I am prompted to write this blog entry, explaining my reasons for being strict on in-person auditions, and high attendance at rehearsal, after some people feeling upset, or certainly put out, that I am not accepting video auditions, and that I am insisting on personal attendance, at castings and rehearsals, for Mordred.
I have been hearing of several other theatre and film teams having very similar problems, where people want fame, and large roles, but do not feel able to commit to the long hard work that acting involves. Some directors in other teams now refusing to work with people whom they do not already know, and having been involved in projects that have suffered from these issues, I fully understand why. Hopefully, this entry will explain the reasons behind our decisions.
Auditions
One of the most common questions that I am getting, as time ticks towards the casting day, is from people who are unable to attend auditions. Some reasons given are legitimate, such as work shifts, or moving house that weekend, in which case we try and set up an audition a few days before, on one of our workshop evenings.
Others give more cause for concern:
"I cant come to audition because I am anxious around people, but I want a large role"
"I am only going to come and audition if you can guarantee me a worthwhile role now, otherwise I could be wasting my time"
"I cant come to audition, because I cannot travel to Brixham where the auditions are, it is an hour away on the bus"
Now, as a group we have always been open to people new to acting, but we need to audition people. Perhaps even more because of that. Auditioning is not intended to be a frightening rite of passage, but it allows us to gauge many things critical to your being cast. In fact, it is only in part about seeing "if you can act".
- Expression - even if it is different from what we intend for the character, seeing expression in the audition allows us to see that you have the skills to portray a character, rather than expressionless reading from the page. This includes looking for vocal expression, body language, facial expressions.
- Timekeeping - in the past we have had a number of people wanting to be involved, who have regularly been late to castings and rehearsals, causing knock-on issues for other people. If we see that you have arrived at, or before, the allotted time, then this counts as a big plus, in our eyes.
- You as a person - remember, the selected team are going to be working together for several months. The group needs to operate as a team, so we are looking for general pleasantness, down-to-earth people who are willing to realise that they are part of a team - that the team relies on them, and they rely on the team. We therefore look for good social skills in those we take on. This means that we need to meet you.
- Your characters faction/ family - in a drama such as Mordred, where many characters are related through blood or marriage, or aligned to different factions, we need to make sure that the characters cast, appear to have that connection, and that the people within those groupings work together well. We can only do this, by having the people audition together, in some cases, in groups with a short scene.
A concern from hearing that you not being able to travel to our rehearsal hall to audition, arises: how will you attend rehearsals twice a week?
A concern from hearing that you are too anxious to audition because you are nervous around people: this is a high-octane drama with scenes of confrontation, violence and strong emotion. Would you be alright, being in a scene involving that - or even playing a character involved in the same?
Why do I need to rehearse?
An issue which we have found becoming more prevalent in the past year or so, and heard similar from other teams, so that it is not just our group suffering, is peoples unwillingness to rehearse.
A very small number of rehearsals are sometimes missed again due to work shifts, illness, bereavement, car/ bus breakdown, or other unavoidable issues, but these should, for a serious actor, discounting unavoidable unexpected emergencies, number less than 10% of the whole.
Missing rehearsals for a hangover, because they clash with a TV show you wanted to see, or even just not appearing and assuming people will be fine without it, is a great way to upset everybody else - and to get recast!
One of the most common comments we have had from those not wanting to attend rehearsals, is "well I know my lines so there's no point in my coming". What those people forget is that it is not all about them. They may indeed be perfect, individually, but the whole team needs to work together to achieve the chemistry needed between characters, to work with small personality quirks developed in other characters, work with props, etc.
Acting with the other people needs to be practiced over and over, so that when you are transplanted from the rehearsal hall, to the film set, or to the theatre, in a completely different space, your character remains strong, that you know your scenes as well as you know your own name. Although for a small number of rehearsals, someone can read in for the missing person, it can throw an entire cast to have someone different doing it.
I have seen an amateur show, in which individually everybody knew their parts, but due to a lot of rehearsals being missed, some people had never worked with each other until the show. This resulted in confusion, missing cues, not knowing who they were speaking to on stage, after going for weeks with various people "reading in".
To counter this, everyone needs to rehearse together! Mordred presents extra issues also needing to be dealt with in rehearsal.
Example 1- Combat scenes (health and safety) - the film has three battle scenes, as well as a couple of fistfights, and scenes of training/ sparring. Now for many people, those are not skills they already have. Those fights need to be choreographed, and training needs to happen (how many people in the 21st century know how to fight with broadswords, spears, axes and round shields?). This is critical both for the cinematography of the scenes, and for the safety of everyone involved. Actors need to work together with the other people in that scene. The classes will be run by a historical re-enactor who will be giving his time to get this right. This is mandatory for extras as well as principals.
Example 2 - Wider scenes will involve moving around groups of people in the Great Hall scenes, mass choreography of different groups (royal courts are formal places with everyone placed according to status!) around which various characters must move, meaning that if your character is in those scenes, even as a bystander, you are needed! On filming days
Example 3 - One scene involves implied nudity, the actors involved in that scene as the lovers, and as those who walk in on them, need to work together both on rehearsals, but also to be very clear on personal boundaries. While rehearsal guidance will be given, the actors themselves also need to be listened to, and to listen to one another as to boundaries and comfort zones.
Additionally this show is being performed in two media: it is being shot as a feature film on location, and then performed as a stage show, previewed to be in locations as diverse as a medieval hall, an amphitheatre, and a proscenium-arch stage (currently being booked). Preparation for this again takes practice.
Finally, if you are not going to attend rehearsals, how do we know that you will attend on shoot day, or for your stage performance, and how will you know what to do, or where you are placed, or whom you are working with, while remaining fully in character? It is only by knowing these things, and polishing them over and over, that you will get that fame and recognition you want, from audiences and critics - which is where it matters, for your acting career. Furthermore, one person not knowing what they are doing, can have disastrous effects on everyone else's performances.
"But I only wanted a hobby"
This may sound harsh to those looking for a "hobby", but as one of our performers says, who works with us as a hobby alongside the majority of us who are career-orientated, "surely even if you are only doing it for fun, you want to be the best you possibly can be".
By putting your "all" into it, the same as everyone else is,
You're meeting new friends and doing something creative and fun
You're learning new skills that could help in work or wider life.
You're making network contacts that could help you in work.
You're participating in creating something new (always very satisfying)
I have been hearing of several other theatre and film teams having very similar problems, where people want fame, and large roles, but do not feel able to commit to the long hard work that acting involves. Some directors in other teams now refusing to work with people whom they do not already know, and having been involved in projects that have suffered from these issues, I fully understand why. Hopefully, this entry will explain the reasons behind our decisions.
Auditions
One of the most common questions that I am getting, as time ticks towards the casting day, is from people who are unable to attend auditions. Some reasons given are legitimate, such as work shifts, or moving house that weekend, in which case we try and set up an audition a few days before, on one of our workshop evenings.
Others give more cause for concern:
"I cant come to audition because I am anxious around people, but I want a large role"
"I am only going to come and audition if you can guarantee me a worthwhile role now, otherwise I could be wasting my time"
"I cant come to audition, because I cannot travel to Brixham where the auditions are, it is an hour away on the bus"
Now, as a group we have always been open to people new to acting, but we need to audition people. Perhaps even more because of that. Auditioning is not intended to be a frightening rite of passage, but it allows us to gauge many things critical to your being cast. In fact, it is only in part about seeing "if you can act".
- Expression - even if it is different from what we intend for the character, seeing expression in the audition allows us to see that you have the skills to portray a character, rather than expressionless reading from the page. This includes looking for vocal expression, body language, facial expressions.
- Timekeeping - in the past we have had a number of people wanting to be involved, who have regularly been late to castings and rehearsals, causing knock-on issues for other people. If we see that you have arrived at, or before, the allotted time, then this counts as a big plus, in our eyes.
- You as a person - remember, the selected team are going to be working together for several months. The group needs to operate as a team, so we are looking for general pleasantness, down-to-earth people who are willing to realise that they are part of a team - that the team relies on them, and they rely on the team. We therefore look for good social skills in those we take on. This means that we need to meet you.
- Your characters faction/ family - in a drama such as Mordred, where many characters are related through blood or marriage, or aligned to different factions, we need to make sure that the characters cast, appear to have that connection, and that the people within those groupings work together well. We can only do this, by having the people audition together, in some cases, in groups with a short scene.
A concern from hearing that you not being able to travel to our rehearsal hall to audition, arises: how will you attend rehearsals twice a week?
A concern from hearing that you are too anxious to audition because you are nervous around people: this is a high-octane drama with scenes of confrontation, violence and strong emotion. Would you be alright, being in a scene involving that - or even playing a character involved in the same?
Why do I need to rehearse?
An issue which we have found becoming more prevalent in the past year or so, and heard similar from other teams, so that it is not just our group suffering, is peoples unwillingness to rehearse.
A very small number of rehearsals are sometimes missed again due to work shifts, illness, bereavement, car/ bus breakdown, or other unavoidable issues, but these should, for a serious actor, discounting unavoidable unexpected emergencies, number less than 10% of the whole.
Missing rehearsals for a hangover, because they clash with a TV show you wanted to see, or even just not appearing and assuming people will be fine without it, is a great way to upset everybody else - and to get recast!
One of the most common comments we have had from those not wanting to attend rehearsals, is "well I know my lines so there's no point in my coming". What those people forget is that it is not all about them. They may indeed be perfect, individually, but the whole team needs to work together to achieve the chemistry needed between characters, to work with small personality quirks developed in other characters, work with props, etc.
Acting with the other people needs to be practiced over and over, so that when you are transplanted from the rehearsal hall, to the film set, or to the theatre, in a completely different space, your character remains strong, that you know your scenes as well as you know your own name. Although for a small number of rehearsals, someone can read in for the missing person, it can throw an entire cast to have someone different doing it.
I have seen an amateur show, in which individually everybody knew their parts, but due to a lot of rehearsals being missed, some people had never worked with each other until the show. This resulted in confusion, missing cues, not knowing who they were speaking to on stage, after going for weeks with various people "reading in".
To counter this, everyone needs to rehearse together! Mordred presents extra issues also needing to be dealt with in rehearsal.
Example 1- Combat scenes (health and safety) - the film has three battle scenes, as well as a couple of fistfights, and scenes of training/ sparring. Now for many people, those are not skills they already have. Those fights need to be choreographed, and training needs to happen (how many people in the 21st century know how to fight with broadswords, spears, axes and round shields?). This is critical both for the cinematography of the scenes, and for the safety of everyone involved. Actors need to work together with the other people in that scene. The classes will be run by a historical re-enactor who will be giving his time to get this right. This is mandatory for extras as well as principals.
Example 2 - Wider scenes will involve moving around groups of people in the Great Hall scenes, mass choreography of different groups (royal courts are formal places with everyone placed according to status!) around which various characters must move, meaning that if your character is in those scenes, even as a bystander, you are needed! On filming days
Example 3 - One scene involves implied nudity, the actors involved in that scene as the lovers, and as those who walk in on them, need to work together both on rehearsals, but also to be very clear on personal boundaries. While rehearsal guidance will be given, the actors themselves also need to be listened to, and to listen to one another as to boundaries and comfort zones.
Additionally this show is being performed in two media: it is being shot as a feature film on location, and then performed as a stage show, previewed to be in locations as diverse as a medieval hall, an amphitheatre, and a proscenium-arch stage (currently being booked). Preparation for this again takes practice.
Finally, if you are not going to attend rehearsals, how do we know that you will attend on shoot day, or for your stage performance, and how will you know what to do, or where you are placed, or whom you are working with, while remaining fully in character? It is only by knowing these things, and polishing them over and over, that you will get that fame and recognition you want, from audiences and critics - which is where it matters, for your acting career. Furthermore, one person not knowing what they are doing, can have disastrous effects on everyone else's performances.
"But I only wanted a hobby"
This may sound harsh to those looking for a "hobby", but as one of our performers says, who works with us as a hobby alongside the majority of us who are career-orientated, "surely even if you are only doing it for fun, you want to be the best you possibly can be".
By putting your "all" into it, the same as everyone else is,
You're meeting new friends and doing something creative and fun
You're learning new skills that could help in work or wider life.
You're making network contacts that could help you in work.
You're participating in creating something new (always very satisfying)
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