Co-Auditions Coordinator
I
hope you are all preparing your students for their best audition ever! Monologue Auditions take a lot of
preparation; the more we do to help our kids develop this skill the more they
will shine with confidence the day of the audition! The last issue of Texas Theatre Notes
included ten tips for preparing the audition; if you didn’t see it, please read
that issue. Here are audition tips 11-20
to pass on to your students as they prepare for their audition!
11)
Plan what you will wear in advance. Have a professional appearance. Select an
outfit that you can move comfortably in. Men, wear hard soled shoes and ladies,
wear a low heal. Jeans, flip-flops, t-shirts with writing on them, miniskirts,
low cut tops should be avoided.
12)
Pull your hair off of your face. Get a trim or a haircut so your hair isn’t
hanging over your eyes. The eyes are important!
13)
Get a good night sleep and take care of your voice. Your temptation may be to
stay up all night talking in your hotel room; this works against your voice and
your energy the next day.
14)
Arrive to the audition and check in at least 30 minutes early so that you don’t
feel rushed. Use the extra time to warm up, stretch and get focused. Be
extremely polite and follow instructions. The people working behind the desk
are volunteers; be sure to be pleasant to them at all times.
15)
You will enter the audition room in groups of 10-25 people and sit on the side
until it is your turn. Your teacher or parents cannot enter the room with you.
You will have one chair to use. Don’t bring props. There will be an elevated
platform to perform on; be comfortable enough in your shoes/clothing to step up
on to it. There will be 30- 50 college reps sitting at tables, each will have a
book with your forms and they will be taking notes and reading as they watch
you.
16)
When you enter the room, decide where you will focus your eyes during your
audition. For most monologues it is best to imagine that the other character in
the scene is standing at the back of the room and talk to that “other”. Looking
directly at an auditor as though they are a character in your scene should be
avoided. We didn’t rehearse with you, so please don’t place us in your scene!
17)
Your introduction is important, rehearse it as part of your audition. Be calm, confident and joyful as you
introduce your pieces. Show that you enjoy being there. Ask your director to watch your intro several
times and give you feedback on your body language. Be sure to say your name clearly. Talk to the
entire room with an open focus during your intro. During your intro it is OK to
make eye contact with auditors. ONLY say your name, the number given to you at
check in, and the titles of your plays. Don’t add a synopsis of the play or any
explanations. Remember, the introduction is the chance we have to see the real
you. Smile and show that you enjoy auditioning!
18)
The Timekeeper is an important person. He/she will be sitting alone in the back
of the room. After your
introduction,
time begins. Make sure your pieces are under time, not by rushing, but by
cutting pieces in advance. During your performance, you should be able to see
the timekeeper in your peripheral vision. Do not look directly at them. The
timekeeper will raise their hand to warn that you have 5 seconds left. When
they close their hand, your time is up. Stop and graciously thank your audience at that point. If you
don’t stop, the timekeeper will say “thank you” to alert you that your time is
up. You MUST stop at that point! Don’t beat yourself up if you get stopped.
Handle it like the pro that you are! Smile, say thank you and be proud of the
work you did. This will speak positively about your personal character and
ability to be graceful when things don’t go as planned.
18)
Bring an updated resume for callbacks. Make sure it is error free. Include your
most recent SAT/ACT scores. If you GPA raises between the time your submitted
your form and January include your new GPA. You may want to bring 8x10
headshots for callbacks. The headshot doesn’t need to be professionally taken,
but make sure it is a clear photo, and that it looks like you (not too much
makeup or overdone hair).
19)
Be prepared with questions you want to ask at callbacks. Callbacks for this
type of audition are basically interviews. It is also your chance to interview
the school and get information you need to make a choice about where you want
to study. Every school will have information to give you and it can be quite
daunting to keep track. Have a notebook and following your interview, write
down key points about the school that you want to remember before going on to
the next school. Write down the name of the person you talked to; this will be
helpful later if you want to send a thank you card for the callback or e-mail a
question about their program.
20)
About singing: to put it bluntly, if you can’t sing, don’t. If you plan to
sing, bring clearly marked sheet music and know your tempos and how to
communicate that to an accompanist. In case there is no accompanist, also bring
a
CD that contains only the accompaniment. There should be no other voices
singing on your CD. The person running the CD player should not be expected to
cue your music for you; they will simply insert your CD and press play. Be sure
to test your CD on a player in advance. Just because it plays on your computer
doesn’t mean it will play on a portable CD player. You will not be allowed to
sing acapella.
Please
remember, everyone from the volunteers to the University reps are educators
that care about students. We all want you to succeed, have fun and show your
very best work. Prepare well and enjoy this exciting opportunity!
This
is your very own two-minute show. Your audience is on your side and wants to
admire your good work!
If
you have any questions regarding your TETA audition e-mail me at
jdemontmollin@uh.edu.