Finals, Auditions, Juries, Oh My!

The MT Freshman class!

We officially have one week left of freshman year! Saying that out loud feels insane. I just got here, right? Well now that we are in our final few days of the semester, it is officially the craziest time of the year for the theater majors. On top of finals in our regular classes we also have auditions, juries, dance exhibitions and freshman showcase. Luckily I was able to take my final exam for two of my classes this past week so it didn't fall at the same time as everything else. I still have plenty of finals to take in the next week because I thought it would be smart to schedule myself for 20 credit hours. 

Auditions for the next semester's shows always fall at this time and it is probably the worst possible timing. We have so much going on and it is awful to add the stress of auditions on top of that. These auditions are specifically for the fall musical and play intensive. When we return to campus in August we will audition for the dance show and Holiday Spectacular. I actually just got back from my audition as I am writing this and it went pretty good! We have callbacks Friday and Saturday, so we will see how that goes. 

One of the scariest things we have to do as musical theater majors is a jury. Many people do not know what this is so I will explain it! Throughout the semester we take a weekly voice lesson. In these lessons we work on several songs looking at vocal technique and how to better our voice. We also have to memorize all of our pieces. At the end of each semester we have vocal juries, which is where you have to have all of your songs prepared and memorized to perform for the vocal staff. Here is where it gets scary. Going into a jury, you have no idea what you will be asked to sing. The staff has a list of songs that you worked on over the semester that they can choose from and they will pick two pieces for you to perform. They will then use that performance to give you a grade for the entire semester. So a lot is riding on this! 

The next thing I am stressed about is the dance exhibition. This is where each of the dance classes that were offered over the semester performs a piece showing what they have been working on. Last semester I was in Ballet I and we did a pretty simple dance. Although this is a very low-key event, I am still nervous because we are performing a very advanced tap piece. I have loved taking Tap I this semester, but I have never taken a tap class before this, so this will be my first time performing a tap piece. We also have a really big tap final that I am nervous about. My instructor will put all of the terms we learned over the semester in a basket and we have to pick five terms and do them for her on the spot. We also have a written exam on the history of tap, so it is a lot. 

Right after the dance exhibition is the freshman showcase! This I am excitedly scared for. This showcase is used to basically introduce our class to the rest of the department and friends. We have worked on preparing this showcase for a few weeks now and we are so excited to show it to everyone! It is going to be so good. We have three big group numbers and all 15 of us will sing a short solo. I am a little scared because even though I am a performer, I always get so nervous. I will especially be nervous because this is my first time singing by myself in front of all of my peers. After this showcase is over, I am done for the semester! So I will end freshman year with a bang. 

It feels like I will still be on campus for weeks with the amount of stuff I have to do, so it hasn't hit me that I will be saying goodbye to all my friends and leaving campus in a week. Part of me feels like I have been here forever, but the other part feels like I moved in yesterday. It scares me a little bit how much this year flew by because now I feel like I will blink and be a senior. I am just trying to enjoy every moment because people weren't lying when they say these are the best years of your life. Though I am incredibly stressed with all the things I have yet to do, I know that in a week I will wish that I had more to do so that I wouldn't have to leave just yet. So long freshman year, you were very good to me!