There's lots and lots about before the audition. Even I've written about it here! (And for those doing Theatre Bay Area Generals next week, that post includes a link to a great post about staging general auditions).
So what about after the audition? Here are somethings I try and do.
1) treat myself - I put a lot of prep and effort into auditions. So that effort deserves a reward - anything from a piece of chocolate to a fancy night out - any kind of indulgence that I can look forward too, just not one with a tight time pressure, in case the audition runs super late.
2) log it - I head over to my audition spreadsheet, and write down who was in the room, what pieces I did, and what I wore. If there was something specific I wanted to follow up on, I log that too.
3) assess - what did I do well? where can I improve? I like to make sure I give these questions a little time (rather than obsess about things I can't control). I'll figure out what I need to do to repeat (or change) my process for the next audition.
4) follow up(short term) - usually I wait a few days, then send an emailed thank you note to whoever was in the room. I might make comments related to projects that they are working on, give specifics on what I'm doing (offer a comp if I can), or point out my professional website and encourage them to visit.
5) follow up(long term) - I figure out how I'm going to continue my relationship with the individuals I met in the audition and the institutions that they represent - do I need to watch for a season announcement at a company's website? connect via social media so I can keep up on news and goings on for that individual? When am I going to follow up again after my initial thank you note?
For those auditioning at the TBA Generals, best of luck and break all the legs you can!!! I sincerely hope you make some time to plan a big treat for afterwards. You deserve it!
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Friday, January 27, 2012
Count Some Actors (and Directors and Writers)
Looking forward to posting results from January for the Counting Actors project, but would love to get some more data on more shows. If you're in a show or saw a show with January performances, please follow these instructions and send me the info. And, if you've got a project with February performances, you can go ahead and send that info too!
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
fun with spreadsheets 2: the actions/relationships list
Another glimpse into how I use excel spreadsheets to manage my career. When I joined Actor's Equity, I made a list of theaters in the region that offer Equity contracts. And then I rated them based on how much of an 'in' I have at those theaters.
Like this:
0 = I don't know anyone there.
1= I've met someone from their casting/artistic staff.
2= I've done a general audition.
3= I've been called in to read for a specific project.
4= I've had a callback or done a reading/small project.
5= I've been cast at that theater.
So my spreadsheet has 3 columns: rating, company name, and next step.
Having this spreadsheet helps me know where I'm at with each company, and what my next action should be with each different theater. For some companies, I'm looking for an introduction to their casting director, for others, I want to make sure I do their generals next time they come up, and at others I'm pitching myself for appropriate roles in their next season.
Since I've got everything in one place, I can develop specific targeted strategies to move my relationships up the ladder. I know that zero doesn't turn into 5 overnight - this is a marathon, not a sprint - and that building and maintaining relationships over time is one of the keys to a long career.
I'm going to be sharing info like this at the class I have coming up on February 11th from 1pm to 2:45pm for Theatre Bay Area called 'Navigating Your Life as a Bay Area Actor' which is part of TBA's ATLAS program, a career development program for performing artists. If you'd like to take my class (or want to recommend it to someone), it costs $25 for TBA members/$40 for non-members, and you can reserve your spot by calling (415) 430-1140 x10 and speaking to a TBA Membership Associate, or by emailing tba@theatrebayarea.org. There are a bunch of other great classes too, on topics like time management, goal setting, and PR/Marketing for the actor. Worth checking out!
Like this:
0 = I don't know anyone there.
1= I've met someone from their casting/artistic staff.
2= I've done a general audition.
3= I've been called in to read for a specific project.
4= I've had a callback or done a reading/small project.
5= I've been cast at that theater.
So my spreadsheet has 3 columns: rating, company name, and next step.
Having this spreadsheet helps me know where I'm at with each company, and what my next action should be with each different theater. For some companies, I'm looking for an introduction to their casting director, for others, I want to make sure I do their generals next time they come up, and at others I'm pitching myself for appropriate roles in their next season.
Since I've got everything in one place, I can develop specific targeted strategies to move my relationships up the ladder. I know that zero doesn't turn into 5 overnight - this is a marathon, not a sprint - and that building and maintaining relationships over time is one of the keys to a long career.
I'm going to be sharing info like this at the class I have coming up on February 11th from 1pm to 2:45pm for Theatre Bay Area called 'Navigating Your Life as a Bay Area Actor' which is part of TBA's ATLAS program, a career development program for performing artists. If you'd like to take my class (or want to recommend it to someone), it costs $25 for TBA members/$40 for non-members, and you can reserve your spot by calling (415) 430-1140 x10 and speaking to a TBA Membership Associate, or by emailing tba@theatrebayarea.org. There are a bunch of other great classes too, on topics like time management, goal setting, and PR/Marketing for the actor. Worth checking out!
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