Exit: I agree. MY D and the others from her school certainly try to connect with the auditioner through eye contact, etc. But they’re taught too much “acting” the song through excess motions distracts the auditioner, and then they got criticized for not doing it at the screening. They all seemed to get similar feedback and they were over it very quuickly. More frustrating for parents than kids. I wonder if there are just certain schools whose teaching styles click more with the SETC folks than others. Just part of the business.
I coordinate the SETC Screenings in VA. Each year each screening region finds 3 adjudicators to complete the pre-screens. One is provided by SETC, one by the Professional Division, and one by the screening state. So, there is no overall SETC “style” … just the opinions of those particular adjudicators on that particular day that particular year.
I would not think of the feedback as criticism. More as something to think about and decide whether it makes sense to you or not. One person’s opinion based on their particular aesthetic.
Thanks Kat. Very helpful.
My son has said a lot of his friends who did serious monologues don’t pass prescreens. He has stuck with the same light comedic monologue for three years. Yeah, he is tired of it, but it works.
TheaterHiringCo - “OUCH” for #7. Size 14 girls can be princesses!!!
@theatrehiringco…curious why no character shoes? My d loves singing in those. Feels it keeps her more “grounded”. She hates the heels of today. She will be sad to hear that advice. But than again…if your checking out someone’s shoes while they are singing…there may be other issues.
This is probably one of the most useful threads on CC. Thanks for sharing your observations! They are invaluable to students like me who are auditioning or will be soon.
So just shared the advice with my d…Most was fine…but regarding the shoes…her response was…
“REALLY? … I’m a big girl do you really want me balancing on stilts while I sing a high e”
My daughter wore saddle shoes…but she is a vintage girl and wore a vintage dress so it matched.
I love all the tips & pointers!
But I also thing rules are meant to be broken … for the right performer at the right time. (And those are few and far between.)
For example … I personally know (and adore!) a girl who who has been accepted to one of the more sought after schools on this board. She did her dance audition in … SOCKS.
(She’s also a very trained dancer who had absolutely everything go wrong before her audition that could go wrong. I won’t repeat the story here because it isn’t mine to tell … but it’s a doozy.)
And … accepted. Very quickly too.
Trying to respond to all the questions in one thread, so I apologize if I miss someone.
@KaMaMom - Binder color doesn’t matter. Making sure the music is cut, clean, and awesome for the accompanist is the important part there!
@Marbleheader - I agree, that size 14s can be real life princesses. They just can’t be one on a professional stage unless they have a director that likes risks. I would say that over half of my comment card complaints in a season (maybe 5 or 6) are about the looks of an actor. “Too old, fat, ugly…” My wife is a size 12 and perfect. I just can’t cast her as Belle.
KatMT is right about screenings. She also happens to teach at JMU where the students do well put together packages, though. I have screened, as I spoke about before, and many times all three of us (and the person running auditions) would say at lunch “I hate this…” or “I loved this…” If more than one adjudicator makes a comment about it, I would STRONGLY consider making the adjustment. Another thing to note, however, is that some states REQUIRE adjudicators to list “something to work on”. A comment like “more movement” might have been because they really didn’t know what else to say. Stillness can work great, so can a lot of movement, it is about execution.
@Sguti40 - It is industry standard to not wear character shoes. I was just talking to a CD friend of mine and she told me that it is becoming more and more taboo. SETC isn’t NYC and I know that. I was commenting to my casting team how at our New York call more than 75% of the actors wore jeans. I would say less than 1% at SETC did. The rules on what to wear are changing. Also, and I may give away who I am, but I hate heels, so tell your daughter that a practical flat is fine. (That is not necessarily industry standard, though!)
Lastly, re: socks. College auditions are going to be different, and I know that. They aren’t looking for polished professionals. It is extra work to “showcase” above your appearance. Why put yourself in that position? Wear appropriate dance attire. If you’re good, it just makes you better. If you’re average, it makes you look like you belong.
My daughter has never worn character shoes at auditions…either for college or professionally.
I’m surprised that a trained dancer would choose to wear socks for a dance audition! (then again, perhaps she lost her shoes and didn’t have a choice? the post says a lot went wrong for her prior to the audition)
I can’t really compare attire for college auditions to professional auditions. I wouldn’t recommend jeans for college auditions. However, in professional auditions, you are auditioning for a role and so can dress in keeping with the nature of the show and role/type and in some cases, jeans would be appropriate. Honestly, my D, who is working professionally, doesn’t really have audition outfits in the vein that the kids auditioning for college seem to be wearing these days. She doesn’t buy “audition clothing” in other words. She picks something in her wardrobe that seems to fit the situation. She is NYC based.
My d has worn character shoes for college and for professional auditions and landed both so I guess they didn’t care about her shoes and much to my chagrin she will tell a mean joke… often times during auditions. This was la based so maybe it’s regionally specific.
Re: SOCKS
She didn’t have a choice. It was a complete and total mess of a day - when I say everything that could go wrong did … I mean EVERYTHING.
And yet, accepted to a VERY good school.
I think how she handled herself in the face of an all out disaster says as much about her and her potential as her talent does.
Curious about why character shoes are a no-no. D wore her nude ones to most of her vocal auditions because she wanted to be comfortable and be able to move freely and didn’t want her shoes to draw focus in any way. Some of the audition suggestions/tips on school websites specifically said not to wear heels that were too high. Now I feel like this is something we should have known and that she looked like a total newb. I think I am losing my mind. D and I did countless hours of research about auditioning for college programs. All the do’s and don’ts and the “no character shoes” thing never came up. 
Yeah, I don’t get it either. I’m pretty sure my daughter hasn’t done that, but it seems like a silly thing for anyone to care about. I mean, if they are neat and clean and presentable and sing well, what difference does it make what is on their feet? I hear the “it’s what has become industry standard” reason, but - why?
gingersnap:
No worries!! I’m sure character shoes are fine for college auditions!
I don’t think they are so commonly worn in professional auditions in NYC. My D never does and never did for college auditions, but I was just commenting on that. She wore heels (dress shoes that were street shoes) for college auditions. I think she typically wears street shoes for professional auditions…often boots and what not.
By the way, my daughter has never owned nude character shoes! Doesn’t mean that others shouldn’t!
@TheaterHiringCo Thanks for chiming in! I did sit in the professional auditions as well and I agree, a lot of the same mistakes were happening in the professional auditions. It really bothers me that kids are spending so much money to go to some of these schools and making the same mistakes as high school kids. What are they being taught??? There were no SU kids this year because all of the seniors were accepted to UPTAs, the prescreening site was 4.5 hours away on a weekend with a major production while our MT Program director was on sabbatical. Perfect storm.
I also agree with all of the other feedback and especially @KatMT and screlting. Please find teachers who can teach you or your child how to mix and belt in a healthy manner!!!
~VT