DO give equal attention to the BA programs you are auditioning for. BA programs can be just as great as BFA conservatories. After all, I do not have a BFA; I went to Northwestern which does not offer a BFA. Just look for the program the is the right fit for YOU.
DO take negative prescreen results with a grain of salt. If you have gotten nos, leave them behind; they have no bearing on what’s ahead. Remember, Carrie Mulligan, the Oscar, Tony and Emmy nominated British actress, auditioned for every school in Britain for acting training and was rejected by ALL of them. she did not give up. And she is one of the most luminous young actresses on the planet.
DO trust your amazing work and enjoy your auditions as performances and celebrations of you and your commitment to the theater. Always choose the joy of the work and joy in performing and the joy in the process of acting over fear of judgment or being rejected. YOU HAVE TO CHOOSE JOY OVER FEAR. You MUST. Auditioning well is like throwing a kickass 10 minute party with your acting work on the menu.
DO reframe any nerves you feel (AND YOU WILL FEEL NERVOUS sometimes) as EXCITEMENT rather than fear. And warm up. Being nervous is human. Being scared and feeling vulnerable is human. Your acting pieces are about characters who feel vulnerable and scared and WANT things they are afraid they won’t be able to achieve too! So use this energy to fuel your pieces and give them a life and death vitality and importance. THE BIGGEST THING TO HAVE CONFIDENCE IN IS IN YOUR HUMANITY AND VULNERABILITY. Your auditors want to SHARE in your humanity. Stay open to the tender, scared parts of your soul. THAT is where great acting comes from.
DO BREATHE… deeply and constantly.
DO WARM UP in the ways we have discussed in session.
DO use music and readings to focus yourself before auditions. Pick special music for each character that helps you get into their world. Earphones can help you resist obnoxious competitive auditioners that might be in the waiting room with you. :o(
DO enjoy and engage briefly with the nice people and students you meet during the process but reserve enough energy to stay focussed on your own work. Bathrooms can be good if you just need a private space for a moment at the audition.
DO keep your “motor” going as you proceed to an audition site, and take time at the audition to “find” those trigger moments as you prepare to start that make engaging with your invisible scene partner a life and death emergency. Then let it fly! Honor the work but also take huge risks. RE-create each piece anew every time you perform it. Let your spirit and energy fill the room and out to the whole universe.
DO remember that your introduction, the moment before you begin, the transitions between pieces, and your final “thank you” are the EXTRA AUDITON PIECE. Practice saying “My pieces are… role, play author…” each day a few times. IT is so easy to screw these up when you are nervous.
DON’T expect that you will have to perform perfectly to be admitted. NEWS BLAST! PERFECTION DOES NOT EXIST! I played in a Broadway play for 500 performances and I can count on one hand the performances of my big scenes that I felt were near perfection. ONE HAND. Over time, I learned that to be at peace with my perfectionism, I needed to just tackle my work each and every day with joy and passion, and RE-create and breath NEW life into the scenes while hitting all the important moments with my scene partners.
Don’t assume you did poorly if the auditor is not cheerful and responsive. OR if you don’t get a callback. Many of them just aren’t cheerful. They are under lots of pressure too. OR they may have bad gas. :o) I have been on that side of the table. REMEMBER THAT THEY ALL WANT YOU TO BE AMAZING.
DO remember before each audition why you chose the material you are performing, why it is important to you and important to share with others. Bring the plays with you. Read them again. We have made monologues from scenes but you need to keep the OTHER characters alive as you go further into your monologue auditions. Refresh yourself by reading the scenes from which your monologues were taken. You can put the other characters’ lines on tape with space for your own to actually read scenes while you are alone!
DO appreciate your parents and their support of your work and preparation and for traveling with you to all these auditions. They need you love and support. However, also tell them what you DO and DON’T need from them to feel most at peace with the process. They are there to support you. But TELL THEM what you need them to do. And they will stay out of the way if you need private time to both prepare before and unwind after auditions. Instruct your parents about rules in terms of sharing your audition experiences and result with others, in person or online. Agree on the level of privacy you wish to maintain until your admissions results come in.
DO share your experiences only with your parents, with me, and, if you wish, one VERY trusted friend or relative. It is always beneficial to maintain your privacy and spend your energy on your work, not relating to everyone in the world how your work went at each given audition.
KICK SOME A**!!!! I AM WITH YOU IN SPIRIT, BELIEVE IN YOU A MILLION PERCENT AND I AM CHEERING YOU ON 24-7!
Image credit: Billie Ward on Flickr
