On the day of the audition:
1. Try your best to get more sleep, you need to look fresh and rested.
2. Think positive and dress comfortably, and most importantly, be yourself. You may want to “dress to impress”, but don’t try too hard, it is not that important.
3. Nobody cares about your problems or if you’ve had a bad day. So, don’t complain, because you’re an actor, and no one there wants to see a sad and tired face, and they don’t care if you have a headache. It is not easy but you have to do your best.
4. If you haven’t memorized the material, don’t pretend you have, because it will be obvious and you will look ridiculous and you most likely won’t get the part.
5. Try to simplify your character so you can more easily fit the director’s vision.
6. Be prepared that maybe you will be asked to make some choices for the look and feel of the character. Actors have to make strong clear choices, and they want to see that you are prepared for it.
7. You might need to improvise and have a plan B if something goes wrong or if they ask you to.
8. If you make a mistake, continue as if nothing happened, fight through it. It probably wasn’t as bad as you thought, you’re just more sensitive than usual.
9. Remember that you have to be comfortable, be charismatic, and confident. Actors have to command attention, to keep it, in front of an audience. If you can do that in front of the casting team, you are more likely to convince them that you can do that on stage.
10. Don’t be disappointed, there are thousands of auditions out there, which means a thousand more chances to succeed, and you are one more experience richer.
If you’re making a good enough impression when auditioning, and even if you don’t get that role, they might call you for another one.
“I hate auditions – when I’m doing them, I can’t wait to get out the bleeding door.” – Ian Hart
And, remember, an audition for a play, isn’t just an audition for only one play. If you’re making good impression on that, they can call you back for some other play.
