Alyssa Massey

Research Symposium

April 2019

Principal Investigator: Professor Fabio Polanco

Best Practices in Musical Theatre Audition Material Location and Selection

Universally acknowledged as a less than perfect form of evaluation, the audition remains the standard and best vehicle for artistic personnel to determine an actor’s appropriateness for a role. This is true for musical theatre, just as it is for all other areas of the industry. As a result, locating and selecting effective audition material is a central concern for the musical theatre actor, for it plays a significant role in their ability to secure employment and establish and sustain a successful career. There are many books and articles offering advice on musical theatre auditioning and material selection. However, this advice usually comes from the anecdotal experience of a single author and a few of his or her colleagues. This study investigates the best practices for finding and selecting effective musical theatre material by surveying actors on where they find their audition material, how they select the material, and how successful they had been using this material in actual auditions situations. The results identify trends in material location and selection and provide insights into the most important criteria to consider in order to increase the likelihood of finding and selecting effective musical theatre audition material.