Actor Audition Memories

[Jay Williams]

Posted: 5/29/18 at 3:15pm

All the actors out there:   would love to hear a great audition memory or story.  One of my favorite is being seen by Estelle Parsons for something she was directing.   Oh, was she fun!   She came into the holding room after seeing many people and looked at us and said in a very  big and friendly voice: "look at me in the room.......I want you to look at me............not at the wall or the floor or the ceiling.....let me know who you are........"  and she stomped out with this huge grin on her face.  (I remember a casting director telling us all never to look at her.......there are no rules, except to be yourself, I guess.  Please share some audition stories.  Smiles.

[Ado Annie D'Ysquith]

Posted: 5/29/18 at 10:11pm

This is going off-topic, but the audition process has been pretty tarnished for me by some members of my immediate family, who have the attitude of "not cast=not enough talent." There are things I'd love to try for, but I can't really shake those thoughts, nor do I want to hear the riot act if I do show up and don't get cast: "Stop wasting your time," etc.

Therefore, until I'm living more independently, I've had to literally make my own opportunities (like with my Manhattan cabaret appearances). The good thing about that, though, is that it has enabled me to focus on writing and then sometimes be able to act in my own work. Nobody can say a thing when I do this.