A message from our co-director

1.Audition videos will be accepted from April 29, 2021 thru May 10, 2021 at sjmtvideos@gmail.com Videos should be sent in .mov or .mp4 file formats. 

Please include the following information with your video:    Name, Address, Phone, Email, Short Bio and Audition Song Information. All submissions become property of San Jose Musical Theater. You must be at least 18 on April 29, 2021 to participate.

2. Finalists must be available to record their performance at a film location in the San Jose, CA area.  Dates for filming will be determined after the number of contestants is finalized. Finalists will be notified and scheduled.

3. Finalists* will compete in our Special Online Recorded Concert in June.  Finalists will be selected by our Music Director, Kenneth Little, Co-Director David Yanez,  Executive Manager Lucy Haab, and the SJMT Board of Directors.

Winner of the $1000 Grand Prize will be selected by live submissions from our ticket holders-the Uptown at the Apollo concert audience. (Just the way it was done at the Apollo Theater.)

5. Prospective contestants are encouraged to record/perform up to 3 minutes of a song representative of the type of music performed at the Apollo Theater. Finalists will work with our Music Director CoDirector, to perfect their performance with live accompaniment. Their contest entry will be taped and subsequently aired on our Special Online Recorded Concert.  

6. Here are some suggestions to make sure your audition video is the best it can be:

1. Start out with a long head-to-toe shot. That means that ALL of you should be visible in frame, from your head to your feet. 

2. Zoom in to your face and slate. Say your name, age, and the city that you live in. Attach the submission form with all of this information in writing.

3. Perform and Record your audition song.

4. Play it back and watch it before you send it! Have a friend or family member watch it and look for things that you could do better. Because you are on video- you can record several takes and have the opportunity to change it and make it as good as possible.

5. Lastly, relax and have fun! Stiff, uptight, deer-in-the-headlights faces do not book video auditions.

Some of the vocalists who performed at the Apollo whose music can inspired your audition choice include,

Bessie Smith, Billie Holiday, Dianna Ross, Mills Brothers, Pearl Baily, Duke Ellington, Aretha Franklin, Sammy Davis Jr., Sarah Vaughn, James Brown, The Supremes, Stevie Wonder,Lauryn Hill,  Dionne Warwick, Louis Armstrong, Sam Cook, Ray Charles,  Ottis Redding, Jazmine Sullivan, Ne-Yo, Machine Gun Kelly, Buddy Holly, Anito O'Day, Connie Boswell, Patty La Belle, Marvin Gaye, BB King, Bruno Mars, Nat King Cole, Natalie Cole, Freddy Jackson, Prince,  Ray Parker Jr., Little Richard, Boy George, Rod Stewart, Willie Nelson, Marilyn McCoo, Whitney Houston, Alicia Keyes, Tina Turner, Beyonce and others.

For more information email your questions to sjmtvideos@gmail.com Attn: David Yanez.  David will schedule a call to answer your questions.