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AUDITIONS - TOP THREE TIPS

kellystewart3
Oct 31, 2016
3 min read

The On It Team couldn’t believe the talent we saw on Sunday 23rd October in Chester at our most recent academy auditions, and Friday 28th at our Q&A session! There was some serious acting talent to be seen.

In the spirit of these recent auditions we thought we’d do a special ‘Audition Tips’ blog post for you all! Whatever your upcoming audition might be – drama school, TV, Film, Theatre – there are certain key tips no actor can successfully audition without. So, we’ve handpicked our personal favourites to give you all a helping hand next time you walk into that audition room.

NUMBER 1: AUDITION SPEECHES

Now depending on your audition, it will depend on whether you get to pick the material you audition with. However, if you are in the position to pick your audition monologue – or even duologue sometimes in the case of screen auditions – it is imperative that you know your casting type. Now don’t mistake us, you should never just hide in your comfort zone or stereotype yourself as an actor – the more versatile you are the better – but when it comes to auditions, think of this as your opportunity to show the very best that you can do; your ultimate acting performance. Therefore, it isn’t the time to suddenly learn a speech written in Latin performed by an elderly man, if you cannot in fact speak Latin and are a young woman in your twenties. Pick a character you can relate to! That sentence is by far our favourite piece of advice we like to give. When someone walks into an audition room with a real passion for the piece, and a connection and understanding of the character they are performing it is extremely engaging to watch, and instantly makes people want to work with you again.

NUMBER 2: FIRST IMPRESSIONS

A key part to auditioning that so many fail to consider is your presence as you enter the room, and the way you speak with the audition panel. Confidence is key. You must show an assurance in yourself, in the way you walk and talk in the room. Now, there’s a thin line between arrogance and confidence, and that is a line that you do not want to cross. Being humble, adaptable and committed are the main qualities you want to get across in your audition – that your confidence lies in your freedom to give anything a try, and when you do you give it your everything. All of these qualities equal reliability in the audition panels heads, and that is vital if you want to be hired not only once, but again and again and again.

‘A Giving Actor’ is the phrase we use at the academy, and we feel that those with true success in the acting industry are those that are not afraid to ‘give’ in every aspect of their performance.

NUMBER 3: YOU CAN ONLY DO YOUR BEST

While this isn’t exactly hands on audition advice, we feel it is one of the most important things when it comes to being an actor. You will have to audition repeatedly, and sadly you will not get every role or place you audition for – so don’t hype yourself up too much, and don’t beat yourself up afterwards. The let down and personal berating will not serve you well – both mentally and physically, it is exhausting. Of course, you should get excited for the work or opportunity your auditioning for, and translate that in the audition room to show the panel that you’re passionate about what they do, but don’t expect too much. The same way that when you leave that audition room, think on the audition for five minutes to learn from any mistakes, then let it go. What will be will be, and you will always know that you gave it your all. Half of this industry is timing and luck, while the other is hard work, dedication, and talent. You have to embrace it all. But trust us, when you do get that part, that hard work will feel like the best thing you ever did, and that one reward is worth all of those rejections.

There you go! Our top three tips for auditioning - which we figured would also help all those considering auditioning for our On It Screen Academy! (I know, talk about a smooth Segway) We are holding auditions in Northampton this weekend, and would love to see as much young acting talent as possible! You can sign up through our main website (www.onitacademy.co.uk) or through our social media both on Facebook and Twitter.