AUDITIONS
"Tokens of Affection"
Audition details HERE.
Register for auditions HERE!
WHAT TO EXPECT at AUDITIONs
We are excited you would like to audition for one of Rome Little Theatre’s shows! Whether you’re auditioning for the first time or the tenth time, we want you to be at ease when you walk through our doors.
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Generally, we ask that you register to audition before you come. You can do so using our online form here. By doing so, you will decrease the time it takes to check-in on audition day.
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After checking in, all those who are auditioning will enter the auditorium and the director will give you further instructions. If you are auditioning for a play, the director may have you recite a monologue you have prepared in advance, or do what’s called a “cold reading”. During a “cold reading” the director chooses several people to come on stage and act out a scene straight from the script of the show.
Cold readings can be intimidating, but it helps if you research the play before you come to the audition. Knowing the characters, some of their personality traits, and their relationships with the other characters in the play can help you better act during a cold reading instead of simply reading what is on the page. It also helps if you read ahead in the script, and pay particular attention to stage directions in parentheses. Also, during your monologue or cold reading, keep in mind that the DeSoto is a large theatre space, which means it is important that you show the directors you can project your voice and enunciate.
If you are auditioning for a musical, the director may ask you to sing a song you have prepared. You should typically only prepare 16 bars of music from a musical. You should bring a copy of your sheet music and have your music clearly marked for the piano accompanist indicating where you are starting and stopping. You should not expect to sing a cappella, or with a recording.
The director may give you some directions during the audition. When a director asks you to say a line differently, or sing in a different style, they are not trying to confuse you or make you nervous. They simply want to see that you can take stage direction.
Auditioning may seem like a tedious process, and you may not get to be on the stage a lot. However, here at RLT we like to say that your audition starts when you walk into the building! That means if you have free time during auditions, directors and producers like to see you using your time wisely. Whether that is quietly running through your lines, or respectfully watching those auditioning, your behavior off the stage is just as important as your behavior on stage.
Thank you again for your interest in being a part of one of our productions! We appreciate your enthusiasm and patience during the audition process, and if you have any questions, do not hesitate to ask!
THE RLT PROCESS
Casting Committees: Each of our productions has its own team. Each team has its own casting committee, a group of people donating their time and talent to get the best cast possible for each show. According to the RLT by-laws, the Director and Producer for each show must sit on the casting committee. Beyond that, no single person can sit on two casting committees in the same season, so each time you audition you are seeing new people!
Family Members at Auditions: Since we are a family theatre, we often have family members auditioning and we love that. When someone on the casting committee has a family member auditioning, the casting committee member leaves the casting table to allow the rest of the casting committee to determine if the family member is a good fit for a role in the production.
Open Auditions verses Closed Auditions: Different directors make different choices for their audition processes. All RLT auditions are "open call," that means anyone can come and audition. You can register ahead or simply walk in the day of, and you are welcome! We love having new people and new talent walk across the stage! So all of our auditions are "open" in that way. Sometimes a director wants to see one person at a time, without an audience. If that is the case, they will have "closed" auditions where the theatre is kept quiet and one person is allowed to enter at a time. Other times directors will choose to have "open" auditions where everyone can watch each other audition and family members are allowed to stay as well. Try to trust the director and be willing to give your best audition regardless of their style.
