This is for those of you looking to embark on the arduous task of auditioning for the myriad and proliferating music theatre programs across the country.

This is also for any theatre singer who auditions.

This is also for me.

In case you haven’t noticed, this year it’s nuts.

Who even knows what skewl 20/21 might look like?

One thing that we can expect is that your audition experience is going to involve a camera.

I am the worst with cameras. ?? I seize up at headshot sessions. The only TV/film work I ever booked was from off-camera callbacks.

I feel your pain when you are looking to show your best self in a live art form via a two-dimensional digital medium.

Here’s a thing I’ve learned, and I hope it helps you. This works with cameras and real-live people.

I call it “open the door.”

It means that when we are singing our songs, we can choose to open the door or close it.

For me this is an actual focus I place right at my chest. I imagine that I am opening double doors and welcoming all listeners into this space where I need to sing this song at this moment.

I tell students that no one can see what’s inside your heart or mind, only whether you are welcoming them in or not.

This is a magic shift that allows us to make something with our audience rather than singing at them.

The same is true for the camera. I can invite the camera to be my collaborator.

When I do, it allows the lens to pull thoughts and story out effortlessly; if you are thinking it, the camera will see it.

This is great news. You have a partner that projects, amplifies, and communicates your authentic story for you.

Prepare, know your specifics, know the story you are living, then open the door.

***And if you need practice, fire up a video recording device and start making friends. As therapist Marisa Peer often says, “Make the unfamiliar familiar.”***

***??for some nerd-tastic follow up, look up the Double Slit Experiment and how quantum physics emerged from scientists discovering that reality is alarmingly shaped by the presence of an observer. The camera observes you, and in turn, you observe the camera. Go. Philosophize! ?Draw your own conclusions.***