insecurity can trigger it.

A simple "yeah, but..." can paralyze you.

It's a reaction to something much, much deeper. 

I see self-sabotage regularly in the studio.  It's one of those things that is often more obvious to someone outside of it - especially if that someone has dealt with it personally as well (!!).  Takes one to know one.

I do not chastise you for the self-sabotage.  Sometimes it's simply a form of self-preservation,  or control, or something. 

However, I will challenge you about it.  Why?  Because if you say one thing and then go against that, why shouldn't I say something?

Many of us who work with singers and actors regularly are always amazed at the ability to self-sabotage on epic levels.  It can happen so easily,  and so gradually,  sometimes I don't even think you realize you've done it for yourself.

How do we challenge ourselves to not fall down this particular rabbit hole?

Here are some ideas:

Who holds you accountable?

Do you have that person in your world who will call you on your shit?  I mean, REALLY call you, not enable you?

We do not need people who tell us what we want to here:  we need those people who will tell us what we NEED to hear.  Find that person.  Demand the truth from them.  Prepare for it.

Are you willing to look at your language?

What you say in public,  what you say in a voice session,  what you complain about online, all reveals something about you and where you are and what you want, what you have and what are fearful of.

Check that language.  What are you hiding from?

Are you excuse ridden?  Are you deflecting?  Are you "fabulous" all the time?  Is everything "great"?

Any extreme reveals some sort of sabotage.  Check it.

Is there drama?

Is there "Kaflamma"?

This generally means distraction.  With distraction comes excuses.  With excuses comes sabotage.

Why are you doing something?

What AREN'T you doing something?

What's your first answer to these questions?  Now, sit and breathe, and REALLY answer it.

What protects you by using sabotage?

What does it actually protect you from?

Is it working?

But, Susan, you might be saying,  it's just HARD.  I am NOT sabotaging.  It's just HARD.

Okay...

What's hard exactly?

Are you in the same place as last year?  Why or why not?

What can YOU change to begin to move forward?  What have you NOT changed in order to stay EXACTLY IN THE SAME PLACE.

The great things about choices:  you can always TRY something,  and if it's not working, you can MAKE ANOTHER CHOICE.  That's action-oriented.

Self-sabotage makes no choice but to stay stuck.

You have choice.  No, you REALLY do!

Make a choice,  make a NEW choice,  find a new class, a different teacher or even a consultation to get a different perspective!  We can learn from EVERY situation.  If we start a possibility with "yeah but..." we lose the possibility before we even acknowledge.

Every possibility has a "maybe".  Don't shut it down before you start!

So, on a day that has made you stop - a day full of storm and snow - give yourself permission to say "I WANT TO...."

Dream a little...

What do you want to achieve?  What could you change or suggest or explore to perhaps explore a slightly different perspective in order to keep pursuing that achievement?

Say you are a scared.  That's the first step of releasing the self-sabotage.

Say you aren't sure.

Say you don't know.

Say you have no idea.


All these things are not failures, or flaws.  These things open the possibilities.

Possibilities are scary as hell.  Possibilities make you breathe differently.  Possibilities allow you to dream again.

So are you going to feel dragged down by PFO letters,  no audition or no call back,  or are you going to say, "NO".

Are you going to surrender to the self-sabotage?

Are you going to pretend?

Are you going to create another reality that only YOU live?

That takes a great deal of energy - more than you really can deal with.  Sadly the self-sabotage and delusion is yours, and yours alone. 

Or, are you going to say, "NO WAY."

Are you going to relinquish the chip on your shoulder,  the excuses, the jazz hands and pretend?  All coping mechanisms,  and needed in moments but not something you can rely on in the long run.

Are you going to build on that shallowness,  or get your hands dirty and dig into it all and say NO MORE SABOTAGE!

Decide to seek truth.

Decide to seek change.

Decide to claim what you have.

Decide to claim and develop what you do not yet own.

Be still,  feel it all,  mourn it,  and release it. 

The people that see you clearly,  will rejoice with you,  not blame you!

Dare to discover YOU and what YOU need.  You find that when it's time to find it.

However, it's you and ONLY you,  and nobody can claim it but you.  You have nobody to blame if you don't.  You have nobody to answer to, if you DO!

Releasing self-sabotage allows us a new day,  a clean slate,  and an opportunity to pursue and develop and claim ALL of what we are meant to do and be.

Take the time it takes to find it all,  release it all,  develop it all - and make excuses for NOTHING.

HAPPY "YOU"  YEAR!

I dare you...

Upcoming WEBINAR with Backstage University!

Want to join us?

I will be giving a WEBINAR through Backstage University:

TUESDAY OCTOBER 20th at 4 p.m. EST

You can sign up to join us online LIVE or sign up to get a recorded copy of it, if you aren't available to join us live.

We will be discussing "Finding Your Authentic Voice" - and all that might mean as you discover YOU in the audition room!

Check out the link and details HERE!

Hope to see you SOON!


Best,
Susan

I Know...But...

Sunday musings...

How badly do you want to be an artist pursuing a career?

How hungry are you?

Do you know what you need to do, and how to do it, how to find it, how to evoke it, how to develop it, how to challenge it,  how to see it,  how to discover it,  how to claim it?

If you don't,  are you willing, able and ready to find out and actually DO it?

I see, too often, people who say they want a career, yet even when given the information, don't actually do anything with it, and then will say how frustrated they are.

As I get older, my shorthand gets shorter.   When I see that,  hear that,  my response is:  figure it out or do something else. 

And let me tell you a little secret:  it's okay to do something else.  Everybody isn't going to have a career.  How talented you are isn't really the issue.  Some people just cannot, will not, don't know how even if it is explained to them,  DO what I just asked above.  Period.

Not having a career doesn't mean you don't have artistic value, can't perform,  can't be involved in theatre or singing, or something creative.  It just means you don't make your money doing it.

That's okay.  Why pretend?  What's in the way?

As I have said many many times, delusion is a great protector against stress.  At some point, however, that protection is going to snap, and then what?

YOU are your product.   If you aren't honest about how you are seen,  what is seen,  what you have TO be seen, then how do you know how to sell it?

Your product needs to be known.  Honestly.  You need to be using the tools of the business in a way that gives you VISIBILITY.   Are you doing that?  Do you know how to evoke your type/your person/your product through your head shot?  Through your website?  Through your video and audio clips?

And as I ask this,  I hear:  "I know...but..."

Well,  my dear snowflakes, if you KNOW, then why aren't you DOING IT?

Procrastination,  excuses,  all the "buts",  are your way of stress management,  and preventing you for doing anything and coming to the honest truth of what you really want and why you want it.

I heard someone say last week "in the last 15 years of my career".   The absurdity of that comment as part of this person's narrative was astounding,  as there has been no career.  Pursuing a career?  Maybe, but very loosely as nothing has happened;  Actual career?  No.  That would assume making a living at it,  really knowing what you have to offer the business, and how to do it.

We all,  at different times, due to our capacity for self doubt,  make statements that aren't quite right.  It is a coping mechanism.  I get that, trust me.

HOWEVER...

Now it is time to shit, or get off the pot.

If you KNOW,  then do it.

If you KNOW,  then why aren't you doing it?

If you KNOW, then why don't you know?

If you DON'T know, then ask.

If you ASK,  expect some answers, or expect more questions that YOU and only you have to figure out.

If you ASK,  prepare to hear the truth, not what you want to hear.

If you WANT it,  you have to work for it.  Nothing is handed to you on a platter. 

If you WANT it,  how hungry are you?  What are you willing to do?  REALLY??

Where are you in the development of your craft?  How do you know?

What do you want to do with that?  Why?

Says who?

What are you passionate about?

Just because you did a BFA or a theatre degree or a BMus, or something in the arts, doesn't guarantee nor preclude you are having a career in that focus.

If you say you want a career,  why? 

Have you figured out what you NEED to begin that journey or restart that journey or get you onto the right path of that journey?

Have you started to pursue those necessary steps?

Or are you procrastinating?

Why?

Have the excuses started already?

I know...but...

But what?

YOU are the business.  If you want to be in the business,  your product has to be purchase-ready. 

You have to hone that product to make it purchase-ready.

The business of you doesn't have anything to do with the artistic you. 

This is business. 

There is an enormous difference. 

If you don't figure that out,  should you really want to pursue a career,  then the business will make a decision for you,  and will simply call   "NEXT!"

YOU have to know.  YOU have to hone.  YOU have to present it to them or you leave them making their own decisions or dismissing you.  That's up to YOU.

This means getting to work.  This means getting to nitty gritty of how you are seen;  what your energy reveals in a room;  what your voice does;  what characters you will be seen for and why;

Remember, there is ALWAYS a why.  Sometimes we have the power to change HOW,  when we learn the WHY.  However, you are never going to know the how or the why if you don't start asking questions instead of answering "I know..but..."

An excuse never got anybody anything,  except a chance to create more delusion and not move.

Free yourself to do your work - whatever that is - by dropping the excuses. 

Do the work,  or don't.  Claim it.  If you decide, you don't want to be bothered with all of this to find a career path in the business,  then find whatever you are passionate and DO THAT!!!!

Doing what you are passionate about is NEVER failure. Doing something because you think you have to prove it to someone,  or because you went to school for it you have to try,  is just going to drain you and cause you to put up more walls.  You will be miserable,  and chances are you will miss something you might really love doing.

If you have an answer for everything I have said,  as in,  an excuse of why you HAVEN'T done it,  then I would really truly consider what you are doing.  Life is short,  and you don't want to let it pass you by with excuses and "I know, buts".

If you feel motivated again;  if you KNOW where your passion lies;  if you are getting HUNGRY for that career;  if you can not only claim your fears or self-doubts, but realize what you need to do, and are willing to get on that path to do it,  then DO IT!

Start it.  One step at a time.  Create your business.  Develop goals.  Make a business plan. 

Nobody does it but you.  However, utilize the assets around you to help enhance that plan so you can hone it as expertly as you would hone your craft and artistic temperament. 

What is holding you back?

YOU.

Shhhhh.

 The answer is NOT "I know...but."


The answer is a nod, a quiet acknowledgement.  Now GET TO WORK ON YOU!

What do you need to know?

Every aspect of the business - from opera to music theatre to straight theatre to film & TV - has its own land mines, its own process, its own game.

It's up to you, should you find yourself in one or more of those games, to figure it out.

However, ultimately, what do you need to know?

It all comes back to YOU.

Or what a dear friend and famous choreographer has been known to say,  "What are you doing?!"

Yes, you have to figure out the game,  learn the rules, learn how to bend those rules, learn how to navigate the landscape but more importantly,  you have to learn about YOU.

There is you the artist and the discovery.

There is you the craftsman and the development of said craft.

There is you the business person and the marketing of said business.

SO, here are the 2 questions for you:

1.  What do you need to know?
2.  What are you doing with that knowledge?

Do you know what you are working with as far as ability, craft, practical application is concerned?

Does your study and your athletic development allow you access PAST the 16 bar cut?  Could you actually do that role 8 shows a week?  Could you actually sustain that role on an operatic stage with a full orchestra?

Are you training vocally, musically, dramatically to access that possibility?  Do you really understand what that takes on all levels?

What about the business aspect of you?  Do you know what you are selling?  Do you really see what you have to offer and can you reveal that fully in a head shot?  In a video clip?  In a slate?

Do you have a really clear sense of what you want to reveal, and is that honest and true or is it just what you are wishing for?

These are hard.  For all of us.  A reality check is necessary on a regular basis.  It's not always easy or comfortable,  but real growth isn't;  thus growing "pains". 

We don't always want to hear what we absolutely HAVE TO HEAR.

This is why the team of professionals around you is so crucial.  You need to have people who will be honest,  challenge,  question,  and give you reasons to find the next.  You do not need people around you who just tell you what you want to hear.  That doesn't encourage growth, originality, reality or passion for the next step.

So, what do you need to know?

The truth.

About what you reveal;
Where you are;
What you want;
What is realistic;
What is wishful thinking:
What is downright wrong;
What is downright delusional;
What is absolutely worth exploring;
What is absolutely worth taking a risk for;
What is coming across;
What is not being claimed;
What is ready;
What is not;


The more you know,  the more you need to know!  The more you know, the more simplistic things can become, because the clutter around you can be cleared, and the reality of what you have, what you are claiming, what you are honing, what you are developing starts to emerge with force and reason.

And the most important thing:  it's up to you.  It demands you.  It holds you accountable.

It's not the pianist's fault if you sing out of tune or come in at the wrong time;
It's not the photographer's fault that your head shot isn't working;
It's not the voice teacher's fault that you aren't booking;
It's not the gym's fault you aren't losing weight;
It's not the coach's fault you didn't figure out how to sing that cut or that aria in the right style;

YOU have to find what YOU need.  YOU need to figure out what you are, what you have in order to figure out how to develop it, and what you need to know to develop it further.

You need to know what is going to make you noticed: for the right reasons.

It's all up to you baby.  ALL of it is up to you.

MT Singers: What's in your book?

What's in your audition book?

What's supposed to be in your audition book?

What are you doing????


Well, if you book weighs about 7,000 pounds, you are probably a MT student freshly graduated from a program.  A dead giveaway.

I am going to let you in on a little secret:

In the real world,  you do not have to micro-manage your audition repertoire.  You learn how to do that in school in order for you to LEARN what is being written,  who is writing, who wrote, what they did, why they did and actually have some knowledge of what the overview of music theatre is;  but in the real world?  For your audition book?

NO WAY.

First, and foremost,  how are you singing?  Where is your technical development at?

You can't sing something that doesn't fit.  Period.  You may LIKE to sing it, but if it doesn't fit, and doesn't reveal YOU in a positive and intriguing way, or allow you to tell a story without us seeing flaws and misunderstandings in technique both physical and stylistic,  then do not sing it.  DO NOT SING IT.

Another little secret: in the real world, you don't go to EVERY audition.  Just to be seen.  You only go to the auditions that you are right for. 

If you know the shows and kinds of shows you are right for, then you know what you need to look for within the massive repertoire of music theatre and other genres that reveal YOU and YOUR STRENGTHS.

You can have binders and binders of music at home on a shelf that you are perusing, that you love to sing,  that no longer fits, that may someday fit,  that you want to try.

Then you have your audition book.  Everything in that book should be ready to sing, if asked for.  EVERYTHING. 

Uptempos, ballads,  different genres, different eras, but everything that's in there you have to sing.

If you think you can sing all genres - give your head a shake.  

You need to figure out what you do WELL.  What your voice is doing NOW.  What you could be seen doing realistically.

Then figure out what repertoire reveals that fully without question.  Don't make them try to figure it out.  SHOW THEM what you DO.

If you aren't clear, they aren't clear.  If they aren't clear, you don't get a callback, or consideration, or a second thought.

Know what you do.  Figure out what you CAN do.  Do it.

You shouldn't need a forklift for that audition binder.  It should be light and easy to access. 

When you sing what reveals you and those at the table say "thanks, what else do you have?"  you should be able to easily reveal another aspect of you immediately.

If you can't, you aren't ready yet.

Get ready.  Make it your mission to discover what your voice does,  how to make it more accessible, and how you can reveal your strengths in the room IMMEDIATELY.

YOU.  YOUR book.  Make it personal,  and make it accessible.  Make it comfortable.  Make it real.

Me? Getting in my own way?

Happy Daylight Savings Time to those of us who lost an hour over night.  

There are no coffee rules today.  Who am I kidding?! There are no coffee rules any day.  Drink it til you can move things with your mind!

I am giddy because maybe, just maybe this horrible winter is over.  Although as I type, I am seeing white crap falling from the sky and 30 minutes ago it was brilliantly sunny. 

I do know it's warmer, because my weather app says so.  Let's hope that is true and spring is truly teasing us into something better.

So what about you?  How's the audition season?  How was the audition season?

Where are you at in your process?

How many times have you heard over the years: "Stop getting in your own way!"

What the hell does that mean?!?!?!

Well, in all honesty I do not know.  I cannot know since I am not you.  These things are personal, journey-driven,  craft-driven,  self-esteem driven. 

So, what I can share with you are ideas that may help you find out how to get to that elusive and universal question for yourself, in order to find the answers.

When we want something so much,  the idea of being still seems counter productive.  Yet, wanting can lead to drive, can lead to over-zealous, can lead to single-mindedness, can lead to craving, can lead to trying to do too much, can lead to frustration, can lead to desperation, can lead to anxiousness, can lead to confusion, can lead to wanting it harder, can lead to panic, can lead to...

Get the idea?  Are you breathing?

Stillness doesn't mean you aren't DOING something.  Stillness simply gives you permission to be you in the moment.  Not to say "yeah, but I have to..."  We all have to.  Wait a second.  Take a breath.  Let it out.  Take another one.

"But I have to show them I can sing, I can act, I can be what they want!"

How do you know that's what they want? 

Take a breath.  Be still.

Trying too hard often can be translated into trying to do too much at one time;  trying to reveal more than you have to;  trying, trying, trying.

So break it down:  What are you DOING to develop the TOTALITY of your craft?  Layer by layer. 

Do you study voice?  Regularly?  Do you understand your physicality?  Do you know where you are in that process?  Do you really understand how your physicality uniquely influences what your voice is as an athletic presence of sound? 

Do you study performance?  Do you study acting?  Do you know how and why and where the physicality embodies the characterization of breath, of intention, of thought, of action?  Do you find that in the lyrics of a song or aria?  Do you find that character in the phrase a composer has taken the time to craft for you to lift off a page?

Do you explore your physical athleticism outside your craft?  Do you know where you hold your tension?  Do you know your vulnerable spots? 

Do you find your trouble spots when you are completely safe? 

Do you allow yourself to find out what happens when you don't feel like you are in your element?

What changes?  Why?

How do you compensate?  Do you allow, do you try harder, do you become still,  do you just get in the way and spiral out of control?

Are you in your body during your study? During a class?  During your practice?  Are you present in your mind and spirit or are you going through the motions?  Do you mimic? Do you hide? Do you truly explore the messy, the raw and the undeveloped potential and let it be where it is or do you gloss over it hoping nobody saw, including you?

We aren't always ready to see.  We aren't always ready to acknowledge.  We aren't always ready to claim.   It's okay.  But not being ready creates panic in a pressure situation and then - we get in our own way.

If you want it badly enough,  you have to realize,  recognize and do the work to create the stillness to access it.  Period.

There isn't a formulaic plan for that, sorry.  Each of us, with guidance from someone or several someones outside ourselves,  have to find that for ourselves.

We need to know in order to see the truth.  Once we see those truths, then we don't make excuses for them:  they simply are.  There is no value judgement.  We now can pick up those truths and develop them, hone them, sculpt them to create a larger reality that we can be still in;  live in;  claim fully.

You can't get in your own way if you are living in your craft and your body and spirit in an authentic way.  You cannot get in your own way if you let go of excuses.  You cannot be intimidated if you find the desire to simply learn about YOU and what the development of your craft reveals ABOUT you.

This should allow excitement to bubble.  This should lead to possibilities.  This should lead to desire and not panic.  Possibilities lead to timelessness,  not running out of time.

Those voices that tell you "if you don't figure it out now it's over"  - need to be kicked to the curb. 

YOU have never been here before.  All of our possibilities are new.  It's not over because it hasn't been before. 

How do you get out of your own way?

Get ON your way.  Claim the journey,  warts and all.  Make no excuses.  Find everything you need to fulfill your possibility.  Make no excuses.  Make choices.  Be BOLD.  Be real.  Be still.

AUTHENTIC VOICE WORKSHOP ***MUSIC THEATRE Edition***

COMING THIS FALL TO NYC!

Here's the info!


I am thrilled to announce that I am developing a voice workshop/master class called "AUTHENTIC VOICE: MUSIC THEATRE EDITION"

This master class will work with singers who are wanting more AUTHENTICITY in the audition room!

I draw on my unique background of theatre and voice to develop an opportunity to really work with the singer's unique gifts and how to access them easily.


What we DO:

Discover what makes the singer UNIQUE and why
Discover what the singer brings into the room - consciously and unconsciously
Discover what the singer can choose to reveal and how
Discover how the singer can authentically create an audition that makes "them" pay attention and want more!
Discover the difference between what you have to reveal and what you think they want to see!
Discover the physical behavior of the actor in the singing voice and the singing psyche!


Interested?  Know someone who might be?

Please send along the information.

The class will remain small to ensure participation and time with everyone!

AUTHENTIC VOICE MUSIC THEATRE EDITION MASTER CLASS

WHEN: TUESDAY OCTOBER 14
TIME: 6 p.m. - 9 p.m.
WHERE: SUSAN EICHHORN VOICE STUDIO
               300 W 43rd St #608-2  (43rd & 8th - Times Square Arts Center)
                New York New York

ONE TIME FEE:  $75.00 

Pianist will be provided.  Each singer will prepare 2 16/32 bar cuts they currently are using, or going to be using in auditions.

To register: email me at susaneichhornstudio@gmail.com
Subject Line:  Authentic Voice Music Theatre Edition - REGISTER
please attach your resume and head shot with your registration email.

If you would like further information,  do not hesitate to email me!

Happy Fall Season!
best,
Susan

Frustration, Rejection, Re-direction

Sunday musings...

Look at this:

Yes that's a rejection letter.  Yes, it's Bono.

Yes it's audition season.
Yes there are more people auditioning than there are roles.
Yes, you are going to get frustrated.
Yes, you will be "rejected".

What do you do with that?  Is it really rejection?

I prefer to consider it another way.  It's not that you aren't good enough,  it's that you are needing to re-direct and find out where you will be seen.

"I must be doing something wrong."

I hear that a lot.  A LOT.   Perhaps you are not.  Perhaps you are just not in the right place.  Or not revealing what IS right about you.  Perhaps your desperation is showing,  and not your openness and freedom to take on the job you want.

Or, perhaps the person behind the table can't hear/see/respond.

Or, perhaps there are just so many to choose from and you just were not chosen.

Does it suck? Sure.  But YOU chose to be there.  No one is holding a gun to your head.

So if this is YOUR choice,  then  you must claim it fully:  the good, the bad AND the ugly.

You have chosen a profession where only 5% of us are working regularly at any given time.  It has the highest unemployment rate of any profession.

It is subjective.

So,  when you aren't getting work,  or feeling frustrated, or any of the other negatives,  what do you DO?

Sit down.  Take a breath.  Be still.  Have a good cry.

And RE-DIRECT yourself.

What do you want?

Why?

What are you doing regularly to achieve it?

What are you ignoring?

Perhaps,  that which you are seeing in your peripheral vision and ignoring is really what you need to consider,  and face it, head on.

Is something nagging you?

Is something re-appearing in theme or in conversation?

Perhaps,  that is what you need to face head on,  instead of feeling the glass is half empty.

Just because one person, or one season says "no",  doesn't mean you stop trying.  It might mean you are trying in ways you need to re-evaluate.

Frustration & rejection does not have to equal failure.

That is a choice.

Frustration & rejection should lead to focus and re-direction to discover your truth and where you SHOULD be,  not where you think you want to be.  It does not mean giving up.  It does mean walking away.  It means another possibility,  a different perspective,  a walking toward something.

Yes, there are too many people auditioning.
Yes,  you will submit for many projects and never get an audition.
Yes, you will get typed out.

Yes, you will get frustrated.

Yes, your responsibility is to find out the direction you need to face,  and start walking,  and gathering momentum,  and discovering what you need to DO in order to be where you will BE.

Saying you know and DOING what you know are not the same.

Talent.
Training.
Tenacity.

And an ongoing re-direction until you figure out where you are.

Rejection does not define you,  unless you allow it to.

Re-direction allows you to re-define yourself.

Choose well.

Reading, Comprehension & Smart Questions

The musings continue...

My friend and colleague Cindy Sadler were discussing these things throughout the week.

Cindy is a brilliant artist,  who writes a great blog you need to add to your list HERE.

She also runs a marvelous opera summer program in Austin Texas called Spotlight on Opera.


As she receives applications in the hundreds,  as I receive emails and requests to study and consult,  as we comment on message boards for singers,  we have seen a trend that is pervasive in the business - be it in opera, theatre, film or TV.

There is a distinct divide between those who actually READ and COMPREHEND what they are reading before asking questions,  and those who simply are not doing this basic skill.  There is a huge difference between asking an informed question and asking a stupid question.
 

I know in my studio,  I tell my singers, when the door is closed, there is no stupid question.  What does that mean?  It means you are in a safe space to query about things that you might not ask anywhere else, so you have the answers you need to navigate the chaos we call the business of show (and the artistic pursuit of your craft!)

HOWEVER...

I am not sure how reading/comprehension has been lost.  It isn't all of you.  Trust me,  some of you are detail-oriented and are focused and clear.  We love hearing from you!

But, there are enough of you who do not read, comprehend nor follow directions well,  that it is putting you in jeopardy when you apply for programs,  scholarships,  submit for auditions,  etc etc.

Perhaps it is the era of "instant" that is the issue, but it does not give you a free pass.  If you want to be in ANY business you gotta read and COMPREHEND what you are reading so you are responding appropriately.

Read the application.  Thoroughly.  Make a check list if you have to, in order that you have all that is required.

Read the website.  Make sure you UNDERSTAND what is being asked of you.

You have SPELL CHECK.  USE IT.  There is absolutely NO EXCUSE for typos in this day and age.

If you have questions,  make a list and then double check for answers in the application and on the website.  Do not just start emailing questions that can be clearly answered by simply READING AND COMPREHENDING what is already there!

This does not hold you in high esteem.  Asking questions that are easily answered by reading what is there says 1. You are lazy  2.  You are not reading  3.  You are not comprehending what you read  4.  You don't want to do the basic work  5.  You want to be spoon fed  6.  You aren't ready for this application or this business.

Result: you are not taken seriously. AT ALL.  You are dismissed.

Is it in your control?  You bet it is!  If you want to be taken seriously,  earn it.  Just do the work.

The same goes for asking questions.  Ask SMART questions.  Looking "dumb"  does not make you more endearing.  It makes you look like you are not ready!  Time is valuable,  and questions that are asked inappropriately simply will be dismissed.

You either enhance or diminish your reputation with your questions.   What do you prefer?

I believe everything - including question asking - is often done so off-the-cuff,  that the person asking hasn't taken the time to see if the answer is right before him/her.  Not cool.  You MUST comprehend.

Even if the answer is NOT right in front of you - framing that question in a way that will get a proper response is crucial.

Example:

Asking a broad question like "How do I get a Broadway show?"  is going to be dismissed out of hand.  Too broad,  too general,  too green.  It reveals that you haven't done ANY research,  and wouldn't be ready for an answer.

 "Do cruise ships pay?"

  What does that reveal?  On the surface, someone who is truly clueless,  and simply hasn't done ANY research and certainly is not ready to even CONSIDER auditioning for anything in the professional world.

How could that question be re-worded?  It depends what the person answering the question is ready to READ AND COMPREHEND.

You have Google at your fingertips.  Do you homework.  Once you have done some preliminary research you might want to formulate the question as "I am looking into cruise line work and would love to know from any of you who have done it what I could expect in salary with little to no experience, should I get an audition."

That would show you have looking into the basics!  This would indicate you are respecting the time of those you are asking.  Anything less is beyond amateur,  beyond irritating, beyond...

You get the point.  I hope.

When you are applying for a program and your application is incomplete,  there is no excuse for that.  You did not read and comprehend.  If the application requires an mp3 of your work under 5 minutes, attached to the application, don't email the company and ask if you can send a YouTube clip link.

If you need THREE letters of recommendation, don't send TWO and wonder why you don't get in.  

You get the idea?

Just follow the bouncing ball.  It's not rocket science.

Read thoroughly.  Comprehend what you are reading.  Follow the instructions. 

As you are comprehending what you are reading,  make notes with any follow up questions.  As you keep reading, perhaps those follow up questions will be answered.

In this day of technology,  there is absolutely NO EXCUSE to not have basic information in hand before ANY question is asked.

This is YOUR decision and YOUR responsibility.  Do not get your back up if you are ignored for asking a question that is easily answered if you just READ and COMPREHEND, or answered curtly and told to do your research first.  That's on YOU.  Take responsibility for YOUR career development.

Being green is no excuse for being lazy.  No one is going to spoon feed you in this business.

Your reputation depends on your ability to BE smart and ACT smart.  The simple task of reading, comprehending, and putting that into action to then facilitate smart questions is the beginning of discovering where you can be!  If this simple task is not taken seriously,  you don't have a chance.

Where do you start?

READ.

COMPREHEND.

FOLLOW DIRECTIONS.

RESEARCH.

ASK QUESTIONS OUT OF YOUR RESEARCH,  NOT OUT OF  IGNORANCE.

THINK.

BE PRESENT.

PAY ATTENTION.

(did you read and comprehend all of these???? GOOD!)

If you want a career,  it's up to you,  not up to someone else.

There are people out there who are just as talented,  who will do the work.  It's a simple CHOICE. 

What is it about YOU?

Sunday musings...

Forget about trying to be all things, do all things,  what the business "wants" - for just a minute, k?

What is it about YOU that is memorable?

What do you DO?

What makes you UNIQUE?

How can you possibly find versatility if you don't know what you have first?

Tis the crazy-ness of music theatre audition season again.  The frantic nature of trying to get the book together,  deciding on what auditions to show up for and hope to get seen at,  the hundreds at calls,  the sitting all day and not getting seen...

It's exhausting.  You are exhausted.  With exhaustion comes panic,  and we try to do too much,  try to assume too much,  try to become too much.

STOP.

Breathe.

Sit down.

Breathe again.

What is it about YOU that will make that other side of the table look up and take notice?

Don't give me an answer you think I want to hear - because you don't know what I am thinking.  Therefore, you don't know what THEY are thinking.  You don't know what they are looking for.  Guessing, second-guessing,  wondering,  worried,  does NOTHING for you.  In fact, if goes against you,  because now you aren't even thinking about what YOU do.

So,  I ask again,  what is it about you that is unique?  that is genuine?  that is real?

What can you show in that room that you CHOOSE to,  and want to reveal?

And,  then,  once you decide on that,  why do you choose to reveal that?

Time to get real.  Time to get personal with yourself.

You cannot reveal what you wish you had,  or wish you could do,  or want to be able to be.  You can only reveal what is there;  otherwise,  you stand there like the emperor with no clothes on.  We all see what you simply are not. 

"I really want them to see I want the job".  What does that reveal?   Isn't everybody that is auditioning there to try to get a job?  Revealing your desperation isn't a positive thing. 

"I really want them to see I want to be a belter."  Are you a belter?  If you aren't - then revealing you want to be,  shows them you aren't. 

This is deflection.  This is hiding.  This will not read as authentic,  and just won't make them look up,  get still,  stop typing or put their pen down,  let alone get you a callback.  Even if you aren't "right" for a show or a season or a project,   wouldn't it be better going in with that authenticity of what you choose to show about you so they remember you,  than going in trying to be something you are not?

Fake it til you make it?

I don't think so.

How about choose to reveal what it is about YOU that is real and intriguing and true?  Why fake it when you can actually DO something?

What is it about YOU that makes you memorable? 

Start making a list.  Start taking those thoughts in with you as you work on your craft,  discover new music,  new monologues,  new roles;  as you choose how to dress for an audition;  as you choose how to walk into that room,  head held high,  purpose of being first and foremost in your mind.

What is it about YOU?  There is a great deal.  We just want to see it because you have claimed it,  and have chosen to reveal it to us.

What do I DO? What do I NOT do?

Sunday musings...

After many years doing auditions in multiple genres,  speaking to many casting directors,  directors, producers,  working with singers/actors to prepare for auditions,  I feel I can address these questions.

We would hope so much of this is common sense, however, since the dawn of the American Idol mentality,  people show up at auditions who truly aren't prepared,  and frankly, have no business at the audition.  Period.  Yes, I said it.

What do you DO in the room?

Are you studying your craft?

Do you have an audition book that is well marked,  with music cuts that are chosen because they show what you DO well?  Are your cuts in the right KEY? 

Do you have your resume and head shot in HARD COPY stapled back to back in case the team at the table needs it?

Are you dressed appropriately?  Do you know what appropriately is?

Have you chosen your cuts to show specifically what evokes the show/style/character you are wanting to be considered for?


If you do not know what you want to evoke or what you want to reveal in the room,  then think again.  If you are confused or ambivalent so will the team.  YOU control that room.  Make your decisions clear and firm and commit to them!

I would think all of these are common sense, but alas, they are not.  I have seen and heard about people walking into an audition without music,  without a head shot,  not dressed properly,  not prepared vocally or musically,  not, not, not...

WHY?!?!?!?!?!?

You have so much information at your fingertips.  Literally.  Why are you not making the best of any opportunity you have?

I know many of you are - but come on the rest of you!!!

What does the genre of your audition require???? Be it opera or music theatre or straight theatre or cabaret - know what that requires.  Period.  And do it.  Period.

So what NOT to do?

Do NOT apologize.  Ever.

If you know enough to apologize for it,  then you know enough to have fixed it prior to the audition.

"I am so sorry I forgot the music"

"I am so sorry I forgot my resume/head shot"

"I am so sorry I am so sick" cough cough cough.

"I am so sorry I am not what you are looking"

STOP IT.

Not apologizing doesn't mean you give attitude.  Know what you are there to do;  DO IT. 

If you are too sick to sing, don't go to the audition.

If you are not prepared to audition, don't go to the audition.

If you don't have your materials and they are needed,  get thee to a Kinko's and print them off!

Yes, you can say "my apologizes - I have somehow misplaced my head shot, may I print it off and drop it by after I sing for you?"

Wait for the answer.  Accept the answer.  Don't keep apologizing!!

If you are sick,  but not sick enough to cancel,  it's okay to say "I'm dealing with a slight cold, but I didn't want to cancel at the last minute."

You don't have to keep coughing or going on and on about it. 

Ongoing apology in the room sounds like excuses.  If you look like the singer that is always full of excuses, nobody wants to work with that.  Suck it up princess.  If you are there, just do your best. 

If you don't think you are good enough,  that will read in the room.

If you are auditioning for the wrong character, with the wrong material,  you shouldn't be.  Learn how to discern.  Learn how to see yourself objectively.  Learn what you actually DO well, and do it.  Don't do what you would like to do well.  Do what you DO.  RIGHT NOW.

Know what you want to reveal in the room and simply reveal THAT.  Nothing more nothing less.  Leave the baggage at the door.

Don't try to stay in the room longer than the team wants you there.  Trying to chat or ask questions, if not instigated by the team in the room,  is not your place.

Do your work,  be gracious,  be professional,  be respectful of the TIME (yours AND theirs),  be respectful of the PROCESS.  It is yours after all!

Do not make excuses.  Do not blame the pianist,  or the acoustics in the room,  or the size of the room,  or the CD texting on his/her phone,  or that it was 10 a.m. and not 2 p.m.,  or that you didn't get enough sleep,  or didn't have enough coffee.  Nobody cares.  Yes,  bad acoustics can suck;  learn how to sing well to find your physical acoustic.  Yes, some members of the team look like they aren't paying attention: trust me, they are.  Yes, sometimes we have to sing at times of day we aren't happy with.  Big deal.  That's the gig.  Sleep? Coffee? Up to you.

Do not try to be too familiar with the team.  Even if you know them,  or have sung for them a million times.  This is still a professional situation.  You aren't out for drinks or coffee.  Again,  respect for the process is key.  You are there to AUDITION not to apologize, to visit, to be buddies.

Use your common sense.  Find out what you need to do,  and what you don't.  If you don't know, ASK!  Use all the resources that surround you. 

Embrace the process, and show yourself in the best possible light,  no matter the details.  If you are prepared,  the "do nots" are simply not relevant.  The "dos" will be there, because you have worked for them.

Audition with purpose,  not with apology!