THTR-250 COURSE SYLLABUS FOR MUSICAL THEATRE AUDITION. Allen Twitchell/John Gray Instructor

Transcription

1 Coffeyville Community College THTR-250 COURSE SYLLABUS FOR MUSICAL THEATRE AUDITION Allen Twitchell/John Gray Instructor

2 COURSE NUMBER: THTR-250 COURSE TITLE: Musical Theatre Audition CREDIT HOURS: 3 INSTRUCTORS: OFFICE LOCATION: OFFICE HOURS: Allen Twitchell/John Gray 170 Arts and Sciences Building/Nellis Hall See schedule posted on office door OFFICE PHONE: ext. 2145/ ext PREREQUISITE(S): REQUIRED TEXT AND MATERIALS: COURSE DESCRIPTION: REQUIREMENTS: None Silver, Fred. Auditioning for the Musical Theatre. Penguin Books. New York This course is a beginning musical theatre class for majors and nonmajors in theatre, music, and musical theatre. Students will learn and perform two contrasting monologues and two contrasting songs during the course of the class. It is designed to teach auditioning skills for those students auditioning for musical theatre, theatre or music departments at the four year universities or colleges. The course will also require students to learn how to put a professional performance resume together along with a portfolio. Attendance, participation (including discussion), preparation and a level of mastery. Things like attitude, levels of commitment and concentration, listening, willingness to try, willingness to fail, and ability to grasp concepts will be noted on a daily basis and will impact your final grade. This class will explore practical audition experience and career planning including practicing audition skills focusing on monologue selection and performance, cold readings, movement/dance calls, warm-ups and basic audition etiquette and protocol. Since monologues are the most common way actors interact with possible employers, talent representatives, and casting offices, we will spend a good portion of our time working on them. At the end of this syllabus you will find a timeline for the semester including mock auditions and feedback sessions at various times during the semester. During the feedback class we will discuss how your audition went, if you were called back or cast and about what went into the decisions made in each case. You should approach each audition exactly as you would a real audition

3 situation. How you present yourself at the auditions will factor into your overall grade in the class. THREE SEMESTER LONG PROJECTS: 1. Audition Log: You will be required to keep a log of all you real and mock auditions this semester. You may copy the form I made for you (attached to the end of this packet), or you may do your log in the form of: a. A loose leaf notebook b. 4x6 cards c. Portfolio folder for pictures/resume 2. Monologue/Song Binder: You will also be required to create a binder containing monologues and songs you are prepared to perform at auditions. The binder must contain a minimum of the two monologues you will work on in class, and either the one song you choose to sing for the mock musical theater audition or another monologue. 3. A completed resume and portfolio that is ready to be presented to a professional theatre company or a four year college or university. GOALS: Our goal is to work towards becoming confident and skilled auditioners so we will have the best chance of obtaining the opportunity to practice the art and craft that we call acting. In order to be a successful auditioner you must be able to distill down your process, so that with little or no preparation you can create in one to two minutes truthful behavior within the given circumstances in order to get the all important callback and, hopefully, a job. Through practical applications of the concepts we will learn through our various reading assignments and subsequent discussions we will strengthen our confidence and hone these auditioning skills. EXPECTED LEARNER OUTCOMES: 1. Recognize what makes a great musical theatre audition. 2. Understand how to act a song. 3. Identify the use of the twelve guideposts in auditioning and presentation. 4. Determine what to sing and how to sing it. 5. Understand how to play a comic song/monologue. 6. Understand concentration as a tool to control the attention of an audience. 7. Discuss the technique of observation and how to overcome stage fright. 8. Determine how to reveal the significance of a character s action.

4 9. Identify controlled emotional reactions with a song and monologue. 10. Recognize the importance of preparation with a monologue and a song (sixteen bars) 11. Determine the creation of a complete, well-rounded character in a monologue and a song. 12. Understand a character's relation to the whole in musical theatre. 13. Identify the importance of the piano player and choreographer. 14. Discuss tactics of survival while auditioning. LEARNING TASKS & ACTIVITIES: Unit I: Preliminaries Unit II: The Twelve Guide Posts Unit III: The Actor and the Audition ASSESSMENT OF OUTCOMES: All assignments are expected to be complete by the date due. Work is never accepted late. All directions must be followed. Grading scale is as follows = A = B = C = D 0-59 = F Most assignments will be in-class activities and audition exercises. Audition work will also be assigned which will require memorization. The final grade will be based upon the following: quizzes, readings, rehearsal and performance auditions, and resume and portfolio review.

5 COMPETENCIES: UNIT I PRELIMINARIES RECOGNIZE WHAT MAKES A GREAT MUSICAL THEATRE AUDITION 1. List five characteristics of good auditioning. (Knowledge) 2. State the most important aspects in picking a good song and monologue. (Knowledge) 3. Identify six areas of actor-singing training. (Analysis) 4. Explain audition do s and don ts. (Comprehension) UNDERSTAND HOW TO ACT A SONG 5. Identify a good song to audition with. (Knowledge) 6. Label sixteen bars. (Knowledge) 7. Demonstrate how to read music. (Application) 8. Identify how to act a song. (Application) 9. Describe several terms that relate to musical theatre auditioning. (Knowledge) UNIT II THE TWELVE GUIDEPOSTS IDENTIFY THE USE OF THE TWELVE GUIDEPOSTS IN AUDITIONING AND PRESENTATION 10. Identify and explain the twelve guideposts for which an actor must find specific answers. (Knowledge and Synthesis) 11. Explain the meaning of the twelve guideposts as they relate to auditioning. (Comprehension) 12. Use guideposts to create a character. (Application) DETERMINE WHAT TO SING AND HOW TO SING IT. 13. Explain how why provides a reason for physical action with a song/monologue. (Comprehension) 14. Define intention as it relates to an actor's physical and mental being when singing. (Knowledge) 15. Give the purpose of an obstacle as it relates to a song. (Comprehension) 16. Describe transitions between a monologue and song when auditioning. (Knowledge) UNDERSTAND HOW TO PLAY A COMIC SONG/MONOLOGUE 17. Describe the actor's need to learn elements of relaxation. (Knowledge) 18. Relate two objectives of body training. (Application) 19. Explain social inhibitions. (Comprehension) 20. Demonstrate several exercises that reduce tension. (Application)

6 UNDERSTAND CONCENTRATION AS A TOOL TO CONTROL THE ATTENTION OF AN AUDIENCE 21. Relate the carrying out of physical or psychological actions as they contribute to concentration. (Analysis) 22. Define character connection. (Knowledge) 23. Describe inter-influence. (Knowledge) DISCUSS THE TECHNIQUE OF OBSERVATION AND HOW TO OVERCOME STAGE FRIGHT 24. Explain how observation and stage fright is both intellectual and sensory. (Comprehension) 25. Explain how observation can help understanding and stage fright (Synthesis) 26. Use an exercise that develops a technique of observation and helps with stage fright. (Application) 27. Relate how observing people, plants, situations, animals, and inanimate objects help create a character. (Application) 28. Describe feeling as it is developed through association of stage fright. (Knowledge) DETERMINE HOW TO REVEAL THE SIGNIFICANCE OF A CHARACTER S ACTION 29. Tell of the necessity of an actor to relate to his life of his character. (Synthesis) 30. Prepare an exercise that relates to a character s WHO with a song and monologue. (Application) 31. Demonstrate a sequence of actions that will make it necessary to relate to auditioning. (Application) 32. Explain playing off of another actor who is auditioning. (Comprehension) 33. Define external stimuli. (Knowledge) IDENTIFY CONTROLLED EMOTIONAL REACTIONS WITH A SONG AND MONOLOGUE 34. Define internal stimuli as it relates to auditioning. (Knowledge) 35. List and explain the steps of physical action memory as it relates to auditioning. (Knowledge and Comprehension) 36. Describe the image technique as it relates to auditioning. (Knowledge) 37. Point out the three stages of inner technique. (Analysis)

7 UNIT III THE ACTOR AND THE AUDITION RECOGNIZE THE IMPORTANCE OF PREPARATION WITH A MONOLOGUE AND A SONG (SIXTEEN BARS) 38. Identify methods of discovering the dramatist's concept of the character in an audition situation. (Analysis) 39. Explain a motivating force as it applies to auditioning. (Comprehension) 40. Identify sources for discovering a character's objective with a monologue. (Knowledge) 41. Use any song and find the best sixteen bars to audition with (Application) DETERMINE THE CREATION OF A COMPLETE, WELL-ROUNDED CHARACTER IN A MONOLOGUE AND A SONG 42. Relate the actor's basic responsibility in preparing a role while auditioning. (Application) 43. Define dissection of a song and monologue" (Knowledge) 44. Explain the through-line that guides an actor's performance. (Comprehension) 45. Select externals that will help you believe the motivating desire. (Analysis) 46. Relate the steps in developing a character with auditioning. (Application and Synthesis) UNDERSTAND A CHARACTER'S RELATION TO THE WHOLE IN MUSICAL THEATRE 47. Describe how one finds the dramatist's basic meaning of a song and monologue. (Knowledge) 48. Explain the dual personality of the actor/singer. (Comprehension) 49. Distinguish between representational and presentational theatre. (Analysis and Comprehension) 50. Prepare a list of a character's traits that are important to the total meaning of auditioning. (Application) IDENTIFY THE IMPORTANCE OF THE PIANO PLAYER AND CHOREOGRAPHER. 51. Name five objectives of voice and dance training. (Knowledge) 52. Identify three areas of voice training one should improve. (Knowledge) 53. Explain how a dancer finds the under-meaning of the lines. (Comprehension) 54. Discover the advantages of an accompanist when auditioning. (Application) 55. Explain the role of the choreographer in the audition process. (Comprehension) 56. Identify the difference between acappella and using an accompanist in an audition situation. (Analysis & Knowledge) DISCUSS TACTICS OF SURVIVAL WHILE AUDITIONING. 57. Give the purpose of auditions. (Comprehension) 58. Identify three to five helpful suggestions to remember while preparing for an audition. (Knowledge) 59. Prepare a sample résumé and portfolio. (Application)

8 60. Describe several types of auditions. (Knowledge) This syllabus is subject to revision with prior notification to the student by the instructor.