HOME -live LIFE, watch FICTION- Supporting Theater Professionals' Career Needs
Why doesn't HOME produce audition classes to get the point of view of casting directors/agents?
Because we are focussing on doing professional level work so that you will have the best material to show you off when you audition for casting directors/agents. Having been to my share of classes with casting directors/agents, I've found there are a some who genuinely want to help you by giving constructive feedback. However, there are enough casting directors and especially agents doing these classes that have the attitude that if you have to take this class, you aren't talented enough for them anyway. Not only don't you get constructuve feedback from them, but you actually hurt your chances of getting seen by them for something you would be good for, because they will always remember you as being from that class. I have helped performers find and rehearse material that got them signed with agents and called back by major casting directors plenty of times. Your time and money is better spent honing your craft and working your audition material so that you have the best material for each audition you attend. Meeting casting directors and agents at networking functions once you have good material is the best way to go.
At some point in your career, you will probably decide it is a good idea to do a combined audition. There are many benefits to participating in these auditions. For one, you will get to be seen by many more auditors than is generally possible trying to get to one at a time. And there are several draw-backs to this kind of audition structure- mainly the time constraint.
The truth is that no human being has the ability to sit and focus 100% for 8 hours straight for days on end listening to 5 minutes of audition material per performer for 200 performers. Add to that the reality that the auditor will be typing in/out as you walk on the stage and that auditors really do know if you know what you're doing within the first 3 moments. Beyond that it's a matter of keeping focus, making your transitions, and telling the story.
Here are some pointers in preparing your audition:
1. Always, always, always have someone else time your entire audition from beginning to end with the introduction (if it's included in your time) and the transition.
2. Do your best to contrast your pieces on several levels. Style, tone, character age range, and physicality are all levels beyond just comedic vs.dramatic on which you can contrast and show your castable range. Do this with a song and a monologue as well as with 2 monologues.
3. Do new audition material in front of people you don't know well before the audition. You'll get the nerves out.
4. Wear something you can move in that is fairly neutral type-wise but has one element that is "you". If you have long hair, make sure it stays out of your face. Look as much like your headshot as possible. Make sure your shoes will not slip.
5. If you can sing, sing. If you can't, don't.
6. If you can speak verse coherently, do some. (Unless there is nobody there who does classical shows- but that is pretty rare.)
7. Get as much sleep as possible the night before. Bring bottled water and a snack that will not muck up your throat with you. Leave your valuables home if you can. Bring extra headshots- just in case.
8. If you don't have a professional headshot, don't bother auditioning. Save the money and get a good professional headshot and then apply for audition appointments. You do more harm to yourself and your reputation than good by passing around bad headshots. It sucks- but it is true.
9. If you can, do some research on who will be watching and what kind of material they are doing and tailor your audition material to the parts you are castable for and really want to play.
10. Be prepared and you won't be nervous. If you're nervous, take a deep breath and remember that this is just like being in a micro-show. Enjoy your time on the stage as much as possible. Smile before you go out there.
Auditors ask for monologues for a reason: they want to see how balanced a performance you give with material you know well and have rehearsed. So what makes a balanced monologue? Three things: language, thought and body
Naturally we start with language because as actors that is our starting point. We are given a script which is the language the playwright tells us our character uses. The word choice in a script is never arbitrary. Therefore, the language we are given is our first great tool to break into who our character is. Primarily it begins to tell us how our character thinks.
Our character's thought process drives our moment to moment actions. It tells us what is happening in between and underneath the words. It tells us what we are doing in every moment and it makes it clear to the audience who we are and why we are in the world of the play. This sense of personal logic also informs how we feel. How we feel and what we do informs our connection to our body.
How our character uses our body must be informed by how they think which is going to be different from us as the actor. How and when we move is informed by how we feel. How we move and hold ourselves informs how we use our voices. All of this informs how we use our language to express our thoughts, and accomplish our actions.
In order to have a balanced performance an actor must explore all three legs that hold up the performance stool. If you have neglected one of the legs, the stool will fall over. Likewise, an un-balanced audition performance will not carry you to a call-back.
