Apollo Theater Offers Online Auditions For Historic Amateur Nights During Coronavirus Pandemic

Boardrooms and schoolrooms are not the only things going virtual due to the coronavirus outbreak. In New York, where the city has logged 67,000 confirmed cases at the time of this writing, the famed Apollo Theater announced that it will move all auditions for its historic amateur night shows online for the foreseeable future.

The Harlem music hall, which opened in its present carnation in 1934, has a long history of boisterous Wednesday amateur nights, populated with talent scouts and tied to large cash prizes. Past performers have included Jimi Hendrix, Sammy Davis Jr., Billie Holiday, Diana Ross, James Brown, The Jackson 5, Stevie Wonder, Gladys Knight, Patti LaBelle, and Luther Vandross.

While a handful of faraway act have gotten to audition via video for the past three years, this is the first time in 86 years that all performers will need to send in clips to a review panel.

Located in the midst of the nation’s worst virus hotspot, the theater has cancelled dozens of shows through April 12, and the venue’s future is as uncertain as everything else feels right now.

Currently, there are statewide bans on large gatherings and all live performance venues have been shuttered. But the theater’s staff and management are trying to stay positive and move ahead with business.

“What I think we will see is almost probably a wider array of contestants submitting,” Executive Director Kamilah Forbes told the Wall Street Journal. “I think having just worked in theater, we understand that getting in front of a panel of judges is sometimes some of the most intimidating part of being a theater actor or performer, et cetera. So to be able to do it from the comfort of your own home—there’s plus sides to it.”

The theater is accepting audition tapes on their website and then reviewing the performances on Google Hangouts and Zoom. Submitters, in both an adult and childrens categories, can perform musical acts, comedy acts, spoken-word performances, dancing, and variety acts before uploading them to YouTube or Vimeo for consideration. Audition tapes may be up to five minutes long. Performers must not have a contract with a major label.

It’s unclear when the auditions will lead to a live performance in front of a live audience, but the theater is confident that that day will come. Until then, they’ll be watching tapes, looking for new talent, and waiting.

“We’re always looking” Forbes told the New York Times. “I think the opportunity for digital really allows us to always keep our eyes open for talent around the country and, quite frankly, around the world.”