Theatre audition season can be an anxious time for directors and actors alike. While a little stress is normal during these auditions, it shouldn’t cause anyone to panic.
As the leader of your theatre, you should always be thinking about innovative ways to create a safe, supportive, and positive environment during your auditions and long after. Less anxious actors give better auditions, leading to more confident performances and, in turn, a more successful theatre.
On The Stage explores a few tips for preparing for auditions as a director and ways to create a positive, dynamic environment for yourself and your actors throughout the entire process.
Creating great theatre should be collaborative, so make sure you’re not running auditions alone. Assemble a team to help you along the way, from a couple of extra hands to a large creative team.
People to tap include potential assistants, stage managers, marketing professionals, choreographers, music directors, general managers, artistic directors, and whatever else you think you’ll need to make your show a success.
The easiest way for auditions to crumble into chaos? Not setting your auditionees up for success and giving them all the necessary tools. Before auditions, ensure you:
Creating and disseminating character breakdowns for your auditionees is a great way to get more nuanced readings during your auditions.
Cast breakdowns don’t need to be incredibly detailed. Instead, they should give relevant bullet points about a character, their motivations, history, trauma, etc., and what you, as the director, are specifically looking for in the role.
Content disclosures are becoming standard practice to include in audition and marketing materials. Essentially, a content disclosure is a statement that includes any story points or themes that could be upsetting to a performer or audience member. By including content disclosures in audition materials, you’re creating a safe space for auditionees and warning them of any potentially triggering material. Things to disclose can range from implications of suicide to guns, abuse, substance use, sexual materials, or violence.
Before auditions begin, you and your team should be a well-oiled machine ready to handle the day and its many curveballs. Ensure you’ve broken down your audition day schedule and allotted for breaks, bathroom trips, and other time-suckers you may not have considered.
The best way to set yourself up for success during the process is to create audition sheets for your actors. These should ask for a broad range of helpful information tidbits, including contact information, special skills, any rehearsal conflicts, prior relevant experience, and whether or not the actor is open to taking a role off-stage.
Auditions are the time to set expectations and showcase how you and your teamwork. That said, make sure you’re calm, cool, collected, kind, and encouraging throughout the entire process—no matter how stressful it gets.
Starting off on the right foot—with respect, empathy, and encouragement—shows your actors the type of environment you like to cultivate. If you lead with kindness, you’ll be far more likely to see return actors and excited team members.
Along the same lines, remember that you are the head of your ship. This means everyone will look to you for how things should go. So, if an actor messes up, a dancer falls, or a singer is off-key – stay encouraging and do not devolve into poking fun when they leave the stage. If you set the standard for behavior, your creative team will follow.
Auditions can also be excellent for actor hopefuls to hone their crafts. If you plan to give notes to auditionees, ensure you’ve perfected the art of constructive criticism.
In short, stay positive when giving actors notes, but remain realistic about their skill sets and don’t overblow their talents. Off-set criticism with compliments about what the actor did well and give them realistic suggestions for improvement. You want your actors to walk away from the experience feeling like they learned something, not that they were bullied.
So, your best friend, significant other, or family member is trying out for the lead role. Maybe it’s the actor you most envisioned playing your lead for the coming up next. No matter who is standing in front of you on the audition stage, ensure they are all treated equally. Make sure no auditionees get more facetime with the creative team, familiar treatment, standing ovations, or role promises than others. If other auditionees get a whiff of favoritism, they’ll be far less likely to return for other auditions.
When conducting auditions, it’s important to consider your environment and whether it helps actors feel safe. To create a sense of safety and comfort, you should ideally hold your auditions in a public space rather than a private home or residence. If your theatre is a no-go, consider a gymnasium, multipurpose room at a school, or rehearsal studio in town.
Additionally, you’ll want to ensure the space has enough room for actors to be physical, has strong acoustics, and has minimal distractions. Lastly, you should have a safe and comfortable waiting room where actors can prepare their sides, warm up, or just get focused.
As the leader of your production, you need to believe in yourself and your judgment. This means you shouldn’t waiver due to outside pressures when casting your show. In short, trust your gut: you are the director for a reason.
That’s not to say that the other members of your creative team shouldn’t have input. Ensure everyone’s voice is heard during the casting process and all opinions have been considered before the list goes up. You never want to be a bulldozer who doesn’t consider other people’s creative input.
All auditionees should receive word about the cast list going up simultaneously. This goes back to favoritism – the lead shouldn’t know they’re the lead until everyone else does. Additionally, make sure you’re informing auditionees with care – thanking them for their time, encouraging them to return for other showcases, and hyping up their talents.
So, the best actor for the job is a narcissist who doesn’t work well with others. Make sure you’re weighing the benefits of a great performance versus the downsides of working with someone who will suck the energy out of your team.
Remember – hard work and passion almost always outshine raw talent. You want the entire show process to be a joy for your actors and team, so don’t involve people who will bring the environment down.
Auditions will be a stressful time, there’s no doubt about it. But with the right tools, you’ll be able to manage the process and find the best actors in no time at all.
Luckily, On The Stage offers a guide to help: The Art of Auditions and How to Successfully Cast Your Next Show. Inside, you’ll find:
Whether you’re new to this process or a seasoned professional, this guide has something to offer everyone. Download your free copy today and make your upcoming auditions joyful and satisfying experiences for everyone involved.