STRUMMING away quietly outside, Zoe Stevano and Robyn Dutli practised in the sunshine. Around the corner, Jack Height belted out his powerful repertoire. Inside was tense, people biding time and filling in forms until their number was called.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
We tell them to take a deep breath...we want everyone to know that we're on their side. We want them to perform well - it makes for a better show.
- Executive producer Digby Mitchell
This was the X Factor Australia’s first visit to sample talent in Ballarat with a steady stream of musical hopefuls all afternoon at the Mercure on Tuesday.
X Factor executive producer Digby Mitchell was genuinely impressed with Ballarat candidates. He said there was definitely some talent worth considering to put before the judges.
“We’ve just started the audition tour, we don’t know who we’re going to find. We’ve got to meet everyone, getting everyone’s voice on tape, and finding what would be the right mix,” Mr Mitchell said. “It also depends on how many slots we have for the judges we will have, and we want to make sure we’re bringing in talent from around the country.”
There was a steady stream all afternoon into the Ballarat auditions. Ballarat is the second stop of 18 for producers on the audition tour, following a launch in Geelong on Monday. This year the show expanded its reach to source talent in more regional areas.
Ballarat hopefuls served up lots of Adele. One gentleman completely shocked the judges with a rendition of Tom Jones’ My Yiddishe Momme – Mr Mitchell said that was an audition song they had never had before.
The best piece of advice producers could give candidates was to know your lyrics. They did not mind if you got a few words wrong, but noted missed lyrics tended to throw the singer off a little.
“We tell them to take a deep breath or jump to the chorus. We want everyone to know that we're on their side,” Mr Mitchell said. “We want them to perform well - it makes for a better show.”
Most auditionees told The Courier that producers were really encouraging, keeping the vibe casual and relaxed.
“They’re all about the music,” full-time muso Matty Chaps said. He was a Voice contestant on Team Delta in season one, and confessed to have been left a “little jaded” by that experience.
For young singers like Ballarat High School VET music student Robyn Dutli, it was about experience in the art of performance and building confidence. University student Zoe Stevano drove from Bacchus Marsh with her mum on a whim: “Mum said YOLO (you only live once) and that made me laugh. But she’s right.”
Want to see more: Add us on Snapchat as 'ballaratcourier'.
