Find the Moment

Not to be overly esoteric about what you need to accomplish in an audition, but having just directed a show (Aida), I notice that what is often missing in a singer's audition vs. a singer's performance is something one could describe as organic - the focus of "the moment" - that point in a scene or aria or ensemble that clarifies for the audience what that scene is. It is not always the high note, or the coloratura passage, or the death scene - sometimes it is a moment of silence. The point I am thinking of in Aida is in the Aida/Amonasro duet, right before he says "you are not my daughter" and then flings her to the floor. The power of that scene was the moment of silence before that phrase. Our conductor, Joe Mechavich, our Aida Kristin Lewis, and our Amonasro Kevin Short, all worked beautifully on making that moment pivotal.
I am aware that sometimes "the moment" is spontaneous, and not planned - but in the case I just mentioned, that moment was worked out ahead of time, and was very powerful.
To get us back to the subject of auditions, I think it is worth your time to discover what those "moments" are in your audition repertoire. I think this goes beyond staging, singing and languages. I think it has more to do with you finding that point of utter focus within a piece that will cause those listening to stop writing, and fully enter your world. Believe me, that's what those of us hearing you want to experience!
There of course, may be more than one moment in a piece that constitutes "the moment", but certainly it is worth exploring to find at least one. You may find that it's not the e flat in Traviata, or the repeated Figaro phrase in Barber, but instead a place that resonates deeply within you that will speak profoundly to us.
Something to think about.......