Hello all,

New to the forums - nice to meet you all!

I'm looking for some suggestions. I'm going to be auditioning for a community theatre production of Secret Garden in a few weeks, and I am dying to play Archibald.

I've never actually done a book musical before, but I am a true tenor with classical vocal training and I'm a strong actor.

The problem is that strictly speaking, I'm very young for the role. I'm 25, I'm about 5'7" with kind of a heavy build, and I have a receding hairline and goatee. I'm hoping that I can look and act older convincingly during my audition so that I at least get considered for the role.

My plan right now is to audition with "Bring Him Home" from Les Mis, which matches the range of Archie's high notes pretty well (high A) and is another song sung by an older, paternal character.

Any suggestions?

Excellent choice of song. I also think that, from what you say of your appearance, you should not have much trouble being considered. Whether or not you are cast would likely depend also on how old Lily and Neville look. You can get by if the entire group skews younger.

One suggestion I would make, and others will probably contradict me, but if you sing the part "He's like the son I might have known...etc" bring a little more power than you would if you were singing Valjean. Archie needs that strong middle register for Lily's eyes and especially Where in the world.

Break a leg with your audition. It's a fabulous role in a fabulous musical.