Last time I posted, I wrote about what goes into prepping for an audition, from carefully reading instructions, to choosing the right look. This time I’m going to talk more about what goes into the audition process once you are prepped and ready.
After you have carefully selected your song, practiced your technique and gestures, and chosen the perfect audition outfit, it is time for the big day. Your 30-90 seconds of the spotlight await you and so does the pressure of how this moment will impact the next three months of your life (the average life of a show in community theater). When you arrive at your audition, be confident and prepared. Speak kindly and respectfully to anyone and everyone in the room and space. This includes other auditionees before you, after you, or sometimes even in your group, the production team and audition panel, and whoever takes your information and greets you when you enter. It takes a village to raise a child, but you still need to be a villager. It takes a community to put on a great show, so you need to be a willing, and respectful community member.
Make sure you are ready with your accompaniment material and that it is easy to follow. For example, sheet music is taped and labeled for your accompanist or a backing track is already pulled up on your phone to the exact cut of the song you need. Bring your water as hydration is important and nothing dries up the vocal folds quite like nerves for an audition. Treat your 30-90 second audition like a performance and give it your best, but don’t beat yourself up about whatever did or didn’t happen.
I personally believe the actual audition part to be the easy part of the entire process for the prospective performer. The most nerve-wracking part for sure, but the easiest by far. I also, personally believe that the most difficult part of the entire process is the time between audition and call backs. During that time which can be anywhere from two days to two weeks, we as performers tend to get into our heads a lot and are not always kind. We ask ourselves questions like, “Was I (talented, beautiful, expressive, tall, short, pleasant, etc.) enough?” You can fill in the rest. And then the call back list is released and depending on what we see, we ask ourselves more questions.
For example, I recently auditioned for “The Wizard of Oz” at Hopebox Theatre in Kaysville, Utah. The part(s) I was auditioning for were Dorothy or Glinda. Of course I was willing to accept any role in the show and would be thrilled to be cast in the ensemble of this show, but I was really putting effort and energy into Dorothy, thinking Glinda would be the obvious second choice. The day of the audition came and I was dressed to the nines like Dorothy. I wore a blue and white striped dress that I had sewn buttons onto to keep the straps up and a white shirt with puffy sleeves. I had done my hair in two French braids and my makeup was designed to give me a more youthful appearance. I sang my song “Wonderful Guy” from Rodger and Hammerstein’s South Pacific and I gave it my best performance. I brought water, and was kind and respectful to everyone in the room from the stage manager at the desk, to the production team, to everyone else who was auditioning as well. It was one of my best focused auditions to date.
The next night I received an e-mail with a call back request for the following parts: Ensemble (yay!), and…Miss Gulch/Wicked Witch (WHAT!?)
“What on earth were they thinking?” I thought. I immediately thought I must not be a good enough singer (why did they call me back for ensemble though?) or maybe I was too ugly to be considered for Glinda so they wanted to see me for the ugly witch. My brain spiraled. After thinking things through, and coming up with a list of positive and flattering reasons why I got called back for a part I hadn’t anticipated playing for at least 20 years from now, I decided to put my best effort into being prepared for reading such an unexpected role.
The thing you have to remember when it comes to auditions is this: It doesn’t always matter how talented you are, it does matter how you show up. Whether or not you get called back at all, or even to a specific role has a lot less to do with your ability and everything to do with the kind of performer you are and how you fit into the puzzle of the show as a whole. Sometimes you just don’t fit the director’s vision of what the show looks/sounds like and that is ok. But don’t let one director in one specific show stop you from trying again. One day you will fit perfectly into the show and maybe even into a specific piece of the puzzle you long for.
Stay tuned for the Call Back process and experience…
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