Here's a one page audition "cheat sheet".

While I have been working on a book about auditioning, I've also been preparing for masterclasses I will be doing. In preparation for a class at the University of Michigan that I am doing this weekend, I have prepared an Opera Audition Cheat Sheet, a quick guide to auditions, that hopefully can help you ask and answer some important questions - let me know what you think!

The Opera Audition “Cheat Sheet”

I. Who am I auditioning for?
a. General/Artistic Directors
b. “Pay to Sings”
c. Young Artist/Resident Artist Programs
d. Agents/Managers

II. What am I singing?
a. What is the right repertoire
b. Does age play an important factor
c. The physics of the physical side of singing
d. The “mundane” side – have your music ready to go

III. How do I look?
a. What to wear
b. What not to wear
c. The Beatles should not have still been together when your photo was taken
d. Does it really make that big a difference?

IV. How do I find out how I did?
a. Is it appropriate to contact the company/manager, etc?
b. If so, how do I approach them?
c. How do I fix a train wreck?
d. How many times do I go back?

V. How do I make it better?
a. Do I go all the way back to the drawing board?
b. Whom shall I run it by?
c. How do I re-sell it?
d. When is enough enough?

VI. Good resources
a. Musical America Yearbook - www.musicalamerica.com/
b. Opera America - www.operaamerica.org/
c. New Forum for Classical Singers - www.nfcs.net/
d. Yap Tracker - www.yaptracker.com/
e. Classical Singer - www.classicalsinger.com/