Amateur Night At The Apollo To Hold Auditions For The 2019-2020 Seasons April 20

Apollo Theater to Hold Amateur Night Auditions

Saturday April 20

Contestants chosen will secure a spot in theAmateur Night at the Apollo 2019-2020 seasons

Competing for a chance to win a Grand Prize of $20,000Open Auditions to be held at theApollo Theater

Saturday, April 20th Dance auditions 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.

All other art forms from 12 p.m. until 6 p.m.

‍

WHAT: On Saturday, April 20th beginning at 10 a.m. the world famous Apollo Theater will hold auditions for the 2019-2020 seasons of its signature program Amateur Night at the Apollo. From 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., dancers will audition to secure a spot in a special all-dance edition of Amateur Night. Auditions for all other art forms will continue from 12 p.m. until 6 p.m. Contestants chosen from these auditions will get a spot in the 2019-2020 Amateur Night season line-up. Auditions will be held at the Apollo Theater where Amateur Night producers will screen the first 250 vocalists, rappers, dancers, comedians, spoken word artists, and other performers vying for a coveted spot on the Apollo’s stage, where they will then compete for a chance to win the grand prize amount of $20,000. Since its inception in 1934, the Apollo Theater’s signature show, Amateur Night, has been one of New York City’s most popular live entertainment experiences, launching the careers of thousands of performers and attracting audiences from all over the world. Amateur Night has long been revered by artists as a transformative experience where up-and-coming talent feel the power of the legendary performers who have come before them, and where audience responses can help make or break a career. Ella Fitzgerald, Stevie Wonder, Lauryn Hill and H.E.R. are just a few of the legendary performers who launched their careers on the Apollo stage.

‍

WHERE: Apollo Theater   253 West 125th Street. New York, NY 10027  

‍

RULES:

Each contestant will have up to 90 seconds to audition.

‍

• An Amateur is anyone who has not had a recording, film or TV contract with a major studio.
• No profanity including any racial epithets or slurs (Including the N-Word) all material must be appropriate for a family show.  
• Children under 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
• Only children ages 5 to 17 will be considered for the “Child Star of Tomorrow” segment.  Contestants competing in the adult category must be 18 years or older.
• No lip-synching, singing along with track lead vocals or post-production engineering of lead vocals permitted.  
• The audition is open to singers, dancers, comedians, spoken word artists, musicians and other variety performances.
• Singers can bring music in a MP3 file format and player i.e. flash drive, phone or MP3 player or sing a cappella. NO STREAMING FROM INTERNET ALLOWED.
• Apollo will provide an 88 key-keyboard (Motif 8 - Semi-Weighted) for any auditioning musicians or accompanist.
• Musicians and bands must bring their own instruments other than one keyboard and drums as mentioned above.
• Dancers should bring music in a MP3 format.  NO STREAMING ALLOWED.
• CDs will not be allowed.
   

*Important Note: For Amateur Night at the Apollo, only children ages 5 to 17 will be considered for the “Child Stars of Tomorrow” segment. Performers in the adult category must be 18 years or older. Children under 18 must be accompanied by an adult. For a complete list of audition guidelines and rules, visit https://www.apollotheater.org/amateur-night/auditions/ .

Performers are encouraged to arrive early as judges will only see the first 250 acts. Amateur Night at the Apollo weekly performances are independent from SHOWTIME AT THE APOLLO taped events.

‍

PHOTO OP: All media outlets interested in covering any of the auditions, MUST submit requests via

email to press@apollotheater.org  

‍

ABOUT US:  The legendary Apollo Theater—the soul of American culture—plays a vital role in cultivating emerging artists and launching legends. Since its founding, the Apollo has served as a center of innovation and a creative catalyst for Harlem, the city of New York, and the world.

‍

With music at its core, the Apollo’s programming extends to dance, theater, spoken word, and more. This includes special programs such as the blockbuster concert Bruno Mars Live at the Apollo, 100: The Apollo Celebrates Ella, the annual Africa Now! Festival, and the New York premiere of the opera We Shall Not Be Moved. The Apollo is a performing arts presenting organization that also produces festivals and large-scale dance and music works organized around a set of core initiatives that celebrate and extend the Apollo’s legacy through a contemporary lens; global festivals including the Women of the World (WOW) Festival and Breakin’ Convention, international and U.S.-based artist presentations focused on a specific theme; and Special Projects, multidisciplinary collaborations with partner organizations.

‍

Since introducing the first Amateur Night contests in 1934, the Apollo Theater has served as a testing ground for new artists working across a variety of art forms and has ushered in the emergence of many new musical genres—including jazz, swing, bebop, R&B, gospel, blues, soul, and hip-hop. Among the countless legendary performers who launched their careers at the Apollo are D’Angelo, Lauryn Hill, Machine Gun Kelly, Miri Ben Ari, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Billie Holiday, James Brown, Michael Jackson, Gladys Knight, Luther Vandross, and Stevie Wonder; and the Apollo’s forward-looking artistic vision continues to build on this legacy.

###