Voice Studio Happenings |
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Recent Student Successes CONGRATULATIONS ALL and keep up the good work!!
2019
Rebecca Stern Finalist in Hal Leonard Voice Competition High School Student Division
https://youtu.be/-EaTyZP5m38
Avery Meier (Audrey), Danielle Kucera (Chiffon), Elaine Ficarra (Ronnette), Vince DiEdwardo (Mr. Mushnik) in Little Shop of Horrors at Downingtown West High School
Rachel Gorr 1st Place Winner at Battle of the Bands
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLeVPTjKRy8
Elaine Ficarra comissioned to record original "Dem Keys"
and singing National Anthem at Philadelphia Phillies and Reading Phillies Games
Rebecca Stern (Sister Sophia) and Kieran O'Donnell (Nun) in Sound of Music at Great Valley High School
Amanda D. and Marnie C. (Lady Larkin) and Maria F. (Lady Rowena) in Once Upon a Mattress at Devon Preparatory School
2018
Danielle Kucera as Isir in Aladdin Jr. at Walnut Street Theater Kids Series
https://mail.aol.com/webmail/getPart?uid=42159223&partId=2&scope=STANDARD&saveAs=aladdin1.jpg
Melissa Stern as Wendla in Spring Awakening at Footlighters Theater
Rachel Gorr as Jetsam in The Little Mermaid at Bishop Shanahan HS
Ellie Blanck as Pepper in the Professional Production of Annie at Limelight Theater
Becca Stern Soloist in Resident Theater Company’s Broadway in the Borough Summer 2018
Danielle Kucera as Cameron and Avery Meier as Niki in Curtains at Barleysheaf Theater
Becca Stern as JoJo and Melissa Stern as Gertrude in Seussical the Musical at Great Valley High School
Avery Meier as the Countess in The Sound of Music at Downingtown West High School
Elaine Ficarra finalist for Miss State Capitol's Outstanding Teen and actor in Discovering Routes Travels with Diskubre (Philippine TV)
Veronica Harrer as Ariel in Footloose at Bishop Shanahan High School
Becca Stern as recording artist for “Brilliant” a proposed new musical for publication.
Archive
Kelly Mulhern cast as Fantine in Les Miserables
Melissa Stern as Rosemary in How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying
Danielle Kucera cast as Mayzie in Seussical, the Musical
Odessa A. as Rizzo and Liddy as Featured Dancer in Grease
Maura McGraw cast as Molly , Priscilla cast as July in Annie (and Danielle K, student director)
Rebecca Stern cast as Tillie in The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-In-the-Moon Marigolds
Ellie cast as the Wicked Witch and Annalise cast as Storyteller and Duloc Performer in Shrek Jr.
Liz McKenzie and Elaine Ficarra participants in District Chorus
11 Students participants in All Catholic Chorus
Maura McGraw cast as the Wicked Witch and Ellie B. as the Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz
Kudos to Veronica Harrer as Reno and Rachel G and Grace M. for a great performance in Anything Goes at Bishop Shanahan
Congrats to Liz M for being cast as Sarah in Guys and Dolls at Malvern Prep, Sami U. cast as Flounder in The Little Mermaid at DEHS, Melissa S. as understudy to Catherine, Leading Player Solos, and Featured Dancer in Pippin at GVHS.
KUDOS also to District Chorus Participants, Anna D., Kyle L, and Ryan M. Have fun!
KUDOS to Melissa Stern for winning 3rd Place in her division at GP NATS Auditions. Congratulations on being the ending soloist of "What I Did for Love" in the Broadway Cabaret at GVHS.
Congratulations on a beautiful performance to Becca Stern on her performance in the professional cast of Seussical at Limelight Performing Arts.
Congrats and 'Break a Leg' to:
MaryKate (Judy in Bishop Shahahan's White Christmas ) and Veronica (understudy to Judy and dance captain) as well as other students in the production.
Kelly M. and Liz M. in It's a Wonderful Life at Malvern Prep!
KUDOS to Danielle K. for being cast as Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz at DMS.
Congrats to all of my students who auditioned and will be singing in the All Catholic Chorus this winter! So proud of you all!
Juliana B. (VMA)
Victoria G. (VMA)
Rachel G. (BSHS)
Grace H. (VMA)
Veronica H. (BSHS)
Grace M. (BSHS)
Liz M. (VMA)
Caroline M. (VMA)
Kelly M. (VMA)
Anna O (VMA)
Jessica P. (VMA)
MaryKate S. (VMA)
Keep up the good work all!!
Sign up now for the Musical Theater Audition Workshops to advance your chances for the next lead in a show. Come work on specific aspects of singing and acting your audition pieces. See the downloadable PDF attached for information.
Recent Roles Cast by participants in this workshop:
Danielle K. and Emma H. as Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz Downingtown MS
Ashley C. as Belle in Beauty in the Beast at Lionville MS
Liddy G. as Maria in The Sound of Music at Fuggett MS
Elaine F. as Sour Kangaroo in Suessical at St. Phillip and James
Sign up for the Summer Musical Theater Series to reserve your space for concentrated voice study, work on acting a song, and a new dance worskhop! Add to your summer fun! See the downloadable PDF attached for detailed information and dates to be released soon.
Important Dates and Future Notes
Masterclass (Sick Make-up) December 12 10:30am-12:30pm
Informal Studio Voice Recital January 9, 2016 at 4pm
Voice Studio Recital May 21 2016 at 4pm
Summer Musical Theater Series Dates TBD
Summer MT Recital TBD
Archive of Information
Past Student Successes
Olivia, Jessica, Victoria, Grace, and more as Papal Choir Participants
Congratulations to Rebecca Stern for her singing in Sesame Street: Nine Martian Beauty PBS Video!
PBS Kids
Kelly M. as Marty in Grease at Malvern Prep
Liz M. as Jan in Grease at Malvern Prep
Ashley C. as Belle in Beauty in the Beast at Lionville MS
Liddy G. as Maria in The Sound of Music at Fuggett MS
Melissa S. as Elle (understudy), Greek, Featured Dancer at Great Valley High School
Elaine F. as Sour Kangaroo in Suessical at St. Phillip and James
Happy Fall and Welcome Holiday Season! All students have working hard and are leads in area Fall Drama Productions and Musical Theater Productions, while others made it into All Catholic Choir! District Choir Auditions and Spring Musical Theater Auditions are on tap next! I will post results soon!
Recent Student Successes CONGRATULATIONS ALL !!
Lead roles in Annie (Rebecca S.- Title Role), Cinderella (Julia H.), Oliver (Kaitlyn Z), The Laramie Project (Kelly M.), A Piece of My Heart (Melissa S)
All Catholic Choir
Liz Callahan, Julia Harrar, Grace Hoehl, Liz McKenzie, Kelly Mulhern, Anna O'Brien, Jessica Perry
We had a great Summer Musical Theater Series Show in August! Much fun was had by all and we had a few group Frozen selections presented!
Spring Successes
Shannon Maguire - First Place winner in Chester County Choral Arts Society Competition. May 2 performance with the choir was wonderful!
Rebecca Stern- Cast as a recording singer for Sesame Street
Platinum Award Winner and 2nd Place in Access Broadway
Melissa Stern- Platinum Award Winner and 2nd Place in Access Broadway
Veronica Harrer - Fiona in Shrek
Mary Kate Shields - Donkey in Shrek
Hannah Cohen - Marian the Librarian in The Music Man
Masterclass May 3, 2014 was a success!
Students and I did a Yoga workshop and worked on individual pieces. Students had a great time learning yoga and how it impacts their singing first hand while learning from not only their own teaching time, but watching others being taught. Students polled said their favorite parts were:
The Yoga and
Learning from others
They also learned:
That performing isn't so scary
Expressing the true meaning of the words of a piece makes a big difference.
What a wonderful winter of successes! Many shows and many leads, you make me proud!
Great Successes this fall! Congrats all!
The Summer Musical Theater Series drew to a close August 3! The 2 Masterclass on Movement and Acting were a blast! Visit my You Tube Channel Brizick Voice Studio for clips of the workshops and upcoming clips of the recital or my Facebook Page.
2019
Rebecca Stern Finalist in Hal Leonard Voice Competition High School Student Division
https://youtu.be/-EaTyZP5m38
Avery Meier (Audrey), Danielle Kucera (Chiffon), Elaine Ficarra (Ronnette), Vince DiEdwardo (Mr. Mushnik) in Little Shop of Horrors at Downingtown West High School
Rachel Gorr 1st Place Winner at Battle of the Bands
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DLeVPTjKRy8
Elaine Ficarra comissioned to record original "Dem Keys"
and singing National Anthem at Philadelphia Phillies and Reading Phillies Games
Rebecca Stern (Sister Sophia) and Kieran O'Donnell (Nun) in Sound of Music at Great Valley High School
Amanda D. and Marnie C. (Lady Larkin) and Maria F. (Lady Rowena) in Once Upon a Mattress at Devon Preparatory School
2018
Danielle Kucera as Isir in Aladdin Jr. at Walnut Street Theater Kids Series
https://mail.aol.com/webmail/getPart?uid=42159223&partId=2&scope=STANDARD&saveAs=aladdin1.jpg
Melissa Stern as Wendla in Spring Awakening at Footlighters Theater
Rachel Gorr as Jetsam in The Little Mermaid at Bishop Shanahan HS
Ellie Blanck as Pepper in the Professional Production of Annie at Limelight Theater
Becca Stern Soloist in Resident Theater Company’s Broadway in the Borough Summer 2018
Danielle Kucera as Cameron and Avery Meier as Niki in Curtains at Barleysheaf Theater
Becca Stern as JoJo and Melissa Stern as Gertrude in Seussical the Musical at Great Valley High School
Avery Meier as the Countess in The Sound of Music at Downingtown West High School
Elaine Ficarra finalist for Miss State Capitol's Outstanding Teen and actor in Discovering Routes Travels with Diskubre (Philippine TV)
Veronica Harrer as Ariel in Footloose at Bishop Shanahan High School
Becca Stern as recording artist for “Brilliant” a proposed new musical for publication.
Archive
Kelly Mulhern cast as Fantine in Les Miserables
Melissa Stern as Rosemary in How to Succeed in Business without Really Trying
Danielle Kucera cast as Mayzie in Seussical, the Musical
Odessa A. as Rizzo and Liddy as Featured Dancer in Grease
Maura McGraw cast as Molly , Priscilla cast as July in Annie (and Danielle K, student director)
Rebecca Stern cast as Tillie in The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-In-the-Moon Marigolds
Ellie cast as the Wicked Witch and Annalise cast as Storyteller and Duloc Performer in Shrek Jr.
Liz McKenzie and Elaine Ficarra participants in District Chorus
11 Students participants in All Catholic Chorus
Maura McGraw cast as the Wicked Witch and Ellie B. as the Scarecrow in The Wizard of Oz
Kudos to Veronica Harrer as Reno and Rachel G and Grace M. for a great performance in Anything Goes at Bishop Shanahan
Congrats to Liz M for being cast as Sarah in Guys and Dolls at Malvern Prep, Sami U. cast as Flounder in The Little Mermaid at DEHS, Melissa S. as understudy to Catherine, Leading Player Solos, and Featured Dancer in Pippin at GVHS.
KUDOS also to District Chorus Participants, Anna D., Kyle L, and Ryan M. Have fun!
KUDOS to Melissa Stern for winning 3rd Place in her division at GP NATS Auditions. Congratulations on being the ending soloist of "What I Did for Love" in the Broadway Cabaret at GVHS.
Congratulations on a beautiful performance to Becca Stern on her performance in the professional cast of Seussical at Limelight Performing Arts.
Congrats and 'Break a Leg' to:
MaryKate (Judy in Bishop Shahahan's White Christmas ) and Veronica (understudy to Judy and dance captain) as well as other students in the production.
Kelly M. and Liz M. in It's a Wonderful Life at Malvern Prep!
KUDOS to Danielle K. for being cast as Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz at DMS.
Congrats to all of my students who auditioned and will be singing in the All Catholic Chorus this winter! So proud of you all!
Juliana B. (VMA)
Victoria G. (VMA)
Rachel G. (BSHS)
Grace H. (VMA)
Veronica H. (BSHS)
Grace M. (BSHS)
Liz M. (VMA)
Caroline M. (VMA)
Kelly M. (VMA)
Anna O (VMA)
Jessica P. (VMA)
MaryKate S. (VMA)
Keep up the good work all!!
Sign up now for the Musical Theater Audition Workshops to advance your chances for the next lead in a show. Come work on specific aspects of singing and acting your audition pieces. See the downloadable PDF attached for information.
Recent Roles Cast by participants in this workshop:
Danielle K. and Emma H. as Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz Downingtown MS
Ashley C. as Belle in Beauty in the Beast at Lionville MS
Liddy G. as Maria in The Sound of Music at Fuggett MS
Elaine F. as Sour Kangaroo in Suessical at St. Phillip and James
Sign up for the Summer Musical Theater Series to reserve your space for concentrated voice study, work on acting a song, and a new dance worskhop! Add to your summer fun! See the downloadable PDF attached for detailed information and dates to be released soon.
Important Dates and Future Notes
Masterclass (Sick Make-up) December 12 10:30am-12:30pm
Informal Studio Voice Recital January 9, 2016 at 4pm
Voice Studio Recital May 21 2016 at 4pm
Summer Musical Theater Series Dates TBD
Summer MT Recital TBD
Archive of Information
Past Student Successes
Olivia, Jessica, Victoria, Grace, and more as Papal Choir Participants
Congratulations to Rebecca Stern for her singing in Sesame Street: Nine Martian Beauty PBS Video!
PBS Kids
Kelly M. as Marty in Grease at Malvern Prep
Liz M. as Jan in Grease at Malvern Prep
Ashley C. as Belle in Beauty in the Beast at Lionville MS
Liddy G. as Maria in The Sound of Music at Fuggett MS
Melissa S. as Elle (understudy), Greek, Featured Dancer at Great Valley High School
Elaine F. as Sour Kangaroo in Suessical at St. Phillip and James
Happy Fall and Welcome Holiday Season! All students have working hard and are leads in area Fall Drama Productions and Musical Theater Productions, while others made it into All Catholic Choir! District Choir Auditions and Spring Musical Theater Auditions are on tap next! I will post results soon!
Recent Student Successes CONGRATULATIONS ALL !!
Lead roles in Annie (Rebecca S.- Title Role), Cinderella (Julia H.), Oliver (Kaitlyn Z), The Laramie Project (Kelly M.), A Piece of My Heart (Melissa S)
All Catholic Choir
Liz Callahan, Julia Harrar, Grace Hoehl, Liz McKenzie, Kelly Mulhern, Anna O'Brien, Jessica Perry
We had a great Summer Musical Theater Series Show in August! Much fun was had by all and we had a few group Frozen selections presented!
Spring Successes
Shannon Maguire - First Place winner in Chester County Choral Arts Society Competition. May 2 performance with the choir was wonderful!
Rebecca Stern- Cast as a recording singer for Sesame Street
Platinum Award Winner and 2nd Place in Access Broadway
Melissa Stern- Platinum Award Winner and 2nd Place in Access Broadway
Veronica Harrer - Fiona in Shrek
Mary Kate Shields - Donkey in Shrek
Hannah Cohen - Marian the Librarian in The Music Man
Masterclass May 3, 2014 was a success!
Students and I did a Yoga workshop and worked on individual pieces. Students had a great time learning yoga and how it impacts their singing first hand while learning from not only their own teaching time, but watching others being taught. Students polled said their favorite parts were:
The Yoga and
Learning from others
They also learned:
That performing isn't so scary
Expressing the true meaning of the words of a piece makes a big difference.
What a wonderful winter of successes! Many shows and many leads, you make me proud!
Great Successes this fall! Congrats all!
The Summer Musical Theater Series drew to a close August 3! The 2 Masterclass on Movement and Acting were a blast! Visit my You Tube Channel Brizick Voice Studio for clips of the workshops and upcoming clips of the recital or my Facebook Page.
Melissa Stern won First Place and Platinum in the DIVA Division for her performance of "On My Own"
Rebecca Stern won Platinum in her division (the youngest placing participant)for her performance of "Sing Your Own Song"
Rebecca Stern won Platinum in her division (the youngest placing participant)for her performance of "Sing Your Own Song"
The Studio Voice Recital June 8, 2013 was also a success.
While in the throws of Musical Theater Productions after successful auditions. Keep listening to your body and treat your voice well during the hectic rehearsal schedules. As with preparing for auditions, the best things you can do are:
- Drink lots of water and eat well
- Get lots of sleep
- Exercise moderately
- Wash your hands frequently
- Pay attention to your body's signals. If it doesn't feel good to your voice, don't do it and bring the repertoire to you next lesson.
Your body is your instrument. Treat it well!
Happy New Year 2013! We just started off the year with a fun Informal Recital! Thank you to all who participated. All singers had a chance to sing for other singers in a relaxed atmosphere. What a way to help overcome any performance anxiety or glitches. Visit my YouTube Channel, Brizick Voice Studio
for samples of the recital! I hope you all had as much fun as I did!
Recent Studio Successes
Jamie C. - Sarah in Guys and Dolls
Taylor C. - Hot Box Girl in Guys and Dolls
Samantha - Lady Lucille in Once Upon a Mattress
Shannon M. - 3rd Chair All Catholic Choir Alto 1
14th Chair District 12 Choir Alto 2
Mother in Footloose
Julia H. - 7th Chair All Catholic Choir Soprano 2
Melissa S. - Lead Lollipop Kid in The Wizard of Oz
Hannah B. - Apple Seller in Annie
Emma B. - Annie in Thoroughly Modern Millie
What a great fall! Many of you are preparing for auditons of all kinds. In preparation remember topractice regularly (your assigned warm-ups followed by the specific things we identify in your lesson), connect with the meaning of the piece , and take care of your body!
I look forward to posting your successes soon! Keep up the good work!
What a wonderful Summer Musical Theater Recital we had in August 2012! It is so rewarding to hear your beautiful singing and watch how you support one another in the performances! Visit my YouTube Channel, Brizick Voice Studio for samples of the recital!
Congratulations to Melissa for her DelCo Idol Junior journey. She made it all the way to the Fifth and final round with honors! Kudos to her and let it be encouragement to all of you that you can do anything you put your mind to and dedicate yourself to! Melissa at Idol
Kudos also to Katelyn for her successes playing in Maryland. Dub Glenn says,
Katie is 15 years old and has a voice like an angel. She WOWed the crowd with a few tunes. Before she was half way through her first song, people were running up to me asking who she was. Katie has also written a few originals that are very good. So this is one to watch folks..... I'm sure you will be hearing more from her.
Stay tuned for more updates on success stories of other students in the studio.
Congratulations again to all who participated in my 2 Masterclass/Workshops on Pilates, Yoga, and Acting and their Effects on Singing. What an amazing time! All of the students had fun exploring how freeing up space in your body can affect the singing voice. They also had a chance to work with an acting coach on individual songs that they are singing both as a monologue and in song. It was great for all to see how truly connecting to the character of the song can change how it is sung. We also explored how establishing purpose to our movements we can free our sound even further.
Why Pilates? Pilates focuses on good posture, freeing the head and neck, free flowing breath and core strength which are all essential to singing well.
Why Yoga? Yoga also focuses on free flowing breath, good posture and core strength. It also adds the concept of relaxation and focus of the mind. The mind and body communicate to create an empowered state of strength and focus/stress relief. This is an excellent way to combat performance anxiety.
The combination of the two helps you become connected with body and mind so you react faster and work better as a unit to create free, relaxed and beautiful singing.
"My blog on the July 2012 Masterclass"
- “The yoga poses really had an impact on my singing. All of the sudden my body and my voice were open and it was easy to sing.” Current Student
The Yoga and Pilates poses which we did in the Masterclass can be found in "Yoga Sequence for Singers"
Acting and Singing
The second part of the Masterclass included acting games and work on expression in a song each student is learning. What a difference connecting to the character and emotion of the piece can have when you sing! Compound that with allowing yourself to move and elongate your motions just how we stretch the length of our breath support for a phrase and wow did the singing change.
“Acting out the song makes you try something new and look at things from a different perspective.” Current Student
A great time was had by all! I am so proud of all of my participating students!
While in the throws of Musical Theater Productions after successful auditions. Keep listening to your body and treat your voice well during the hectic rehearsal schedules. As with preparing for auditions, the best things you can do are:
- Drink lots of water and eat well
- Get lots of sleep
- Exercise moderately
- Wash your hands frequently
- Pay attention to your body's signals. If it doesn't feel good to your voice, don't do it and bring the repertoire to you next lesson.
Your body is your instrument. Treat it well!
Happy New Year 2013! We just started off the year with a fun Informal Recital! Thank you to all who participated. All singers had a chance to sing for other singers in a relaxed atmosphere. What a way to help overcome any performance anxiety or glitches. Visit my YouTube Channel, Brizick Voice Studio
for samples of the recital! I hope you all had as much fun as I did!
Recent Studio Successes
Jamie C. - Sarah in Guys and Dolls
Taylor C. - Hot Box Girl in Guys and Dolls
Samantha - Lady Lucille in Once Upon a Mattress
Shannon M. - 3rd Chair All Catholic Choir Alto 1
14th Chair District 12 Choir Alto 2
Mother in Footloose
Julia H. - 7th Chair All Catholic Choir Soprano 2
Melissa S. - Lead Lollipop Kid in The Wizard of Oz
Hannah B. - Apple Seller in Annie
Emma B. - Annie in Thoroughly Modern Millie
What a great fall! Many of you are preparing for auditons of all kinds. In preparation remember topractice regularly (your assigned warm-ups followed by the specific things we identify in your lesson), connect with the meaning of the piece , and take care of your body!
I look forward to posting your successes soon! Keep up the good work!
What a wonderful Summer Musical Theater Recital we had in August 2012! It is so rewarding to hear your beautiful singing and watch how you support one another in the performances! Visit my YouTube Channel, Brizick Voice Studio for samples of the recital!
Congratulations to Melissa for her DelCo Idol Junior journey. She made it all the way to the Fifth and final round with honors! Kudos to her and let it be encouragement to all of you that you can do anything you put your mind to and dedicate yourself to! Melissa at Idol
Kudos also to Katelyn for her successes playing in Maryland. Dub Glenn says,
Katie is 15 years old and has a voice like an angel. She WOWed the crowd with a few tunes. Before she was half way through her first song, people were running up to me asking who she was. Katie has also written a few originals that are very good. So this is one to watch folks..... I'm sure you will be hearing more from her.
Stay tuned for more updates on success stories of other students in the studio.
Congratulations again to all who participated in my 2 Masterclass/Workshops on Pilates, Yoga, and Acting and their Effects on Singing. What an amazing time! All of the students had fun exploring how freeing up space in your body can affect the singing voice. They also had a chance to work with an acting coach on individual songs that they are singing both as a monologue and in song. It was great for all to see how truly connecting to the character of the song can change how it is sung. We also explored how establishing purpose to our movements we can free our sound even further.
Why Pilates? Pilates focuses on good posture, freeing the head and neck, free flowing breath and core strength which are all essential to singing well.
Why Yoga? Yoga also focuses on free flowing breath, good posture and core strength. It also adds the concept of relaxation and focus of the mind. The mind and body communicate to create an empowered state of strength and focus/stress relief. This is an excellent way to combat performance anxiety.
The combination of the two helps you become connected with body and mind so you react faster and work better as a unit to create free, relaxed and beautiful singing.
"My blog on the July 2012 Masterclass"
- “The yoga poses really had an impact on my singing. All of the sudden my body and my voice were open and it was easy to sing.” Current Student
The Yoga and Pilates poses which we did in the Masterclass can be found in "Yoga Sequence for Singers"
Acting and Singing
The second part of the Masterclass included acting games and work on expression in a song each student is learning. What a difference connecting to the character and emotion of the piece can have when you sing! Compound that with allowing yourself to move and elongate your motions just how we stretch the length of our breath support for a phrase and wow did the singing change.
“Acting out the song makes you try something new and look at things from a different perspective.” Current Student
A great time was had by all! I am so proud of all of my participating students!