Berlin, Wednesday Agentur Vorsingen

Last Wednesday, I had my first Agentur (agent) audition in Berlin. I took the high speed train from Hannover (only 1.5 hour!) and then the S-Bahn to the suggested stop. When I got off the train, I asked a few people if they knew where this street was. No one knew. I thought for sure it had to be close by. I had the address and the "directions" to this "theater". I finally found a nice pharmacist who knew it, and she pointed to it, diagonally across the street. She said, it's that little pedestrian way where no cars are allowed. Ok. So I walk. It is a tiny narrow street alongside a major highway. All seems strange to me, but hey, I've got the address, I'm on the street. It can't be that far. I walk along this way, see a indoor pool house, and assume I must keep walking. I keep walking and walking. Into and through this park, along sports arenas, soccer fields, an outdoor bath. No theater. Hmmm. It's now 2:25. My audition is at 3pm, and they kindly let me know I was the first person. I start panicing. I called the agent to try to get help and better directions. Right. She can't tell me where it is, she tries to describe it, but can't. She keeps telling me to ask someone. No one knows!!! I ask a few more people, try a different route along this "street" and all leads me nowhere.

I then call Tim for emergency Google Earth help. My savior - he figures it all out. He asks if I've seen fields, a sports arena, all the things I had seen at SOME point along this 1 hour Park tour. I was so frustrated, I felt like just going back to the train station, and heading back to Hannover. It frustrates me when nothing is simple and no one can help you. After Tim calmed me down, he virtually walked me back to where I started. And there was the bath house - the indoor pool. Which the road apparently turns 90 degrees and proceeded further and turned again. I never even looked past the bath house to see a street with actual buildings!! AHHHHHHH!

I made it to the "theater" which happened to be a brand new senior living center. Theater, mmm hmm. That's why no one knew what the heck I was talking about! I made it there with 10 minutes to spare. A quick change in the bathroom, a very brief warm up and voila, I am on the stage singing with yet another shitty pianist. I realize now it's just a part of this whole "tour" I'm on. It has made me rethink what aria to begin with, and what arias to even offer.

I sang "Es gibt ein Reich" and then "Ch'il bel sogno di Doretta". I got some feedback from this shady agent which I am still pondering. Some of it was helpful, the other just plain confusing. Ten minutes later I was done and on my way back to the large Hauptbahnhof in Berlin.

Luckily, the day was beautiful and sunny. Otherwise, I might have jumped onto that highway and said forget the audition!

Learnings: Bring a DETAILED map, look on Google earth before you go (so you can see if you'll be in a park, a bath, a sports arena, or a senior living center for an audition), and be thankful for an amazing guy in my life.

:)