Chances are, if you’re a performer, you’ve heard some “voice hacks” revolving around food and drink. “Drink lemon water to eliminate phlegm.” “Don’t eat before you go on stage.” “Eat potato chips to solve a sore throat.” Many of these sound reasonable enough and are offered to us as such absolute truths that we accept them without really researching whether they are true or not. As a result, all performers hold in their hearts a unique set of myths and half-truths gathered over the years which they believe makes them better singers. Is there any truth to these claims, or are they only urban legends? I decided I wanted to learn that for myself.
Month: June 2020
Theatre 101 Series: A Beginner’s Guide to Audition Prep
The Theatre 101 Series is a set of introductory articles meant to explain theatrical concepts and situations to young actors as well as adult theatrical newcomers. View the whole series here.
When you are new to theatre, preparing for an audition feels like walking blindly into the unknown. While understanding what to expect in your first audition may help, learning how to prepare properly for an audition can require a lot of audition experience. To help newcomers break into auditioning and put their best foot forward, here is a beginner-friendly guide to preparing for auditions!
Theatre 101 Series: What to Expect in Your First Audition
The Theatre 101 Series is a set of introductory articles meant to explain theatrical concepts and situations to young actors as well as adult theatrical newcomers. View the whole series here.
For new actors, the audition is the scariest part of the entire production process. Even as a seasoned performer, I tend to get more nervous for auditions than I do for actual performances. Auditions can be downright terrifying!
Nevertheless, once you get a few under your belt, auditions get much easier. The first is always the scariest! It would be a shame to never get a chance to perform simply because you’re afraid to audition. Hopefully, I can help! In this article I’m going to explain the general process of auditioning so you know exactly what’s coming.
Theatre 101 Series: So you Want to try Theatre? 10 Things you Should Know
The Theatre 101 Series is a set of introductory articles meant to explain theatrical concepts and situations to young actors as well as adult theatrical newcomers. View the whole series here.
Getting started in theatre takes a lot of courage.
If you’ve never performed before, you inevitably have a lot of questions about theatre. What does it take to get started? What should I know? What will I learn? The questions can become so daunting that they often prevent would-be performers from ever stepping on stage at all.
In order to help more newcomers make the transition from potential actor to first-time actor, I’m going to explain ten things everyone should know about the art of theatre.
The 5 Most Important Learning Objectives From Every Theatre Degree Program— And how to Achieve Them Independently
A college degree simply isn’t the best choice for everyone.
I’m not in the business of discouraging anyone to go to school for theatre. I always stand in support of theatre majors. However, in education, the phrase “one size fits all” is a harmful myth. For many, a college education just doesn’t make sense. Besides the obvious (and woefully often overlooked) point that the traditional higher education setting isn’t the best learning environment for everyone, college is expensive, and theatre majors are too often reminded of the fact that all the money spent for tuition still can’t guarantee future employment.
Many agree that the degree itself is not the most important outcome of a college education in theatre. Rather, what you receive in return for all that tuition is valuable training and professional connections. As the official degree is the only thing a traditional college path can boast over independent study and on-the-job experience, some are more suited to seek training outside of a college setting, preferably at a much lower price point.
So what exactly should one get from their theatre degree program? And how could they go about getting those without pursuing the degree at all?
Voice Lessons are a lot Like Therapy
You probably shouldn’t treat your voice lessons like your therapy sessions, and you definitely shouldn’t treat your therapy sessions like your voice lessons. Nonetheless, having participated in both for some time, I realize that the experience, main ideas, and takeaways of both are startlingly similar, even in ways I initially failed to recognize.
Embrace Your Dream Roles: They’re More Important Than you Realize
If you’ve ever seen or been in a theatrical production before, I’d bet money that you probably have a role or two which you’d give anything to play on stage.
Dream roles: we all have them. So why don’t we ever recognize how valuable they can be?
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