Auditions! or, Please Come Speed Date Us by Laura

Okay, so auditions are the worst, right? I mean, they’re not. It’s an opportunity to do what you love to do, and to practice, and to meet new people. But, woof. The pressure. The nerves. The awkward. Let’s just call a spade and spade and say it: it ain’t easy.

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Can you imagine 20 auditions in an hour!? Double woof.

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Moment of truth and personal anecdote: I auditioned myself for a show back in March. A friend of mine was sitting in on the audition, plus the director who I’ve worked with before and one other person. And afterward my friend told me, you seemed so nervous - you really needn’t be. So, here I am, 35 years old, over a decade into my theatrical career, two shiny theatre degrees behind me, auditioning for someone I know and trust and feel at ease with, and being an oftentimes director myself who knows that directors want you to succeed, AND I AM STILL CRAZY NERVOUS. WTF.

Why can’t have Libby Mae Brown’s confidence?

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...Or the confidence to pull off an overalls crop-top, amirite?

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Enough about my own hang ups - I’m going to be behind the table this time around, along with all the other Savage Umbrella company members. The bottom line is that we want to get to know you. Hence the speed dating reference above. We have around 15 roles available for this season and probably less than 5 designer/SM/dramaturg position. BUT THERE ARE SO MANY MORE AWESOME FOLKS WE WILL MEET! We have a bounty of talent, on stage and behind the table, in this town.

But! Our lives are long, and hopefully our paths will cross multiple times and if we get to know each other now, then maybe we can work together at some point. On multiple, multiple occasions, we have been in a casting quandary and thought back - oh! we saw person X at auditions two seasons ago, and they were great! Or, shoot we need a lighting designer and oh! remember designer X? Their online portfolio awesome! It’s not the super-quick turn around that helps to boost an ego, but it is genuine.

So please, please come to meet us. We will send you an email to thank you for coming! And then you may not hear from us for a long, long time. But we have your information on file, and - scout’s honor - we reference those files all the time.

In the meantime, come to our fundraiser (outer)SPACE party! Come do yoga with us! Come see our shows! And probably see you at the Iveys?

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Who’s on top and who’s on bottom now? Hopefully we’ll all be on top!