When you step off the train and climb up the stairs into the NYC sunshine (or cloudy mist -- we are not in Arizona anymore), of course the first things you'll notice are the towering skyscrapers, the crowded sidewalks, the honking car horns, the sizzle of the nearby hot dog cart, and the screens lighting up Times Square. Then, shortly after that, you'll notice that eeeeeeeveryone is hefting a backpack over their shoulder, rolling a suitcase, or slinging multiple totebags. Sure, some of these people are just trying to get to their hotel in one piece, but a vast majority of them are actually commuters, lugging half of their belongings with them to their destinations. My personal preference is the tried-and-true backpack, and while it is definitely a blow to my posture, I really have to plan ahead for every possibility and travel heavy. So when I have an audition and potentially many hours of city-hopping the next day, here are my essentials (*as well as my almost essentials in a lightning round*) that must go with me!
📖 Audition Book 📖
No questions asked, this is an absolute must. Going to an audition? Of course you need it, you have to have your sheet music if you want accompaniment. Passing by one of the audition spaces? Of course you need it, you may hear about an audition happening that you could put your name down for last minute. Doing literally anything else? Of course you need it, because what if you get discovered on the street and they demand you sing through your entire repertoire right then and there? It's highly unlikely, but hey, it's not impossible!
📝 Rehearsal Materials 📝
This is a new addition for me as of this week (and in case you missed the announcement, you can find me on Instagram, @heidilizjohnson, also linked below), but this one should be obvious. Not only does it need to go with me to rehearsals, but I should absolutely be working on lines and music while spending the morning waiting around in an audition holding room.
📸 Extra Headshot & Resume (or three) 📸
Similar reasoning as the audition book, you just never know when you might need them, and I cannot reiterate that enough. I learned this the hard way when the first couple times I attended live auditions, I only packed as many headshots / resumes as auditions I was going for. I ended up kicking myself when I arrived at the studio space, only to find out about another audition happening that I consequently could not be considered for. The pair of them -- stapled together and ready to go -- weigh nothing, so now I pack a handful of extras to ensure that never happens again!
🖊️✏️ Two Pens and Two Pencils 🖊️✏️
Oddly specific, yes, but they're justified, I promise! The pens are for holding rooms: if you arrive at an audition before the monitor and want to put your name down on the non-official list (to be transferred when they get there), you're able to do that easily. The pencils are for rehearsals: pencils are mandatory for notes and blocking, period. And why two? Because I have anxiety and like contingency plans, don't you?
✔️ Sharpie ✔️
As I mentioned in a recent Instagram post, I mark my sheet music (or rather, their plastic covers) in Sharpie in order to make my cuttings as clear as possible for accompanists. Sometimes, you have to mark it more clearly or even change your planned cutting entirely (i.e. if you're told in the room that they want a different length of cutting than you had planned), so the Sharpie is crucial!
💧 Hand Sanitizer 💧
Duh. I like not having germs on my hands. Simple, really.
🔋 Portable Charger 🔋
In my first trip into the city for an audition (flying solo and also not quite confident in navigating trains on my own, mind you), I underestimated how long I'd be waiting in the holding room. And I overestimated my phone battery . AND even if I had packed my corded charger, there were no outlets in holding, nor were there any available anywhere nearby in the hall. AND I needed my phone alive on each of my trains back home as I purchase tickets through an app. Needless to say I learned my lesson and bought a portable charger after that (plus, I didn't have a choice: my mom made me since she got to experience the stress of that afternoon with me via text).
🎧 Earbuds 🎧
These are both for entertainment and for practical use. Spending so much time commuting, then walking from station to destination, I like passing the time with maybe a podcast or a YouTube video. On the practical side, if you're like me and ever want to plunk out notes either to attune your ear to your cutting or simply warm up a little, you gotta have earbuds so you don't disturb your fellow actors.
📚 Book 📚
This one is purely entertainment. I'm a bookworm, what can I say? I'd take a book to a party, so I'll obviously take one with me to wait around with little else to do. So much reading time, it's lovely!
🎵 Phonation Straws 🎵
In case you're unfamiliar with the technique, straw phonation, grossly summed up, is a means to (short-term) warm up and (long-term) strengthen your voice by doing humming / singing exercises through a straw. Some people swear that using coffee-stirrer-sized straws give them the best results, but as that always felt like too much tension for me, I have two different sizes -- one normal, plastic drinking straw and one shorter, narrower metal straw -- to suit my needs on any given day. Gotta be ready to sing first thing in the morning, and these offer a relatively quick and quiet means to do so on the go.
🚰 Water Bottle🚰
After growing up and spending summer after summer in Arizona, I'm still trying to convince my body I'm not a camel and do not have the ability to store reserves of water in my body. It helps to have a giant water bottle so you really see the progress, but I still don't drink nearly enough. So I will continue to carry around the giant water bottle until I learn! HYDRATE.
And now for the ⚡️LIGHTNING ROUND⚡️ (consisting of items that are often added to the bag depending on what I'm doing that day):
-Laptop & Charger
PRO: So many possibilities to keep busy!
CON: A heavy addition to the backpack...
-Snack(s)
PRO: Takes the edge off waiting on lunch break!
CON: Tummy had good-for-body granola, now tummy want good-for-soul pizza...
-Phone Charger
PRO: With an outlet, endless phone entertainment!
CON: I found the outlet, so now I am bound to the cord forever, I cannot leave...
-Jacket
PRO: Surviving the frigid Arctic Circle that is the Equity Building!
CON: Big jacket and small backpack is a difficult game...
-Change of Shoes
PRO: I can wear tennis shoes to get to and from the audition!
CON: Heels tend to dig into my back when packed...
-Umbrella
PRO: I make it through the rainstorms with my hairstyling intact!
CON: No travel size means walking with an umbrella cane when not in use...
See? You really do have to think about it from every angle and build your bag on a lot of what-ifs! Anything you think I missed or must be added to my future packs? Let me know in the comments!
Thanks for reading, #DreamTeamHLJ, and when in doubt, pack it!
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