Audition-performing arts

An audition is a sample performance by an actor, singer, musician, dancer or other performing artist. It is used in the casting process to demonstrate the level and range of a performer's talent, and functions as a job interview for the performing arts. A typical audition involves the performer displaying their talent through a previously-memorized and rehearsed solo piece: for example, a monologue for actors or a song for a singer. For actors, the audition piece is typically not from the show being considered; an actor wishing to be cast in Hamlet would not likely do a monologue from that play. However, most performers do have a range of audition pieces and select something appropriate; an actor auditioning for Hamlet would have a dramatic Shakespearean monologue ready, and not perform a monologue from an Oscar Wilde comedy, or a contemporary playwright. Similarly, a singer auditioning for a role in a musical theatre production would not, unless instructed otherwise, sing opera or country music, and a musician auditioning for a seat in an orchestra would not perform rock. Occasionally a musical theatre audition may require the performer to sing something in the genre to which the musical pertains. For instance, someone auditioning for Destry Rides Again may be asked to sing a country-western song or a rock song for The Rocky Horror Show. Some auditions involve cold reading, or performing a script that the actor is not familiar with. Likewise, musicians may be asked to sight read music at various levels of difficulty. This is similar to many dance auditions, in which the focus is on learning new choreography, rather than showcasing prepared work. For smaller roles in a large production, mass auditions are held at which many inexperienced or aspiring performers, most without agents, show up. These are popularly known as cattle calls, since the hopefuls are often kept together in one large room like a herd. The musical A Chorus Line begins with one of these. American Idol also auditions its aspiring vocalists using this technique, since there are so many auditions. Although an actor's talents comprise crucial criteria in the casting process, an almost equal amount of attention is given to an actor's "type," (a combination of personality, looks and general casting intuition) as required for a particular production.

Audition-performing arts

The word acting is derived from the Latin word agere meaning "to do", this is precisely what acting is. In acting, an actor suppresses or augments aspects of their personality in order to reveal the actions and motivations of the character for particular moments in time. The actor is said to be "assuming the role" of another, usually for the benefit of an audience, but also because it can bring one a sense of artistic satisfaction. The first actor is believed to be Thespis of Icaria, a man of ancient Greece. "Plays" of this time, called choric dithyrambs, involved a chorus of 50 who sang the story to the audience. Thespis stepped out of the chorus and spoke to them as a separate character in the story. Before Thespis, the chorus in all plays would sing in a narrative way, "Dionysus did this, Dionysus said that." When Thespis stepped out from the chorus, he said "I am Dionysus. I did this." And acting was born. This may only be a legend, but in his honor a word was crafted: thespian, meaning any sort of performer but chiefly an actor. The International Thespian Society, a society comparable to a fraternity (yet possessing the troop system of the Girl Scouts) for students involved in the arts has also been named in his honor.

Actors are generally expected to possess a number of skills, including good vocal projection, clarity of speech, physical expressiveness, a good sense of perspective, emotional availability, a well developed imagination, the ability to analyze and understand dramatic text, and the ability to emulate or generate emotional and physical conditions. Well-rounded actors are often also skilled in singing, dancing, emotional expressiveness, imitating dialects and accents, improvisation, observation and emulation, mime, stage combat, and performing classical texts such as Shakespeare. Many actors train at length in special programs or colleges to develop these skills, which have a wide range of different artistic philosophies and processes. Modern pioneers in the area of acting have included Mani Madhava Chakyar, Konstantin Stanislavski, Jerzy Grotowski, Lee Strasberg, Uta Hagen, Stella Adler, Michael Chekhov, Viola Spolin, Sanford Meisner, Bertolt Brecht, and Maria Ouspenskaya.

For history and other details, see actor, thespian, or Thespis.

Audition-performing arts

Fetching RSS feed... please stand by

Great Stuff on Amazon

Performing Arts Management: A Handbook of Professional Practices

Acting 101 - How to be a Working Actor

1 point

Great Stuff on eBay

Audition-performing arts

Fetching new data from eBay now... please stand by

Great Stuff on CafePress

Audition-performing arts

"Filmmaking is ..." Women's V-Neck Dark T-Shirt

Netflix Movies

Audition-performing arts

001- Crash: A 36-hour period in the diverse metropolis of post-Sept. 11 Los Angeles is the theme of this unflinc...
002- The Departed: To take down South Boston's Irish Mafia, the police send in one of their own to infiltrate the under...
003- The Pursuit of Happyness: Will Smith (in an Oscar-nominated role) and his real-life son Jaden star in this tearjerker about a...
004- Walk the Line: Among the pantheon of great country singers, Johnny Cash (played here by Joaquin Phoenix) may just b...
005- Hotel Rwanda: Amid the holocaust of internecine tribal fighting in Rwanda that sees the savage butchering of hundr...
Try Netflix free for 14 days

New Link List

Audition-performing arts

Musical Theatre Audition Advice:: You can't get the role without getting past the audition. Whether you are preparing for a straight theatre audition, a dance audition, a vocal audition or a true "triple threat" musical audition, there are audition tips here to help you. Just click the links on our menu at left.

The best audition tip I can give you to improve your performance at musical theatre auditions is simply to get experience in auditioning. While the first few auditions may be nervewracking, the more audition opportunities you have the easier it will become.
Audition Tips for Musicals: Should I sing a song from the show I'm auditioning for?

Coach Robert Marks says: "It's generally considered a good idea not to sing a song from the show you're auditioning for unless specifically requested. The people you're singing for generally have their own ideas of how the song should go, and if your version doesn't match it, you might find yourself out of the running. Also, singing the song of one particular character in the show might preclude you from being considered for a different role."