#actor mood

A little while ago, I had the fantastic privilege of sitting behind the casting table for my own original show. Even though I’ve been doing professional theatre for upwards of 8 years, I was surprised to realize which auditionees stuck in my mind after the primary call was over. So here’s a condensed list of what the people who got callbacks had in common:

1. They were excited about the show. It seems like a given, but we saw a lot of people who were trying so hard to be composed that they were deadpan, or alternatively, seemed to think that they were “above” the show. Every single one of the people we cast were enthusiastic and excited about the show and the audition.

2. They knew who they were. This one is hard to define and hold as a clear definition, but what I’m getting at is that the people we called back were comfortable in their own skin. They knew who they were and how they came across and the monologues/songs that they used to audition showed off who they were as people and as artists.

3. They were comfortable improvising. When asked to read sides, almost all of our callbacks moved around the room, interacted with the reader, tried reading one sitting, then one standing, etc. They made new choices at the callbacks, tried rearranging chairs, adding little interactions with each other, so on and so forth. They were able to make things up on the spot and bring nuance to the sides without changing the lines they were given.

4. They connected with each other. When asked to read together, most of the people we called back (and all of the people we cast) acknowledged each other within the scenes they read, interacted with each other and connected in little ways when they weren’t actively speaking.

5. They stayed in their scenes. The actors who slipped into their scenes/monologues a moment before the first line and stayed in them for a moment after the last line were the ones who definitely stood out.

I’ve noticed something about actors lately. There’s a huge culture of touch in theatre. Heck, it’s part of our jobs. Actors fall asleep in piles backstage, do each others’ hair and makeup, have their hands all over each other when they’re helping one another stretch, do trust exercises based on touch for team-building or for fun, etc, etc.

And yet.

1. Not quite plugging your headphones all the way into your phone and accidentally blasting a really edgy, contemporary musical in public/to family

2. “I want you all off book by tomorrow.” 

3. Sore throat the day before a show.

4. Misplaced rep book.

1. Jack Kelly - Newsies

My entire heart belongs to this role and to the Santa Fe Reprise, ok? Let me dream.

2. Moritz Stiefel - Spring Awakening (The musical, not the original)

I just,,, ouch. He’s so perfectly coded as someone with an anxiety disorder and it breaks my heart and I just want to sing “I Don’t Do Sadness” very much.

3. J.D. - Heathers

The tenor riffs...p l e a s e.

4. Beethoven - Dog Sees God

B i g  o u c h.

5. Fabrizio - The Light in the Piazza

Am I biased because I adore The Light in the Piazza? Oh, absolutely. Is this still a gorgeous role? Oh, absolutely.

6. Gabe - Next to Normal

I wish more female roles had the creepy, haunting tone that this one does. It’s so specific and so viscerally disarming.

7. George - The Language Archive