I hope you had a chance to catch the Tony Awards broadcast this past Sunday night. I sat down expecting a fairly pedestrian evening but instead was treated to a truly memorable show that reminded me of why I went into acting in the first place.
I was particularly struck by the breadth of what is currently being offered on the Great White Way, from cutting edge new musicals like “In the Heights” to defining revivals of classic dramatic fare ala Patrick Stewart’s turn in “Macbeth” at BAM. People ask me all the time if there is room for them in showbiz. Sunday night’s Tony Awards demonstrated that the theatre needs as many voices as it can find.
I recently had a callback for a role in a musical. Although the part was non-singing I still had to sing a few bars at the audition, which made me quite nervous. I’m not a singer and haven’t sung since college– no training, no experience, nada! Despite this, I prepped as best I could and ended up having not only a good audition but also a great callback.
The experience left me wondering if perhaps I should dust off my old songbook and get myself into some voice lessons. Watching the Tony Awards reinforced this desire. I haven’t forgotten my high school days when I was fortunate enough to play big parts in the school musicals, and how much fun I had. Perhaps I owe it to myself to find out if I can make that success translate into, and enhance, my current professional successes.
The venture will neither be cheap nor easy– voice lessons are expensive and I will need to test myself by going out on lots of auditions once my instructurs deem me ready. But my agents remind me all the time that lots of opportunities are available in musical theatre, and if a big push now might get me into the realm of consistent bookings in another year or two I think it’s well worth a shot!
