With another fall audition season finished, artists often wonder, now what?  Too many times the first couple of months of the new year becomes a waiting game to see if any work comes around. Is it enough to simply sit around waiting? There is much more that artists can do to keep the progress moving forward.

One of the first things that every artist should do is take a bit of time to really reflect on each individual auditions. Asking some important questions about the process of auditioning can improve the odds of success in the future. Some good questions to ask are:

Did my repertory match my auditions? If only one repertory list was used for all auditions, consider building separate repertory lists that better align with each organization’s own performance history. Each organization has their own somewhat unique repertory footprint. Artists often sing for organizations with repertoire that doesn’t align with the organization. By doing a little research into the repertory trends of the each organization, an artist can present audition repertoire that showcases their voice while at the same time aligning with the performance repertory of the organization.

How does my repertory showcase the best aspects of my voice? The purpose of any audition should result in the artist getting hired. If an artist doesn’t walk out of the audition feeling good about how they presented themselves, then something is wrong. Every audition related decision should be made by asking the above question. If the answer is not a resounding yes, then it’s time to make a change.

What can I do to follow-up on auditions? An artist should always be looking to build their network. Network building should include following companies on Twitter. Like the organization’s Facebook Page. Identify those individuals who work for the organization that can potentially help and connect with them on LinkedIn and Twitter. More often than not an artist’s closest friends will not be the source of work, but those individuals who are acquaintances met through networking will often prove more valuable. Artists are entrepreneurs. They should take every opportunity to expand and grow their network.

The post-audition season is not the time to relax and shut down. Starting strong in 2017 is a great way for any artist to set themselves up for the best chance at a successful year.