AllMovie

Eleven gifted singers vie for a position with one of the world's greatest opera companies in this documentary from filmmaker Susan Froemke. New York City's Metropolitan Opera is America's most celebrated opera company, and the directors are always on the lookout for exceptional new talent. In The Audition, Froemke offers viewers an insider's look at the process by which promising classical vocalists from around the country are invited to audition for the Met, and eleven are chosen for apprenticeships with the company. As the singers are brought up to the big leagues of American opera, they study with the company's voice instructors and acting coaches, as well as refining their technical skills and leaning more about the orchestra that will be accompanying them. Some of the students rise to the occasion, some are stricken with anxieties as they face new creative obstacles, and a few are presented with the greatest challenge of all, appearing on stage with some of the finest contemporary artists in classical music in front of a appreciative but very discriminating audience. The Audition received a brief theatrical release and made the rounds of international film festivals before being screened on PBS in the fall of 2009.