Auditions 2 and Read Through

So the second auditions night for the panto went far better than I had expected – plus it added to my headache. I mentioned before that one of my major concerns was the number of men that auditioned; namely one!

But on the second night I was overwhelmed by the number of guys that turned up. And just like the ladies, all of them had talent. It was possible for me to cast the panto three times over with the guys that pitched up.

I spent a painful couple of hours with the producer and assistant producer running through my initial casting. I had to use them as they knew a lot of the players that had auditioned. Not that time spent with the club made any difference; it was purely to the point of had I cast it right and would these people actually consider taking the part I was offering. I was delighted to see that they didn’t disagree with a single role I cast.

Then on Thursday last week, we held the read through. I admit this is the one night I hate as an amateur director. While it’s great to hear the play and see the ways that people interpret the script, it is also the night where all the actors get to see what roles other people have landed. I have been to read throughs before where people have stormed out as they feel that they could have played a part far better than the person that has been cast. And again, I will be honest – I let them. If someone wants to play the prima, then they are more than welcome to… as long as it’s not in my theatre. I pointed out my view of theatre to my new company at the second audition… This may be AmDram, but when you get on the stage, you cannot act like an amateur. You have to act like an unpaid professional, as the audience have parted with their cash to see you. Have the decency to respect that and give them their money’s worth. Prima’s don’t as they think the play is all about them… and as such I don’t want them in my show.

But my panto cast were great! They read wonderfully and we can all now see the humour of the piece. But I did give them the instruction to look up the definition of pantomime (see the 2nd and 3rd definitions in the Oxford English Dictionary) so that they could see how they needed to play their individual parts.

I also suggested taking a trip down to Southampton to see the production of Denim, seeing as it is being muted as a potential for the spring production. I was delighted to see that there was a good deal of interest, as people were pointing out that regardless of the play, it makes sense to see other performances to see what you are capable of. But one of the cast pointed out that it made more sense to them, as they would be able to see a degree of my imagination – and be able to use that in their interpretation of their character.

So Tuesday we start the rehearsal process with Act 1 Scene 1. Plus I now have to find all the back stage crew, from sound to make-up, from costumes to choreography. This thing is just getting better.