Goodygirl21: Audition Part 2 of 2

We were so thrilled that Lydia got a call back and we only had 2 days to help her prepare. She had to sing 7 measures of The Sound of Music. "The Hills are Alive..." She learned the alto and soprano part as required. She also had to memorize a few short lines that Gretl says and it says she was going to learn how to Waltz the night of the audition. Tyson helped her to prepare for that portion.

I wanted to make all the practicing fun, so I found a jar and a bag of little tiny wooden block and each time she sang the song her best (with her arms by her side) she got to put a block in the jar. We heard that song over 100 times....I'm sure of it! :) I asked her what she would like as a reward once the jar is full and she said without skipping a beat, "Nail polish!"

Choosing her outfit was stressful for me. I wanted her to wear a dress that was fairly plain, without any big print, that would be memorable and would stand out. I had a clear vision I just had to find it.

On Monday morning we headed to Kid to Kid, DI, Target, Kohls...and more and I did not find the dress I was envisioning in my mind. I did find a cute 3 dollar dress at Kid to Kid but it didn't scream 5 year old girl. Then I happened upon a romper at Target. She tried it on and it had Gretl written all over it. It wasn't a dress though, so I wasn't sold on it just yet. Until I found the perfect denim flowered sandals to go with it and then I knew it the right outfit. I needed a back up opinion so I sent a picture of it to Heather and she thought it was a darling choice.

After we came home, tried the outfits one and ate some lunch I encouraged Lydia to take a nap. I wanted her to have lots of energy for the audition that started an hour before her typical bedtime of 7:30. She napped like a champ (2 hours) and we woke her with just enough time to decide on a hairstyle, practice her songs and lines a few more times and get some food into her tummy for dinner.

We arrived at the Creative Arts Center 15 minutes early this time. I felt better about that.

We were happy to see one of the teenage girls also get a call back! She look a liking to Lydia and it melted my heart.

I was even more nervous this time around because we could check out her competition. Eeek. The knot in my stomach grew about 3 sizes and I just wanted her to do her best and then get out of there. The other three Gretls were adorable as well.

The audition happened in three stages. Singing, running lines and then dancing.

The singing portion was done by calling the kids up in small groups and having them sing the harmony or melody. We thought Lydia would sing it as a solo but that wasn't the case. She was a tad confused and the music director didn't give the Gretl's a whole lot of direction. I'm not sure he was even able to hear that she knew the harmony so that frustrated us. But there was nothing we could do about that. I just had to accept that he was the expert and not me.

During the running through of lines they did two separate scenes with the different Maria hopefuls. All Lydia had to do was stomp her foot and well....it wasn't anything too special. We got to watch from the back of the a little theater.

But on the next scene where she had to run over to Maria during the thunder storm scene SHE NAILED IT! She shook her head, looked scared, jumped on the "bed" cuddled up to Maria and spit out her line, "There asleep, they're not scared" like a champ. I was SO relieved. I loved the cuteness she oozed and the chemistry between she and Maria.

While Lydia waited for her turn to learn the Waltz she became quick friends with the other Gretls. It was pretty cute. She looked like she was having a lot of fun while she was dancing. She picked Maria to be her partner, I thought that was good choice, because Maria knew how to Waltz.

It was a long two hours. Tyson and I felt like crazy theater parents watching her and trying to encourage her from across the room or keep her from doing things like playing with the curtains. We were VERY glad for it to be over.

It ended with lining all the kids up by height and taking some photos.

One of the Gretl's was a daughter of one of Tyson's classmates at the University of Utah. Her Dad was as calm as a cucumber. Or at least he appeared that way. His daughter is a doll.

Another one of the Gretl's was a very short 9 year old. She was a beauty. Tyson thinks she has the roll but I have no idea what they are looking for. A 9 year old would definitely be easier to direct than my 5 year old or any of the other 5 year old.....but who knows. I didn't get to hear any of the other Gretl's sing, I only know what my daughter is capable of and I know if given the chance she would be the sweetest Gretl out there. Aaaand if not, I told her we would time for her to take swim lessons and to her that is just as good! :)

All of the Von Trapp children call backs.

The 4 Gretl call backs.

Warming up before Waltzing.

It really was a good experience for Tyson and I. We learned a lot and will be more prepared for her next audition....if my stomach can ever handle another one. On our way home we stopped to pick up her well earned nail polish....and some milk.