Singing for the Musical Theatre Stage

Singing for the Musical Theatre Stage

Summer Workshop Series / Theatre Company of Saugus

With: Lori L’Italien  (she/her/hers) / Assistant Professor of Voice – The Boston Conservatory

We’ve had over a year off the stage, and fall auditions are on the horizon!  It’s time to do something with our voices other than scream or sob in despair into a pillow. This series is geared towards the musical theatre singer who is READY to get back on stage. Throughout the series we will work towards regaining a sense of your singing voice, expanding your range, improving versatility, flexibility, power and ease. 

A successful singer of musical theatre and pop must have easy and flexible access to belt, mix, and legit-style singing…Musical theatre performers can have anywhere from 3 – 12 shows a week. Oftentimes, two shows within one day! Healthy vocal technique is the foundation careers are built upon. 

In this series, Lori L’Italien, Assistant Professor of Voice for Musical Theatre at The Boston Conservatory and TCS Alumna (Children of Eden – Eve/Mama Noah, Cabaret – Sally Bowles) will guide you through a variety of exercises that can help you gain access to, and build confidence in your healthy belt, mix, and head voice.

Class 1 – Stretching, Alignment, and Breathing for Singers / (Sunday, August 1st – 7pm -8:30pm)

• Musical theatre and pop performers alike are expected to entertain and dazzle! Performance work in these genres is usually quite physical and often involves dancing while singing. Taking this into consideration, we will begin with some body mapping and an easy stretch and release routine that will help the body prepare to sing.
• The voice BEGINS with the breath. BUT, Not all styles will require the same type of breath and you can’t always take a low, grounded breath when you’re in the middle of a 16 bar kick-line. We’ll follow our body work with physical and vocal exercises that will cultivate flexibility of the breath, allowing for an easy connection to a tone that sounds free rather than forced, or pressed. 

Class 2 – Developing Ease and Flexibility Between Registers / (Monday, August 2 – 7pm – 8:30pm)

• To train our voices to sing musical theatre is to train our voices to sing a wide variety of styles and genres. In order to do this, we must cultivate an incredibly flexible and versatile vocal technique. One that is freely and easily produced and can be consistently reproduced 8-shows a week, for weeks on end.
• This class focuses on finding a healthy and free production in both the falsetto/head voice as well as the speech/chest register. Through fun exercises and vocalise we’ll work towards finding a balance between the registers. Participants will get individualized instruction on how to work through the “break” in their voice. 

Class 3 – Mix and Belt Voice / (Sunday, August 8th – 7pm – 8:30pm)

• The belt begins with speech. In this class we will begin by cultivating a light, speech-dominant mix, exploring vocal tract variations, and tracking our resonance, eventually leading into exploration of both the open and closed belt. Come to class ready to make some noise!

Class 4 – Voice Training for the Dropped Voice / (Monday, August 9th – 7pm – 8:30pm) 

• This class focuses on exercises for any singer that has gone through a testosterone-based vocal change. Exercises drawn from Lessac voice work, speech therapy, classical and pop voice training can help dropped voices find ease in transitioning from falsetto to chest and also help in lessening voice cracks when singing and speaking. 

Class 5 – MasterClass Performance – “Putting it Together: Act the song, book the job” / (Sunday, August 15th – 7pm – 9pm)

• Workshop participants will have the opportunity to perform and workshop a 32-bar cut of their choice. Work will focus on vocal technique, acting, presentation, and how to enter the room.

There is a $15 fee per person for attending each session. Or you can sign up for the entire series for only $50, which is a savings of $10 if you attend four sessions, or a savings of $25 if you attend all five sessions.

See our Tickets page for the link to pay with a credit card and register in advance. You can also pay at the door with cash, check, PayPal, or Venmo.