On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

...a truly awful cold that then spread to my lungs. (http://www.badum-tish.com/)

Apologies for my absence,  but I have been a) quite poorly (see above) and b) extremely busy. Despite meticulous planning months in advance, Christmas seems to have snuck up on me this year- why are there never enough days in December? However with the presents wrapped and under the tree, the food all bought and the wine stocked up, I am now feeling a lot calmer.

Here's what you missed whilst I was away:
- me COMPLETELY losing my voice and having to follow my own advice on vocal health
-me cutting out all dairy, caffeine and alcohol out of my diet (sob) in an attempt to help my throat
-me having a chesty cough for a stupid amount of time
-me managing to get tendonitis whilst running gently
-me starting rehearsals for a show that I'm part of (then subsequently missing 1 because of the above health problems...not ideal)
-me running a 10k (yes really!)


Whilst I was unwell, I had plenty of time to think about both musical theatre and this blog. I realised that there are a silly amount of musicals that I haven't seen and I want to make an effort to see more, both for enjoyment and to educate myself on bits of musical history that I'm not all that familiar with. With that in mind, I am setting up a separate blog. My aim is to watch a new musical ('new' here meaning an adaptation of a show I haven't seen before rather than an original show) each week, and then to give my thoughts on it. In an ideal world, all the shows would be showing live right now, and I could afford to see them all however this simply isn't the case in this reality. For the most part, I shall be watching either filmed versions of staged shows or film adaptations of the musicals. I hope that this will open both our eyes to the wide variety of shows out there as well as keeping me busy writing!

This will probably be the last post here in 2014 for me, but I hope that you'll continue to follow me in 2015 on my journey!

All the best for the festive season!

the pg-drama app

What not to sing

My post on song choices proved more popular than I imagined so I thought I'd do a follow up on specific songs to avoid. Firstly though I'd like to thank all of you that read that post and my other blog entries, it means so much to me that someone is actually reading this!

So without further ado, I'd like to present my personal list of songs you should probably avoid at an audition, and those which might be a bit risky. Please bear in mind the following when reading this:

a) This is just my personal opinion of what I probably wouldn't chose to sing

b) This is quite UK centric, I know that auditions are very different in the USA and elsewhere

c) This is more for drama schools/NYMT auditions etc. clearly if you're auditioning for Les Miserables and they ask you to sing a song from the show, you should

d) Some songs on this list are here because they are ridiculously overdone, but if you think you can absolutely kill the song then by all means perform it. Perform the song practically perfectly and the panel may forget just how many times they've heard it

AVOID

• Anything from Les Mis- way way way overdone at auditions (except possibly "Drink with Me"). Only consider doing a Les Mis song if you're confident you can smash it out of the ball park. 
• Anything from Wicked- ditto (with the possible exception of "Wonderful")
• "As long as he needs me" from Oliver!- ditto
• "Send in the Clowns" from "A little night music" - ditto
• Most Andrew Lloyd Webber-off the top of my head Phantom, Joseph, Cats and Evita contain songs that are very overdone. Other less performed musicals/songs may be okay though
• "Tomorrow" from Annie- annoying, particularly if you're not a 9 year old girl 
• Songs from jukebox musicals; "We will rock you", "Mamma Mia!", "Never Forget" etc. - I know that technically songs from these are MT songs, but if an audition is asking for a MT song they're really looking for a song that isn't originally and more well known as a pop/rock song etc.
• Anything from "Chicago"
• "What I did for love" from "A Chorus Line"- yes it's beautiful, but it's also kind of a cliché...

RISKY

• Signature songs- "Don't rain on my parade", "Over the rainbow" etc.- again perhaps worth a risk if you can do it brilliantly, but the comparisons between you and the original artist will always be made
• Dance 10, looks 3- it's a bit like doing a monologue from the vagina monologues...it feels like you're trying to shock for the sake of being shocking. I love "A Chorus Line", but I'm not sure how appropriate it is to sing a song where the comedy value is derived from you singing about T & A 
• Waiting for life to begin- I've noticed so many girls performing this at drama school auditions, so be warned that it is an extremely popular song at the moment. Incidentally all of the girls I've seen performing it were white. This isn't necessarily a reason not to do it, but just be warned that it can make you look like you don't understand your casting type
• Songs from Miss Saigon- again just be cautious that if you don't look South East Asian, performing a song from Miss Saigon makes it look like you don't understand your casting type
• "Summertime" from "Porgy and Bess"- this just looks like you have no imagination
• Most Jason Robert Brown songs- just be warned that a)it's overdone and b) the piano parts are often quite a bit more interesting than the vocals. I've been drawn to listen to the piano part rather than the vocals in an audition before so don't let that happen to the audience if you're performing it!
• Songs from Sondheim musicals- I am a big lover of the S. Man but just be aware that some of the piano parts for his songs are fiendishly hard...make sure you know the accompanist at the audition will be up to the job (same applies for Jason Robert Brown Songs)!

So there we have it! This is by no means a definitive list, but I hope it'll be helpful for some of you when you're selecting audition material.

Until next time!

the pg drama-app

Vocal health tips!

I've mentioned my struggles with the pre-audition sore throat in the past many times, so I thought I'd share with you all some of the tips I've acquired along the way for dealing with throat problems

• Vocal Rest- this is the big one, and I can't emphasise it enough. It's annoying, but a lot of the time the best thing you can do is to do nothing. Think of your voice in the same way you regard the rest of your body; you wouldn't run a 10k if you'd pulled a muscle, would you? Most of the time I would recommend you sit it out as it's not worth the risk of doing further damage to yourself. However, if you have an audition for drama school etc. that absolutely can't be changed (I have been in this situation, see: http://journeytodramaschool.blogspot.co.uk/2014/07/drama-school-audition-2-mountview.html) and you think you'll be able to do your songs justice without hurting yourself, then proceed with caution. Make sure you sing a song that won't strain your voice and drink lots of water. This brings me nicely onto my second point...
• Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate-I pretty much always have a bottle with me, and am constantly taking sips from it. I used to be in a constant state of dehydration just due to forgetting to rehydrate, but having a bottle near me makes it so much easier to monitor how much I've been drinking. Also keep in mind the major side effect from drinking a lot of water, and make sure you know where the nearest available toilets are if you know that you need to go a lot!
• Steam- I always feel some much better after inhaling steam, it helps to clear the sinuses and you can really feel its effect on the vocal cords. You can inhale it from a steamer, a bowl full of hot water or simply in the bathroom when you're shower room.
• Warm up thoroughly- if you have to sing, make sure you warm it up properly. You really don't want to strain yourself and damage your voice permanently 
• Gargling with salt- soothes pain and apparently kills bacteria. Can't go too wrong with that, but make sure not to swallow it!
• Honey- I get relief from drinking hot water with or without lemon with a generous helping of honey (any type). I've heard Manuka honey is amazing, but I haven't had a chance to try it yet so I'll report back later with my findings.
• Avoid alcohol-(sob) you might find that you're not that affected by drinking, but personally I know that I am highly sensitive to the affect of alcohol on my voice. I try to avoid it for at least a week before a big audition and when I'm having a drink make sure I'm also having water so my vocal cords don't get dried out

That's all I've got to report on, though I know other people have reported success with sore throat lozenges and decongestants, amongst other things. Feel free to let me know what tricks you have to help with a sore throat and if you're seriously worried about your voice/throat GO SEE A DOCTOR. I can't emphasise this last point enough, it's not worth damaging your voice in the longterm!

Until next time!

the pg drama app 

Everything's changing

I've made a bold change in my life recently; I've quit my job! I've mentioned before the struggles about finding the right job to suit you and your career (http://journeytodramaschool.blogspot.co.uk/2014/09/an-actors-problem-as-old-as-timethe.html) and my job's inflexibility and am pleased to announce that I've quit! It was a great way to earn money whilst things were very quiet on the audition front, but now things in my life are moving on I've been able to give it the boot too.

I had wanted to leave for a while, but hadn't been able to as I didn't have anything else lined up, but I'm pleased to announce that I'm going to be starting a new job that hopefully will provide me with what I need from a resting job. I'll keep you posted about this, and give you more information once I've worked for them for a bit, but needless to say I'm very excited!

Also I sent off the first of my applications, to RAM. This is probably the school that I'm most intimidated by, but I'm hopeful that my application was strong and that I'll be able to show my potential should they audition me. Found out I've got an audition since I started writing this post- so if you're reading this and wondering about applying to RAM be aware that they are quite prompt!

I'm currently prepping the 3 songs and 1 monologue that are required for my RAM audition. I'll let you know what they are in a future post on the off chance that someone from RAM is reading this! In the mean time I am singing like crazy, taking ballet classes like it's going out of fashion and single handedly keeping the honey industry in business. 

So that's me for now, hope you're all way! Best of luck to those of you auditioning in the next few months! 

Yours faithfully,

The post-grad app

That's my goal

Recently I've been thinking about what I'd like to have achieved in the next 12 months, and I thought it might be a good idea to come up with a list on here so that there's no avoiding it! Hopefully, in a years time I'll be able to look back on this list and think about all that I've accomplished. So without further ado:


1.Get into drama school
This is the big one, obviously there are no guarantees with the application process but I am trying/hoping/praying that this year will be my year

2.Do the splits- both sides and box splits! 
I'm taking dance classes and attempting to improve my rather limited flexibility as we speak. Gonna get there eventually!

3.Run a half marathon
Given that I struggle to do parkrun, this is currently looking less likely than me getting into every school I apply to. But I guess it's good to have dreams!

4.Get 2000 views on this blog
I'm already so chuffed with the number of you who've been reading, and to reach that goal would be absolutely amazing
- Achievement unlocked 30/4/15!
Genuinely so moved by the number of you who have followed this journey with me, thank you so so much! 

5.Become a half decent dancer
Not asking for any miracles here, just hoping that at some point I'll feel less like an elephant with an ingrown toenail when I'm at ballet...

6.Be paid to act

I've been to a fair few pro auditions, and it would be amazing if just one of these could actually translate into some work!

7.Become a semi-proficient musician (again)
For those of you currently unaware, I was once a pretty good pianist but in recent years I've let myself go. A lot. I really ought to try and get those skills back, who knows- they might help me get a job one day!

8.Be content with where I am
This is another big one, and I know it's pretty vague. I can't help but feel at the moment, that my life is on hold waiting for the results of another application cycle. I hope that, in a year's time, I'll feel like my life is slightly less directionless and that I'll be making some progress towards my dream career.

I'm going to publish this post, and then not look at it until either
a) the date is 27/10/2015 or
b) I accomplish one of my goals and get to strike it off the list!

Fingers crossed, I'll be back here before the end of the 12 months!

Yours faithfully,
the post-grad app

Sing!

It's fairly obvious that if you're applying for a Musical Theatre course you're going to have to sing, but it's worth remembering that you'll have to sing during parts of the audition process for straight acting too. With that in mind, I'd like to run through some basic do's and don't s for picking songs for auditions.

• DO pick a song you enjoy performing. You're going to have to rehearse it and perform it A LOT so don't pick something you hate or are immediately going to become sick of
• DON'T pick a song that is inappropriate for you. If you're a young teen auditioning for  NYMT, please recognise that singing "Not A Day Goes By" from "Merrily We Roll Along" might very well make you look like you don't understand your casting type. It just won't be believable that you could have the experiences that the character had. Likewise, if you're not an 8 year old girl, don't sing "Tomorrow".
• DO pick a song with a character journey- acting through song is amazing! This is particularly important if you're conscious that you might not be the best singer out there as it gives you a chance to show off your acting chops through song. There are lots of songs that are great for character singers so do some research and find one that suits you. 
• DON'T turn up without appropriately laid out sheet music (Yes, I have seen this happen...the offending person was promptly told off by the drama school panel). I am a pianist as well, and playing the piano is quite enough to do without having to keep track of loose pieces of paper. Also, remember to bring your music in the first place- don't just assume the pianist will know it (Yes, I have seen this. Multiple times. Sigh)
• DO pick off a song that shows what you can do technically. If you have a fantastic range, find a song that really shows it off rather than just sitting in one place. Likewise, if you have a great belt or some fantastic top notes, find songs that incorporate them. If you got it, flaunt it!
• DON'T pick a song which is out of your range. If you aren't comfortable hitting the money note in a song, don't risk singing it! It really is awful to hear someone sing a song with a well known money note and abruptly miss it (Vanilla Ice Cream, I Could Have Danced All Night, Green Finch and Linnet Bird etc.)
• DO read the instructions. Whether you're auditioning for drama school, a professional production or an amateur show there will be some indication of what you need to prepare. If they say to prepare 2 contrasting songs of your own choice, make sure you do! I have seen people turn up to auditions having only prepared 1 and it makes you look like you can't read, which is hardly ideal. If a show tells you not to sing something from the show then don't sing something from the show. I know this seems like a fairly obvious point but I always see someone who has ignored the instructions at auditions- make sure it's not you!
• DON'T belt an entire song. Yes you have a wonderful belt, we get it! But when you belt an entire song it gets very boring, very fast. Make sure you have somewhere to go in the song vocally.
• DO have a safe song prepared that you know you can sing if you've lost half your range. Unfortunately illness often strikes at the crucial moment so make sure you have an emergency song that you know you can nail if you have lost your voice. Vocal rest is obviously the best thing for you in these situations, but I recognise that if you have an audition date that cannot be changed sometimes you have to sing. Better to minimise the damage by singing a song you won't hurt yourself singing; if you try and sing a harder song whilst ill, it may sound terrible anyway so don't risk it!
• DON'T focus too much on what you think the other actors will audition with. Focus on making your song your own, and then if someone else does happen to sing it, your versions will be distinguishable from one another. Own it.

That's all I have for the moment, if you're interested I could write a bit more about specific shows/songs to avoid in a later post, but I hope this one has been helpful! As always, feel free to let me know if I can help you at all!

Until next time!

Yours faithfully,
the postgrad-app

Thank you for the music

I know that some of my readers may be slightly perplexed by the way I have discussed my experience and applications for both musical theatre and straight acting. The two are fairly distinct areas of performance, and if I'm completely honest, I've only just become certain of what I see myself doing.

Most of my performing experience is in straight theatre, but I've always been drawn to musicals. For a while I thought the sensible thing for me to do would be to train in straight acting then try to make the leap from straight acting to working in musicals, but I suddenly became aware that this wasn't really what I wanted to do.

My lightbulb moment came, when I thought about all my dream roles and realised that the vast majority were in musicals. If I want to work predominantly in musical theatre, then it makes no sense to train in something else. I know that singing and movement are integral part of straight acting courses, but given the specific nature of musical theatre I know it is far better to train on a course where I can immerse myself in developing the three core skills as much as possible, and become a true triple threat.

With that in mind, I am going to only be applying to one year MT courses, with one notable exception. I'm still in love with the two year acting course at LAMDA and so will be applying there as well...in the extremely unlikely situation that I get into LAMDA and one of my MT courses, I will have a very difficult decision to make!

Right now, the shortlist is looking like (in no particular order) : GSA, Mountview, LAMDA, LSMT and RAM. I would love to apply for more, but given how expensive it is, I am somewhat restricted.

Thank you to my readers so far, I've been bowled away that people are actually reading my angsty-actor rambles (outside of my family)! If you have any suggestions for things you'd like me to write about then just let me know!

Until next time!
Yours faithfully,
the postgrad-app

Dealing with rejection

This post was particularly hard for me to write. As much as I would love to be able to tell you to that after each audition you simply have to put that job to the back of your mind and forget about it, I'm all too aware that in reality it's just not that easy.

I tweeted the above, nearly a month ago and so far those auditions have translated into a big fat nothing. This shouldn't be alarming to me  (and it isn't) but unfortunately I let one of those auditions get to me. I can't put my finger on exactly what happened that made this job so hard to let go of, but I think it was a combination of a few things:

1)It was the first audition I had had in months (and I mean literally months)

2)It was an audition to play a real historical character

3)It was an audition for the kind of part I never normally get seen for, and probably won't anytime soon! 

4)The person auditioned me assured me I would be contacted within a week, at the latest

To be honest it was probably the last of those that got to me most. I accept that people are busy, but don't make promises about contacting me by a certain time if you can't do it! Eventually I found out it was a no over a week past the "deadline", by which point I had accepted it was probably going to be the case. I actually find it easier when you're told at an audition, or a job interview, that you will hear back by a certain point if you're successful (or not if you aren't). This enables me to forget a lot more easily and get on with my life! My frustration about this job has now passed, and I've been to other auditions since and am keeping busy.

My top tips for anyone in a similar situation are:

1) Keep busy, it'll keep your mind off it! Watch a film, read a book, go for a walk or look for more work. Whatever works for you

2)Don't constantly refresh your e-mails, it's only going to drive you mad when you've received nothing but spam!

3)Don't beat yourself up over it. Enjoy your audition as a performance in itself, but always be ready to accept that the role doesn't always go to the best actor, but often to the person the auditioner thinks is best for the role. It's extremely important to remember that these two aren't the same!

I hope this entry has been helpful to some of you out there, until next time!

Yours faithfully,

The postgrad app

Hard work, hard work!

After finally pulling myself out of my post summer slump, I'm pleased to announce that things at moving upwards for me. It would seem that auditions are just like London buses- you wait months for one and then several turn up at once! I am beyond thrilled about this even though the likelihood is that none of these auditions will translate to actual work, because I love performing so much, even if it's just in an audition room! 

People have asked me before how I find auditions, so I'm going to share with you my secrets. There are several resources I use:

1)the stage jobs- not thestagecastings but their actual jobs board. You need to be logged into an account to view the auditions on this board in full, but it's completely free to do so. I've found out about a handful of open auditions from this site, just be warned that if you go to one advertised there it's likely to be very busy so be prepared to queue!

2) ideastap- this site is mostly aimed at the under 25s and is a brilliant site for young actors. Not only does it advertised paid performing opportunities but it also advertises "briefs" that members can apply for which offer fantastic, career enhancing workshops and learning opportunities. Again, this is completely free to join so I would definitely recommend signing up and having a look to see if anything takes your fancy!

3)arts jobs- the job listings on here are fairly similar to those on ideas tap; there are jobs across the arts, from museums and galleries to jobs as dancers and musicians. I haven't found many performing opportunities on here, but as it's free to sign up there isn't too much to lose. 
 

4) social media- I know this is a rather general term but social media is fast becoming a brilliant way to discover performing opportunities. If you aren't using it to its full potential already, I strongly advise you to sign up on twitter and Facebook and make sure you're up to date on who's casting what and what workshop opportunities are out there. 

So, what are you waiting for? If you haven't already, get yourself signed up for these sites and start trying to find more opportunities for yourselves! Seize the day! 

Yours faithfully,

The postgrad app

N.B. I know I haven't mentioned several other casting sites, but I'm not the biggest fan of either StarNow or CCP so I feel it would be somewhat disingenuous for me to promote them. However if they work for you, then by all means carry on with them! 

I've also assumed that if this particular post is helpful to you then you most likely lack the requirements to join spotlight, hence its omission from this post as well.

An actor's problem as old as time....the resting job!

I am currently facing the age old problem that actors have- namely trying to find a job in order to survive that I can fit around my acting, and not the other way!

I've had quite a few jobs in the past year, some better than others, and have done most of the stereotypical "actor" jobs. Listed below is my analysis of each job I've worked in the past year

After graduating, I worked as a waitress for an agency. I still have fond memories of this job as I had some brilliant experiences, meeting fantastic people and working with some of my best friends. However I also realise that I romanticise several elements of the job when wistfully thinking about it and overlook a lot of the bad elements e.g. the time I couldn't use my arms after a solid working week of drinks service or how badly my feet bled in the shoes I had to wear...

Pros: highly flexible, easy job to get, around lots of similar minded young people so the working environment is quite fun

Cons: pay isn't fantastic and as it's temp work you don't often get tips, management are often incompetent and treat you like morons, strict dress code, quite a physically demanding role, work dries up at certain times of the year

Then I briefly worked in telesales  (never again!). This is not really something I would recommend, but nonetheless I have a few positives to remark on.

Pros: no dress code, around lots of similar minded people 

Cons: highly pressured environment, poor pay unless you're making a lot of commission, soul destroying work
N.B. This is not a terribly extensive list of pros and cons as I got fired after 2 weeks for not hitting my sales targets! Consequently, I was not really there long enough to gain a proper feel of the place.


I also worked as a freelance tutor. This was organised through a family friend, but there are also plenty of opportunities out there to work as a tutor for agencies if you're interested in becoming one.
Pros: great pay, nice work environment, not physically demanding and depending on the age of the child not terribly intellectually taxing either (whether this is a pro or con is down to you really!)
Cons: need a CRB, for agencies you'll need a degree, not many hours available, need to be good with children, need to have a lot of patience!


Currently I'm working, part-time, in a hospital.
Pros: well paid, good job security (when compared with the above jobs which are all zero hour contracts), fairly interesting job, not very physically demanding
Cons: inflexible, need a CRB
It's an okay job that I wouldn't mind doing if it was just a tad more flexible...so I'm currently still hunting for that elusive perfect resting job!


I'm still working out what suits me, and I've surprised myself with the skills I've managed to develop over the past year. Fingers crossed I can keep building on them, so that I can continue to afford to be an (aspiring) actor in London! Other suggestions from other actors for making money have included; running murder mystery nights, teacher drama/dance classes, producing and running your own theatre company, selling on eBay, working in care homes, working as a photographer and many others, so my list is by no means extensive! My advice to those of you out there in a similar predicament is to keep searching until you find something you are good at and like. Your resting job is not for you to endure, otherwise you will lose your mind. Keep looking for something that suits you, hold your head up high and keep fighting the good fight!


Until next time!

Yours faithfully,
the postgrad-app 

I've returned!

It's been an incredibly busy summer (sadly not full of acting jobs!) for me, so please excuse my absence from the internet. What exactly has happened? Well in all honesty, it's been a multitude of things....

Firstly, my resting job has been extremely busy and overwhelming the past few months. I've been working 48 hour weeks then coming home exhausted, eating, sleeping then repeating the cycle. At the weekend, all I want to do is sleep some more and the more I've seen my self imposed writing deadlines pile up, the harder it's been to start up again.

Secondly, it's been a tough month emotionally. I've been very distracted from my acting goals for a number of reasons. Somewhere during the summer, I lost my focus and I'm only just regaining my mojo. 

I'm starting to turn over a new leaf, and am trying to tackle my problems, which boils down to me trying to get the right balance in my life by having enough money to survive and having the flexibility I need to perform. This is by no means a unique problem, and I'll talk more about the various jobs I've had during my life in another post. Right now, I'm actively looking for other work and also trying to increase my performance experience. This past weekend I've spent at a musical theatre workshop which has refocused my energy and made me realise what's really important in life.
Life's too short to be miserable, so from now on I'm going to focus on making good choices for my future and staying positive(ish).  Fingers crossed I succeed!

Yours faithfully,
the postgrad-app 

Monologue Drama!

NB. Apologies for the delay in writing this post, I've had a hugely hectic week so have only just had the time to write this! I'll cover what I've been up to recently in a later post!

If you've been through a drama school audition cycle, you'll be well acquainted with the many hoops you have to jump through for auditions.

One of the most daunting and tedious is finding a monologue. As I only applied to two schools this year I planned to perform the same monologue for both (although as I didn't get through to the acting component of the Mountview audition I didn't perform them a second time).  I know that finding a good monologue that hasn't been done to death is a particularly arduous task for girls so I have two pieces of advice for any females auditioning for drama school:

1) don't stress about finding a completely unique Shakespeare monologue, the schools are aware that there aren't a huge amount of female monologues to chose from. That being said, it's probably still best to avoid Juliet's "O Romeo, Romeo, wherefore art thou Romeo?". Also worth bearing in mind is that unless the school has specified Shakespeare, there are a variety of other Elizabethan playwrights to choose from such as Marlowe.

2) read as many published scripts as you possibly can to find something that you enjoy and that suits you for your modern monologue. There are so many fantastic new plays being published with great monologues that there really is no excuse for having a poor modern monologue. French's bookshop and the National Theatre bookshop are two fantastic resources if you're London based and want to browse scripts. If not, investigate what your local library has, and charity shops are often a fantastic resource too.

These pieces of advice are of course applicable to males as well, though you have the benefit of a larger selection of choices.

For further reading about drama school applications, I thoroughly recommend reading "So you want to go to drama school?"by Helen Freeman. Available in both the NT bookshop and French's as well as online, it's a pretty good guide about what you should be doing to prepare yourself for the application cycle.

Hopefully this post will have given you an idea of ways to discover new monologues, I'll cover more about picking an appropriate monologue shortly. Until next time!

Yours faithfully,
the postgrad-app 

Three's a charm

During this application season I have reached three major realisations:

1) my vocal health is paramount, and I must do everything to ensure I look after it

2) I should try and see more theatre

3) I really need to take some dance classes....

I have made a solid effort to tackle all these so far.

1) my GP has sorted out an ENT (ears, nose and throat) referral so I'm going to have a specialist work out what's going on with my throat/voice. This is a HUGE relief, after having spent months having various investigations and not knowing what was going on. I will keep you all updated on my progress, but until I have some definitive answers/progress singing will be taking a back seat in my life. *cries*

2) Through the NT entry pass scheme, I've been to see some wonderful theatre for bargain prices. The entry pass means that if you're between 16-25 you can buy a ticket to see a selection of NT shows (subject to availability) for only £5 and a ticket for a friend (also aged between 16-25) for just £7.50. Considering that this is high quality theatre and in London you'd probably pay more for a cinema ticket, I can't urge you all to sign up quickly enough! You also get discounts and access to various workshops and events so if any of this sounds like it might be useful, I'll leave a link at the bottom of this post for you to find out how to get involved. There are other similar schemes running, such as the RSC key which is essentially the same but for the RSC's shows.
So far, I've seen Alan Ayckbourn's "A Small Family Business" and I'm going to see "Great Britain" next week. I'll write a separate post reviewing both shortly.

3)The dreaded dance class. I had planned to start with ballet and then take a modern/jazz class when I had a bit more time, but I made the mistake of overworking my legs by going for a run a few days before my first planned dance class and consequently pulled a muscle. Not badly mind, but enough that it affected my performance. I really ought to have just rested it, but being really keen to get my dance standard up and being incredibly stubborn, off I went to my first adult ballet class. I had found an open ballet class that catered to adults who had danced as children but hadn't danced since (perfect, you would think!). I went along, on what felt like the hottest day of the year and danced for an hour and a half. Although I felt out of practice, it was good to get back into ballet and I enjoyed the class and felt like I'd had a really good workout. Despite the description of the class level, there were clearly some dancers there who were far more advanced than me but I took solace in the fact that I could see others who were clearly worse than I was. That was until, after the class the teacher came up to me and said (in front of other class members) that this class was clearly much too advanced for me and I should go to the absolute beginners one (I looked up the schedule after he said this, and it clashes with when I work). I wouldn't have minded these comments too much if a) he hadn't humiliated me in front of other dancers and b) if he'd told anyone else the same, but I was the only person he approached. Ah well. Got to find a new dance class I guess, that's a tad more welcoming....watch this space!

Yours faithfully,
the postgrad-app 


http://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/discover-more/entry-pass   link for signing up for entry pass
http://www.rsc.org.uk/support-us/key/    link for signing up for RSC key

Drama School Audition 2: Mountview

WARNING, LONG AUDITION POST AHEAD!
NB. As you know I didn't get in, so I'm not sure how much advice I can give about actually auditioning successfully but, I hope that detailing my own experiences will help you with your own prep. 

When I applied for LAMDA, I was given an audition date two months later, so I had a fair amount of time to stress and prepare. Applying for Mountview was somewhat different. I had decided to apply, on the spur of the moment, for Mountview's postgraduate Musical Theatre course. I sent off the application, then didn't hear anything for another fortnight when they invited me to audition a further fortnight later- so don't panic if you apply and don't hear anything for a while!

Mountview provide you with fairly detailed instructions of what the audition will involve, and my experience was largely the same as other bloggers who've auditioned there. The only marked difference I can think of, is that as I was auditioning quite late in the academic year my audition consisted only of those auditioning for the PG course, rather than the mix of UG and PG applicants that other bloggers have described.

I arrived 40 minutes early (this is becoming a common theme for me...) and after being given a badge with a number on, I was directed up to the café to sit and wait with the other applicants. It's worth mentioning, at this point, that I have spent the past 12 months continually plagued with throat/ vocal problems. When I booked the audition, I felt unusually well and vocally strong. however as Sod's law would have it, that morning I woke up with tonsils the size of a tree and a mouth and throat that felt like I'd swallowed sandpaper. Typical.

Once we'd all arrived, we were taken to a separate building and given a brief talk on what the day would involve. Then, we were all taken through to the dance studio for the dance component of the audition. This started with an energetic warm up, which left me regretting my decision to wear black for the audition! Then we did some corner work, which consisted of us performing various exercises from one corner of the dance studio to the other on our own. For the vast majority of these exercises we were given the choice of a simpler and a harder exercise to perform. I unashamedly admit that I chose the easier option each time, as a) they kept saying it didn't matter which we chose and b) I thought I'd have more chance performing the easier ones well than the harder ones badly! With hindsight, this might not have been the most effective method but ah well- you live and you learn! 

We then learnt a dance sequence to "You can't stop the beat" from Hairspray, before performing it in groups of three. I can't claim to have performed this perfectly, as it was extremely fast and I am by no means a trained dancer but given the short amount of time to learn the moves I felt it went okay. There was a large mix of different abilities present, from those who had never taken a dance class before, to those who had dance degrees. I can safely say that I was somewhere between these two extremes!

Once the dancing was over, we were given a short break to change out of out dance clothes and have a drink. We were then lead into a studio to prepare for the singing component of the audition.  We had a short warm up as a group, and then sat down to audition, in alphabetical order. The standard of singing was pretty high,with one of the other auditionees actually managed to move me to tears! Given the state of my vocal cords, I was pleased with how well my song went, and relieved that my voice hadn't just broken in the middle of the song! I sang all of one of my songs, and then was asked to sing some arpeggios after to test my vocal range. Other auditionees were asked to to similar things, though some were asked for an excerpt of their second song or to repeat part of their original song again.

After we'd all finished, we were left in the room for around ten minutes whilst decisions were made about who was to stay for the next bit of the audition. Around 5 (out of 13) numbers were called, including mine and we were led into another room...to be told thanks but not this time! One thing that I did think was particularly useful about Mountview is that they did sit us down and give us individual feedback about why they didn't think we were right at that moment. Annoyingly I was told that I was "so close to getting a recall" and that I had nearly made it (not helpful Mountview!) and that my vocal quality had held me back that day. Cheers for that, tonsils...

All in all, it was a reasonably enjoyable day. The other auditionees were really talented and friendly and I always enjoy performing, even within an audition situation. If you're on the fence about auditioning next year, I'd say "go for it". You've got nothing to lose except the audition fee!

Until next time!
Yours faithfully,
the postgrad-app 

Drama school audition 1: LAMDA

From the moment I read the course description of the two year course at LAMDA, I was in love. Everything about it sounded perfect for me; the length of training, the classes and particularly the new writing component of the course. Alas, it was an unrequited love but I enjoyed it while it lasted!

My LAMDA audition was nothing out of the ordinary. I arrived at the school forty minutes before my audition (protip- always better to be half an hour early for an audition than five minutes late!), and so was taken to sit in the common room for about half an hour. Eventually I was called through to sit outside the audition room for a further ten minutes then eventually was called in.

For anyone who hasn't experienced an audition at LAMDA, I will warn you that it's a very quick process. Each school auditions conducts their first round auditions differently, with some preferring a workshop component that lasts around an hour as part of  the audition day but LAMDA operates what can be described as a conveyer belt audition. This means you go in, say your name, perform your two speeches then leave the audition room. The next person then goes in and this carries on. You then have a brief interview with a separate panel, which is pretty relaxed and mostly about yourself and your interests. The whole process lasts around ten minutes or so making it a pretty pricey audition (£44 currently) given the small amount of time you spend there. Despite all this, I enjoyed my time there, and given how nervous I was on the day I feel I performed pretty well.

Having not had a major acting audition in quite some time pre-LAMDA I was understandably nervous. I am naturally quite an anxious person and so started to worry about things could potentially go wrong. These ranged from the mundane; "What if I forget the words?/I lose my voice?" to the plain bizarre:
"what if I go to speak but vomit instead?". Thankfully nothing out of the ordinary happened, other than my voice slightly cracking during my Shakespeare speech, but I was able to push through it and carry on.

It's always so hard to gauge how well an audition like that has actually gone, but I left feeling better than when I arrived so I count that as a small victory in itself. Unfortunately LAMDA don't give feedback for first round auditions so I'll never know what I could have improved on. However, I'm trying to strengthen my application for next year in every way I can possibly think of so hopefully something will work!

Cheers for tuning in, until next time!

Yours faithfully,
the postgrad-app 

A brief history of mine

I wasn't one of those children who always knew they wanted to be an actor. In fact for many years, until injury struck, I was convinced I was going to be a professional dancer. In the words of the great philosopher, Forrest Gump "My momma always said 'life was like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get'". I found myself having to find a new dream in life, and flitted between various ideas for a number of years.

Like many children, I joined an amateur dramatics group, had fun and briefly entertained the idea of being a professional actress. Again, like many children, I dismissed this as merely a phase. However nearly a decade later, having finished university I found myself drawn towards performing. A lot of soul-searching, bad jobs and general thinking later I realised:

a) I want to be a professional actor
b) given the way that the acting industry works in this country (UK), the way to give myself the best start at my acting career is to train at a leading drama school

This of course, is not without it's problems. Drama school, particularly for us postgrads is prohibitively expensive (I'll cover the financial problems associated with drama school in a separate post later). Additionally, unless you've been living under a rock, you'll know it's incredibly competitive to get into.
I only auditioned for two schools this year, as I was testing the water and didn't manage to get recalls for either. But now, I know what needs to be done and I'm ready to put in that work for next year!

To all those that have been reading, and following so far- I wish you all the best with your individual journeys, thanks so much for joining me here!

Yours faithfully,
the postgrad-app 

Hello, hello, hello

The start of summer marks, for some, the end of a period of studying. This was the case with me last year, but the arrival of summer now marks a failure to have got into drama school in this cycle of applications.

To be perfectly honest, I wasn't 100% convinced this year that drama school was the right path for me at this stage of my life and so only applied to 2 courses this year. Sadly I realised I did want to go down that path, but the schools obviously thought it wasn't the right time! Not to be disheartened, I have picked myself up from my rejections and have formulated a cunning plan (or series of plans) to strengthen my application for next year.

I'm not really one for those wishy-washy statements like "everything happens for a reason", but I am hopeful that some good will come out of this. This will allow me the opportunity to gain experience, better myself as a performer, and extremely importantly (as other PG applicants  for drama school will know) to raise funds!

Tune in, follow my progress for the next year (and foreseeable future), and all shall be revealed!



Yours faithfully,
the postgrad-app