Feature: 243 Local Talents Audition for INDONESIA MENUJU BROADWAY Program

INDONESIA MENUJU BROADWAY (Indonesia Goes to Broadway), an intensive training program for aspiring musical theatre actors, held its audition on February 3rd and 4th, 2019, at Balai Resital Kertanegara, Jakarta. Out of 672 applicants who registered online, 243 hopefuls were selected based on their resumé and portfolio. A final group of 70 will be selected to attend the 5-day training by musical theatre professionals.

This program was held through a premiere partnership between StudentsLive, a global arts education company, and Djarum Foundation, a non-profit company and offshoot of the Indonesian cigarette manufacturing company Djarum. INDONESIA MENUJU BROADWAY is part of the Passport to Broadway initiative which allows international students of the theatrical art to experience authentic Broadway educational and training programs.

Auditionees, who came from all across Indonesia, were further sorted into 3 age groups: 10-15, 16-22, and 23-32. The audition started with singing; each auditionee had been given a list of musical theatre songs for their respective age group upon signing up. They performed their chosen song in front of the judging panel consisting of Indonesia entertainment industry veterans Ari Tulang, Garin Nugroho, Andrea Miranda, and Ufa Sofura.

Some auditionees were asked to also showcase their acting further, performing a prescribed monologue piece. The final phase was dancing, in which a small group of 10 to 15 auditionees dance a short choreography they had been taught in a separate training room prior to the audition.

All 70 who pass the audition will attend the training program in Jakarta on February 20th until 24th. Further, ten of the most outstanding students will be flown to New York City for another training later in July of this year with the Passport to Broadway Creative Team led by Artistic Director Amy Weinstein.

"During these two days, we discovered a lot of young artists showing potential in the field of performing arts, especially musical theater. This selection process challenges young Indonesian artists to showcase their talent and give the best result in front of the judges. Going forward, we hope these young artists will continue to create works and inspire other young artists pursuing musical theatre," said Garin Nugroho, prolific Indonesian director and one of the judges for Indonesia Menuju Broadway in a Djarum Foundation report.

Special thanks to Zendika Sandiazskara for information regarding the audition process. Photo: Djarum Foundation.