REFLECTIONS

THE CASTING CONUMDRUM

Four Casting Directors attended The Rehearsal Room to conduct classes in the space of eight days during June 2005. It seemed a great opportunity to explore what similarities or differences might exist in their approach to the task of auditioning actors.

This was a question without notice. The casting directors were asked to respond spontaneously – these are not pre-meditated answers. The question they were asked was, “Name the three most important elements you are looking for when auditioning an actor?”

The responses were as follows …

Dina Mann nominated the three things she was looking for in performance as ….

• Truth of the moment (this is an interesting wording of a well used phrase)
• Real listening
• Risk.

Jo Rippon nominated her priorities as …

• Lines
• Relaxation
• Flexibility – being open to change

Jo added that actors should feel free to ask questions. She saw asking questions aimed at gathering a clearer understanding as a really useful thing for an actor to do.

Cameron Harris declared his interests to be …

• Flexibility
• A sense of story and character
• Seeing the choices being made

Cameron added that in the audition room he was listening for that moment when it all made sense. (That’s the moment when the story becomes clear and the reason the character is making the choices is understood.) He also suggested that the Casting Directors job was not only finding the right actor for the part but it was also to match the right actor with the appropriate director.

Jan Russ declared her tips to be …

• Arriving - be organised and arrive early.
• Homework - gather all the information you can and learn the lines.
• Confident - be happy in the fact that you are going to do something that you love.

Interesting thoughts. These are questions the Rehearsal Room will continue to ask.

June 2005

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