Chacun à son goût: Do Your Thing, Bring Your Bling (A Ballad for BSR's Open Auditions) by Shannon Rose McAuliffe

Gentle readers, 

I’m going to go out on a limb and assume that most of us aren’t thrilled about doing auditions. If you love them, I’d earnestly love to understand why– maybe there’s something to be learned there! Otherwise, for the rest of us mere mortals, it’s a bit of an anxious exercise in vulnerability. After sitting at the front table for a couple of our Open Auditions, I’ve observed a handful of ways in which BSR subverts some of the norms and nerves of this process. I’ll expound with some categorical commentaries: 

1. The Vibe: This place was buzzing with collegial goodwill! It wasn’t a cold corridor where people stand and shift uncomfortably, as if awaiting their turn for Judgment Day. It felt like a reunion of sorts– sharing hugs, not sizing each other up. Someone told me that all of the love and levity “calmed her nerves.” My take on this is that BSR’s auditions aren’t a zero-sum game. People aren’t all lining up with a single production or gig as the singular goal; the wonderful lack of specificity and the broad range of auditors means that there’s likely someone present who shares your interests and areas of strength. It smooths the competitive edge. It makes this window of time about you being at your best, not being the best for the role– at least, as far as individual directors and their proclivities are concerned. And since this is your moment to shine…
2. The Rep: Your four-minute slot gives you infinite opportunities to get creative and cobble together a combo of your best stuff. Forget brushing up your full package and leaving yourself at the mercy of the panel; you’re in charge of every note here. You can slip something new into the rotation to see how it goes. It’s a chance to stray a bit from the chart-toppers on the Wolf Trap Frequent Flyers Rundown. You can concoct a multi-genre mash-up of opera, oratorio, art song, musical theatre– anything goes. “Erbarme Dich” and “Ladies Who Lunch?” Let me grab my caftan. Which brings me to…
3. The Garb: I am beyond #ThrilledToAnnouce that I lost track of the number of jumpsuits I saw on Saturday. Trouser suits in palettes other than black/navy/grey! Big, bold, bright, beautiful patterns galore! Daytime sequins! DAY. TIME. SEQUINS. Free your mind from the struggle of deciding whether or not you’re going to wear a tie– you do you. Leave The Audition Dress™ at home– you know the one: Wrap. Jersey. Your pick of Jewel Tone #1, Jewel Tone #2, or Jewel Tone #3. Resist the ruching! In fact, let’s just burn ‘em altogether. We can use our PFOs from seasons past as kindling. We’re focusing forward now. To that end…
4. The Aftermath: Now you’ve embraced a dozen of your colleagues, dazzled the auditors with your expertly-crafted excerpts, and you looked smashing doing it. So how do you feel? Based on my observations, you’re likely feeling pretty badass. One person reported unleashing a rip-roarin’ high C and thinking “Oh, this sounds so good!” Another exclaimed that they thought it was “the best [I’ve] ever sounded.” But don’t just take my word for it– we’ve got some fun video footage coming soon, and you can hear it straight from the mouths of your colleagues!

It’s all a compelling case study, non? I think that other organizations could do well to consider making steps toward creating a similar environment. We hope that Open Auditions will begin to help everyone to feel more comfortable with making their own tweaks to turn the tide. (Come and get your practice in at a No Stress Studio!) As another BSR staffer commented, it was healing and heart-warming to see singers being “so kind, and so giving to themselves.” As we move through the dawning of this new audition era, let’s resolve to stop accepting anything less.