To audition or not to audition? That is the question

An actor friend of mine recently had a dilemma: she had a great-paying opportunity, but the audition location was 4+ hour drive away from her location. Normally, great paying + far away = perfect opportunity to submit a self-tape! (For more on self-taping, see previous post). However, this wasn't an option, and she was debating if she should go. Generally, if you have an audition, GO! You have nothing to lose! However, there are a few gray areas that might impact whether you chose to go or not.

#1 You are already booked

No matter the pay of the audition, you already made a commitment to your current production. Sorry, but ditching a role you have for a role you might get will only earn you bad karma. Now, depending on how you feel about your day job, being "booked" doesn't have to mean you are booked for an acting gig. In my friend's case, attending this audition required taking a personal day from work, a personal day she could save for a local, better paying, possibly union gig or audition. You will have to weigh the pros and cons, but, ultimately, my friend decided that driving to this audition was not worth a PTO day. However, if you want to make a career out of acting, your "day job" is secondary. Period. You might risk losing said job, but typically these are easy-come, easy-go, so do not sweat it. Priorities, people, priorities.

#2 You have a competing audition/callback

Like reason number one, another (read: better) audition will trump a less than desirable one. What makes a desirable audition? Well, aside from ANY audition, 1) it's a callback 2) it's union 3) if not union, it pays A LOT 4) it's for a reputable, prolific company 5) it will be distributed on at least a national level 6) it's for a principal role. If you check multiple boxes for one audition, and none for the other, yeah, go to the better audition. Also, if one is local and the other isn't, you might be better off choosing the local one considering the time commitment of traveling. Thankfully, my friend got a call for another audition on the same day, so, it became an easy decision. 

#3 You just signed with an agent

Give an agent any reason to not send you out to audition, and you are as good as blackballed. Agents have too many responsible actors to select before they waste their time with a wild card. If you do not have a long-standing relationship with your agent (read: they will understand if you have another commitment because you have proven your worth), then go to the audition. I do not care if it is in BFE, you go. These are the dues you must pay to demonstrate how hungry you are for this industry. 

#4 It's a cattle call

Now, I know most actors (including yours truly) have no true way of knowing this. Generally, if you have a specific audition time, fingers crossed it will be a proper audition (i.e. one where you WILL get seen by the director or casting director). However, the struggle is real. As hard as I try to avoid unprofessional auditions, I was still recently duped into attending a poorly managed, disorganized, "cattle call" style of an audition that I ended up having to leave early for reasons I might disclose in a later post. If it's a sacrifice to attend the audition, and the audition is a cattle call, the cons outweigh the pros on choosing to attend. 1) You are less likely to get seen 2) If you are seen, you are less likely to be remembered 3) Statistically, the odds are waaaaay against you. 

Anecdote time: I remember a specific audition I had for a particular theme park in Florida. They had a general call for "20-somethings" for a commercial. I had nothing going on that day, so I went. I waited all day in a giant warehouse in Orlando, with hundreds of other actors, only to get sent home without being seen. It happens. On my way to my car, one gentleman was irate. He began complaining/trying to commiserate with me about this epic waste of time. Get this: he had driven from the opposite coast, a 5+ hour drive, only to get sent back. Super bummer. I had a hunch this might have been a cattle-call. I chose to accept the risk. Had I been this actor? Heck no, I would not have attended this audition! Sorry bud, but this one is on you. Dig around. If you catch even a whiff of manure, chances are you're going to be stuck in a cattle call and you should politely decline the audition unless you get your kicks from watching paint dry. Side note: there are some cattle calls that are worth it, and as a rule of thumb for beginning actors, go to every audition you can! 

#5 Life-or-death emergency

Unfortunately, life happens. You will NOT be able to make every single audition available to you. Sometimes this is your decision, and sometimes the decision is made for you. Accidents happen. They are unavoidable and beyond your control. You have to deal with the issue, move on, and pray that it will not affect your acting career long-term. 

There many other aspects of choosing to audition or not (i.e. paying vs. non-paying, student vs. professional, extra vs. principal, big name casting director vs. no-name, etc.). However, auditions are like little gems the universe magically drops in your lap. The gems might be worth millions or zilch, but throwing them away is unadvisable. Meaning: if you have an audition, don't take it for granted! Go! The worst that can happen is you will learn from your experience and be better prepared for the next opportunity. 

Have you ever chosen to not audition? Or have you ever gone to an audition and wish you hadn't? Share your experience in the comments! 

Break a leg!