Singing Guide: Thoroughly Modern Millie
Vocal technique, exercises, tips and relevant resources
Thoroughly Modern Millie is a musical comedy about a small-town girl named Millie who moves to New York City in the 1920s. The show has a wonderful score with music by Jeanine Tesori, and lyrics by Dick Scanlan. Sutton Foster originated the role of Millie in the Broadway production and won a Tony Award for her performance.
One of the unique vocal techniques Sutton Foster used in playing the role of Millie was her use of vibrato. Her performance of the song "Gimme Gimme" is a great example of this, as she uses vibrato to great effect throughout the song.
- Work on your vibrato: Sutton Foster has a beautiful, natural vibrato that is both powerful and controlled. To develop your own vibrato, try using the exercises in Singing Carrots' Singing with Vibrato video.
- Practice your breathing: Good breathing is essential for singing, and it's something Sutton Foster uses expertly in her performance. Check out Singing Carrots' Breathing Basics and Breath Support articles for tips on how to breathe properly when singing.
- Master your vocal registers: Sutton Foster has an impressive vocal range, and she transitions smoothly between her chest voice and her head voice. Check out Singing Carrots' Voice Registers and Vocal Break article to learn how to master your registers.
- Listen to Sutton Foster's performances: Listening to Sutton Foster's version of "Gimme Gimme" or other songs from Thoroughly Modern Millie can help you better understand her vocal technique and style, and can be a great source of inspiration and motivation.
In addition to these tips, Singing Carrots offers many resources to help you improve your singing, including pitch accuracy and vocal range tests, a vocal pitch monitor, and a wide range of practice tools and exercises. With practice and dedication, you can learn to sing like Sutton Foster in Thoroughly Modern Millie, and develop your own unique vocal style along the way.