I think I could probably fill a book with everything I've learned moving to the city and jumping into the theatre scene, and I've only been auditioning for a few months at this point.
ALL MY FELLOW ACTORS OUT THERE THAT WANT TO PURSUE THIS AND ARE PLANNING THEIR OWN MOVE IN THE FUTURE: unless you're coming from another major audition city such as LA, Chicago, Seattle, etc., you're going to be shell-shocked by how different NYC auditioning is from your theatre community, full stop.
You've heard all the usual things -- how there are thousands of others that have come from all over with the same dream, how there are only so many slots to be filled or shows to audition for, how you have to be ready for rejection after rejection before even getting noticed, let alone breaking in, and so on and so on. You've been warned and have thought about it for so long, you're kind of numb to it, right? I know I was. When my mom called me after my first few auditions out here that didn't go anywhere, asking how I was feeling and how it differed from AZ, I told her that I expected this, but I wasn't prepared for it.
So, my first piece of advice? Don't be like me. Let the weight of what those things actually mean settle in for a second and ruminate on them.
Thousands of other people -- just like you -- are in the city now, waiting for their chance, trying to make their big break.
Some of those people have been here for a year, two years, three years, and they still haven't "made it".
Now consider for a moment how long a year actually is when you aren't performing, just attending audition after audition.
...
Are you beginning to see outside the rose tint?
Good! Coming to grips with it now before you get here means you'll be in a better place mentally and emotionally when the time comes.
Now then, my second piece of advice: start to think of yourself as a professional auditioner, not a professional actor.
Yes, acting is the job / the career / the dream / what you technically do, but what we typically mean when we say "acting" is performing in a show. In reality, that's just the bonus, the celebration that comes after you put in the work, the work being auditioning, attending callbacks, and rehearsing.
This is something I only recently learned when my wonderful husband told me about Michael Keaton's stance on auditioning, and it has rocked my world, lemme tell ya. Here's the link to the YouTube Short of him talking about it:
WILD, right? Yet with that one mindset hack, I promise you will be saved from a lot of heartache.
As he said, obviously you're still going to be disappointed when this audition or that callback doesn't go your way. That's okay! That means you care about the "work" you're doing; that means that you're going for the right projects that you can put your whole self into and be passionate about.
But it also means that when you inevitably find yourself going for a dream role or a dream production, you leave the callback thinking you've really nailed it, and you still don't get that casting email? You can pat yourself on the back for the fantastic read, for the pitch-perfect song cutting, for the sweeping monologue because that's your job. You showed up, you did the work, you did it well, and now it's their job to decide if they can use you this time. If they can't, pick yourself up and keep going. All in a day's work.
Thanks for reading, #DreamTeamHLJ, and go audition!
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