Don't Mail In College Auditions

Chris Peterson, OnStage Blog Founder

This was originally published in the OnStage Blog newsletter on October 7th, 2022

Last year, I attended the first in person college BFA auditions since the pandemic broke out. These were being held at a prestigious thespian festival, which usually produces some fantastic talent.

However, to my surprise, instead of seeing dozens of prepared students, I saw an entire audition session filled with unprepared and disorganized auditions. From students not knowing how to sing their cuts, to not having their entire monologues memorized, to picking the wrong material that didn’t show case any of their talents, everything just felt off.

I leaned over to my colleague and asked what was going on; they replied that this had been the trend they have seen for the entire year. This caused some worry for me.

My biggest concern was that many of these errors were correctable. With the right preparation and the right guidance from either a teacher or a coach, these issues could easily have been ironed out before that student ever steps in the room.

So maybe the pandemic was a good moment to promote the message that students need to prepare better for the audition process for college theater programs.

While the talent preparation and skill set is on a completely different level, the procedure of auditions is something that can easily be improved upon.

So I have a couple pieces of advice for this coming audition year.

The first is pick unique material. While certain popular songs might sound great, being the seventh out of 13 people singing the same song doesn’t help your chances of standing out. Picking some thing a bit more obscure will add to the memorability of your audition.

Believe me, I’ve seen more teachers write down notes about songs they rarely hear in auditions then those that are often performed every single time. Picking interesting material will do that for you.

My second tip is to show off your personality in the audition. Whether it’s the way you introduce yourself, or the questions you ask after presenting your monologue/song, be yourself. The way that many faculty look at admissions is just like casting a show: the more they know about you and the type of person you are, the better.

Finally, organize your audition. Time it perfectly. If there is a time limit, run through it plenty of time so that you have time to spare as opposed to running out the clock. Rehearse your beats, breaks, and slating; ask thought-provoking questions of your faculty.

I’m not saying that this will ensure admission to your top choices, but it’s certainly ways to put you in a memorable position which is where you wanna be when I come to the auditions. So please please please take the time to make your audition as best as possible and not just in the performance but also the preparation.