Auditions

Dance Troupe auditions are divided between a Saturday and Sunday at the beginning of each term. For Spring 2019, they will be held on February 9th and 10th. Auditions are a laid-back, fun process, so nothing should stop you from auditioning!

On Saturday, choreographer showcases are held, in which each of the choreographers will demonstrate a snippet of their dance, and talk about their plans for the term, their music, what type of dancers they are looking for, and any other relevant details. This process gives prospective dancers a chance to see each of the different dances for the term and decide which they would like to audition for. At the conclusion of the showcase, choreographers will be available for specific questions about their piece. After showcases, each dancer must fill out an online preference sheet. Each sheet has an ordinal ranking of dances the dancer would like to be in, and includes the dancers time conflicts and number of total dances he/she prefers. The preference sheet MUST be submitted by 2AM Sat night.

On Sunday, the full audition process begins. Each dancer is assigned an audition number corresponding to his/her preference sheet. Dancers auditioning for contemporary should participate in the contemporary auditions from 11-1pm. Those auditioning for hip-hop should participate in the hip hop auditions from 2-4pm. You are welcome to come learn both pieces, and any dancers pref-ing both styles should still participate in both.

For each audition, dancers will be taught a short piece. After teaching (about 30-40 minutes), dancers will perform the audition piece in groups of 10-15 for for all of the choreographers.

After all auditions are complete, the choreographers will make selections for their dances and a rehearsal schedule is then created. We attempt to incorporate as many dancer conflicts as possible, but sometimes this just cannot be done. Results are announced later that evening and practices begin immediately!

If you have any questions, please email dt-officers@mit.edu. Remember, this is a fun process, so do not worry about how well you perform! Choreographers are mostly looking for potential and dancing ability, not your ability to perfectly perform the audition piece, so just try to show off what you have, rather than worrying about hitting every move exactly.

Audition Policies

Please read this entire section before emailing officers or choreographers.

Every semester, we have over 200 people attending our showcase and auditions. We understand that people may have conflicts, but we are unable to offer makeups for missed auditions. We appreciate your understanding in this manner.

The showcase is a mandatory event for the benefit of dancers auditioning. While we do film the showcase and make the videos available online, you should make a reasonable effort to attend the showcase. If you are unable to attend, you may still audition as long as you submit a preference sheet in time.

All preference sheets must be submitted through the DanceTroupe website by midnight after the showcase. Do not email your preferences to the officers or choreographers. Unfortunately, we are unable to accommodate late submissions, and you may not audition without submitting a preference sheet.