Live, Online, Auditions

Online auditions are becoming more common these days, especially in times of pandemic!

Often, to save time & money, and also to be able to see more actors, a production will arrange an online video chat with potential actors and narrow down the field before calling in a few for face-to-face auditions.

And sometimes roles will be cast based entirely on online auditions.

This, then, is a guide to online auditions and how to make sure they are of the highest quality.

How it’s done

Online auditions are most often done via Zoom, Skype or Facetime, although these days more are done via WhatsApp or even via Facebook Messenger.

If you’re contacted by a production who want an online audition, then you need to prepare everything carefully beforehand.

  1. Check that your connection is working well and you know how to use the software (if you’re new to this, have a practice call with a friend to make sure everything is fine).

  2. Arrange the location – this means finding a quiet room in your house to talk from and making sure it’s tidy and clutter free and there’s nothing distracting behind you.

  3. Make sure you won’t be disturbed.

  4. Check the camera on your laptop or smartphone to see what the caller will see; you need to know how much of yourself is showing and whether it’s just your head and shoulders or perhaps your entire torso, etc.

Then prepare yourself as though it were a real audition: learn your lines, think about the character and so on.

Just before the call

If this is your first online audition, you might find yourself a little nervous. But don’t be, it’s fine.

Ten minutes before the call time, go to the room and check everything once more and then just go through your lines and try to relax before the call comes through.

In fact, treat it in the same way as you would a face-to-face audition.

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