Hey all!
I'm back again with a new list for my guys, (or anyone who wants to sing these songs).
For a recap, An "overdone" song or a song on the "Do Not Sing List" is usually a song that is done often at auditions currently. Usually consists of songs currently on Broadway, or songs from shows such as Wicked, Les Miserables, or Thoroughly Modern Millie. We all probably have at least one "overdone" song in our books. I know I have several. So here are some alternative songs to try that are inspired by some "overdone" audition songs.
(I have based the "overdone" songs on this list based off of some research over the years as well as my own personal experience hearing certain songs sung by multiple people in college.)
1. "For Forever" or "Waving Through a Window" (Dear Evan Hansen)
Try Instead: "Belief" by Alexander Sage Oyen, "After All" (Glory Days), or "Kiss The Air" by Scott Alan.
"Is anybody listening to the song that I sing?"
"So when I lose my way would they even care"
"I'm not the one who could give you what you need, so I bid you farewell, but don't you dare watch me leave."
2. Maria (West Side Story)
Try Instead: "Maria" (You Never Know) or "Marry Me" (The Rink).
"Maria, Oh what a lovely name."
*you might need to transpose for your key but it is a beautiful Cole Porter song.
"Why not agree to be my blushing bride?"
3. "Empty Chairs At Empty Tables" (Les Miserables)
Try Instead: "I Will Remember" (Amazing Grace), "Good Thing Going" (Merrily We Roll Along), or "Come Back" (Dogfight).
"I will turn my hands to good become the man you hoped I would till I have nothing more to give."
"We had this good thing going and if I wanted too much, was that such, a mistake at the time"
"Repeat. Replay. Each death. Each day. There’s a guilt that you can’t shake away for coming back"
4. "Take A Chance on Me" (Little Women)
Try Instead: "One Knight" (Wonderland), "Come To A Party" (Dogfight), or "Marry Me" (The Rink).
"Please just give me half a chance. I'm an outsource knight so I work freelance. I don't even need a real big advance just a kiss will do"
"Come to this party with me, look you can't miss this party. You'll meet my friends and when it ends Rose, I'll race you right home."
"Though you don't love me now, you will in time."
5. "I'm Alive" (Next to Normal)
Try Instead: "I'll Jump" by Scott Burkell and Paul Leosel, "Why Must We Tell Them Why?" (35mm: A Musical Exhibition), or "You Can't Bring Me Down" by Drew Gasparini.
"Better safe than sorry is no way to play the game. It's rather sorry that safe leads to nothing but more of the same."
"Why must we justify? Let's deny their forms and fixtures. Not playing by their rules of thumb gots to become a little numb"
"Rising up because you can't bring me down. When I'm on fire, you can't put me out."
6. "All I Ask of You" (The Phantom of The Opera)
Try Instead: "Too Many Tomorrows" (Sweet Charity) or "I'll Be There" (The Pirate Queen)
"So come fill my arms and we'll forget the meaningless sorrows each time we say we're through."
"I'll be there for to me there's no sorrow worse to bear than a life lived apart."
7. "Giants In The Sky" (Into the Woods)
Try Instead: "I'm Calm" (A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum) or "Bright Star" (Bright Star).
"I'm calm, controlled, so cool that I'm cold, aloofer than any giraffe. When something's the matter, where others would shatter I laugh."
"You never know what life will bring. Only what you bring to life. Hopes and dreams and fine imaginings, they happen in their own good time."
8. "On The Street Where You Live" (My Fair Lady)
Try Instead: "Young and Foolish" (Plain and Fancy), "How Do You Do, Miss Pratt" (Seventeen), or "The Thought of You" (Fanny).
"One day we fell in love. Now we wonder what were we dreamin' of smiling in the sunlight."
"And as they play the gramophone I'll dance her away"
"At night instead of stars all I could see was you there."
9. "Oh, What a Beautiful Mornin'" (Oklahoma!)
Try Instead: "Restless Heart" (Fanny), "Lucky To Be Me" (On The Town), or "That's For Me" (State Fair).
"Have you come at last, this golden day, to set us free."
"Oh, what a day. Fortune smiled and came my way bringing love I never thought I'd see. I'm so lucky to be me"
"A lovely morning," I remarked, and you were quick to agree."
10. "Being Alive" (Company)
Try Instead: "Testimony" (Amazing Grace) or "What Kind of Fool Am I?" (Stop The World, I Want to Get Off), "All Alone" (Now Is The Time for All Good Men), or "What's Out There For Me?" (Jimmy).
"Why can't I fall in love like any other man? And maybe then I'll know what kind of fool I am."
"Life is the lonely quest in you and loneliness brings out the best in you."
"Here I stand among the stars. Grains of sand dust by the sea. Which way does it blow? Which way to go? What's out there for me?"
11,12,13. "Santa Fe" (Newsies), "Corner of the Sky" (Pippin), or "Go the Distance" (Hercules)
*I am combining all of these into one. hehe.
Try Instead: "Right This Way" (Bandstand), "Something After All" (Starry), "Flight" by Craig Carneilla, "No Turning Back Now" (Circles) or "Favorite Places" (Ordinary Days)
"Let me take your bags my friend. You've been carrying those far too long. Troubled times are at an end and we're waiting to hear your song."
"For this new world to begin the old one must fall."
"I'll just roll! Let me lose all control I wanna float like a wish in a well free as the sound of the sea in a shell."
"It's a mistake, but It was mine to make. Leave it? Or take it? I'll break through the pain."
"All of my most favorite places are places that I've never been."
14. "Micheal In The Bathroom" (Be More Chill)
Try Instead: "And Then There Were None" (Spring Awakening), "Alas For You" (Godspell 2012) or "The Kind of Guy I Am" (The Gay Card)
"You start to cave, you start to cry. You try to run, nowhere to hide. You want to crumble up, and close that door."
"You don't have time to scorn and to scoff. It's getting very late!"
"Every day is clear blue skies. Let the problems melt away."
15. "Run Away With Me" (The Mad Ones/ The Unauthorized Autobiography of Samantha Brown)
Try Instead: "So Close" (Enchanted), "What I Wouldn't Do For You" (Mrs. Sharp) or "Dear Lucy" from (Circles).
"And now you're beside me and look how far we've come. So far we are, so close."
"And you made me see all the stuff I could be"
"And I'm not afraid to say it, I love you, Lucy More than you will know"
16. "Purpose" (Avenue Q)
Try Instead: "I've Got My Head In The Clouds" (Crazy Ex-Girlfriend), "I Do What I Do" (The Man In The Ceiling), or "Gotta Get Out" (The Noteworthy Life of Howard Barnes)
"No longer stuck in the muck on the ground. I figured out how to live"
"I do what I do be it old be it new, that's not for me to say. I do what I do cause I like what I do and I love my life this way."
"I like things simple and my life is on track. My bread is white and my coffee's black. I got cheerios."
So there you go! I hope you found this to be helpful or at least exposed you to some new material you might be interested in. Again, I used the "overdone" songs as inspiration so I know there are huge differences in some of these songs. A great thing about audition songs is that *sometimes* you can take them out of context and interpret the lyrics however you need to. :)
Love,
Amanda Zaida Hansen <3
P.S. If you love your "overdone" song, and you make it special and you have a connection to it. Do not let anyone make you feel bad for singing it. It is so much more important to sing a song you love than to sing a "lesser-known" song. Every panel is different. Just because one person thinks the song is "overdone" does not mean everyone will. <3
P.S.S. Please make sure you check out my post of "overdone" female selections and keep an eye out for more posts coming soon! Please let me know what you would like to read! :)
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