Life is a Cabaret (obvious musical reference.)
This weekend was my first NYC cabaret experience. These cabarets are usually a group of 10-20 performers who take turns singing songs at the mike for an audience of their family and friends. Popular performance venues are The Duplex or Don't Tell Mama's which are bars with small stages attached to them.
Some cabarets are a bit scammy. The organizers prey on just-off-the-bus talent and pressure them to sell tickets to their friends. Not only is there the ticket price, there's a two drink minimum. By the end of the night your loving, supportive friends end up shelling out $50 and had to sit through 15 other songs and only heard you sing once. I've been approached for a cabaret where you have to sign a contract, which is a huge red flag. If you didn't reach the ticket minimum, you owed the producer 10% of the rehearsal rental cost. Why should I pay you for the opportunity to sing? You should be paying me!
This cabaret was a little different and much looser. It was held at a 55-seat blackbox theater in Chelsea, with an open bar included in the $20 ticket price. That's pretty cheap for drinking in Manhattan! The house was close to full both nights, and the audience was tremendously supportive, cheering before and after every performer. Due to the open bar, the room slowly got drunker as the night went on. I've got to say - I think I perform better with a drink in me!
This experience was an eye-opener. I got to try out some new rep that I absolutely love, but have never been able to do more than sixteen bars. I've always leaned towards the legit musical theater side of the industry, but I challenged myself to try to sing in a more contemporary style. I got some great feedback, and will get some video footage soon.
As someone who auditions constantly, singing an entire song is such a blessing! In New York you can feel that no one has time for you, especially in audition situations. You might get 32 bars if you are lucky. I've been doing abbreviated clips for so long, that I've forgotten what its like to tell a complete story; to enjoy the journey of the song and take your audience along for the ride.
The best way to get seen in this city is to make your own work, stay creative and perform as much as possible. In that vein, I've decided to put together my own one-woman show to go up at the end of August. This is something that has been cooking in my brain for some time, but now I've finally got the guts to actually do it. I have so many songs that I love and am dying to share with an audience, I have a business degree, I'm pretty savvy, so....why the hell not?
Maybe I'll call my show, "Brightly, Brittany."
Some cabarets are a bit scammy. The organizers prey on just-off-the-bus talent and pressure them to sell tickets to their friends. Not only is there the ticket price, there's a two drink minimum. By the end of the night your loving, supportive friends end up shelling out $50 and had to sit through 15 other songs and only heard you sing once. I've been approached for a cabaret where you have to sign a contract, which is a huge red flag. If you didn't reach the ticket minimum, you owed the producer 10% of the rehearsal rental cost. Why should I pay you for the opportunity to sing? You should be paying me!
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| The Blackbox Theater at Joria Studios |
This cabaret was a little different and much looser. It was held at a 55-seat blackbox theater in Chelsea, with an open bar included in the $20 ticket price. That's pretty cheap for drinking in Manhattan! The house was close to full both nights, and the audience was tremendously supportive, cheering before and after every performer. Due to the open bar, the room slowly got drunker as the night went on. I've got to say - I think I perform better with a drink in me!
This experience was an eye-opener. I got to try out some new rep that I absolutely love, but have never been able to do more than sixteen bars. I've always leaned towards the legit musical theater side of the industry, but I challenged myself to try to sing in a more contemporary style. I got some great feedback, and will get some video footage soon.
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| After the show with my Kentucky Shakes friend, Shannon |
As someone who auditions constantly, singing an entire song is such a blessing! In New York you can feel that no one has time for you, especially in audition situations. You might get 32 bars if you are lucky. I've been doing abbreviated clips for so long, that I've forgotten what its like to tell a complete story; to enjoy the journey of the song and take your audience along for the ride.
The best way to get seen in this city is to make your own work, stay creative and perform as much as possible. In that vein, I've decided to put together my own one-woman show to go up at the end of August. This is something that has been cooking in my brain for some time, but now I've finally got the guts to actually do it. I have so many songs that I love and am dying to share with an audience, I have a business degree, I'm pretty savvy, so....why the hell not?
Maybe I'll call my show, "Brightly, Brittany."
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ReplyDeleteGo Brit! Love the idea!
ReplyDelete