Theatre audition tips for CFA Theatre auditions on Saturday, February 2

Dear Prospective CFA Theatre students,

We are sorry that our CFA audition workshop was canceled on Saturday, January 26 as a result of the inclement weather.

We are looking forward to seeing you at our CFA Theatre auditions on Saturday, February 2.  Here are some tips to help you prepare for your Theatre audition:

THEATRE AUDITION TIPS

Your theatre audition will consist of three components: improvisation, interview and your monologue.  Each item is listed below.

  1. Improvisation – Have fun, be creative, but don’t “force the funny.”  Don’t try to be the funniest person in the room, just work with your scene partner (if you have one) and just react to the situation.  The number one rule for improvisation is to have a “Yes, And” attitude.  That simply means that you accept what your partner or the situation offers and add to it.  For instance if someone says, “Let’s go to the mall,” don’t say “No, I hate the mall.”  Instead, say “Yes, and let’s buy some _______.”  Another thing to remember is that in improv, you are a rocket scientist.  In other words if we ask you to do something that you have no clue how to do (bake a cake, build a castle, fly a jet) make it up!  Effort and creativity counts!
  2. Interview – This is our chance to get to know you.  We like to know your interests outside of theatre.  Do you like to read, play sports, play X-Box, dance, etc?  Remember, just BE YOURSELF.  Don’t try to impress us by telling us what you think we want to hear.  We want to get to you, not the “fake” you.  The one question that I will ask all of you is… “Why do you want to be a part of the Center for the Arts.”  Give this some thought and be honest.
  3. Monologue – Your monologue should be 1-2 minutes long and from a published play or monologue book.  No Shakespeare, poetry, song lyrics or self-written scripts.  The key to a successful monologue is to find one that YOU LIKE.  Again, don’t try and impress us.  Instead, find a monologue that fits your personality.  Try to find a monologue from a play and then read the play.  The playwright will tell you everything you need to know about your character in order to perform it.  Think about WHO YOU ARE TALKING TO.  Place that person where we are and talk directly to them.  Think about your MOMENT BEFORE.  What happened just before you started you monologue?  This will help you to “hit the ground running” with your monologue.  We may ask you to do your monologue again and perhaps differently.  This does NOT mean you’ve done something wrong.  We just want to see how you can react to direction and change.  It may not make any sense, in fact it rarely does.
  4. Lastly, and most importantly, RELAX AND HAVE FUN!!!  We want to see you at your very best, so try not to be nervous.  If you make a mistake, it’s okay.  It happens ALL THE TIME.  Just relax and start again.

We look forward to seeing you at auditions!

Todd Ritter

Lead CFA Theatre Instructor

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