Audition Behavior

My first audition since high school wasn't meant to be an audition for me. I had accompanied a friend to the auditions for a play directed by a co-worker. My auditioning friend talked me into trying out, though i protested not being prepared. I thought to have some fun and tried ?winging it?.

This was a mistake.

Misreading a stage direction on the script i'd never before seen for Playboy of the Western World, i missed a vital stage direction that explained I was to deliver a line while holding the torn shirt of a man who?d run away/off stage. Obviously for an audition I wouldn?t be expected to tear off someone?s shirt. But all I knew was that I wasn?t to let go of the shirt while delivering my next line. I held on tightly, even as the actor tried running off stage. It was as bit of tug-o-war, he trying to flee, me pulling him back onto the stage while trying to read the script. In his desperation to get away, and my determination to hold on tightly, we tore the shirt in question completely off his torso!

The now shirtless actor shouted, "We're supposed to be acting!"

I had to fight like heck not to laugh. I mean ? fer cryin' out loud ? i'd just destroyed the guy's favorite shirt, yet for some reason it struck me as ridiculously funny.
I was determined not to laugh. Others, however, were not so inclined and, after an eerie silence, laughter ensued with vigor. I wasn?t sure whose head looked more likely to explode, the director?s or that of the topless shirt mourner.

Oh well! I never liked that shirt, anyway.

mr. sillyperson

Quote:

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EDIT: S mileyman and G eekster are forbidden words Craig? Wow.

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<font size="2" face="Times, Verdana, Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif">Yes, and C urley, too. I had forgotten about that one. Thanks for reminding me.

[img]graemlins/devil.gif[/img] Everybody has their own standards of what constitutes obscenity. You've just discovered mine. [img]graemlins/angel.gif[/img]

Here is the full list of Words That Will Turn into Asterisks:

b ath
c umquat
y earn
S mileyman
G eekster
C urley
s emprini
P avarotti

<font color="#a62a2a" size="1">[ September 21, 2006 10:55 AM: Message edited by: Sgt. Bilko ]</font>

Three stories stick in my head - one of which I've detailed previously in one of my oh so entertaining tete-a-tetes with *********/Curley/******** on NICOTH, so I won't repeat it here.

"Steel Magnolias" - 77 women audition. However, the icing on the cake - was a woman who showed up in a flower patterned miniskirt and white pantyhose. She'd dolled up a bit to look like Truvy. Anyway....the miniskirt didn't quite fit...and didn't quite cover. So, she sat down in the chair and um......shoulda worn slacks.

I didn't think I was the only one who noticed it, but I did think it would...um....not be brought up. BUT my entire cast was cast from that day of auditions, and it was brought up during rehearsals. Everyone saw it. She couldn't act - but she made an impression. Still famous auditioner that was talked about this summer with one of my cast members.....TWO YEARS LATER.

"Twelve Angry Men" - had a guy who auditioned for me who was quite talented, with a resume out to Cleveland. I had made the distinct announcement that "If you are not called back, it does not mean you are not cast, it just means I don't need to see whatever role it is I'm considering you for..." Now, since then, that has been untrue...but for that show, not everyone who was cast was at callbacks. I also announced that everyone who auditioned would get a call, whether they were cast or not.

The next day I received an email from this gentleman saying that since he was not called back, he obviously was not cast, and that there was no need for me to call with a "no," that that was just awkward. The not calling thing I respect. But, the killer was I was probably going to cast the guy. His email proved to me that he didn't listen, or worse, couldn't listen. And with "12 AM" being my directorial debut - the last thing I needed was ANY sort of issue with a cast member who couldn't listen. I assured him that he was being considered for a role, despite not being called back, but that he could rest assured, I was NOT going to call him if he wasn't cast. He never got a call. But.....he probably would have.

EDIT: S mileyman and G eekster are forbidden words Craig? Wow.

<font color="#a62a2a" size="1">[ September 20, 2006 03:14 PM: Message edited by: skyhill ]</font>

With regards to Skyhill's "audition behavior" stories, there could be the possibility that the actor with the resume from Cleveland may not have been in the building when the announcements were made that not all roles would be cast from callbacks. Needless to say, it's never good form to contact a director while the auditioning process is going on. Things may be said which may put doubts in the director's mind...which appears to be what happened here.

I can assure you Warbucks that I announced more than once (including at the end of the evening) that not being called back did not mean that one wasn't cast. I also put it on the audition form, and on a one page "expectations" sheet that I hand out to every auditioner who walks in the door for every show I direct.

There were PLENTY of ways to get that information....and still it was ignored, or worse, not believed.

It's one of the reasons why that event sticks in my head so much. There were LOTS of chances to hear what I said.

And his resume was "out to Cleveland" because there were a LOT of things on it, not because that's where he was from....

What can I tell you, Skyhill ? You appear to be the kind of director who means what they say at an audition. From what I can tell, we both appear to have resumes that "go out to Cleveland" and I am sure you have been at auditions where the director tells you that "not all roles will be cast from callbacks" or "I wish I could cast all of you in the show." More often than not, you know that is a line to make the auditonees feel better. I guess the best advice I could have given "Mr.Cleveland" would have been to keep his big mouth shut and let the director cast the best person for each role.

There is a line I always include in audition notices for a show I'm directing:

"It is in the best interests of the actors auditioning to familiarize themselves with the play."

It is always my hope that this line will cut back on the number of clueless actors who don't read past the suggested age for each part before auditioning for said role. It should work in theory, but...

Case in point-when I held auditions for "One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest, I had approximately 70 actors auditioning. About 30 women auditioned for Nurse Ratched. Of the 30, only 3 actresses seemed to have gone out of their way to try and understand the character before auditions. The other 27 stood there, book in hand and simply read the lines and "emoted" as they saw fit.

I had about 25 men auditioning for McMurphy. Once again, three of them had potential-among the rest, I got a lot of Jack Nicholson imitations-complete with watch-cap.

One of the things I try to do during auditions is let someone read a role, then pause and give them some direction and have them read again. This tells me that they know *how* to take direction and are willing to modify their reading of the part when directed to do so.

My favorite actor story goes back quite a few years. I always tell actors at auditions that if toward the end there is a scene they haven't read yet that they would like to read, or an actor they would like to read against, let me know and I will try to accomidate them. During a break, an actor I was considering came up to the table, leaned down and said, "Don't read me with Joe Blow anymore-I can't stand him."
Well, I knew Joe Blow, and had worked with Joe Blow in the past and guess what? Joe Blow was getting a casting call.

This guy...not so much. Although I guess he did me a favor that day by letting me know that he was a potential gear with a tooth missing who could have caused problems during the production if I had cast him.

Rabbit Trail.
I love audition scenes in movies. Two of my favorites are from:
Midwinter's Tale. (if you haven't seen it its a must see movie about theatre Dir: Kenneth Brannagh)
The Commitments. You know where all the musicians audition at the beginning. kills me.

I on the other hand have always auditioned appropriately and without mishape.

I remember auditioning once for a part that was very dear to me-in a play I loved. I mean, I knew this character, and in many ways I was this character. I worked harder getting ready for this audition than I ever had before, working with an actor auditioning for the role of the brother of the character I was working on. We spent hours and hours together on the scenes.

At the auditions, I was frustraited because I wasn't being read with him in the "big" scene the two characters had together. The actors I was reading the scene with weren't giving me much to work with. In hindsight, I should have asked the director to read me with my friend-but I didn't. Still, I thought I had kicked some serious butt up there.

When the call came in, the director told me she had given the part to another, less experienced actress who was a friend of mine. Her reasoning to me was that I had just had a part in a production, and this actress had done a lot of backstage work over the years and "it was her turn".

Well, I was happy for my friend, but I didn't agree with the director's stated reason for casting her. I didn't think she had the emotional depth to play the part and sure enough, when I saw the play, she played the character all on one level-angry. It broke my heart not to play that role, especially since my friend was cast as the brother.

But once again in hindsight, it probably was just as well. Because just as the play was getting ready to open, my uncle was diagnosed with cancer-and went downhill in a hurry. I ended up spending a lot of time with him in the Hospice-something I would not have been able to do if I'd been cast. And believe me-my family would not have gotten the concept of "The show must go on."