AUDITIONS - to dream the impossible dream

Auditions have got to be one of the hardest things in the world. You go into a room of people staring at you, watching, judging, sizing you up, expecting you to be brilliant.

No pressure.

Auditions suck. Let’s face it. I would imagine, on some level, it’s a numbers game. My day job is technical recruiting. That means, I call up company after company, trying to get a hold of a manager, pitch him a candidate, and hope he has a job open. That means if I make a hundred phone calls, talk to twenty five people, maybe… just maybe, one of them will have a job open.

Auditions are like that.

A friend of mine contacted 2,500 theatres about his play… five got back to him, and one was interested. Interested.

So, I guess it’s like selling vacuum cleaners. Make the calls, pound the pavement, and do your best when you get in front of somebody.

I try to make auditions as easy as possible. First thing I have people come in, sit down, and I have them talk to me about what they like, who they are, and what they liked about the play (if they read it). Of course the whole time I’m listening to see how they answer the questions, if they got the play, if they read the play, things like that. Paul Allen, co-founder of Microsoft, once said something along the lines of, “ I would never want to be an a deserted island, because then I couldn’t be around smart people.”

That’s the thing I’m looking for: a collaborator. Theatre is so collaborative, it’s important to surround yourself with people who will elevate the project with their ideas, talent, and energy.

I’m also looking for any major red flags: do they take direction, do they listen, do they talk over me. Things like that. Because, getting in a play is kind of like a relationship… it’s only gonna get harder, so you want to have as many cards in your favor going into it as possible.

After I’ve talked to them, I have them read the scene, or perform the monologue. Then, I’ll have them try it different ways, see how they take direction, and things like that.

After that I talk to them about the play, about their schedule, and leave it off like we’ll be in touch.

Stay tuned for the official cast notice.