Posts Tagged ‘singapore’
A year ago I was someone else…
I found out yesterday that Universal Studios Singapore is holding their audition tour again in a month. I auditioned last year, quite successfully I thought seeing as I was onboarded but then missed out on a job. It was a really hard thing for me to do and i got a lot furthur than I ever expected I would. I was lacking in confidence when I went and did it more due to my circumstances last year than any undying passion to work at a theme park. This year though I’m not sure it is worth me going through it again.
Last year I was in a place where I didn’t want to be. I was in a large amount of financial debt, I was working at a school I didn’t particularly like, dealing with people and situations which were putting too much stress on my already stressed out mind, I was constantly getting sick and I was dealing with my own personal demons of thinking my life was heading nowhere. In twelve months a lot has turned around.
This year I am in a place I mostly want to be. I have cleared up most of my debts including my huge personal loan, I work for three different companies performing jobs that I have a lot of fun in, I have new friends at WAAPA who I enjoy spending time with and learning new things with, I haven’t been sick in a long time and I finally feel like I am headed in the right direction with my performing. I am learning a lot about who I am and I get to spend my days doing things like singing and learning French, which makes me incredibly happy.
Even though Universal is still there and will continue to be there I’m not going to audition this year. It would be an amazing job and a great opportunity but I am in a different place now. I have chosen a path which is going to lead me in a different direction to the one I thought I was headed for last year.
I am still disappointed that the job didn’t work out last year and I didn’t get to spend a year working and singing in Singapore, but I am happy that it took that moment to get me to reexamine my life and make decisions like going to WAAPA and quitting my teaching job, decisions which were very difficult but have proven to be good for me. I am much happier than I was and with a little hard work maybe one day I will get a contract as good as the one I missed out on last year.
Image taken by Ben of a very happy Emma, a huge change from the dark and stormy 2010 version.
These last few weeks have been hard. I have been sick, I have had major issues at school, I am anxious and stressed. It all exploded not last Tuesday but the one before when after getting spots (like I had before the wedding) I then had a break down at school. The last post I made on here was a whinge about how I had been effectively kicked out of the English department and as a result I was starting to feel less and less like I belong.
I guess I have always felt like I belonged. I have gone through school, work, social clubs, friendship groups, always feeling like I had a place there. The first time I really felt like I didn’t belong was last year when I went to Singapore. Now that feeling is back. I don’t really fit in at school and I guess the whole kicking out of the English department has further cemented that feeling. Last week I missed three days of school to “stress leave” and am now only just starting to feel comfortable at school again.
I am also attributing some of the stress to the anxious waiting about Singapore. For the past two weeks I have been able to console myself with the thought that it was only early August so I wouldn’t know about the job yet, but as of two days ago I have been able to say that “Okay, now it actually is getting into late August. Why haven’t they called yet?”. Every day that goes past adds more to my increasing anxiety that maybe I wasn’t as good as I thought I was at the audition and the jobs have already been handed out and I don’t even know it yet. It is made even worse by the thought that I will be the first one to know if I do have the job whereas Ben will be the first to know if I don’t because he is the only one who has any contacts with other auditionees. It sucks.
So sickness, stress and anxiety and making for a very difficult time for me at the moment. At least I have Fiddler on the Roof rehearsals to keep my mind off things and keep me smiling.
Image by Jenser (Flikr)
Last week I attended auditions for Universal Studios Singapore. It wasn’t my first audition and it probably won’t be my last, but looking around the room and listening to some of the conversations that were taking place it became very apparent that for a lot of the people there it was their first audition and many of them were learning what it means to audition while they were auditioning.
So I decided that it would be a good idea to put together a little list of things that I have learned over the years that have helped me in any audition situation. Some are blindingly obvious but others you don’t realize their importance until it is too late.
1. Know what you are auditioning for!
When I turned up for the Universal Studios auditions there was a lady in front of me, well into her late thirties. She had received a call the night before from her agent informing her that there were auditions on for singers. With no information beyond that, she promptly turned up and then proceeded to ask everyone who would listen to her what the audition was for. It became apparent to her after entering the holding room and seeing that everyone was under thirty and dressed to dance that she was not at an audition she was suited for.
2. If there is an audition brief read it until you can memorize it and bring it with you to the audition!
Universal had four different shows they were casting each requiring a different skill set. They had a monster show which was very hip-hop based and pop rock. Then there was the Kowabunga Kove show which was loosely based on the musical Hairspray and featured a lot of 50′s dance moves and cutesy bubblegum tunes. Then there was the Madagascar show which is all suit work and the Shrek 4D show which required excellent impersonation skills. Knowing what is on offer will help in your performance and shows that you want to work for them.
3. Don’t limit your options by only rehearsing for the roles you want!
On my audition sheet I had put that I wanted to audition for the Monster Rock Show and the Kowabunga Kove Show. In addition to looking at these two shows on YouTube and researching the role requirements, I also researched the other shows and characters I didn’t think I was suited for (either because I was too tall, short, no the right skin colouring etc). It paid off when I was asked to read for the role of Betty Boop. I had watched a couple of cartoons on her and was familiar enough that I surprised the audition panel with a good rendering of a Brooklyn accent.
4. Wear something appropriate!
There was a number of girls who turned up for the dance part of the audition in crop tops, fishnets and micro shorts. Universal is a family orientated theme park, dressing like a stripper did these girls no favors (in fact a number of them were asked to put shirts on before being allowed to audition). Remember what you are auditioning for and let that steer your wardrobe choices. Also try to wear something distinctive like a bright colored shirt or leotard, avoid all black and writing on shirts. Anything that draws the attention away from you like funny pictures or slogans is never a good idea.
5. Wear the same outfit to each call back!
Where possible wear the same outfit to each callback. At the Universal Studios auditions there were over 100 different girls auditioning. by wearing the same outfit to each callback the audition panel has an easy reference to who you are and will remember you much easier. Remember you got a callback because they liked what they saw, so don’t change it!
6. Give an opening night performance!
Rehearse your piece so much that there isn’t a chance in the world that you will stuff up. Your performance should be as polished as it would be on opening night. The audition panel wants to see what you have to offer so you want to offer your best.
7. Don’t engage in gossip or idle chit-chat in the holding room!
That doesn’t mean you have to tell people to piss off if they try to be friendly, just remember that you are there to audition not to catch up on what happened on the weekend. Keep your focus and concentrate on the job at hand.
8. Warm-up properly!
It can be daunting to start warming up your voice in a crowded room but believe me it will make life so much easier for you. As soon as it was announced that we would be singing first I took my vocal exercises warm-up tape into a corner and started to warm up. I felt ridiculous calling out “I love to sing” into a crescendo but it made me feel so much more at ease when it was my time to audition. You really need to forget about everyone else and just concentrate on yourself.
9. Be nice to everyone, not just the audition panel!
Some auditions will have a PITA inspector in the holding room. They will look like a normal auditionee but they are there to determine if you are going to be a Pain In The Arse or not (hence PITA). Don’t put people down, don’t bitch about other auditionees, don’t say how unfair it is that you had to dance before you sang because you are a much better singer, don’t be rude to the girl at the front desk, just be nice. You will have to work with others if you get the contract and no one wants to spend months on end with a person who can’t go a couple of hours without bitching and complaining.
10. If you are sick, then you are sick!
If you are sick it is okay to tell the audition panel, but only tell them once and once only. You don’t need to tell anyone else and the last thing people want to hear is the same sob story about you being sick over and over again. Auditioners, especially singing auditioners can usually tell when a person has a cold. If you are too sick to audition, put it down to bad luck and stay home. No one wants a sick person at the audition.
Smile and do your best! In the end remember that the audition panel wants you to be good. They are there to find the best people to fill the jobs they have on offer. They don’t want to see people who are nervous, scared, not confident, bitchy or any of the rest. They want you to be amazing…so go be amazing!
Have you ever been so excited about something but it wasn’t definite so you didn’t want to get too carried away but inevitably you do? I have many times in my life.
There was the time when I was ten years old and I had begged and begged and begged my mum and dad to get my “The Grape Escape” board game for Christmas. I believed I had dropped enough hints about wanting it and then two weeks before Christmas a board game sized box appeared under the Christmas tree that I couldn’t help but wish and hope and dream. You can imagine my disappointment when Christmas day rolled around and I opened the wrapping to reveal the “Wheel of Fortune” board game.
Then there was the news of the baby. From the moment I saw those two little red lines on the pregnancy test I was over the moon with excitement. There wasn’t a moment where I wasn’t thinking about baby names, or savings money for baby things, or examining my belly for any sign of it getting bigger. I made plans and dreamed huge dreams for my little family. That all came crashing down on New Year’s Eve.
Now I am excited again. Last week Ben and I went to Sydney. I was so scared about the real reason we went that I told everyone that we were just going on a holiday. The real reason though was that I was auditioning for Universal Studios Singapore to work as a Singer and Dancer. The reason I was so scared was that I have been to big casting call auditions before and have never gotten further than the second round. I also have very little confidence in my singing and dancing ability since stopping any formal training in both things nearly a year ago. I didn’t want to get too excited in case everything didn’t go too well and then I would have to share my disappointment with everyone. I was much happier knowing only Ben and I knew and felt a lot less under pressure.
The exciting news is, that I was successful (and in a nice little twist of fate it all occurred on T-Rex’s due date). I haven’t been offered a job as yet but I am close. I am up to what they call “on-boarding” which basically means that once they have finished with the audition tour they will go to those who have been on-boarded and give out jobs. It does still mean however that I may miss out, which sucks!
I am so excited about the prospect of working in Singapore in a field I love that I can’t stop imagining all the things that would change in my life, but then when I get too excited a little voice kicks in saying “Remember you don’t have the job yet! You could be stuck teaching forever!”
Why does this negativity overtake me all the time? I can be over the moon excited and then that voice sends me into such a depressing cycle downwards that I struggle to not let it take over too much. My experiences in the past niggle in the back of my mind, reminding me of how horrible a feeling it can be to come crashing down but then I still had that joy waiting and dreaming.
I am enjoying this feeling of excitement, but I want it to last this time. I find out at the end of August. I just want to get that phone call saying that I am on my way to a new life.
Image by Prayitno (flikr)
This honeymoon of ours has been quite an adventure. For Emma, returning to Singapore was more than a little emotionally loaded and for me, well I tend to get caught up in the “is this really worth that?” comparisons.
On the last night of our holiday, we found something so dreadful, so over priced and that it’s turned full circle into hilarity. Hotel 81 Rochor in Singapore is, without a doubt, the worst place we have stayed ever. Why, you ask?
The tiny room contains:
- a leather bound matress with latex sheets that don’t actually cover the matress if you tuck them in (we had to make the bed ourselves)
- The toilet has a shower over it – so to have a shower, you actually have to dodge the toilet bowl.
- The (two) windows are cut in half by the walls of the room and have been filled in with green glass, we can’t figure out how to open them – the view is probably spectacular.
- The pillows are covered with transparent disposable pillow covers – like interfacing fabric.
- And the entire floor seems to be washable tiles with a grip pattern.
It’s so bad it’s good; you know? We have survived the night in a hostile environment and it’s brought us closer together. Our desire to have a good time has won the day.
I think this is a really good result for our relationship!
