Boogie Woogie Bugle Girl of CompaNYC!

Adrienne Fisher | May 02, 2008 | there are 0 comments

Kathleen Marshall

Kathleen Marshall is such an inspiration. I love when I walk into a room to audition for someone, and not only are they expressing viv and talent, but also intelligence and intense focus. I auditioned as a dancer for the Broadway tour of Grease yesterday, and I was lucky enough to have been in the presence of all of these qualities. It is so great to walk away from an audition feeling like you have grown even if you don't get the job because of a person in that room who inspires you.

If you want to get an idea of her energy and her brilliance, check out The Masterworks Broadway Podcast. The Masterworks Broadway podcast interviews Kathleen Marshall and asks her about the choreography and direction of Grease on Broadway. She is very thoughtful and informative in all of her answers. I love to meet someone who uses so much method along with their free-spirtited creativity. I think that this is a necessary recipe for someone who is going to direct and choreograph a show and be somewhat sane in the end. Check out that podcast, and then get inspired by Marshall!

In this industry, it is easy to lose sight of the "magic" of creation at times. One way to inject a little magic back into your life is to find the shiny star-like people who you can focus your energy on, become inspired by them and grow grow grow up up up toward the starry sky of super-constellations like Marshall, Wayne Cilento, Rob Ashford, Noah Racey and Obediah Wright.

So, the Grease audition went fantastically. First off, I woke up early in the morning to prepare. You only go to a Broadway dance call once not having put some serious thought into your outfit. I know that this sounds superficial, but sometimes an outfit that not only puts you in the right period (in this case 50's or 60's) but also makes you pop is going to seriously assist you in getting past the first cut. In this case, the casting people were looking for some solid technique in the first cut, but I think that my 50's outfit helped me to stick out a little. I think your appearance and choice of outfit has a direct effect on the way that you perform at an audition because 99% of the time, you are performing for yourself and 5 or 6 other girls next to you in a mirror. If you aren't impressed with what you see, chances are you won't perform very impressively. Audition rule number one: always dress to impress!

After I danced once, they asked me to come back at 1:00 PM to sing ( it was 10:30 AM at this point). I was thinking about going home and having lunch, but then there is the hour and a half commute factor and also the "watching how much is in my stomach before I sing" factor. This is always a tricky equation-the "what to do before I sing" equation. If I have too much in my tummy, I don't have as much breath support, so I am not going to have a very good audition in that case. I can't eat any dairy before I sing, which is very sad because I could live soley on dairy products and be a very happy person. Also, eggs produce mucus as well...I know this is insane! So, basically, my breakfast the morning of an audition consists of tea, soymilk and a couple of slices of dairy free, egg free bread with jam. Believe me, I look forward to the weekend when I can "splurge" a little on some eggs and dairy.

Anyways, let me take you back from the dairy tangent. I decided to hang in the city while I waited for my singing callback for Grease and buy new pointe shoes to get ready for the Radio City audition that is coming up. I am 5'4" tall, and I came to the realization a while ago that I would never have the luxury of being a Rockette in the winter and be able to live on unemployment for the rest of the year while I auditioned for Broadway shows (and it is a good unemployment check). So, every May I start working on pointe again to audition for a role as a "back up dancer" in the Radio City show. I recently saw the Christmas show in Nashville when I was on tour, and I realized that there are quite a few roles in the back up dancer corp that wear big bear costumes while on pointe. I came to the realization that this would be the role that I would get hired for. This is OK with me.....the bears are actually ta huge hit! They have these big life-like eyes, and they come out on stage during different parts of the show dressed up like caricatures of different ethnicities.

Anyways, Radio City auditions in NYC are in three weeks, so I need to strengthen my pointe work as much as possible before then. OK, so after buying pointe shoes (Sansha Premiere, which has a long vamp that I love), I walk back to Ripley Grier Studios for the singing portion. I end up being last. Usually, I don't mind being last for the obvious reason of them not forgetting you as easily, but this time was a little difficult because I could hear every person singing clearly through the door, and everyone sounded amazing! They were asking some people for a second, more legit song after the pop song they prepared for it. It is hard having this knowledge before you go into the room yourself just in case you don't get asked for a second choice.

When I went into the room, I sang "It's My Party" and then, after a long awkward silence, Kathleen asked me if I had anything else to sing. Phew! Yes, I have "Jimmy" from Thoroughly Modern Millie. I sing it well...though, it is never as good as when I practice at home. I walk out of the room, and five minutes later, they ask for a polaroid shot of me!! This is great news. This means that they are considering me for a role in the ensemble!! There will be at least two more call backs I am sure, but I will keep you updated on that.

So, now I will rant on the subject of the importance of dancers' voices. I think a decade ago, this may have not been the case, but Broadway in the current millenium demands a versatile dancer with voice and acting skills almost if not as strong as their dance skills. If you are a dancer who is considering going into musical theatre, please start studying voice and acting now along with keeping strong in your all of the dance disciplines. The most versatile dancer is going to work the most, and if you are shooting for the stars of Broadway, the casting directors would prefer that you are capable of understudying at least one of the characters in the show. This can be frustrating for many dancers who have spent their lives training in musical theatre dancing, but then get to NYC and realize that they barely have one adequate song to sing as they stare at the other Equity girls who have music audition books that look like Brittanicas. Take a long look at the ensembles in any of the shows on Broadway right now. The ensembles are not very big, and most members of the ensemble play minor characters in addition to their dancing and singing and/or understudy principle roles.

If you don't plan on going to college for musical theatre, make sure to get a vocal coach who is reputable (maybe they have students on Broadway, so you know that they are giving you advice that is working for others). I have been in for A Chorus Line a couple of times now, and each time Baayork Lee gets on her soap box about the equal importance of ballet, voice and acting in this show. I even sang for Patrick, the musical director of A Chorus Line, the last time I was seen for the show, and he asked me specifically who I was studying voice with. They all are on your side and want you to succeed, it is just your responsibility to hold up your end of the deal-the deal being "we will employ you if you are employable". Here are some highly recommend voice coaches :

Aaron Hagan-He is know nationally for his technique, so it is hard to get a private lesson with him. He also teaches master classes at Chelsea Studios frequently. Aaron has many students on Broadway including Judy in A Chorus Line on Broadway.

Adam Roebuck-Adam's has a very unique approach to understanding the Broadway sound. He also has many students on Broadway including Connie in A Chorus LIne. Adam teaches half hour private lessons, which is good for those of us on the go and a little more economical.

Dan Manjovi- Dan teaches at HB Studios and also at his private studio. He is a Julliard grad, and is also a talented songwriter. You can check out his album here.

An interesting point that I was recently discussing with a voice teacher is the fact that dancers are always put on one of the alto parts in a musical. The logic here is that dancers don't have as much training. Therefore, they don't have the training to sing the high Cs in a chorus. The irony here is that the alto lines are the most difficult harmonically in most cases. In White Christmas, the alto line in I Love a Piano was very difficult. I have become much better at harmony after singing alto in a few shows, and something that has helped me immensely with harmonizing is my boy's skills floating around the apartment. He plays the trombone, and he is very talented when it comes to reading music and harmonizing. He is always singing the harmony with songs as they play on our HiFi at home. It is essential that a dancer has a basic understanding of harmony for these reasons.

I am actually attending a call back for a group called American Belles. This amazing three girl show brings song and dance to prestigious events "honoring the United States Military and treasured Veterans" traveling around the city, the country and internationally. For the next call back, I have to sing the Trolley Song (you, know Judy Garland's famous song from Meet Me in St. Louis) while I tap dance, sing a country song and learn the middle (second soprano) part harmony of Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy. I think that this is such a wonderful cause, so I am putting a lot of energy into preparing for this audition.

She was some boogie woogie bugle girl of CompaNYC!