Most Overdone Auditions Songs Lately?

[Soaring29]

Posted: 5/21/17 at 4:50am

Calling all performers/casting directors/directors/producers ect! What are the most overdone songs being sung by both men and women in auditions as of late? And what are your thoughts on  previously  overdone songs like On My Own,  Astonishing, Defying Gravity ect? Would you not mind hearing those again assuming most have stayed away from them given their popularity?   What material do you personally never want to hear at auditions?

[Soaring29]

Posted: 2/20/20 at 5:18am

Bumping this because I am still pretty curious about this!

[The Rural Juror]

Posted: 2/20/20 at 8:25am

While I'm not in the know to say what songs are frequent in professional audition rooms, as a high school director, I can tell you that nearly any song from The Greatest Showman will be heard multiple times when I hold musical auditions. Much to my headache. 

[yankeefan7]

Posted: 2/20/20 at 9:12am

I am not in the business either but I would think if anybody did "Let It Go" it would not be the first time -lol.

[Broadway61004]

Posted: 2/20/20 at 9:31am

As far as doing older overdone songs again (such as anything from Les Mis, Astonishing, Defying Gravity, etc.), my advice would still be to stay away from them.  The reason you want to avoid overdone songs is not so much because they're being done a ton at the current moment, but because casting directors have heard them hundreds of times before, which means as soon as you start singing, they're immediately thinking back to the last time they heard the song instead of focusing on your actual audition (just a natural psychological reaction that subconsciously they're going to start thinking about somewhere else they've heard it before).  So even if they haven't heard On My Own at an audition for 10 years, odds are they've heard it many, many times before, which means they're that less invested and that less "in the moment" in your audition.

[TheGingerBreadMan]

Posted: 2/20/20 at 9:37am

I've heard "When It All Falls Down" from Chaplin used pretty frequently ever since Renee Rapp won the Jimmys with it in 2018.

[yankeefan7]

Posted: 2/20/20 at 9:39am

"As far as doing older overdone songs again (such as anything from Les Mis, Astonishing, Defying Gravity, etc.), my advice would still be to stay away from them.  The reason you want to avoid overdone songs is not so much because they're being done a ton at the current moment, but because casting directors have heard them hundreds of times before, which means as soon as you start singing, they're immediately thinking back to the last time they heard the song instead of focusing on your actual audition (just a natural psychological reaction that subconsciously they're going to start thinking about somewhere else they've heard it before)"

Excellent point which then asks the question how the heck do you figure out a song that has not been done a bunch. My guess would be to try and find a show that was considered a flop but actually had a decent song or two. 

[Broadway61004]

Posted: 2/20/20 at 10:21am

yankeefan7 said: ""As far as doing older overdone songs again (such as anything from Les Mis, Astonishing, Defying Gravity, etc.), my advice would still be to stay away from them. The reason you want to avoid overdone songs is not so much because they're being done a ton at the current moment, but because casting directors have heard them hundreds of times before, which means as soon as you start singing, they're immediately thinking back to the last time they heard the song instead of focusing on your actual audition (just a natural psychological reaction that subconsciously they're going to start thinking about somewhere else they've heard it before)"

Excellent point which then asks the question how the heck do you figure out a song that has not been done a bunch. My guess would be to try and find a show that was considered a flop but actually had a decent song or two."

That's what's so insanely difficult about finding songs to audition with.  I mean, at the end of the day, you're probably never going to find something that the directors have NEVER heard before (and if they have in fact never heard it, the reason is probably that it's a terrible song no one would bring to an audition).  But the idea is to find at least slightly less done ones that still show off your range and acting abilities.  Which is way easier said than done of course.

[temms]

Posted: 2/20/20 at 11:25am

Slightly different opinion here from someone who accompanies professional auditions for a living. A good casting director isn’t going to be comparing you to others, they’re watching you. Once you get to callbacks everyone sings the same thing anyway. If it’s super iconic or from a currently running show I’d avoid but otherwise pick the material you respond to. Overdone runs in cycles and of all the things to obsess over at an audition, I’d put it lower on the list.

When you do a song unfamiliar to the casting team they have to process the song along with your performance. A song they’re familiar with lets them focus on what you’re doing. There’s also the risk that if you’re too obscure the accompanist may not know it. I can sight read what you put in front of me but if it’s something I’m not familiar with I won’t be able to pay as much attention to the singer since I’m making sure I don’t mess up. If I know it I can be in it with the singer.

Every call I play there are inevitably two people who do the same song back-to-back. It’s just math. I’ve seen people blow auditions by coming in and saying “I was going to do that song but then that other person did it so I’ll change and do this one instead”. It never goes well. Choose whatever material shows that you are you. It’s simultaneously the easiest and hardest thing to do.

[PutonyourWarPaint]

Posted: 2/20/20 at 10:33pm

If you're a teenage girl....

"DEAD MOM" seems to be getting my eye roll, lately. 

[Hot Pants]

Posted: 2/20/20 at 10:59pm

I’d say Defying Gravity and I Dreamed a Dream are still songs you should avoid like the plague when auditioning. Honestly I don’t think you should ever audition with anything from Les Mis or Wicked. As for recent songs, I agree that Dead Mom and Let it Go should be avoided. I also think using anything from Mean Girls is a colossal mistake, as there’s probably plenty of young girls using those numbers, and they’re all terrible.
Mentioning Defying Gravity reminds me of a story. I was auditioning for a straight play which had some singing in it, so you needed to perform a few bars. While I was waiting for my turn I heard the girl who went in before me singing. She was clearly trying to belt, but it sounded much more like screaming. I couldn’t quite make it out until I heard her do the Defying Gravity riff. Auditioning with Defying Gravity is a bad idea. Auditioning with Defying Gravity when you can’t sing it is a really bad idea. But auditioning with Defying Gravity when you can’t sing it and the show you’re going for is a straight play is absolutely bonkers. Anyway, she didn’t get cast.