Post written by Dharini Woollcombe
How To Be Ready for The Next Audition
- Practice and train your voice.
- Practice and train your body.
- Practice and train your mind.
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With the recent attention on athletes I can’t help but remember an acting teacher from my past. She used to say to us that to be actors, we must train like athletes.
Athletes spend hours, days, months and years preparing for their moment in the spotlight. They do not coast on their basic abilities and raw talents. These things help them along but they are not the reason these athletes excel. Not at all. It is the athlete’s steely determination, their focus, their dedication and their tenacity that drives them to the summit of their athletic achievements. It is their commitment to practice, their commitment to being prepared that carries them to the top.
In many ways our acting world is not unlike the world of athletics. There are many easy distractions, there is the fear of failure, and the competition is always fierce.
The difference is that everything in our field is last minute and subject to change. There is no set date for the race that we run. We live in anticipation of the unknown.
When will my agent call with an audition?
When will I find out what time my audition is?
When will I find out that I got a callback?
When will I find out if I got the job?
When will my wardrobe call be?
When will my pick up time be?
When will I find out if I’m in the next episode?
When will my agent call with another audition?
And yet, we have to breathe life in to someone else’s concept, create a world out of someone else’s words, and live from our heart and soul at any given moment.
How does one prepare for these unknown moments that await us? By starting with that which is tangible: voice, body and mind.
Train your voice.
Practice your breath work.
Exercise and stretch your body.
Practice concentration and focusing the mind.
Practice. Practice. Practice. And do it Regularly.
It’s a lot to ask, I know. But it will make all the difference. When your agent calls with an audition in two days for a regular role on the new tv show in town, you will be miles ahead of the average actor. Your voice, body and confidence will be ready to go. Your mind will be able to focus on bringing the character to life. You will be prepared, confident, capable and focused. You will be ready to master your task:
The task of creating a compelling human being from the depths of your soul.
Dedicate yourself to your work. Set aside a certain amount of time each week for your practice. If you want to be an actor, then be an actor and do the work.
Don’t just wait for race day, be prepared for it.