Audition Advice and Monologues to Avoid
 

PerformInk asked 24 artistic and casting directors for the one piece of advice they'd give actors auditioning for their theatres. We also wanted to know the monologues they never want to hear again. Below are their answers. They are listed in alphabetical order by theatre.

 

Eric Rosen, artistic director, About Face Theatre

ADVICE: It's most important that you have read the play and really understand what you are auditioning for. It's far more important to be really comfortable than to be off-book and nervous. Bold choices are better than weak ones. I like actors who understand the text and, just as importantly, understand the play in the context of About Face's body of work.

MONOLOGUES TO STAY AWAY FROM: We almost never use audition monologues, though sometimes I'll ask someone to perform something "on the fly," usually on a whim—particularly if the person looks right and has good energy, but I can't get enough from them with the sides.

 

David Zak, artistic director, Bailiwick Repertory

ADVICE: I think auditioning is the one chance an actor has to be in charge of their career—and show us who they want to be. Romeo. Electra. I think most actors should make bolder choices and take chances. Even if they are wrong, a chance [was] taken. I also think actors think that the final note of their musical piece will rock our world, or the last beat of the monologue when they get teary will get us, too. In fact, if we are not engaged by a good choice in the first 15 seconds, they are lost.

MONOLOGUES TO STAY AWAY FROM: I am still amazed to hear that tuna fish monologue from Laughing Wild; anything written in the '60s like Pfeiffer's People; anything by Murray Shisgal, and pieces with strange dialects.

 

Paige Coffman, executive producer, Chicago Kids Company

ADVICE: Make sure that whatever you're doing is somewhat suitable for kids. Sometimes actors come in swearing up and down and it's hard to see past that. We don't mind hearing Moliere or Chekhov or someone more current, just as long as it's fun for us. Also, don't do children's books. It's a fine line between suitable for children and then something like "The Cat in the Hat."

MONOLOGUES TO STAY AWAY FROM: The women's version of The Odd Couple or a children's book. "'One Fish, Two Fish' doesn't usually work for us."

 

Bob Mason, casting director, Chicago Shakespeare Theatre

ADVICE: Make it important enough to you that it can't help but command my attention. Use the glorious language that Shakespeare has given you. Make sure your first words are spoken out of a specific response to something. And allow your character to think and be surprised. Every monologue should be a voyage of discovery for the actor as well as the auditor.

MONOLOGUES TO STAY AWAY FROM: There certainly are Shakespeare pieces that are overused, but since everyone would give you a different answer as to what they are, my advice, when all is said and done, is to do your strongest piece. No two actors will approach the text the same way, and so if done well, I don't care if I've heard it a hundred times. But please don't do sonnets, as they do not involve character and relationship. And shy away from the role of Hamlet. Also steer clear, whenever possible, of performing pieces from plays currently being produced, as it only invites unfair comparisons.

 

Derrick Sanders, artistic director, Congo Square Theatre Co.

ADVICE: My one piece of advice is when you come to an audition and the auditors ask you for a headshot DO NOT Reply: "Don't you already have one?" AND always make sure your headshots are presentable, with no extra paper sticking outside the resume.

MONOLOGUES TO STAY AWAY FROM: I don't want to see any monologue outside your age range.

 

Alison Vesely, artistic director, First Folio Theatre

ADVICE: Don't be a talking head. No matter what your drama teacher may have told you in college, we want to see you MOVE. This also means don't sit down for the entire monologue. Choose a piece that is appropriate for your age—no 35-year-old Juliets and no 22-year-old Benedicks. Wear clothes that allow you to move, but that look professional and/or give a sense of the type of character you are auditioning for (i.e., don't wear skimpy tops or sloppy blue jeans if you're auditioning for a Renaissance play). Be nice to EVERYONE at the audition. Monitors are often the stage manager or another employee of the theatre. Don't wear clothes that hang down over your hands. We want to see your gestures.

MONOLOGUES TO STAY AWAY FROM: "O hateful hands" from Two Gentlemen of Verona; The Jailer's Daughter from Two Noble Kinsmen.

 

Steven Anderson, producing director, greasy joan & co.

ADVICE: Since we focus on classic plays and authors, I would stress that actors auditioning for us become familiar with the author and the play before they audition. Having a great Shakespeare monologue is a must; but always have a contrasting classical or contemporary piece in your back pocket. Perform your monologue several times before the audition; don't let the audition be the first or second time because it shows! Remember that Shakespeare wrote 37 plays so there is plenty of material to choose from.

 

Steve Scott, associate producer, Goodman Theatre; also a freelance director

ADVICE: My one piece of advice to actors, especially at the general audition, is to remember that you're in complete control of everything for that audition. You choose the material and how you're going to present it. You choose the clothes you wear. And you even choose (to an extent, anyway) when you're going to perform it for us. It's the time as an actor that you have the greatest amount of power, so let that give you confidence and positive energy, so that you're free to enjoy the experience of performing for us, rather than looking like you'd rather be having root-canal work done.

Monologues/Songs to stay away from: It's probably best to avoid recent "hits" (songs from Wicked, monologues from Doubt or The Pillow Man)—but, quite frankly, I'll watch anything as long as you choose the piece because you love doing it.

 

Greg Allen, founder, Neo-Futurists

ADVICE: BE YOURSELF! We don't cast actors, we cast people. And this is essentially true for even non-Neo-Futurist auditions. At our auditions, the second someone pretends to be someone else or somewhere else or doing something they are not, they are immediately discounted as not knowing our aesthetic. Also, BE PHYSICAL! Move around and do something. People want to know how you move. Also, DON'T BE AFRAID TO BE SERIOUS! We are not a comedy group.

 

Genevra Gallo, artistic director, Neo-Futurists

ADVICE: We never want to see you be false on stage. Write your own monologue and make it truthful to your life. Staging is very important; even though we're sharing stories about our own lives on stage, we're still in a theatre, creating a show for an audience. Visuals and movement always help. This is the only place where we don't want to hear: "I'll be doing such and such by so and so." There's no surer way to sink your audition.

 

Jason Loewith, artistic director, Next Theatre Co.

ADVICE: Have you made a clear choice textually, vocally and physically? I look for intelligent decisions in all three elements of a monologue—that's what creates real stage presence.

MONOLOGUES TO STAY AWAY FROM: It should be obvious, but please don't do ANYTHING from a play we've done in the past five years! I'd also advise personally that if you're doing a classical monologue, START SLOW. Every performer has a different cadence with verse, and it takes a moment for even the most expert auditor to hear how you deliver the words.

 

Reetu Gowdar, assistant to the artistic director, Northlight Theatre

ADVICE: Choose material that you really understand. Do what you do best. For a general audition, do some research on the shows in the season and prepare accordingly. In other words, if the theatre is doing three British plays that season, be prepared to do a standard British dialect if someone asks. The director or casting director may have you deliver the lines a different way. Be ready to take direction. Listen carefully so that you change your delivery correctly. A big mistake an actor can make during an audition is to deliver the lines exactly the same way after he/she was told to do them differently. Make sure your telephone number is on your resume.

 

Walter Stearns, artistic director, Porchlight Music Theatre

ADVICE: Leave your nervous energy outside the theatre. Everyone at the audition is pulling for you to succeed. There is a misguided idea out there (probably brought about by the "American Idol" phenomenon) that we want to criticize you. We desperately want you to be the right choice. At Porchlight Music Theatre we do everything in our power to make your audition comfortable and a positive experience. Please leave your nervous energy (which may manifest in the room as negative or difficult) outside the theatre.

Monologues/Songs to stay away from: Don't try out new material on us. Please come prepared with material you have worked, and worked. Too often folks bring in something they just got from the library and have never even sung before. An audition is not the opportunity to try stuff out. That is why you use a coach or teacher. You want to shine at an audition, do your best, most rehearsed material.

 

Joe Jahraus, artistic director, Profiles Theatre

ADVICE: Don't try to impress us or show off your talents. Some of the best auditions I've seen had the actor just sit in a chair and talk. No screaming and yelling, yet still emotionally full.

MONOLOGUES TO STAY AWAY FROM: There is no piece that's too overused as long as it's honest. I remember seeing five actresses use the same monologue one afternoon with lots of rage and hysterics and I wasn't buying it at all. The fifth actress was honest and real and it was the first time I could even understand what the monologue was about. Just use yourself.

 

Kristen Burrello, associate artistic director, Redmoon Theater

ADVICE: I would advise all potential auditioners to do a little research on the theatre before coming in to auditions. Because Redmoon is an object based, spectacle theatre, we are not looking for traditionally trained actors hoping that we'll be a stepping stone to Steppenwolf. It's embarrassing for both parties when an actor realizes at the audition that s/he'd never want to work with us. Not to mention a waste of everyone's time.

MONOLOGUES TO STAY AWAY FROM: Since we require monologues in gibberish, it's hard to get sick of any one text!

 

James Bohnen, artistic director, Remy Bumppo

ADVICE: The best encouragement about auditioning I can offer is: find your way through the speech idea by idea. Whether classical or contemporary, be quick, very specific and live-minded, but not so rushed so that it ceases to feel like thought. Vivid thinking and sharp speaking will always hold my attention. Pick pieces that show off particular skills that an individual company needs to see, don't just trot out whatever you have at hand.

MONOLOGUES TO STAY AWAY FROM: Julia's letter speech from Two Gents; Edmund's "stand up for bastards" from Lear; Nina's Seagull speeches (although they aren't done much anymore); "To be or not to be" is a dangerous, slippery slope. That having been said, I will get engaged and stay engaged with any speech that is thought through and lively.

 

Jamil Khoury, artistic director, Silk Road Theatre Project

ADVICE: I would say be mindful of the fact that our mission is cross-cultural. We are interested in the "fusion" of cultural experience and the ways in which our identities intersect and conflict with one another. In interpreting a monologue, it is important to discover subtext and nuance, and exhibit "secondary" meaning in a manner that is neither heavy handed nor obvious.  

MONOLOGUES TO STAY AWAY FROM: With Silk Road Theatre Project turning three-years-old this summer, I guess I'm still lucky not to feel jaded by any particular monologues. If anything, I've been enormously impressed by the infrequency with which monologues are repeated.

 

Kevin Gladish, Speaking Ring Theatre

ADVICE: We look for people who are open, spontaneous, fun and willing to take risks in an ensemble environment. We'll often throw curveballs at an actor in auditions, not so much to see if they "get it right," but to see if they're willing to run with.

MONOLOGUES TO STAY AWAY FROM: "You Shouldn't Need Someone That Much" from Howard Korder's This Boy's Life; The Peter Pan monologue by Christopher Durang. Pretty much anything by Durang. And anything from Laundry and Bourbon.

 

Kevin Heckman, producing artistic director, Stage Left Theatre

ADVICE: Enjoy yourself. This is easy to say and not always easy to do, but I'm not going to work with someone who comes into the audition grim as can be. If I hire you, I've got to live with you for five weeks and my SM has to for another eight. We want someone that we're going to enjoy working with.

MONOLOGUES TO STAY AWAY FROM: I don't have particular monologues, but be careful about choosing anything that's particularly gruesome or explicit. You always run the risk of the subject matter preventing me from being able to focus on you as an actor.

 

Erica Daniels, casting director, Steppenwolf

ADVICE: When you come into Steppenwolf, please be on time, prepared and excited to be here. Know for what you are auditioning and who will be in the room watching you. If the play has been made available to you, please be sure to have read it and make choices with your audition sides. Don't have a poor attitude, be yourself and bring yourself to the table. Know that the people in the room are rooting for you. We want you to do well and want someone to walk in and take the part. Have fun. Be bold. Be real.

MONOLOGUES TO STAY AWAY FROM: I truly don't have any monologues that I never want to hear again. I use monologues in the hopes of getting to know an actor, so I hope they have picked a piece they feel will reveal themselves in a true way. I can hear the same monologue over and over again if it's done well and showcases who the actor is. A monologue is never the same from actor to actor. I have NO problem telling someone when a monologue isn't working for him/her and giving them some alternative ideas, but I haven't ever censored someone without hearing the monologue first.

 

Allen Chambers, casting director, Theatre Building Chicago

ADVICE: I assume that anyone coming to one of my auditions, has the skills and confidence to sing and carry a role from page to stage. We need strong singing actors. We usually ask the actor to select two contrasting 16 bar cuttings of music in the actor's key.  Many of the audition books and piano/vocal scores are printed in keys that don't match the actor's vocal strengths. A well cut, 16 bar audition usually includes "the money note" at the end. Make sure that you select a key that will allow you the opportunity to always hit "the money note," regardless of the weather, your cold, or the season. It's your audition. Sing what makes you feel great about your talent.

MONOLOGUES TO STAY AWAY FROM:  I don't need to hear monologues from A-My Name is Alice, A-My  Name is Still Alice, A-I Wanna Go Ask Alice. Please no more ALICE monologues.

 

PJ Powers, artistic director, Timeline Theatre Company

ADVICE: Do your homework for whom you're auditioning. If it's for a director, have a sense of the type of work he or she has done in the past. If it's a general audition for a theatre company, make sure you know what they do (the style of plays they do, what is in their upcoming season, etc.) and plan your audition piece accordingly. I want to see you do a piece that is similar in style to what I am casting in the near future.

MONOLOGUES TO STAY AWAY FROM: There aren't really any monologues that I would say are absolutely on my forbidden list. More importantly, DO NOT deliver your monologue to the casting director. We aren't your scene partner. We're there to watch your work and get a sense of who you are. We can't really do that if you're delivering a monologue to us as if you're hoping for some response.

 

Dennis Zacek, artistic director, Victory Gardens Theater

ADVICE: I'm interested in casting the person with whom I feel I can best communicate.

MONOLOGUES TO STAY AWAY FROM: Any selections from Key Exchange.

 

Shade Murray, artistic associate, Writers Theatre

ADVICE: One piece of advice about general auditions: Research the upcoming season of the theatre you're auditioning for and then present complementary monologues at your audition. It shows you have an investment in the theatre and gives the casting director a better sense of what you should be considered for.

MONOLOGUES TO STAY AWAY FROM: Anything from Proof.