Building a Notebook 

Up Tempo 
Ballad 
Cabaret Tunes 
Patter Song 
Comedic/Character 
Speech-Sing 
Unique/Lesser-Known 
Miscast/Gender-Bender 
 
Legit/Classical/Traditional 
● Cross Over at its purest sense 
● Classical sound in nature 
● Operatically inclined voices 
● Strong legato 
● Microphones 
○ She Loves Me, Guys & Dolls, Kiss Me Kate, South Pacific, My Fair Lady, The 
Most Happy Fella, On The 20th Century 
 
Jukebox Tune/Pop Song 
● Movie Musicals 
● Story may diverge greatly 
● Revolve around a particular, popular songwriter 
● Gimmick is built around a particular concept or performance technique 
○ Anastasia, Heathers, Legally Blonde, Frozen, Aladdin, Big Fish, Ghost, Sister 
Act, Hamilton, In the Heights, La Cage aux Folles, Pippin, The Cher Show, 
American Idiot, Beautiful 
 
Contemporary 
● Post 1975 
● More reminiscent of pop styles in the 60s, 70s, 80s 
● Higher belting, mixing, speak-singing 
● Microphones 
○ Working, Hair, Company, The Fantasticks, Chess, Hairspray, Les Miserables 
 
 
 
 
 
Modern/Contemporary 
● 1996 to present 
● Movie adaptations common 
● Returns to classic literature 
● Pop/Rock influences 
● Microphones 
○ Jekyll & Hyde, Suessical, The Addams Family, Beauty & The Beast, The Lion 
King, Triumph of Love, Bat Boy, Notre Dame de Paris 
 
 
Operetta/Cross-Over 
● Born out of opera 
● Mixture of voice 
● Descent of vibrato 
○ Pirates of Penzance, Pinafore, The Mikado, Trial By Jury, Street Scene, Sound of 
Music, Cinderella, King & I, Into the Woods, Company, Sweeney Todd, A Little 
Night Music 
 
How to get trained in this? 
● MT Pedagogy Programs 
○ Somatic Voice Works/LoVetri Method 
○ Contemporary Commercial Music Institute 
○ Estill Training 
○ Complete Vocal Training - Sadolin 
● Musical Theatre Schools 
○ Oklahoma City University 
○ NYU 
○ Baldwin Wallace 
○ UW-Stevens Point 
○ Viterbo University 
○ Millikin University 
○ Cincinnati Conservatory of Music 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Audition Requirements & Cuts 
● Full, 32, 16, 8 bars 
● What shows you off? 
○ “The Moment” 
○ Mark it clearly 
○ Label everything 
● Don’t sing something from the show, current season, current Broadway musical, 
or from the past two years. 
● PLAN 
○ Research the company - casting preferences, show history, values, casting 
call 
■ What show is this? 
■ What characters am I fit for? 
■ What style of music is this? 
■ What song can I sing to lead them to my character? 
■ Who else will be at the audition? 
■ What are the requirements? 
○ Choose and practice your music WELL IN ADVANCE 
○ Choose your cuts 
○ Rehearse your “slate” 
○ Practice what you’ll do in your audition 
○ Be personable to EVERYONE 
○ Don’t lose your uniqueness 
○ Dress comfortably 
■ Possibly like the character 
■ Clothes for dance call 
○ Cope with rejection 
■ How did you truly do? 
■ What was the mood of the staff? 
■ Confidence 
 
Resources 
● Singer’s Musical Theatre Anthologies 
● YouTube Rabbit Holes 
● Streaming Services 
● Public Libraries 
● The Interweb