Philly and East Rutherford are both much more central locations for pullling from the entire northeast Washington to New York corridor.

Right. Which doesnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t make it all that out of the way. Peeps who flew in for the Philly and New York Auditions who didnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t drive still had to make their way there via public transporation.

Exactly I can’t speak for the Philly location, but trying to get to the Meadowlands in East Rutherford is a pain -even by car, in my opinion. It is off the NJ turnpike but in the middle of industrial nothingness. There may be bus service from Manhattan but there is no train station there. Someone coming in from out of town would really need a car to do without a lot of hassle.

Honestly, I’m glad the tour concerts were moved to the Prudential Center in Newark which is much more accessible.

Gillette is really out in the boonies compared to either of those locations. There is a train that goes there from South Station in Boston.

Right. Which doesn’t make it all that out of the way. Peeps who flew in for the Philly and New York Auditions who didn’t drive still had to make their way there via public transporation.

By car, Foxboro is a very easy drive–it’s right off 95.

kinda random, but a friend of a friend who auditioned for AI9 said that the boston group song was “when i grow up”

Orlando in July is atrociously hot and humid. Fortunately, that venue is indoors.

LOL – I know – I live in FL. I’ve done time at Disney in the middle of the summer. It’s hot!

I went to Boston once and froze my ass off in July. So, maybe all the peeps just decided Boston in June was too chilly, and theyà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢re all flying to Orlando instead?

They might want to think twice about that? Orlando in July is atrociously hot and humid. Fortunately, that venue is indoors.

I believe that the Philly auditions took place at the football stadium, which is very close to downtown. There is a rail link directly to the stadium complex.

Well, Wachovia Center is actually the hockey rink / basketball complex. But, it is right in the same area as Lincoln Financial Field where the Eagles play.

They’re both by the Naval Base/Naval Business District, down by the river. The rail does stop right there on Pattison Ave, but I don’t know if it’s directly at the complex or not – I’ve never taken it. But you can get there pretty easily from a lot of different cities. Okay, maybe not easily – the Philly highway system can be a quagmire and a nightmare for newbies.

Actually, I think that one’s actually a convenient destination for those people who travel to the auditions by air. It’s not a long trip from the airport at all.

I went to Boston once and froze my ass off in July. So, maybe all the peeps just decided Boston in June was too chilly, and they’re all flying to Orlando instead?

Well, the New York and Philadelphia auditions werenà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t right in the middle of those cities either.

The NYC auditions cattle call took place in East Rutherford, NJ and the Philly auditionsà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬’also out in the suburbs.

I believe that the Philly auditions took place at the football stadium, which is very close to downtown. There is a rail link directly to the stadium complex.

Likewise, the Meadowlands is just over the GW Bridge from Manhatten. That area of Jersey is very high traffic. I believe that train service is also available.

Gillette is really out in the boonies compared to either of those locations. There is a train that goes there from South Station in Boston.

by the way, my theory of why less people audition is because of all the producer manipulation. yes, a à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“cannon fodderà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬  won but for the most part, there were a few chosen select few and so it doesnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t seem like any random person has a chance.

I agree. This season seemed especially bad for having a prescribed agenda.

Has anyone said which judges were there? Paula? Kara?

This is the big cattle call round. The judges round won’t happen until later in the summer.

So, I think, across the board the numbers will be less with more local AI winners, current semi-pro performers, and “rock band” members trying out. I think that people with good voices are getting it more this year. They need to bring something special to the table ’cause otherwise they’ll just be wasting their time.

I think AI should redo/rethink the the initial audition stage. Whoever the interns are that are screening, are not doing a very good job or the producer’s need to rethink who and what they are letting through. I have read so many stories these past few years of how heartbreaking it is to sit for hours only to be turned down while some horrible singer in a big bird suit gets through.

Yep, if it was me, I would not be trying out for the above reasons. People are getting wise.

The problem is that ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s not actually in Boston, ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s about a hour away. So ità ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s not attracting as many people from the cityà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ ¦ or as easy to get to as somewhere in the city, like the Gardenà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬ ¦

Well, the New York and Philadelphia auditions weren’t right in the middle of those cities either.

The NYC auditions cattle call took place in East Rutherford, NJ and the Philly auditions–also out in the suburbs.

It’s actually not that hard to get to Foxboro–there’s a train station nearby.

I will agree, though, that New Jersey and Pennsylvania are more convenient locations for East Coasters wanting to audition.

http://idol-thoughts.com/talent//index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=213&Itemid=125

Totally inconvenient location (no public transport), early auditions, and people are still detoxing.

I wonder if someone will sing NO BOUNDARIES. Heh.

I loved the top 5 this year (well, minus one, heh)
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ROFL. Let me guess. Danny? Or Sarver? Oh wait. Was Sarver the top 5? I don’t remember. ROFL.

I kind of wonder if the economy is a factor. A lot of out-of-work young-uns may not have gas money or airfare.

It seems to be effecting everything else, so it wouldn’t surprise me in the least.

Whatever the total # of auditioners turns out to be, I hope TPTB end up chosing a more talented top 36 than last year. I loved the top 5 this year (well, minus one, heh) but I found the rest to well below par talent wise. Hopefully, that won’t happen this year, but I’m not holding my breath.

Boston is a haul and Gillette doesnà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢t have much in the way of public transit access.

Good point.

I support the timing argument too. There wasn’t much notice, so it was probably difficult for people to get time off work, or make a schedule around it. My guess is that they have a lot of younger auditioners this year. Up to about 21/ 22-ish.

I think they went by school system calendars and realized that most schools end by late May or early June (and restart sometime between mid-August and early September), not sure about Massachusetts though.

How many were wearing black nail polish?
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ROFL! I can’t wait to find out.

I think the fact they made the auditions earlier than usual hurt them.