Audition Tips
Today I was thinking, hey I wonder if there is a site with audition tips... I've done searches... a lot of them... and yet I find nothing! Therefore, I thought hey why not make that a part of this site? That's when it hit me what a great idea it was because I'm always asking people who I chat with online for tips, and often they are very helpful and sometimes they are even professional which can be very exciting! So keep the following in mind when you have some auditions coming up, and so will I. If you can think of anything else that should be added to the list, E-Mail Me.
- Smile!!
- Practice projecting your voice ahead of time
- If you get to choose which song to sing, don't wait until last minute to begin practicing
- Maybe it might be hard, but if you can choreograph the song you are doing, you will learn the words to the song by memory by practicing a dance with it, not to mention you may feel more comfortable knowing that the auditions committee will be paying attention to the dancing also which gives you brownie points for effort, not to mention they may pay attention to your smooth moves and pay less attention to your "horrible voice that you hate so very much!!"
- Facial expressions.
- Use your hands, I've heard a rumor that directors like that.(I heard that rumor from a college age guy who is supposedly going to be in a movie this summer featuring Britney Spears... I'm not sure if that is going through or not though.)
- Inhale through your nose and exhale through your mouth
- While singing, posture and breathing strategy are key.
- Keep those hands out of your pockets.
- Take a steam shower ahead of time, it helps to open up your throat.
- Sing your little heart out, don't be shy(like me... hehe).
- For singing, stand up straight, breathe through your stomach, and not raising your shoulders. When you sing, don’t just stand there...walk around...snap your fingers.
- Prepare yourself for the audition several days to a week before the audition by practicing your cold reading and improvs. The more you prepare yourself, the more confident you will feel.
- If there is a script you can rent, a book you can read, or a movie you can watch of the play you're auditioning for, then do it! The script will make much more sense if you know the story.
- If you haven't seen the script before the audition, be sure to arrive early so you can look it over. Even if you have seen the script, come early anyway so you can rehearse with the other people auditioning.
- Avoid sugar and caffeine in the hours before the audition because this might make you hyper and nervous. You want the director to see you relaxed and confident.
- Try not to let anything bother you on the day of the audition. Don't get into fights or arguments with people, if you do, make up before the audition. If you've got a test the next day, study for it before or plan time to study after the audition so it's out of your mind and you can concentrate totally on the audition without other things on your mind.
- Dress nice, show you're serious about the play. I'm not saying tuxedos and evening gowns, don't go there, but something nice enough. If you show up in dirty jeans and a ratty t-shirt the director might get the idea that you're not serious about the part and maybe won't take you seriously.
- Make sure you have a schedule of days you're busy ready so you know when you have to write it down. If you need a resume or something like that, or think you might, bring that too.
- In order to talk loudly and clearly, imagine a foreign exchange student, named Paco, sitting in the last row of the auditorium, make sure you are loud enough that he can hear you, make sure you speak clear enough so that he can hear you, and make sure you speak slowly enough so he can understand you.
- To avoid becoming nervous, create a point of focus in the back of the auditorium.
- Unless the director specifies it, do not worry about having an accent for auditions, most directors understand that it takes time develope an accent.
- HAVE FUN!!
