The Audition Room Part 1

This week I had the pleasure of helping find talent for a Shakespeare classic, OTHELLO.
We cast in a studio in New York, and this audition was on Thursday. I was convinced the audition was going to be a disaster schedule wise; as there was blizzard-like weather outside. I was pleasantly surprised when only 3 out of my 30 appointments were cancelled due to weather related issues. On top of that, the caliber of auditions were very high, and the overall professional gloss this left over the day made the terrible weather and all commuting woes feel more than worth it.

Here are a few audition room pointers.

1) You have an appointment, turn up.
When Auditions are by appointment only (as it tends to be for union theaters), the appointments are very carefully put together. You were submitted by your agent, or you sent in a submission via mail or email, and you were selected out of more than a hundred people (conservatively) to be in the room. A lot of people would love your opportunity, so turn up, regardless of the weather. If it's bad weather outside think of it as a plus- a less professional actor would not turn up. Also apply this logic- if I could make it to my survival job, I can definitely make it to this audition.

2) Do the homework*
Read the play. Try to get off book. Make choices. If you don't, another actor will. The more familiar you are with the work the more at ease you will feel, your choices can be grounded, the work will be more connected.

3) *Then, let the homework go!
The director will have done his or her homework too. They will know the character, and sometimes their idea will not match yours. Don't be afraid to let go of your idea and play with another!

4) Don't try to judge the director or producers reaction.
Trust me, this will drive you insane. You do not know what the director is thinking. A great example of this is this weeks auditions- the wonderful director in the room stopped almost very actor during their audition, and asked them to do it another way. Furthermore, after he gave the new direction, he often stopped the scene halfway anyway. Sometimes he got the actor to read all the sides available, sometimes he just wanted to see one. If there was any pattern to it, being stopped throughout, being given direction and only doing one side actually meant he REALLY enjoyed the work, and genuinely didn't feel he needed to see more.

5) Be polite to the other people auditioning, to the reader in the room, and the assistant "running the room".
The truth is, a lot of casting professionals start of as interns, because Casting is not a skill they teach at school. I started as an intern working the doors of auditions at commercial appointments. Sometimes actors were rude to me about the waits to be seen, who was going next, if they could skip the actors signed in before them. I always remembered the polite talent, and I never forgot the rude actors. Guess who I call in now. Assistants make appointments, pencil you into schedules, pre-screen self-submits for the casting director. Sometimes, they become Casting Directors!!! A good rule of thumb- you don't know if you will meet these people again. What impression do you want them to have of you?

6) Dress appropriately.
Dressing AS the character- creepy. Dressing appropriately so that to give a suggestion of the character is smart. Using this week as an example- the character Desdemona, she is beautiful, elegant, lady-like. High Status in her society. She would wear makeup, her hair would be done, she would wear heals, she would wear something floaty and classy, probably a dress. She wouldn't wear combat boots or jeans, we wouldn't we able to see her tattoos. You get the idea.