Your Audition Begins When

the first line is read? you slate? you enter the room? your name is called? you sign in? you enter the building? you get out of your car? you leave for the audition? you get your stuff together? you wake up that morning? you are notified of the audition? you...?

Perhaps I should point out that there are actually two auditions. The one everyone thinks of. You know, the one during which sides are read and you hope the powers that be see you as the character. And the one where you play yourself.

This is about the audition where you play yourself. And it is constantly happening. Constantly happening because you are consistently developing habits which define you. Habits which will come out on set, regardless of how careful you are to keep them in check. Not every set, but eventually because in the end we must be true to who we are.

How do you play yourself? Sorry, can't tell you. There are too many factors I don't know about you. I would, however, highly recommend knowing yourself. And I don't mean knowing the name on your driver's license. I think this is where a lot of celebrities get into trouble. They are constantly being the personality their agents, managers and public relations decided on instead of being their authentic self. Yes, it is possible to make your authentic self work in harmony with your brand regardless of how different they might seem at first glance. Because your authentic self is not a one note person and your brand should not be either.

What does being yourself have to do with auditioning? Whether you're playing the title character or Under Five refers to the number of syllables you speak, you will spend a lot more time as yourself. You are the character between "action" and "cut". The rest of the time, you are pretty much yourself.

Does this come into play during the casting process? Every CD could probably, from projects they worked on, list actors that have not been hired, or were fired, or won't get called into their office anytime soon because of the actor's behavior. The good news: You can develop any habit you want as well as break any habit you want. Yes, it will take work, but it is doable.

Think of it this way. Someone who tells inappropriate jokes, burps in peoples faces and belittles others asks you on a date. You'll probably say no. But let's say, for the sake of discussion, you say yes. And let's assume this someone genuinely tries to be the perfect gentleman or lady on the date. How long before that joke slips out? And you'll probably spend the evening waiting for a face full of burp.

You think I'm kidding or you can reach a level in which your personal behavior won't effect your acting career? Think again. Look at Charlie Sheen and Two and a Half Men. Judging from his salary, I'm guessing he did a superb job playing the character, but he was fired because of his personal behavior. (No idea what the "official" reason was, but I can assure you he would be filming an episode had he behaved differently.) About the only thing bigger is if something like Jerry Seinfeld being fired from Seinfeld had happened.

Not Getting the Part

That audition I rocked? They cast someone else. (That's why one should always continue submitting for other projects, even when the audition could not have gone better.) Do I feel the slightest disappointment? Well, maybe the slightest since I would have preferred to be offered the role.

Why do I not feel that bad about what is often referred to in the industry as rejection? Because I did my job at the audition. I had read the script, gone over the sides, knew the lines, made strong choices, was in the moment reacting to the reader and made given adjustments for the second read.

Notice I wrote "at" not "in" the audition. That is because your waiting room behavior is just as important as your read. Not much of a waiting room in this case, but still...

If I had not done my job at the audition, I might be more frustrated. Mainly with myself. Since I did my job, I can move on knowing I simply wasn't right for the role, or some other factor beyond my control. Maybe they decided an older actor would be better for the role. Maybe an actor with a similar physical description was cast in another role and they do not want to confuse the audience.

Rocking auditions

The other day I went on a film audition I feel I rocked. In the moment, reacting to reader instead of waiting for my turn to speak? Check. Unplanned emotional responses, varying vocal levels, and natural pauses? Check. Able to incorporate adjustment for second read? Check. (The second read w/an adjustment was planned before the first read, so probably a can you follow direction and make an adjustment vs a this is how I see the character thing.) Different unplanned nuances to my second read not due to the adjustment? Check

How was i able to deliver such a performance? Many factors:

• I read the script so I was familiar with the story and the character's place in it. Also, when I read the sides, I knew where it fell into the story timeline.
• Years of audition experience. Your 150th time (random number - don't actually know how many auditions I've been on) is going to be better than your 5th time in any pursuit.
• Improv training. Each month, schedule permitting, I attend a drop in improv get-together and participate. This accomplishes two things. 1. I can keep my acting chops fresh. 2. The experience allows me to be comfortable being in the moment.
• Going over the sides, familiarizing myself with the script and making decisions regarding the character.
• Trusting that my preparation will come through and not worrying about saying a line a certain way or whatever.
• Not being desperate for the role. "I need to perform well" is going to come across differently than "I'm going to have fun with this".
• Having confidence in myself as an actor. Knowing I can deliver.

Did I get the part? Said he would get back to people today and hadn't hear from him about 5pm, so I am thinking, no. Feel bad about it? No. Of course, I would prefer being offered the role, but I never feel bad about not getting it. Especially when I had my "A" game going on and the reason is likely nothing I can do anything about unless cosmetic surgery counts.

The filmmaker is playing the lead. (Case of writing script for self - good for him!) Probably safe to assume he wishes to showcase his acting. The character I auditioned for would be number two as far as scenes in/lines, etc. Could always decide to think not getting the part was due to my acting ability. Thinking my acting intimidated him and my level is so much higher than his that he is afraid I would upstage him is a lot bigger ego boost than thinking he probably went with an older looking actor.

At any rate, I know I delivered in the audition. As long as I feel I did my part in the room, I am satisfied. Booking is icing on the cake.

Turning Down a Role

The other day, I went to a play audition. It is a new play so there was not much info on it. Actually, I think this will be the first performance other than stage readings. I am not going to go into the particulars about how the audition was conducted because it is not important for this discussion. Let's just say I feel genuinely good about my audition and honestly feel it would put me at the top of the consideration pile.

I turned it down. Why? At the audition, I learned the play has nudity. I do not do nudity. It is a religious issue. The director said to email her after the audition (but before the posting of the cast list) if we were to decide the play is not for us. Since the audition does not involve nudity, even if it is a nudity scene, and the director implied we were still free to audition even if we planned on passing due to the nudity issue, I stayed.

Why stay if I was not going to do it? First, I want to point out that right after the director brought up the nudity, she mentioned emailing her afterwards if we decided the play was not for us. This told me she was not expecting anyone with issues regarding nudity to leave the audition room. Otherwise, I would have politely bowed out at the start of the auditions. So, why did I spend the evening auditioning for a play I was going to turn down? Honestly, I had no real motivation for staying at the time other than I was there and no one had told me to leave.

Am I glad I stayed and spent the evening auditioning for a play I planned on turning down? Yes. I followed the director's directions regarding turning down the play. My audition rocked and I'm sure the playwright (who was there) will write other plays, the director will direct other plays etc.

Any bummer parts? The fact that I feel my audition rocked and I had a real chance at getting cast. It would be nice to do another play. While I have done film work, it has been awhile since I've done a play. And the fact that I will probably never know if I would have been cast.

Do I feel bad about turning down the play? No. After all, as I mentioned it is a religious issue with doing nudity. If you are putting plays, films, etc ahead of your beliefs, you probably have your priorities mixed up. Or you are a member of that religion in name only. Of course, if you are turning down a role because the character is a murderer and murder is against your religious beliefs...

GoSees, Bookings and Auditions

This past week I went to a Go See. While facial hair wasn't specifically mentioned, in reading the character breakdowns, I thought this guy probably wouldn't shave. At least not at this particular point in his life. So I decided to let my whiskers grow. I shoot next Tuesday. Would I have gotten the part if I had been clean shaved (& all other factors constant.)? It might have been the winning point between me and whoever came in second. Or facial hair might have been the biggest factor in considering going the other way. Facial hair or not, most at the Go See when I went were not dressed to suggest character.

This afternoon, I had an audition for a character who is more likely to be clean shaved. (My headshot is a clean shaved version.) Did I shave for the role figuring I would just grow my whiskers back for Tuesday's shoot? Considered it, but decided there would not be enough time - would have a couple days less growth then I had at the Go See. Was concerned about going in to audition not looking like my headshot. Decided I would audition anyway and just tell them the facial hair is for a shoot on Tuesday. They were understanding. But what production doesn't want to hear that those auditioning are working? Their main concern was verifying that I was flexible.