Greetings and welcome to the 2016-2017 Illumination show choir season! You are receiving this letter because your child has shown interest in auditioning for Illumination; Franklin s 6th-8th grade show choir. All 6th-8th graders are able to audition for show choir, regardless of past participation. This letter will provide you with all of the information for the upcoming year including audition material, competition dates, fees, and the rehearsal schedule. Please read and discuss these items with your child prior to filling out the audition information. ELIGIBILITY All students of Franklin Middle School are eligible to be members of Illumination. The only requirement is that all Illumination members must also be taking vocal music during the school day. The vocal music class is where students learn the fundamentals of healthy singing and musicality and is essential for a quality show choir experience. TIME COMMITMENT One of the most important factors to a successful show choir season is time commitment. Illumination is an extracurricular ensemble that rehearses entirely outside of the school day. In order to learn and perform a show at high levels students must be present for rehearsals. Choreography rehearsals will be held on Monday nights from 6:00-8:00pm in the Franklin auditorium. This will be where we learn and clean choreography for our show. Illumination also rehearses two mornings each week. These will be held on Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 7:00-7:45 am. These rehearsals will focus on singing and may also be used for small groups or sectionals if needed. As we approach the competition season there will also be two additional Saturday rehearsals to polish the show. These rehearsals will take place at Washington High School so we can practice with show risers and mirrors. Dates and times for these rehearsals will be communicated in a timely manner as the season progresses. Performance dates for the 2016-2017 school year are as follows: Saturday, Dec. 10: Cocoa & Carols at Washington and Kennedy High Schools Saturday, Feb. 11: Mo Show at Washington High School Thursday, Feb.16: Franklin Activities Concert Friday, Feb. 24: Marion Masquerade at Marion High School Saturday, Feb. 25: Raise the Roof at Kennedy High School Saturday, Mar. 4: Xtravaganza at Xavier High School Wednesday, Apr. 19: Tours to elementary schools Thursday, Apr. 20: Tours to elementary schools
Attendance at all competitions is mandatory. This should be a time for students to show off what they have been working on for so long! We cannot have a successful performance if there are holes on the stage from absent students! ***It is very possible that your child is involved in many activities and those may conflict from time to time. The Franklin staff is great at working with each other to minimize conflicts and make all necessary accommodations so that your child can participate in as many activities that he or she chooses. If you or your child are worried about the time commitment and the ability to participate please contact Mr. McGrath about the issue before making a final decision. We want as many students to be involved as possible! FINANCIAL COMMITMENT The Cedar Rapids School District supports the show choir program by providing staffing, facilities, and a small yearly budget. This covers the bulk of our yearly expenses but leaves just enough to necessitate a small fee for group members. The fee for each student accepted into Illumination for the 2016-2017 school year will not exceed $150.00. This fee covers the cost of music, choreography, competition fees, costume rentals, travel expenses, props, group t-shirt, etc This amount can be paid as a lump sum or in monthly installments. Students will also be responsible for any personal items such as shoes, shirts, undergarments and jewelry. There will also be optional pictures available for purchase later in the season. ***If this commitment would cause undue financial stress please contact me. No student will be eliminated from consideration into Illumination based on their financial situation. There are several financial aid avenues to alleviate or lessen the fee for students. This will be determined on a case by case basis. AUDITIONS Please complete the audition form in the back of this packet and bring it to your audition. You MUST have the sheet completed and signed by a parent/guardian in order to audition. There will be two short pieces to the audition process; a vocal audition and choreography. The vocal audition will have three parts. The first section will be a scale to check for range and so I can get accustomed to your voice. I will play the piano for this portion. The second part of the vocal audition will be to sing the first verse of My Country tis of Thee. This tune will allow me to test your pitch, rhythm, and tone quality. This will be sung acapella (without accompaniment). The last piece will be for you to sing 30-60 seconds of a song of your choosing. Pick a song that you are very confident on and that will show off your skill as a musician. This will also be sung acapella. The choreography portion will consist of a short rehearsal and then the audition. A video of the audition choreography is available on the Canvas and the YouTube links are posted below.
Please spend time learning the choreography as best you can from this video prior to the audition. On the day of the auditions you will begin with a review session in the auditorium with the choreographer. From there you will move to the choir room and audition in groups of 6-8. Links for audition choreography: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_y4-xslivs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kkvbb7x85qo https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7asbdhk83a ***We are not looking for perfection. If you were perfect, we wouldn t need to practice! We are looking at how quickly you pick up the choreography, how comfortable and accurate you move to a beat, and how willing you are to take the risk and put yourself out there. Most of our members do not have any prior dance training; that s why we have a great choreographer! We will work hard throughout the year as a group to perfect our show. The dance audition will take place on Monday, September 12, 5:30-7:30pm. The vocal audition will take place on Tuesday, September 13, 3:00-5:30 pm as well as Wednesday, September 14, 3:00-5:30 pm ***Please sign up for a time on the form in the choir room. If you are unable to make it to the audition times, please contact me and other arrangements will be made. You can choose to do the vocal portion on the day of the dance auditions or an entirely separate audition date can be arranged. Audition results will be posted outside the choir room on Friday, September 16, at the end of the school day. It will also be listed on the Illumination website the following Monday. If you are selected into Illumination there will be an informational meeting for students and parents on Monday, September 26, at 6:00 in the Franklin auditorium. Schedules, financial information, volunteer sign-ups, and several other important items will be presented at this time. If you or your parent/guardian are not able to attend this meeting, please contact me and I will provide you with the necessary information. If you have questions or concerns about anything contained, or not contained, in this packet feel free to call or email me. Thank you for your interest in Illumination! I am very excited for the upcoming year and working hard with everyone involved to reach our very best! Nick McGrath Director of Vocal Music nmcgrath@cr.k12.ia.us 319-558-2452
ILLUMINATION 2016-2017 AUDITION FORM BRING THIS TO YOUR AUDITION Name Grade Contact Information: Home Phone Student Cell Parent Cell Student email Parent email Elementary attended in 5th Grade: Have you ever studied voice with a private teacher? YES NO (circle one) If yes, who was the teacher? How long? Have you ever studied dance in a studio? YES NO If yes, where? How long? Do you play an instrument? YES NO If yes, what instrument? If yes, would you be interested in playing in the Illumination band if you do not make the group as a singer/dancer? YES NO Would you be interested in being on the Illumination tech crew if you do not make the group as a singer/dancer? YES NO Do you have a regular conflict on Monday evenings from 6:00-8:00? If yes, please list those conflicts below. Please circle the activities below that you are planning on being involved in at Franklin. (The bolded/underlined activities occur during the show choir audition season.) Concert Band Jazz Band Basketball Swimming Wrestling Volleyball Speech/Debate Football Mock Trial Tennis Track Other:
Please briefly explain why you would like to be involved in show choir at Franklin. STUDENT AGREEMENT I have read this handout and understand that Illumination requires dedication of my time and effort in order to be successful. I will communicate any scheduling conflicts to Mr. McGrath in a timely manner. I understand that my attitude, work ethic, and cooperation are essential to the ensemble. I agree to participate in all rehearsals and competitions to the best of my abilities. Student Signature Date PARENT/GUARDIAN PERMISSION I understand that Illumination is an extracurricular activity that rehearses outside the normal school day and that consistent attendance is mandatory. I understand that there is a fee associated with the program and I agree to pay in full, either as a lump sum or installments, or to seek the financial aid avenues to fulfill this requirement. I give my child permission to participate in the show choir audition process and season. Parent/Guardian Signature Date
AUDITION RUBRIC DO NOT WRITE ON THIS PAGE The form below will be used to rate your audition and describe your voice. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Pitch/Intonation: Excellent Very Good Good Fair Poor Tone quality: Bright/Dark Young/Mature Breathy/Clean Supported/Unsupported Vibrato/Straight Brass/Reed Other notes Projection: Strong Average Weak None Vocal expression: Excellent Very Good Good Fair Poor Facial expression: Excellent Very Good Good Fair Poor ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Comments: Vocal range: Scale/Warm-up My Country Song