Description:
The second step is having a Dress Rehearsal. This is a crucial step towards a successful performance. Sometimes we don’t have the luxury of an official one, but even then I still encourage you to create the energy of a dress rehearsal before you actually perform!
At a dress rehearsal we want to create as much of the vibe of the actual performance as possible. This includes dressing up the same way you plan to during the performance and pretending it is the actual thing and having a few people watch you. If you can be in the space where you will actually perform, then that's even better.
You are going to want to perform your music only once and then only debrief or stop after you are done unless absolutely necessary. Sometimes you have to stop and try things again, but the goal is to pretend like you only get one shot!
After the dress rehearsal you can then go over anything that needs a few final tweaks, but it's best to not significantly change what you are doing right before you perform too much as we want the assurance of our muscles memory and confidence from our practice.
Why Dress Rehearse?
The reason a dress rehearsal is so important is because we are able to get a sense of as many aspects of the performance as possible. When we perform, we often get sensory overload as everything can feel strangely different singing and performing in a new place in front of a bunch of unknown people and lights and a stage.
I’ll always change
G D F#m Bm7
Yeah I’ll always change
G D F#m Bm7
Yeah I’ll always change
G D F#m Bm7 G A
Yeah I’ll always change
D F#m
I might hold you in my arms
Bm7 G
and fall into your endless charms
D F#m Bm7 G
And never see you fly away
D F#m
But time won’t wait around for me
Bm7 G
You’re never what you seem to be
D F#m Bm7 G
I’ll take a chance to find my way
G Bm7
And I won’t fall apart
A D
Won’t have a broken heart
G Bm7
I’ll never feel the same
A
Yeah I know I’ll always
D F#m Bm7
Change
G D F#m Bm7
I’ll always change, Oh
G D F#m Bm7r
I’ll always change
G D F#m Bm7
Yeah I’ll always change
G D F#m Bm7
Yeah I’ll always change
G D F#m Bm7
Yeah I’ll always change
G D
Yeah I’ll always change
Debrief:
Great work! Now ask yourself
1) What did I do well?
1) What did I do well?
2) Are there any small changes I want to make?
3) How does my voice feel?
3) How does my voice feel?
Feel free to take notes even. Trust me, even a slightly rocky dress rehearsal with lots of little mistakes can be a helpful moment to get you to spring into action and bring a little more energy and awareness to your actual performance. In fact that's a great indicator about how important a dress can be; even when you think you are more than ready, it's common for lots of little mistakes to happen without a proper dress rehearsal.. Alright, great work and I’ll see you at the show!
Lessons:
- 1: Welcome
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2:
Song Choice
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3:
Releasing Physical Stress
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4:
Performance Anxiety
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5:
Expression in Song
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6:
Casual vs. Formal
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7:
Auditions
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8:
Choir
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9:
Opera & Musical Theater
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10:
Band & Contemporary
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11:
Recording, Social media and Posting
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12:
Practice
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13:
Dress Rehearsal
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14:
Performance Day
Instructor: Abram Poliakoff
Abram Poliakoff is a singer, guitarist, pianist, teacher, conductor, and composer. He received a Bachelors of Music in Vocal Arts from USC’s Thornton School of Music and has been teaching music for 8 years. He is currently both the Associate Artistic Director and a tenor in the L.A. Choral Lab, which recently released its first studio album Sonic Visions in the fall of 2019. Abram teaches and performs a wide range of genres including Classical, Jazz, Folk and Popular music in the Los Angeles area. He has also sung with the San Francisco Opera and Pocket Opera in the Bay Area. His teaching mission is to help his students utilize vocal technique to find their authentic and healthy voice while maximizing genre flexibility and a naturalness of expression.