One of the things I love to do when rehearsing shows is to create a playlist specific to each show that I use while driving to the theatre as a slightly more interesting way to do vocal warm-ups than just making a bunch of weird noises. No hate on those that do, it’s just not my thing. (Shoutout to castmate Ed who does those noises, and it’s a lovely thing.) So I figured I’d share my playlist for the current show, Romeo & Juliet, and share a bit of my thinking.
I do really hate the cover art that Apple picks for those songs, by the way.
Anyway, the song choice probably looks random, but isn’t entirely. On some level, I picked songs that resonated thematically for me, like “One Week” as a fine example of dysfunctional romantic relationships. “Crack the Shutters” kind of reminded me of the “morning after” scene, following R&J’s secret wedding and Tybalt’s death. “I Predict a Riot” seems obvious, and I like rounding out with “Nautical Disaster” and “Superman’s Dead” for the tragedy aspects.
On the vocal warm-up level, though, I obviously choose songs that I have reasonable mastery of the lyrics and some hope of being able to sing. I like songs like “One Week” and “Everything at Once” for the speed of lyrical delivery, which kind of works to limber me up, especially for how much of a mouthful Shakespeare’s verse can be. And I try to stay with stuff within my reach vocally, like “The Mary Ellen Carter” so I can focus on breathing and volume. As much as I love singing along to Barenaked Ladies songs, for instance, I have to be sparing on stuff that Steven Page sings, so I don’t spend too long in my falsetto range.
And I realize this makes it sound like I know a lot more about vocalization and good technique than I do. In truth, I’ve just figured out what works for me, and leaves me with my voice for the duration of a show, especially one like Romeo & Juliet, where my character spends a lot of his limited stage time yelling at, like, everyone.