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  • 1.  Printed Audition guidelines for HS students

    Posted 07-08-2017 04:51
    Would anyone like to share info they give students about the process or procedure of auditions for their Musicals? How many days might the audition take? How the student actor will be assessed/chosen for roles? Callbacks? Good info about the importance of ensemble and being a part of the cast and company? A sort of laying out the process of the audition procedure in advance. Many thanks for any insight you might have and would like to share.

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  • 2.  RE: Printed Audition guidelines for HS students

    Posted 07-09-2017 11:17
    Buck,
    When I prep the kids for musical auditions I give them a packet that contains a cast list (with a short description of the character if possible), a synopsis, an application form that give me some background information (especially from those who "come out of the woodwork"), the audition reading(s), and the musical selection from the musical they will need to sing. (I usually offer a couple of choices for each of these.) We only include scenes for the major characters and explain that although they might want a different character, we will consider that as they audition. It prevents having to provide readings for every character in the musical. All of this is available to any student interested in auditions about 3 weeks in advance. I encourage individual questions over those three weeks. On the audition form I also include a paragraph about commitment to the show - regardless of the role they are given - and ask both the student and the parent to sign this. Although I really can't hold any of them to it because it's an extra curricular activity, it at least give me some leverage when a student wants to quit. 

    I hold all auditions on one day - a 2 hour block after school. Because I work with our choir director and my co-director/choreographer there are 3 of us involved. We explain to the students the time commitment, what we expect of them, and that we will cast the best person for the best part - no favoritism or seniority is a part of this process. Obviously the students with more experience and usually our show choir kids end up in lead roles, but it is accepted by most that they are the better person for the part. We also emphasize that this is a team effort and no one person/character is more important than another - they may have more/less lines but everyone is important. To quote The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, "There are no small parts, only small actors." In fact, some of our best performance have frequently come from a minor role who embraced their character and ran with it. We have students read their chosen selection and sing solo the song they've picked in front of all auditionees. We don't do call backs or second chances so what they give us the first time has to be their best. We all take notes and make comments to refresh our memories when we are casting.

    When we have finished all auditions, the 3 of us retreat to a local restaurant where we hash out the cast list over dinner - and usually some adult beverage.  :) We usually post on a Friday at the end of school and leave the building as the kids are so we don't have to listen to the off stage drama that undoubtedly takes place. 

    Hope this helps.

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    Ellen Augustine
    Language Arts Instructor/Theater Director
    Goshen IN
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    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: Printed Audition guidelines for HS students

    Posted 07-10-2017 09:56

    I teach middle school, but my process is very similar. I have a packet of show info, a list of approved audition songs, a permission slip that outlines the time commitment, and I ask for all conflicts up front. Any absence not on the conflict list is unexcused.For ensemble, unexcused absences can mean losing a spot in a dance number and/or having incidental lines or featured moments given to another actor. For principles, it can mean being assigned an understudy, who will then get on of our three performances. This policy has helped absenteeism immensely. Since these kids are at their parents' mercy for transportation, the chance of their kid losing lines has impressed the importance of attendance upon many parents. 



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    Dianne Rowe
    Birmingham AL
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    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: Printed Audition guidelines for HS students

    Posted 07-11-2017 10:00
    I print a complete rehearsal schedule on the back of the audition form, and ask students to read it and list any conflicts. It has made a world of difference.

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    Billy Houck
    Theatre Teacher
    Sunnyvale CA
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    Original Message


  • 5.  RE: Printed Audition guidelines for HS students

    Posted 07-10-2017 09:56
      |   view attached
    I agree with everything in the previous post and have attached a sample audition packet that is available before the audition. Things that I have tweaked over the years:

    1. I added a Promise of Intent Letter which is a sort of "permission slip" helps to inform parents of the time commitment. Kids still drop after the first cast meeting and see the reality of the rehearsal schedule but that number has decreased with the signed Promise of Intent Letter with conflict listed on the back.

    2. Students are invited to a dance workshop to learn a combination that is part of the audition.  The workshop is held a day or two (sometimes the week before) the audition.  The workshop is great because not only has the cast has learned part of a number done before you even begin rehearsal, but they get a taste of what goes on in a choreography rehearsal.

    3. Sometimes I have a choral workshop before the auditions.  (Last year I didn't because I figured everyone knew High School Musical.) This is helpful if you are trying to grow a program and you have kids that are sitting on the fence about auditioning. Students can chose to sing the workshop song or a song of their choice.  I encourage them to sing something that they know and shows their best work.

    4.There are no open auditions.  I call in 4-5 students at a time into the auditorium; the entire group does the dance audition and then they sing individually. Everyone else waits in the hallway. That way students don't see the entire audition process and cast the show. There have been less hard feelings since they can't compare their performance to everyone else.

    5. May I suggest posting the cast list on a closed group website like Edmodo.  Posting on the wall outside my classroom and running has not worked for me in the past.  It's been my personal experience that NO ONE ever gets the part they want. As said in a previous post, on the day of auditions I give the Speech to the entire group and encourage them to receive the casting news with grace and to celebrate or commiserate with family - NOT over social media. I think receiving the cast list in the privacy of one's own home vs. a public place has limited the phone calls from parents and the conflicts that arise between friends.

    I hope that helps - I hate auditions both as a performer and as a director.  They can make or break your show; the more that you can front load the less stress there is in the long run.

    Break a leg!

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    Marla Blasko
    Theatre Arts Director
    Columbia MD
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    Attachment(s)

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    Audition packet.docx   23 KB 1 version
    Original Message


  • 6.  RE: Printed Audition guidelines for HS students

    Posted 07-11-2017 09:24
    I have implemented many of the suggestions into our audition process with great success. Two years ago, I quit posting the cast list and instead gave each person who auditioned an evaluation form as well as a casting letter which stated whether or not student was cast and role in show.  The student is then to sign the form stating whether or not he or she accepts the role and return it to me by the end of the school day.  Yes, it can be a very long process, but it gives students an opportunity to understand the casting decision and privacy is discovering this.

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    Mary Midiri-Davis
    Illiopolis IL
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    Original Message


  • 7.  RE: Printed Audition guidelines for HS students

    Posted 07-10-2017 11:44
    Auditions are always tricky. We have a particularly large program, where we have between 80 and 100 students audition for our musical. I'm not sure the size of your program, but we have enabled a few policies that help ease the process for us.  To start the process, we ask students what size responsibility they would like in the show: large, medium, or small. The level of responsibility corresponds to the amount of rehearsal time they would have to commit to the show and things like amount of lines they would have to memorize. If we feel that a student is perfect for a role larger than the responsibility level they selected, we will approach the  actor and ask them if they would be willing to consider a larger responsibility.  Typically, the actor says yes unless they are physically unable to commit to a larger role because of other conflicts and outside activities.

    On the audition form, we also ask students to identify which roles they are most interested in. Students answer in a short answer form why they've selected their top role. We find this is actually very helpful when we are stuck between actors for a part.

    Because we have so many students auditioning for a musical, we split the audition into four groups over two days. We call each audition session a round. When Round 1 comes to the audition, we start with a technique I call "cold singing." The music director teaches the entire group the melody of a very easy chorus from a show song. Once they've learned the easy melody, we ask the group to go on stage and will have them perform this song as various characters. This part of the audition is not about singing or musical ability, but about students ability to play, follow direction, and take risks onstage.  The characters we ask for are sometimes show related but can also range from cats to military generals to opera singers. I encourage them to make strong physical choices, and to have fun with it! I find this technique incredibly helpful when looking for ensemble members.

    After the cold singing, the students come in individually to perform their prepared song. After everyone has sung individually in Round 1, we begin the dance auditions. We combine two rounds together for one dance audition. The schedule often looks like this: Round 1 auditions from 2:30 PM to 4:00 PM; Dance auditions from 4:00 PM to 5:00 PM for Rounds 1 and 2; Round 2 auditions from 5:30 PM to 7:00 PM. We repeat this process for Rounds 3 and 4 the next day.  

    As others posted, I provide audition packets to our company members with as much information as I can.  HERE is a sample audition packet for our musical.  In addition to the audition packets, I offer general audition advice to help set expectations and ease nerves.  The Audition Tips, I have here: Preparing for an Audition.  Then I offer insight from the director's perspective here: A Director's Perspective on Auditions: A Note from Teacher to Student.

    Best of luck with your auditions!  Dramatics had a great article recently about rejection that I also make available as a resource for our students, and one week after the cast list is posted we allow students to come for audition feedback.







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    Jessica Harms
    Theatre Director
    Acton MA
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    Original Message


  • 8.  RE: Printed Audition guidelines for HS students

    Posted 07-12-2017 09:01

    Thank you so much for your time and all the valuable information. We are doing Cabaret in the fall and I agree that front loading the audition will help with any ill feelings afterwards. All the info, including closed auditions, ways of posting casting, rounds of auditions and workshopping, letters of intent, requesting size of commitment are all helpful... you have made my day! Best, Buck


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    Buck Herron
    London WA
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    Original Message


  • 9.  RE: Printed Audition guidelines for HS students

    Posted 07-18-2017 11:56
    Thanks for all the questions about how we run our auditions.  Everyone runs theirs differently, and to answer all the questions, I put it all down in one central location:
    Running Successful Auditions
    Schooltheatre remove preview
    Running Successful Auditions
    Auditions are tricky. The dread you feel at the inevitable heartbreak is balanced with the joy of seeing all the possibilities for your show and students. With over 80 students auditioning for our shows, we've learned a lot of lessons and streamlined our approach.
    View this on <g class="gr_ gr_154 gr-alert gr_spell gr_inline_cards gr_disable_anim_appear ContextualSpelling ins-del multiReplace" id="154" data-gr-id="154">Schooltheatre</g> >


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    Jessica Harms
    Theatre Director
    Acton MA
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    Original Message


  • 10.  RE: Printed Audition guidelines for HS students

    Posted 07-21-2017 23:33
    We do auditioning far differently than most schools.
    We run our Main Stage shows as credit courses and therefore, every student who registers and commits to the show is cast.
    We take 2 - 3 weeks to audition and that process includes: reading through the script, review each character with smaller groups of students, improvisation and ensemble building, choreography and, for a musical, large and small group singing.
    We review the course outline, full rehearsal schedule and expectations for the show throughout the audition period.

    Here is the Casting Policy we share with students and their families:

    Casting Policies (For Main Stage Musicals or Dramas):



    1.  All who audition and commit to the show will be given a significant role in it and all will be featured in the performance.

    1.  Grade and previous involvement is only a factor in selection if multiple performers are determined to be equally qualified for a particular role - in such a case, the senior student will be given the that role.

    1.  Students are asked to give input as to which roles they would especially like to be considered for but the production team reserves the right to place a performer in the role that best suits them and best serves the play.

    1.  The production team discuss and consult on casting but the Lead Teacher / Director takes final responsibility for all selections and any concerns are to be addressed to him / her.

    5.The Lead Teacher / Director will discuss a performer's strengths and areas needing growth but will not discuss or defend the selection of other performers.


    1. In addition to skill set, for some roles, look (not looks) matters - i.e. relative height of paired characters.

    1. Casting is a process - you will be asked to work with various groupings of students on various skills and challenges over the course of multiple sessions.  No one session is "the audition" - but everything is part of the auditioning process.

    1. Cast members are asked to refrain for discussing the casting on social media for 24 hours after the cast list is posted.  Students are asked not to create any show Facebook page etc. until at least 24 hours after the cast list is posted.

    9.  The guiding principle of all we do is to "Serve the Play".

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    Bill Jacobsen
    Drama Teacher / Curriculum Leader
    Hunting Hills High School
    Red Deer Alberta
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    Original Message


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