PUBLISHED 04 October 2022
Last week, the Drama Studio was a-buzz with pupils auditioning for the schools upcoming production of Chicago. This is my account of what took place over a series of performance workshops and call-backs.
From the day we all gathered in the drama studio to hear the musical announcement, to the final call-back, the whole process was nerve-racking, but extremely exciting!
After finding out that this year's show will be Chicago, interested performers were given QR codes to scan which took us straight to the audition pack. This was a booklet that contained an outline of the plot as well as a character break-down of all the principal roles. The pack also included our audition material. From here we needed to choose whether we wanted to be considered for an ensemble role or a principal part.
The auditions took place over three days, and students were really put through their paces. Which I enjoyed because it was as if we were given a taster of how productions are created in a professional setting.
Tuesday - the very first audition.
Dressed in black, students headed straight to the Drama Studio at 4.00pm. First up a vocal warm-up with Mr Brown followed by a physical warm-up with Miss Worthington. Feeling ready to go we then got stuck into the acting workshop. Line by line in mixed groups we created different character freeze frames which we then animated by adding character lines like, “Nobody walks out on me”, or “You mean nothing to me tuts”. I liked the fact that any student was able to explore these roles, whatever their age or gender.
Then, we were split into groups and the ensemble auditioned first with their rendition of “Roxie”. Then those interested in a male principal role shared their interpretation of “Razzle Dazzle”. I was interested in auditioning for a female principal role, and now it was our turn to audition – it's safe to say at this point I felt a combination of nerves and adrenaline. We a gathered in the studio and one-by-one, we performed our section of “All That Jazz”. Those who were selected for a call-back were contacted later that evening and asked to record a character monologue and return the next day. That night I prepared my Roxie monologue.
Wednesday - call-backs: round 1
The following day, the audition focused on acting and dancing. It was so exciting to be joined by Sinead, a brilliant choreographer from Langley's. Sinead taught us two dance routines to two iconic songs from Chicago. First-up, “All That Jazz”. We worked on this together recreating very stylish moves and poses. Then we learnt “Nowadays”, working in smaller groups. This number was more upbeat, incorporating elements of the Charleston.
After the dancing came script-work, where we all got the chance to perform in our group a scene featuring Roxie, Velma, Mama and Mary Sunshine. This allowed us to look at the different character relationships and explore the status within the scene.
Thursday – call-backs: round 2, the FINAL auditions
The final call-back involved a combination of acting, singing and dancing. With the vocal support from Mr Waterhouse and the direction of Miss Worthington, we rehearsed a new solo from the musical which enabled us to show our understanding of our characters to the Creative Team. We were re-joined by Sinead for the final part of the audition as we returned to the choreography of “Nowadays”, this time in pairs for our final dance which allowed us to explore different potential cast partnerships.
Friday – the cast announcement
The cast announcement took place on Friday break-time in the Drama Studio. First Miss Worthington shared the quote, “There is no such thing as small parts only small actors”. Then she revealed that the Creative Team were delighted to announce that everyone who auditioned had a place in the cast. Then the principal cast was read out and I was so proud to discover I had been cast as Roxie Hart. This really is a dream come true and I can’t wait to start the rehearsal process for our 2023 production of Chicago!