piazza, auditions, etc.
Thursday, I went to see The Light in the Piazza. What a great way to warm myself up during this ugly cold spell in St. Louis. It was everything I had expected it to be. My beliefs about Piazza were well re-inforced. Adam Guettel has crafted a rare modern musical that doesn't rely on loud amplification, special effects, overwrought singing, etc. in order to have a great effect on its listener/viewer. Sure, Spamalot and Wicked have their charms--God knows I gushed plenty over them--but sometimes a good dose of subtle theatre is healthy for the mind and soul. It's sad that shows like this do not last longer to create a larger impression on the public...but at least someone believed in Piazza and was bold enough to put it out on the road for America to experience...
So, I had my audition with Union Avenue Opera on Saturday. Jolly wasn't on the panel for my aud (for Tartuffe reasons), but Scott was there. He seemed pleased with my Mozart and might have actually laughed at my Puccini excerpt (in a good way). Later on, I found out from Jolly that Scott noticed that I was "singing out" more than I had last year...so that's at least good to hear. It doesn't mean anything in regards to whether I'll get a role or ensemble, but we'll just have to see.
That audition might, in fact, mark the end of an era for me...the baritone era, that is. John wants me to begin exploring Tenor repertoire (both lyric and character). I have to prepare a medium-high-key version of a "24-Italian-Hits" piece for my next lesson. It's all so surreal for me. For years (yes, even during Quincy time), I've been frightened to death of the idea that I might be a Tenor. Why? Oh there's tons of rationalizations (both rational and ir-) that I've put out there: not good-looking enough for lyric rep, not funny enough for character rep, uneasy high notes, John's studio is a tenor-factory, so much baritone repertoire will go to waste...etc.
I guess it's time to just say "f___ it!" to all those rationalizations, and try this...right? (suggestions? thoughts? admonitions?)
So, I had my audition with Union Avenue Opera on Saturday. Jolly wasn't on the panel for my aud (for Tartuffe reasons), but Scott was there. He seemed pleased with my Mozart and might have actually laughed at my Puccini excerpt (in a good way). Later on, I found out from Jolly that Scott noticed that I was "singing out" more than I had last year...so that's at least good to hear. It doesn't mean anything in regards to whether I'll get a role or ensemble, but we'll just have to see.
That audition might, in fact, mark the end of an era for me...the baritone era, that is. John wants me to begin exploring Tenor repertoire (both lyric and character). I have to prepare a medium-high-key version of a "24-Italian-Hits" piece for my next lesson. It's all so surreal for me. For years (yes, even during Quincy time), I've been frightened to death of the idea that I might be a Tenor. Why? Oh there's tons of rationalizations (both rational and ir-) that I've put out there: not good-looking enough for lyric rep, not funny enough for character rep, uneasy high notes, John's studio is a tenor-factory, so much baritone repertoire will go to waste...etc.
I guess it's time to just say "f___ it!" to all those rationalizations, and try this...right? (suggestions? thoughts? admonitions?)