Really Spicy Opera’s regular season audition notices are posted to YAP Tracker. As of 16 March 2021, we are not actively recruiting for any projects.

The Succession Crisis (March/April 2021)

Really Spicy Opera is seeking performers of all adult voice types for a remotely conducted development workshop for The Succession Crisis by Heather Meyer and Basil Considine. This opera-in-progress is a satire of the 2016 and 2020 U.S. presidential elections, written in the spirit of Gilbert & Sullivan’s comic operas satirizing then-contemporary politics.

The intended producing organizations for The Succession Crisis are G&S companies. As a result, we are specifically looking for performers who:

1. Have significant expertise in performing Gilbert & Sullivan operas (defined as having sung in stage productions of a minimum of two separate G&S operas), and can approach the performing materials from that particular perspective.
2. Are interested in sharing their informed perspective about the work-in-progress, both through discussion sessions and anonymous surveys.
3. Are comfortable doing home audio recording.

Due to current domestic health conditions, all workshop elements shall be conducted remotely, through a combination of pre-recording music or via an electronic collaboration platform such as Zoom.

General Schedule

Note: Passover runs 3/27-4/4. Triduum and Easter for Protestants and Catholics runs 4/1-4/4.

•  Saturday, 3/20
  • 12-2 PM: Small-group virtual meetings (if called)
  • 2-4 PM: Full-cast virtual meeting & script reading
• Sunday, 3/21-Tuesday, 4/6: Recording work, as assigned
• Wednesday, 4/7
  • 12 PM: All recordings due
• Saturday, 4/10
  • 12-2 PM: Small-group virtual meetings (if called)
  • 2-4 PM: Full-cast virtual meeting & script reading
  • 4-5 PM: Debrief (if called)
• Sunday, 4/11
  • 2-4 PM: Virtual reading with invited guests
  • 4-5 PM: Talkback (optional)

Real-time sessions will be paid at a rate of $25/hour. Recording sessions will be paid at the same rate, using the general scheme of estimated time used in RSO workshops and remote recordings gigs (i.e., if we estimate an hour for recording vocals for a 2-minute chorus part, but you spend eight hours on it, we only pay for the estimated hour).

Things you might want to know:

•  We will accept applications on a rolling basis. This means that if we reach our quorum for a certain voice type, we’ll remove that option from the form (we’d like to not waste your time or ours).
• There will be many people wearing many hats. If we ask you to play one townsperson, we’ll probably also be asking you to play a bandit or a fairy as well – or record Townsperson #12 and Townsperson #13’s vocals to fill out the sound.
• There will be some potshots at both sides of the political spectrum. And at a few G&S staples and a Disney song or two.
• The plot in a nutshell: When the beloved King of Royaume dies with no heir, the kingdom is thrown into confusion. Per the Book of Succession, there must be an election to crown a new king – but the citizens soon find some, ahem, quirks in the centuries-old electoral system. Plus, there’s good old-fashioned gender discrimination, a plan to make the kingdom great again, a dragon terrorizing the countryside, and far too many candidates for everyone to be happy.  

Applications are open now! (requires free Google email account)

Quarantine Opera Scenes (On Hold: 2021)

• • Paid at $25/hour. Same-day electronic payment made via Paypal or Venmo.
  • Singers are provided with a score and a piano track, to use in recording a video of them singing to via smartphone.
  • No long-term commitment is required – this is all ad hoc, gig by gig.
  • To apply, send an email to spicyopera@gmail.com with Quarantine Singer in the subject, a performance resume, and a link to 1-2 recent recordings.

The RSO Street Team (On Hold: 2021)

The Street Team provides live, busking-style music performances in Downtown Minneapolis under contract to the Downtown Improvement District and Hennepin Theatre Trust. This group does not rehearse – we show up and just perform Disney songs, musical theater classics, and American songbook with the odd G&S song thrown in. Gigs are typically 11-1 PM, 11:30-1:30 PM, or 5-7 PM, Tuesdays through Fridays.

• • Paid at $25/hour. Same-day electronic payment made via Paypal or Venmo.
  • No long-term commitment is required – this is all ad hoc, gig by gig. We’re happy to work with singers and pianists one day at a time, because when you’re getting paid to sightread Disney songs from a fakebook, the more the merrier.
  • To apply, send an email to spicyopera@gmail.com with Street Team Application in the subject and either a performance resume or 1-2 sentences saying some things that you’d love to sing. If you’ve worked for a company in town or gotten a degree in the performing arts, awesome – you’re in, come work with us!