What I learned from my first Broadway audition

Here’s what I learned from my audition:

If casting tells you to work on a certain skill, do it! Without delay. And If you haven’t worked on that skill, don’t waste their time during a callback.
Acting and telling a story through the song is important. Even if you think the song is just performative, it’s still an opportunity to tell a story. Don’t pass up any opportunity to tell a story in front of casting and creatives.
Don’t be too hard on yourself. What is meant for you, will be for you. Just do your best, and keep it moving.

In my opinion, you should just be yourself. What ever you bring naturally to the role, is what you should bring into the audition room. I’ve had the privilege of getting to sit in on some auditions for iconic roles, and even auditioned for them myself. What I’ve learned from that experience, is that casting directors (for the most part) are not interested in seeing actors mimic past portrayals of these iconic characters. They are much more interested in seeing actors become the character naturally.

Give yourself permission to play a bit. Give yourself permission to audition for these roles without limitations. Give yourself permission to be you and know that being you is good enough.

Reevaluating the stigma around vocal health

Singers lose their voice from time to time. But why are we so afraid to talk about it? Why is vocal loss a shameful experience? What can we do as a community to change that perspective and to celebrate vocal health and support vocal healing when our comrades lose their voice?

For me personally, I experienced my scariest and most prolonged vocal loss in 2019 during Kiss Me Kate and that loss carried over into my return to The Lion King. It was terrifying. I was doing everything I could to keep my voice and nothing was working. During that time, I did not feel comfortable sharing what I was going through. I have found that most singers are not comfortable discussing vocal issues. For fear of seeming weak, or inept, or a poor caretaker of their voice.

Theatre is all about relationships

I want to talk about relationships. Theatre is about entertaining, but it’s also about relationships. The relationships we build in our lives that make us human - the love, the heartache, the friendships, the betrayal. These meaningful relationships are crucial in theatre. Without them, why would we care? Why are we invested in these characters?