My daughter is auditioning for a musical theatre intensive program for high schoolers. She has been sort of "bouncing" between voice teachers through the summer, as we've tried to get her started in training. Met with her "real" (permanent) teacher last night, who suggested she do "Out of My Dreams" from Oklahoma and "Ten Minutes Ago" from Cinderella. To me, these look pretty durn similar -- both in 3/4 time, both about same tempo. The audition calls for one uptempo; one ballad. Audition is in 3 weeks... She's emailed the voice teacher for input, but in the meantime, are these 2 songs different enough? Yikes!!!

Well, if she would be comfortable singing something else, definitely change one of the songs. You're right about the time and tempo, and most importantly, they're both Rodgers and Hammerstein and don't show a lot of stylistic range. If you choose to do one of those two, I'd strongly suggest pitching "Ten Minutes Ago" and sticking with "Out of My Dreams." "Ten Minutes Ago" is very over done, especially by pre-teen and teen girls. If you can, try to stick in a newer song (preferably from a more contemporary-sounding musical, 1970ish or later)... NOT one from Wicked or Hairspray. Trust me on that, at least.

HOWEVER, if she doesn't learn music quickly or can't find one she feels comfortable auditioning with, then stick with what you've got. It's always better to sing a non-ideal song very well than it is to sing an ideal song badly.

Hope that's useful, and I'm a voice/acting teacher for a lot of kids her age, so feel free PM me if you need any more help. Break a leg!

Hello there,
I've also taught theatre/voice to many kids and high schoolers. I agree with kinniggets about choosing a more contemporary/pop selection if there is time to properly prepare. I would never contradict a fellow teacher without knowing specifics and the student intimately. I'm sure (well, I'd hope) she had a reason for choosing these songs so, perhaps they suit your daughter's voice particularly well?

That said.. "Out of my Dreams" is a nice, slow, legit ballad. It's your typical love song. Great choice for a light legit voice. But "Ten Minutes Ago" can be done with a bouncier up-tempo feel if you choose. And, depending on acting choices, can be done with a more "character-y" style. e.g. high-energy, strong/even funny choices.
But, as in all auditions, if she's confident in her acting and singing choices... And, most importantly, if SHE loves the songs she is singing. It will come through in her audition.
Cheers.

Thanks very much for the support and suggestions! She talked to her voice teacher, and a change was made. Both of them are happy with the new choices... But now she's ended up with a monologue and song from the same musical. (She does a fantastic job with both, and would hate to give up either one.) Any downsides (or positive!) at an audition if material is from the same show? (Her other song is different composer/era/style.) Ah....paranoid teens...who (along with their driver/moms) are second-guessing everything!

Audition in one week....

On one hand, I think it's a good idea to have the mono and the song from the same show. I think it looks great when the two connect and you can go seamlessly into one from the other.

On the other hand, monologues from musicals tend to be very, very, very overdone. There is a strong chance your daughter will be the 10th girl that day doing that monologue.

Also, does your daughter have much a of a belt? If she's just in high school I'm not saying she should be belting in the rafters yet, but it would be good to start working on/showing off her chest voice. Seems like the current trend in musical theater is high belters, so it would be great to have one legit soprano piece and one piece that shows off her chest voice. ; )

Thanks, all for the suggestions. Happy to report that kid was one of ten accepted into the program of her dreams, and is having the time of her life. (She did the monologue as a lead-in to the "matching" song, and that worked well for her.)

Now she's busy trying to build her repertoire of both songs and monologues. (She has performance boards in early December.) This is a ballet dancer-turned musical theatre kid -- she's got the dance forms down, but feels like a total newbie in the singing/acting side of things (she's done a couple musicals locally, but still is learning). Any input on where she can locate some monologue resources? Definitely don't want to do overdone....

Finding monologues is tough. Some people recommend monologue books or monologue websites, but I think that's the fastest way to pick an overdone one. Plus it's unlikely she'll really connect with a monologue without knowing more about the character, the circumstances, etc.

I think the only way you can find monologues is to read, read, read. When you find a character that moves you, put together a monologue. You don't even have to look for a big chunk of dialogue. You can piece one together from bits of their dialogue, as long as what youv'e put together has a clear beginning, middle, and end.

This link may help:
http://www.laguardiahs.org/application/aud_monologues.html