School of Rock Class – Children’s auditions

The Characters

If you wish to be considered for both the band and general class, then it is important that you register for both and audition separately for both.

Summer Hathaway (Mezzo-Soprano F5-A3) – A high achiever who is Top of the class. She is confident & outspoken & the band’s manager. A pop/ Rock singer who also moves well.

Tomika (Mezzo-Soprano G5 – A3) – New to the school & struggles to make friends despite ongoing encouragement from her 2 dads. Has a phenomenal singing ability and becomes a lead vocalist alongside Dewey in the band. A pop/ Rock/ Gospel singer who also moves well.

Billy Sandford (Tenor F5-B3) – a flamboyant and artistic boy with a flair for fashion but wrestles with other challenges at home. His father wants him to be a footballer. Billy designs the costumes for the band. A pop/ Rock singer who also moves well.

Marcy & Shonelle – clever and sassy girls with style! They are the band’s back up singers and dancers. Pop/ Rock singers who also move well.

Sophie  – technically the band’s “roadie” but also serves as a back up dancer at performances. A pop/ Rock singer who also moves well.

Mason Ward – a “technical” whizz who creates fantastic special effects & designs the lighting on his laptop. A pop/ Rock singer who also moves well.

James  – tough & reliable & the “security guard” for the band. His main job is to keep an eye out for anyone coming while the band is rehearsing! A pop/ Rock singer who also moves well.

Ensemble – 8 other children with group singing and acting.

Audition Requirements – Class

The childrens’ ensemble is open to those aged 10-14. (15 or 16 year olds may audition if you are small in stature and can pass for a younger student).

The auditions for the Childrens’ ensemble will be held in 2 main stages. The 1^st stage will consist of a video submission. You should record a 30 second own choice song (accompanied or unaccompanied) and an own choice joke/monologue/poem and attempt an American accent. You will then attend a GROUP vocal audition and a GROUP Movement audition in person (all applicants). The vocal audition will be held in a group “cattle call” style where you will sing a set song with harmony. You are encouraged to learn all parts, but if you can only manage one that is acceptable.

When completing your application online, you will need to select a spot in a VOCAL audition and a MOVEMENT audition. The creative team will then invite those successful from the vocal and movement auditions to an acting audition where you will undertake tasks set by the director. No preparation is required for this audition. This will be held on the Sunday afternoon (1st May) at 5.30pm. Further callbacks (if required) will be on the 2^nd May.

An accompanist will be provided for ALL CHILDRENS’ auditions. Also, the children are portraying “Elementary School” students, therefore they will not be able to be too tall. Please list their height accurately on the application form & make certain you include with a FULL body length photo as well as a headshot.

Audition Material

Music for the Group Vocal harmony audition will be emailed to applicants before the audition weekend.

Video Requirements

When setting up your video recording:

• Choose a monologue/poem/joke that is about 30 seconds long and a section of a song that is also about 30 seconds long. The panel will not be able to listen to your whole piece if it extends this time. Instrumental players should record their whole set piece.
• Choose an enclosed space (not a staircase, hallway, outdoors)
• Check you have good lighting, so you are clearly visible in the video
• Make sure your whole body is visible (especially your hands if you have chosen to submit an instrumental audition. Drummers should film from above)
• Set up the camera on a tripod or a flat surface – not handheld
• Do some tests to check the audio level. Make sure you are audible when singing quietly and don’t distort when singing loudly. Check that your voice is louder than any accompaniment. You may need to move the camera/microphone a few times to get this right
• Check for background noise which may interfere with your recording. You may need to plan for a suitable time of day or location for making your recording without background noise
• Record yourself a minimum resolution of 720p and in one of the following file format: MP4, MOV, AVI. (Many mobile phones can achieve these technical requirements.)

When recording your video:

• Clearly announce at the start of the video: “My name is [first name, surname] and today is [date]. I am [age] and I am auditioning for [band or general class]. The song I will be performing is [title] by [composer].”
• The video must be in one continuous take, with no editing (titles, cuts, cropping, etc). Applicants who submit separate pieces for each task will be asked to resubmit their videos

When uploading your video:

• Make sure it is a MP4, MOV, or AVI file
• The file name must be “firstname_surname_SchoolofRockAuditionBand” or “firstname_surname_SchoolofRockAuditionChildren”
• Upload your file to the link in the checklist box above.