DanceLife Blog

Whether auditioning for Mary Poppins the Musical, Fame the Musical or any of the other abundant Australian productions this week, one thing is certain, few other industries ask as much of their job applicants as the entertainment industry demands of performers. High hopes end in disappointment for most auditionees in just minutes. "Thank you. That's all we need for today." is the dreaded kiss off performing artists hate hearing.

Recently, with the release of films like Every Little Step which documents the plights of audition hopefuls through the casting process of Broadway's revival A Chorus Line production, triple threat performers are winning the respect of people on a global scale.

Tonight Channel TEN's The 7pm Project reported on this week's Mary Poppins Auditions. "57 auditioned today. 5 got call backs". When asked "Can you tell when someone walks in the door if someone has it?", associate choreographer Geoff Garrat shared that he has an instinct, and that there's a part of him that gets a feeling about it. This gut feeling is exactly what can make or break an audition for the under prepared artist. I talk about how to overcome this in the Audition Guru workshops. It's important to pitch yourself inside the range of what the audition panel are looking for. What you wear has a massive impact on that. One of the key strategies we discuss at the Audition Guru workshops is, how to create an image that has you looking like you suite the show, without looking like you're desperately trying to look like you could step onstage to perform the show.

Unfortunately there's exceptions to many audition rules, and it's important to know which rules can be broken, and which must never be broken.

Keep training to bring you closer to your goals, and celebrate your achievements every day.

Tia Jordan
www.auditionguru.com
www.facebook.com/tiajordan
http://twitter.com/AuditionGuru

After several years of unreliable rumours, casting is finally under way for the highly coveted 50th Anniversary World Tour Production of West Side Story. As I visualise the 1994 - 1997 production of West Side Story I Dance Captained, my heart is filled with the perfume of mixed memories.

Being responsible for dancer casting and the maintenance of Jerome Robbins original choreography induced the most unbelievable growth spurt of my career at the time. Dancing that choreography is like going to your favourite place on Earth. You have to keep going for visits, and sometimes you cry when you leave. My chest still jumps with excitement remembering the score played by Australia's ace level musicians, with the scream of the horns as they played the intro to Dance at the Gym, and Dave Newdick's impossibly high F notes.

Work was like play with wonderfully spirited show folk like Penny my dresser, Billy ‘Mamma' Roach, and Ray Wilson in wardrobe, Kevin ‘Handbag' Hanily our company manager (RIP), the lovely VSO/ IMG producers, and a stunning cast including Caroline O'Connor, Marina Prior, Kelley Abbey, Sharon Millerchip, Leonie Page, Todd McKenney, Adam Marchant, and especially Penny Martin and Cameron Mitchell who both kept me laughing from dusk to daylight.

Those four years were a precious gift and I'd like to pay it forward now. Here's a head start to your audition preparation research. I warn you however, you are bound to fall deeply in love with this show as you become intimate with the material. So pucker up for some background loving. Shshs...this is just for you.

Jerome Robbins West Side Story choreography amped up a new standard of dance in musicals when it first played in 1957. The 2009 production, directed and choreographically recreated by Joey McKneely, honours Robbins' original choreography once more in a reinvigorated adaptation of the Romeo and Juliet inspired story.

Hopeful auditionees should prepare themselves dramatically for this dance audition, as well as familiarising themselves with the choreography if possible. "If you remove Jerome Robbins's choreography, you lose significant plot, storytelling moments, and you lose characterisation elements that are set in the dance," McKneely said in an interview with the NY Times' Julie Bloom. "It's rare that shows have dance as that kind of signature. It's the emotional glue."

West Side Story calls for a cast of quintessential Triple Threat performers and the Broadway creative team will come with incredibly high expectations of their auditionees. McKneely who worked closely with Robbins for 10 years before his death in 1998 attests that Robbins' felt the "choreography never changed for an individual - the individual changed. But what I learnt from him is so ingrained: Never accept mediocrity. Maintain your integrity."

McKeely has been uncompromising in his recreation of Jerome Robbins original choreography, and one would imagine he will be seeking absolute attention to detail in the audition. Style as well as steps are important. Try to get the nuances of the style. Practise them into your muscle memory now.

Russ Tamblyn, who played Riff in the 1961 film version asserted: "I don't think [Robbins] was happy with a dancer unless their feet bled." When Robbins finally finished with the song Cool, the dancers burnt their battered kneepads outside his office.

Consider doing more for this audition than you've done before. Go the extra mile to train for this one. Mark Byrne, Natalie Bassingthwaighte's manager, recommends you "Train and work hard in your weaker ability areas, and you will be rewarded with better job offers"

Auditions take place in Melbourne and Sydney in November with a six month Australian tour set to kick off in Sydney in July 2010.

Join me for the Audition Specific Preparation Workshop focusing on West Side Story. Learn the original choreography and gain elite level insight into this show.

DATES AND VENUES

MELBOURNE -
Wednesday 18th November
9:30 - 3pm
The Space Prahan

SYDNEY
Monday 23rd November
2:30 - 8pm
City Venue TBC

Cost $99 cash on door, or $77 advanced sales

Email tia@auditionguru.com to book. Due to space restrictions there are limited places.

Tia Jordan, Audition Guru, are independent educational facilitators and are in no way associated with the producers of, or the show West Side Story.

By: Tia Jordan

Performers are passionate peeps and there's no doubt that anyone with a passionate heart and a mind for success will have rung up some major wins last year. You'll have taken stock of your 2009 experiences, income, health and opportunities, and now you're asking yourself, ‘How can I make 2010 even better?'

As you answer that important question, can you also put up that well trained arm of yours and say you have written down your 2010 life goals? What's that? You don't yet HAVE specific goals for 2010?

Don't worry. You are not alone. But if you do write your goals up, you are statistically much more likely to achieve them, increase your income, enhance your experiences, and bring your wishes to life. In fact if you have someone who you report your progress to, your success is dramatically more likely to happen... sooner!

The first thing I ask when people come to me for career coaching is ‘What do you want?'. " I want to be in Musical Theatre" comes the reply normally. Which makes sense seeing that's my specialty. It's from that starting point that I've helped many people get their foot in the stage door, as it were.

But one of the most important steps you can take in your career, is to design exactly the kind of lifestyle you want your work to interlace with. These lifestyle goals need to be specific and fun to create. Remember this isn't supposed to be a prediction. It's more like a target.

By now, many of you know my personal mission is to help as many people as possible reach their full potential and live the life of their dreams. So get ready to rip this gift below, and paste into your blog or facebook or wha-eva. It's especially for you, so be sure to use it please. You are welcome to share it with family and friends. Don't be tight. Share the love. That's the first step to getting what YOU want in life.

The 4 Moves to More - Tia Jordan's gift to you

Move #1. Prepare To Win. Put your favourite up beat music on - something that juices you up. Stand up and feeling FANTASTIC put a smile on that dial of yours! Dance if it increases how AMAZING you feel. Now you're in touch with what really matters and what you really want.

Move #2. Get Clear. Feeling AMAZING ask yourself: What do I want for my career? What job opportunities? What challenges? In what areas of the industry? Ask questions like: Who do I want to work with? For what kind of income? Where in the world? Now write those answers up.

Move #3. Storyboard Your Future. The brain organises in pictures and symbols. So a picture really does says a thousand words to your mind. Go through magazines or the internet to find pictures that remind you of the goals you've written up. Create an inspiring montage on your favourite coloured cardboard by pasting the pictures on it in a way that makes you excited when you look at it. Glue at least one pic of you into the montage so you feel connected to the goal.

Move #4. Give Thanks. Be grateful for your future like it's already happened. Give thanks to a higher power. (eg. your angel, your creator, the universe)

The Secret Move #5. I absolutely believe in the law of attraction, like in that film and book The Secret. But that's only ONE of thousands of laws. Use the law of Cause and Effect too. The ACTIONS you take(or don't take) CAUSE a RESULT or EFFECT. Meet your angel guides half way, and TAKE ACTION TOWARDS ACHIEVING YOUR GOALS. Goals won't show up by looking at your storyboard alone.

For more information about Tia Visit www.auditionguru.com

Tia is running her successful Scene It! Believe It! Live It! Workshop on Sunday 21 February. Get all the info HERE! Register today, places are limited.

With the FAME and MARY POPPINS AUDITIONS coming up next month it's really important that you're prepared. I was chatting with an icon in the musical theatre world last week about auditions and how some performers go into an audition with a "if it's meant to happen, I will get the gig". He completely disagreed with this way of thinking and believes you are either under prepared or not right for the role. Why not get one of those objections out of the way before you walk in the door and be PREPARED. For this reason we have some information below about the workshops that Tia Jordan is running to assist performers who are going for Mary Poppins and FAME. If you want to make the most out of your audition check out Tia's workshop.

Tia's Point Of View (POV)
With SYTYCD auditions underway, and Fame and Mary Poppins auditions about to begin, October is shaping up to be an audition fest. It's a time of excitement, but for many performers there's no escaping the nerves and anxiety that go with it.

CONFIDENCE vs VULNERABILITY
The words and actions of accomplished people are like an elevator towards success . No-one needs be told the importance of confidence in our industry. But if you don't allow your vulnerability to shine you'll be stuck in the basement. Listen up below because the door to your success elevator is now open.

MAX LAMBERT, Musical Director on the upcoming FAME, is like an encyclopaedia when it comes to Musical Theatre. He really understands dancers' minds, and shared this exquisite jewel of information at the 2008 Audition Journey Workshop hosted by Audition Guru.

"Curiously, the more insecure people were, the more they gave of themselves. If you're bulletproof you miss out on giving the exchange. - Max Lambert

Tia's POV - As Triple Threats we are conditioned towards looking and sounding perfect. The problem is, most audience members don't really care about perfect people. And if the
audience doesn't care, the show won't work. My tip when auditioning for Max is BREATHE, big, deep, low breaths, (air is power to singers) and be YOU.

GENEVIEVE LEMON, who played Mrs Wilkinson in BILLY ELLIOT, is an instinctive genius of her craft. Here's a dollop of the delicious advice she offered at the Audition Specific Preparation Workshop hosted by Audition Guru in Melbourne in June 2009.

"Over confidence could be just nerves masked in another way. Everyone gets nervous. The trick is to acknowledge the nerves and perform your best in spite of them." - Genevieve Lemon.

Tia's POV - The world's most loved performers reveal their flaws, and the chinks in their armour. This is how we come to care about them. Be confident in your imperfections.

Cultivate powerful relationships with your peers but be careful about taking on their advice. Instead seek the help of mentors who are working experts in your chosen field.

AND have FUN! Chookas!

Tia Jordan

Audition Guru is hosting Audition Specific Preparation Workshops this week.

MELBOURNE
Saturday 26th September
Fame Focussed Workshop
ADULTS $57
2pm - 6pm

Sunday 27th September
Mary Poppins Focussed Workshops
KIDS $37
9:30 - 11:30am
ADULTS $77
12 noon - 5:30

SYDNEY
Monday 28th September
Mary Poppins Focussed Workshops
ADULTS $77
9:30 - 3pm
KIDS $37
3:30 -5:30pm

Wednesday 30th September
Fame Focussed Workshop
ADULTS $57
10am -2pm

DANCELIFE SAVING!!
Do both the Mary Poppins & the Fame focused workshops. Pay only $107 for
both & SAVE $67 ($174 full price***)

Please email tia@auditionguru.com for more information

Hairspray auditions are coming, and sooner than soon. This news is like many industry bites, unofficial. But we can officially state the following: Aussie performers have been cracking their wigs back in preparation for this audition for yonks. So if YOU want to be remembered by the audition panel, get cracking NOW.

The show is set in Baltimore, USA, in the early 1960s. There are roles for all types of people so if you'd like to shine in the audition, follow these foundational steps...

There are great coaches offering this kind of training all over Australia. Consider signing up for a workshop or lessons to get an edge, and sharpen up your skills before stepping into your audition. Right now you can:

1. Train for stamina. This show go go goes! You'll need to be physically fit to keep in the game.
2. Choose your songs NOW, and get your 16 bar, 32 bar and full length versions rehearsed with intro and outro. For details of singing teachers check the www.dancelife.com.au directory or email me on tia@auditionguru.com for teacher suggestions.
3. Work to a higher standard. Professional experience is not compulsory (everybody has their first job sometime). But showing you have worked harder to prepare than your competition is a must.

Statistics show less than 1% of auditionees will attend a specific preparation workshop. That's still more people than there are roles. But of those that attend workshops, approximately 5% *will be successful in being offered a role in the show. * Based on statistics from recent Audition Guru preparation workshops for West Side Story.

Be Prepared... SIGN UP FOR THE WORKSHOP!

AUDITION SPECIFIC PREPARATION WORKSHOP - HAIRSPRAY FOCUS
This independent one day workshop is designed to help you be more successful in the audition process for this and other shows. Your coach Tia Jordan who has been to Broadway to research HAIRSPRAY, will be your coach. Whether you intend to audition for HAIRSPRAY or not, this opportunity should not be missed by singer dancer actors.

Read all the workshop details HERE.