Musical Theatre

Musical Theatre applicants must submit a prescreen video in order to be considered for an invitation to an in-person or recorded audition. Select applicants will be invited to audition in January.

Step 1: Prescreen

• Include ALL required repertoire, as listed in the dropdown menu below.
• Upload your prescreen recordings directly to your application.
• Prescreen Deadline: December 1.
• Videos do not have to be a professional or studio recording, but the sound quality should be of high quality and should accurately reflect your musicianship.
• Each piece or movement should be uploaded as a separate video. However, each individual video must be unedited.
• As you prepare for your MSM MT audition, we ask that you consider presenting at least one song or monologue by an underrepresented creator.

Prescreen Repertoire Requirements

We will be following The Musical Theatre Common Prescreen. Our guidelines are as follows:

Songs: Option A.

• One song written before 1970 (musical theatre, Golden Age, pop, folk, rock, soul, country, etc.).
• One song written after 1970 (musical theatre, pop, hip-hop, folk, rock, rap, soul, country, punk, etc.). This song should contrast the style of the first selection.

Monologues: Option A.

• One monologue from a published play or written by a professional writer. (A professional writer is someone whose plays have been produced, but may not have been professionally published.)

Dance: Option A.

• Show us your best version of choreographed dancing or moving. Please include at least one turn, one jump and one kick (or other suitable rotation, elevation, and extension that works for your body).

Ballet: Option C.

• No ballet required.

Wild Card Video (Required)

The wild card section is an opportunity to show your personality or share something about you. This media can be ANYTHING you want – a special skill, an interesting story about yourself, a passion speech, an instrument you play, etc. “What do you want us to know about you?”

Below is a list of ideas that have been successful in the past:

• Singing or playing an original composition/song/poem or choreographed dance.
• Performing your own Saturday Night Live-styled skit where you create a comedic character
• Sharing a hobby or activity that means something to you
• Performing in a language other than English in which you are fluent
• Playing an instrument
• Making a “how-to” video on something you are good at, baking, calligraphy, gymnastics.
• If you are a dancer and want to show us a different style you excel in: Tap, Hip Hop, Lyrical, Ballet, etc.

Step 2: Audition

Applicants who pass the prescreen round will be invited to audition.

• Prepare ALL of the required audition repertoire listed below.
• MSM offers in-person and recorded final auditions.

Audition Repertoire Requirements

The singing/acting audition will last 5-7 minutes and include:

• Two one-minute selections from the Musical Theatre repertoire; one up-tempo, one ballad. We recommend that you prepare one classic Musical Theatre piece, and one contemporary Musical Theatre piece from the last 5-10 years.
• A memorized monologue of your choice around one-minute in length.

There will be a dance call that will last approximately one hour. Clothing should allow for ease of movement but not be too loose-fitting.  Applicants should wear character shoes, jazz shoes, or sneakers for the dance call.  If an applicant is proficient in pointe work, they should bring pointe shoes.

International or domestic students whose circumstances prevent travel to NYC should contact Admission at admission@msmnyc.edu to request a virtual audition.

Audition Tips

We are looking for enthusiastic, highly motivated, collaborative individuals who bring a strong sense of self to the audition. It is recommended that prospective students use the audition process to demonstrate their individuality, so we encourage you to select material that feels authentic.

At MSM, we embrace and welcome all applicants regardless of race, ethnicity, class, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, and disability status.