“..Contralto...”
yes!!!! I had to fight tooth and nail to get them to transpose it into a higher key for my daughter’s voice. They did - they knew she needed a higher key but at first resisted because it would have taken some trouble because the orchestra, etc, needs the new key for the “Beauty and the Beast” song.
Now lest one think I was an interfering stage mother type and obnoxious - I was not - I stayed outside the fray and said not a word and simply sent an e mail requesting the key change worded very politely. To top it off - I lobbied some big corporations - including Air Liquide (Union Carbide), Corning fiberglass, and some other local manufacturing companies in the local area for funding and successfully raised $1,200.00 for the production even though she was given Potts.
Final: at the production someone from the Harrt school of Music in Ct. was there watching a different relative student altogether and she came up to my daughter after the show and told her her voice was amazing and she ought to go on to college for voice and said not a word to “Belle”.
“Contralto”
I know whereof I speak. One of my students was cast in a role that SHOULD have gone to a guy, but there weren’t enough boys interested in being in the production. Her song was in the Locrian Mode, which is a difficult scale for Western Ears, AND it was too low for her. Since that production was done with backing tracks, we could NOT change the key, so I had to train her lower register (designing new vocal exercises in the Locrian Mode) so that she could sing the part. She did fine, but it was a huge miscasting on the part of the director. (a teacher.)