It is that time around again things are opening up, and theatre companies are looking for young actors. It’s audition time, folks! The ol’ razzle-dazzle light the auditioners feet on fire with your performance. In this blog post, I will give a few tips and resources to make the audition a lot smoother. 

REPERTOIRE: an actors best friend

First things first are preparation always prepare beforehand. It’s always good to have your dance, monologue, and song ready at least two weeks in advance. And how, you may ask? Prepare a repertoire. A repertoire is a collection of monologues, songs, and pieces that you, the performer, already have rehearsed and prepared beforehand. These are pieces that you zip out whenever you see an audition call. The benefit of doing this is obvious. You can worry less about finding a great piece best suited for you and now only have to consider which one fits what was required/or asked for from the call. For example, and an audition call for a type of rock and roll musical, you should pick a song from your repertoire from that era and genre. Long story short, get a binder and start building one!

MONOLOGUES

Things to consider when searching for a monologue:

• The monologue should be from a play: It is important that it is not from your favourite movie.
• Know your casting type: that does not mean you cannot play other roles but it is valuable to be aware of your typecast so you can audition for a role that a director can envision you portraying.
• Know your age range: for example if you are typically casts as characters between the ages of 17-25 then choose a character within that age range. Your age range will fluctuate as you get older or as your style of performing shifts as well.
• Choose a character you like or even despise: A character you despise will be fascinating to explore and challenging as a performer, and being the villain is fun in comparison with a character you admire.
• A monologue that has a beginning,middle,and end: Essentially an arc to its story, knowing who you are,where you are, who you are talking to and what your objective is (their wants).
• Choose a monologue that can showcase your strengths: If you are great when it comes to comedic timing maybe select a monologue from a witty character or if you are great with emotional or passionate characters pick a monologue that will showcase that skill. As I mentioned before, as long as the monologue has an arc, and wants for the characters you can play anything.
• Be present: A monologue that requires you to be present is one that isn’t just retelling a story. You have an imaginary scene partner, that can be the audience, your dead lover, or even yourself. But there is always someone to address. This way it is more engaging and active.

Musical audition songs

This is one of many great resources to find songs from each decade that you can audition with:

https://www.rock-the-audition.com/

I like to imagine there is 3 types of auditions:

1. The one you do in your bedroom; a comforting space, might be rather small
2. The one you do in the audition room; nervous energy, hopefully prepared but there is definitely a lot of pressure to do well and ace it
3. The one you do on the way home; probably the best one, replaying everything you do, finding more breath and understanding of the character.

In the end if you did your best and prepared well that is a wonderful habit to foster, so all the best in your 2021 auditions!