<p>My daughter will be auditioning for Wendy in a Regional theater’s production of Peter Pan… Do you have any suggestions for a song to audition with? Just would appreciate any input you may have… Thanks!</p>
<p>Wendy sings Tender Shepherd. Does your daughter know that song? It is like a lullabye soprano type song. You can listen to it on Amazon.com if you look up the cast recording of Peter Pan. She shouldn’t sing it but I am just saying she should be familiar with the type of singing Wendy does in the show. A song that I think really is similar in style and voice to Tender Shepherd and to Wendy in general might be Little Lamb which is sung by Louise in Gypsy. Does your D know it? If you don’t own it, go to Amazon.com and look up the Gypsy soundtrack and click on a sample of Little Lamb. It is a sweet song and very tender. I think it is a great match for Wendy. Another song, though quite overdone but that would not matter so much for this sort of audition at her age (never use it for a college BFA audition) that I think really fits Wendy is from Cinderella: In My Own Little Corner. I think either of those songs are well suited to the character of Wendy, though it is also very important that your D sing a song that shows off her skills/talent and I do not know your D. Sixteen Going on Seventeen from Sound of Music could work too. Another very good possibility is Edelweiss from Sound of Music. These songs fit the voice type and character of Wendy. I can’t tell you which songs would be best for YOUR D however.</p>
<p>Thanks for your suggestions… My daughter is leaning toward, “Come Down From Your Tree”, something she has recently sung in competition… Don’t know if you are familiar with it… Audra McDonald sings it… A beautiful song that was cut from the musical, “Once On This Island”. Let me know what you think… Thanks!</p>
<p>One more possibility might be The Portrait by Barbara Walsh in the musical A My Name is Alice. Another is The Girl I Mean to Be from The Secret Garden.</p>
<p>I am very familiar with Come Down from The Tree as my D sang it in a cabaret show she created a year ago.</p>
<p>My D has been in Once on This Island twice…once as Little Ti Moune and once as Ti Moune and yes, I know this song was cut from the show and Audra sings it.</p>
<p>It is a very pretty song. However, my tendency is to also think of a song that may fit the character in the show one is trying out for and also similar in type to the songs that character sings in the show. But if your D wishes to go with a song that just shows her well, that may also work. While my D may have a big songbook for auditions, she does try to find songs to fit particular auditions/characters rather than just use any song she sings well.</p>
<p>Beautiful song, isn’t it? What do you think though regarding the audition?</p>
<p>While it is good to be a resource and suggest songs for your D, one thing she may wish to get in the habit of doing is listening to lots of MT albums and getting many MT anthology songbooks and building up a library of music she is familar with. Then, when an audition arises, she can go through all the music she already is familiar with and find a suitable choice. If she is headed down the path of an eventual BFA program in MT, the more she can amass her familiarity with a wide range of MT repertoire, the better. After a while, she should have the names of LOTS and LOTS of songs at her fingertips, even if she has never performed or worked on them all. She really has to start making a “study” of what’s out there in showtunes. So, make sure your asking here doesn’t substitute for her going through lots of songbooks and cast recordings or samples of songs online to find a suitable song for Wendy.</p>
<p>I cross posted with you but basically said what I thought…it seems like a song your D already sings well and likes but it wasn’t necessarily chosen for the part of Wendy. I think she should listen to Tender Shephard and think of a song that is more similar in style, but it will not be so terrible if she simply goes with a song she already sings well (Come Down from the Tree) and then if they want to hear her sing a Wendy song like Tender Shephard, they can at callbacks. Just a different approach. But if your D is willing to learn a new song that fits Wendy as a character and similar type of song, that is one way to go about it. I think some of the songs I mentioned fit Wendy a little better than Come Down from the Tree but if your D is good a that song, it could work. BUT…I do not know your D and her talent, strengths, type, skill sets, etc. and so she should ask her voice teacher. I just threw out some possible songs to look at but can’t advise you online about such a thing, nor am I a voice teacher. Someone who knows your D should advise her in person. Also she should be going through lots of songs to find one SHE thinks fits this situation and her own strengths as well. She may wish to look into the ones I mentioned…or not.</p>
<p>Thanks for your suggestions… We really just discussed this today - in terms of creating a portfolio of songs… she really does see the need… My daughter sang “Come Down” for Access Broadway Nationals a couple of weeks ago and took 1st in the Open category - 13-16 Diva division… She sings it very well and actually felt that she wanted to do it for the Wendy audition… Her audition is Saturday, so we all are hesitant in having her learn a new song… I do like your suggestions… and appreciate them… My daughter is 15 and really does want to pursue a musical theater degree…</p>
<p>Congrats to your D. I am not familiar with such competitions but it sounds like she did well. </p>
<p>If the audition is Saturday, she should go with a song that she has already worked on that is of the voice type needed for the requirements for this role and not learn a new song. </p>
<p>Best of luck to her. I love Peter Pan and one of my kids has been in it twice and the other has been in it three times and in fact, it was the first musical she has ever done. The rest is history, as they say, LOL.</p>