by Nick Navari. @nnavari.
NEW YORK, NY - Are you in a loveless marriage? Are you tired of the same old, same old with your romantic partner? Are you still trying to seduce Christian Borle at the stage door?
If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, let us ask you one more: Have you tried playing through the complete score of a musical in your bedroom with the entire orchestra for the first time - including the overture, entr’acte, underscoring, and exit music?
A sitzprobe is something that can sound quite intimidating to the vanilla actor. Adding in new instruments, or, God forbid, people to something you’ve been doing raw for so long is a wakeup call to many. With practice, however, it can be a fulfilling experience.
Broaching the subject can be a little uncomfortable though, so let’s hear some advice from our readers who have been “probing their sitz’s” for a while now.
Kerry Buttler, a music director from Indianapolis, writes in to tell us that one should ease into the sitz.
“I like to take the tempo nice and slow when just starting out. Get all the ballads out of the way first until you find your rhythm, and don’t do the guy songs until the women have sung all of theirs.”
Annaleigh Assford, a copyist out of Detroit, thinks size matters, and one should start with a small group of people.
“My first was a Titanic sitz, and I wouldn’t recommend it. I’d start with a smaller band like Hedwig and the Angry Inch. Your sheets will be covered in glitter, but you’ll have a much better time.”
Andrew Keenan-Bulge-r, a woodwinds player from Des Moines, says it’s all about chemistry.
“It’s tough to be a piccolo player in a room full of bassoons, but bringing in a 15-piece orchestra to perform Chess: In Concert at your bedside can really connect you with your partner.
So before you get divorced, take it from us: Try to play an entire musical theater score for your lover first. I mean, can you think of a theater actor who has ever been divorced? We can’t.