Let me set the stage: it's Sunday night, and you're digging through your online resources to find out what EPAs and ECCs are happening this week to see which you can attend, which are most important to you, and which you'll have to miss or aren't of interest to you. You're scrolling the sites, marking your calendar, and *gasp* what's this? An audition for a show that's been killing you with anticipation, waiting for it to come up?! You quickly rearrange your schedule to make room for this audition: this audition is for you!
Today's the day! You've prepared, and you are confident that you're gonna kill it! You've cleared your day for this, and you're ready to wait as long as you need to to get seen. You march into that holding room with your audition material and a go-get-'em attitude, excited to tackle this audition head on and to really wow the creatives.
But the day doesn't go as planned.
Maybe casting agrees to see non-eq if time permits, but the monitor dismisses everyone after lunch when they realize they aren't getting through the list fast enough to consider non-eq. Maybe they ask non-eq to stick around for the day just in case a handful can be seen, but you get to the end of the day, and no non-eq's got in the room. Maybe casting does get to the non-eq list, but your name is too far down the list to get seen before the audition ends. Or maybe you get there first thing in the morning, and the monitor announces that casting will not consider non-eq today, and you get sent home before the audition even begins.
Trust me, I get it. The process can be oh so frustrating at times -- especially if you're non-union fighting for a chance at the equity "majors". You'll see *THE* audition come and go, and all you can think is, "If only they'd seen me! I would have been exactly what they were looking for!"
The kicker is that we'll never know what could have been if you'd just gotten in the room. And it's even harder when it's for a show that really means a lot to you! So here's the lesson I learned after one too many disappointing auditions and the lesson I want you to take from here:
When you have a day set aside to be in the city solely to audition, put your name down for every audition you can and hop between those holding rooms all day long.
Yes, do you homework ahead of time and take note of which auditions you really want to be seen for. Prioritize those, absolutely (i.e. go to those rooms first so your name is as high as possible, check in on them the most frequently, etc.), but don't put all your eggs into those baskets. Give yourself the best possible chance to be seen for at least one audition, and the more lists your name is on, the more likely it is you'll get in a room.
Notice how I said a room, maybe not the room. The fact of the matter is that as a non-equity performer, it is a HUGE success to get into an audition room at all for either an EPA or an ECC, so you have to make peace with the idea that you won't be considered for every audition you want at this stage of your career.
When I came to terms with the idea that my audition day goal was not "to be seen FOR THIS" but just "to be seen", it changed the game. Instead of sitting around all day and wishing and hoping for that one audition to go my way, only to leave empty-handed? It became a matter of how many auditions can I attend, and since going in with that mentality, I have not had an audition day where I was not seen for at least one production.
So ask around! Find out what else is happening that day! It's easy enough to hop around within one building, and for at least Pearl and Ripley-Grier, they are right across the street from each other, which can often double your opportunity considering how much goes on in those two studios alone from day to day.
Because here's the big secret: the NY audition scene has a MASSIVE pool of actors, but there isn't as big a pool of casting directors. You'll see names you recognize or have auditioned for time and time again at all the "major" auditions. Simply getting in front of those influential people as much as you can will allow them to get acquainted with who you are and what you're about, and eventually? They'll find a place for you. Because how does the saying go? Never underestimate the power of showing up.
Thanks for reading, #DreamTeamHLJ, and just show up.
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