Throughout the Laredo Theater Guild International’s (LTGI) Spring production season, long before audiences even took their seats for The Last Five Years, vocal coach Paulina De Leon was preparing actors to carry Jason Robert Brown’s emotionally demanding score. Through a focus on technique and deep collaboration, De Leon guided performers through both the physical mechanics and vulnerability of singing.
A graduate of Texas A&M International University with a bachelor’s degree in Music Education, De Leon traces her musical roots back to the choir program at Vidal M. Treviño School of Communication and Fine Arts, training under choral director Celia Hernandez. Though she has been a vocalist for eight years and a coach for three, The Last Five Years marked her first collaboration with LTGI, describing the opportunity as intimidating but rewarding. “I was so scared [with it] being my first time,” De Leon admitted, “but also grateful because I knew I would gain experience in the theater world.”
De Leon’s role extended well beyond simple rehearsal accompaniment, requiring her to work individually with the actors portraying Cathy and Jamie (Lisa Martinez and Roland Vela), as well as coaching their duets. Her main focus during all coaching sessions was building the actors’ vocal endurance, which she described as a necessity for a production as musically intensive as The Last Five Years. “Singing for an hour and a half is a workout!” she explained. “The music has a jazz feel, and the songs move fast and sit high in the voice, so stamina becomes one of the biggest challenges.”
A typical coaching session with De Leon begins not with singing, but with physical preparation as the tension released before vocal warmups help pinpoint areas needing attention. “Warmups are my favorite part,” she said. “They tell me what a singer might be struggling with, and we build from there.” This holistic approach reflects a broader philosophy common among vocal coaches: healthy technique emerges from an awareness of breath, posture, and emotional comfort, in combination with musical precision.
Another aspect that De Leon emphasizes during her vocal instruction is sensitivity. “Singing is a very vulnerable skill,” she noted. “I always ask singers how they feel first, because helping them feel comfortable is what allows improvement.” She implemented this belief throughout her stretch of rehearsals, meeting with performers three times a week in order to balance technical corrections with encouragement as the actors navigated the show’s emotionally layered narrative — one that balances opposing timelines chronicling the start of a marriage and its dissolution.
Despite tight schedules, demanding rehearsals, and charged performances, what stood out the most to De Leon was the performers’ commitment. “In those first weeks, seeing how dedicated they were to their roles really stayed with me.”
Outside the theater, De Leon coaches at Flat 5 Music Academy, but her experience with LTGI has thoroughly shaped her future ambitions. “I hope to help more,” she explained of assisting the organization in future musical productions, a sentiment that reflects the same collaborative spirit her work helped bring to the stage.
