Penn Singers Light Opera Company is a four-year student musical theatre company based at the University of Pennsylvania that values inclusivity of all genders, races, sexual orientations, and identities. We are a tight-knit community of performers, musicians, and technicians committed to producing top-notch musical theatre and having fun!
","events":[],"facebook":"https://facebook.com/pennsingers/","github":"","how_to_get_involved":"Come audition and/or interview to be a performing member, tech member or orchestra member in Penn's one and only four-year light opera company! Each semester, we welcome the next class of ‘Singers’, and we’d love to have you audition. Below you will find information on how to audition and interview for each of the three branches of singers: Tech, Orchestra, Performing. You are welcome to audition for more than one member status, but be sure to pay attention to the unique requirements of each!
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\nPerforming Members:
\nHow to Apply: Auditions will occur on August 29th (10am-12pm), August 30th (3pm-6:30pm), and August 31st (5pm-7pm) in Platt Performing Arts House. Your audition will only take approximately 15 minutes and you are welcome to come on any day. Please use the link below to sign up for an audition slot! We do also take walk-ins.
\nhttps://calendly.com/pennsingers/penn-singers-performing-auditions-clone
\nAudition Material: Please prepare to sing 32 bars (about 30 seconds) of a song in the musical theatre or classical/opera canon. You may sing acapella or with a backing track. Additionally, we will have you perform some scales and tonal recall exercises to do a vocal range test (no need to prepare anything for this). We are just trying to get an idea of your range and ability to recall notes. Lastly, we will ask you to perform a short acting side of your choice from a list of sides available in the audition waiting room. The side will not be expected to be memorized, so there is no need to prepare anything for this portion. We will additionally use this audition as a space for you to learn more about our company, ask any and all questions you may have and to gauge your personal fit with the company!
**Auditions for Fall Show**
\nNOTE: Lead auditions for our Fall Show, will happen once admitted to the company. Only Performing Members in the company are allowed to audition for leads in our productions and every Singers Performing Member is guaranteed a role in all of our productions.
\nAuditions: Auditions will take place in-person and will be done in front of our professional Directors. Performing members auditioning for the show will be required to sing 32 bars of a song in the style of the show. You are welcome to use the same song you performed for New Member auditions as long as the song aligns with the genre of the show. After auditions, the Directors will schedule callbacks to take place that same week. This callback may include singing or reading from the show. All callback material will be sent to you in advance.
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\nTech Members
\nApplicants are required to fill out an application and attend a chill, casual interview with our current Tech Directors. You will fill out your application at the interview! Interviews will be August 29th (10am-12pm), August 30th (3pm-6:30pm), and August 31st (6:30pm-8:30pm) in Platt Lobby at very similar times to perfrming auditions, so you can attend both if you would like.
\nInterviews are casual and last around 10 minutes; they give the Tech Directors a chance to understand where and how your interests can best fit our company. No experience is required to apply—we’d love to meet anyone interested in tech! Please email us at pennsingersvicepresident@gmail.com if you are to attend tech interviews! As always, please feel free to send any questions that you may have about interviews or Singers Tech to us as well. :)
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\nOrchestra Members
\nHow to apply and basic info: Auditions will be held on September 3rd from 4pm-8:30pm in Platt Performing Arts House (Platt 176). Walk-ins are welcome, but we prefer it if you sign up at the form which can be found at our instagram, @pennsingers.
\nIf there is a time conflict, please contact the Librarian and Orchestra Manager (LOM), Daniel Banstetter, at pennsingerslom@gmail.com before the deadline and we will work on a solution.
\nAudition contents: The audition will consist of two sections: (1) instrument performance, and (2) an interview.
\nFor the instrument performance section, you will be required to perform one lyrical and one technical passage of music for about 30-60 seconds each*. The selections do not have to be from any particular genre. Please select what you feel will best express yourself as a musician! You may choose to audition on multiple instruments, which will occur within the same audition slot (though if necessary additional time accommodations can be made). Each instrument will require their own lyrical and technical passages. *Percussionist auditionees are exempt from the lyrical passage; please instead perform two separate technical passages.
\nFor the interview section, which will occur after the instrument performance section, you will have a casual conversation with Dan following some guiding topic questions.
\nIf you are accepted you will have priority for parts in future shows as a member of the company! If you have any questions about orchestra or the requirements, you are welcome to contact Dan at pennsingerslom@gmail.com
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\nPenn Singers Light Opera Company is a four-year company. This means that once applicants are admitted into the organization, they do not have to interview or audition in the future. Performers will be asked to audition for the production’s professional director every semester, but their place in the company and in any production is always guaranteed. We perform a Broadway style musical in the Fall and a Light Opera in the Spring and all company members are expected to participate somehow in both semesters. We provide multiple ways to participate so that our members can adjust their commitments every semester depending on their workload while still being involved – in the production and socially – in the company.
The average time commitment for a Singers member varies depending on the branch. Performing members performing in our productions rehearse from 5-10 hours a week. Tech members are expected to work on tech from 2-4 hours a week. Orchestra rehearses 3-4 times before tech week (~5-8 hours in the semester before tech week). If someone would like to be a part of multiple branches, they have flexibility to choose which branch to be active in – and how active they want to be – every semester.
Penn Singers dues range from approximately $15-30 depending on your social commitment with the club. If dues pose any barrier to your involvement with the club, we are always able and willing to make arrangements so that anyone can be a part of Singers.
\nIf you have any withstanding questions, don't hesitate to reach out to us by email (pennsingers@gmail.com), or through our social media channels!