This fifth book in Rowling’s incredibly successful wizarding series is a challenging 766 pages long, containing over 255,000 words and weighing in at 2.8lb (1.3kg). In Britain alone, it sold 1.8 million copies in immediate hours following its release - a Nielsen Book Scan estimate revealed that one person in every 28 possessed The Order of Phoenix. In US, five million copies were sold during same period. There can be little doubt that Harry Potter is a global literary phenomenon.

Trivia aside, Potter is no longer awkward 11-year-old boy wizard that readers were introduced to in first book. Phoenix sees tangle-haired Harry in his fifth year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He is now an angry adolescent, a survivor of various hair-raising escapades who often finds it difficult to control his emotions. He frequently finds himself "consumed with anger and frustration, grinding his teeth and clenching his fists", and occasionally takes his "growling resentment" out on his best friends Ron and Hermione.

Phoenix is an enormously harrowing adventure for Harry and definitely not ideal bedtime reading material for squeamish or fainthearted. He is attacked by dementors, threatened with expulsion from Hogwart's, banned from playing Quidditch, discredited among much of magical population, haunted by dreams, visions and stories of his dead parents, accused of being a liar by atrocious Dolores Umbridge, forced to endure loss of a dear friend – and all this before his destiny is finally revealed to him by Dumbledore, who sits Potter down in his office and tells him “everything”.

The book is considerably darker than first four novels as Voldemort begins to spread his evil influence, opposed at each stage by Order of Phoenix, a protective circle of benevolent witches and wizards.

What makes a successful audition? I’ve heard this question asked so many times. Within three installments, I am going to give you some very useful suggestions on how to sell yourself in an audition. After hundreds of auditions (both good and bad), this is what I have found.

Step I: Mental Power If you think about it, process begins with one thing: A great attitude! What do I mean by that? Before you audition, ask yourself following questions: •Why do I want this audition? •How do I walk into audition? Do I walk in thinking I already have part or do I walk in saying, “Why on earth would they want to hire me?” •Am I dressed for success? •How do I walk out of audition? •What can I learn from this audition?

By asking yourself these questions, they can help put you in right frame of mind. You are a product in a business……so you have to learn how to sell yourself! Learning how to sell product YOU is easy and can be done in a few steps. The first step is a positive attitude.

Why do I want this audition? Of course easy answer is that you want part, but you have to think broader than that. Will this part be good for my career advancement? Is this a company that I want to work for? People audition for hundreds upon hundred of gigs all time. I suggest you do some soul searching. What type of auditionee do I want to be? The one that auditions for everything and anything or one that is more selective? If I do become more selective, then why?

How do I walk into audition? The first thing that auditioners notice when you walk in is your appearance. When you walk in, they immediately start examining you. How does she carry herself? Is she smiling? Do clothes she wears exemplify her personality while maintaining professionalism? Even if they are not aware of types of questions they are asking, auditioners will immediately make a judgment on whether or not they like you.

I used to walk into an audition saying to myself, “I’m not good enough to get this gig. Why would they even hire me?” As awful as that is………it’s true! That’s what would run through my mind. And inevitably I would never get gig. Why? Because I conveyed that attitude in my face and in my presence, without even knowing it. People immediately noticed it. Finally, someone (who later become a good friend) said to me, “Ja-Naé, with your attitude way it is, you are never going to make it. Being humble is one thing (and a great thing!!!), but thinking that you are not even good enough for gig. If you think you’re not good enough…..then you’re not.” She was right! If I wanted to survive in this competitive field, I definitely had to have an attitude adjustment.

Am I dressed for success?

What you wear to an audition says TONS about who you are as a person. You want a look that is professional, classy, yet shows off your personality. Though I’m a cross-over artist, my primary genre is opera and those are auditions that I have had most experience with. Also, it is tricky with opera. You audition outfit changes with season and time of day. Here are some tips for both sexes in opera world:

MEN

•Use cut of suit, color of suit, and color of tie to show off your personality. The colors and style you wear can say a lot about you. •Make sure your shoes are not scuffed. No one likes a well-dressed man with scuffed shoes. •Make sure that shirt is ironed and suit is dry-cleaned. •Auditioners want to see you face, so clean shaven is preferred.

WOMEN