Another Audition Advice Post- University
Fri, 18 Jan 2008, 10:48 pmpericleanmeehan16 posts in thread
Another Audition Advice Post- University
Fri, 18 Jan 2008, 10:48 pmHi all, after searching through existing posts I couldn't find specific advice I was after. I have an audition soon for Monash Uni's Bachelor of Performing Arts, which compromises of theatre games, improv and a 2 minute dramatic presentation of any variety. I have taken a gap year after year 12 and am feeling a little rusty with the theatre games, and am wondering of what nature they would be for the purpose of an audition process? I have always loved theatre games, and am used to participating in them in a creative, warm up etc atmosphere as opposed to a competitive one. Just thought there may be some advice out there for preparing for this situation? I have mixed feelings about the dramatic presentation, I know my strength is comedy, but am unsure whether to take a scene from my year 12 monologue which I loved and received an a for- i have kept my workbook where i have it mostly scripted, or to prepare scenes from musical theatre characters I've played- particularly Dolly from Annie Get Your Gun into a mini monologue, to create something new, or to workshop some comedic monologue I get my hands on. I am not familiar with auditioning for institutions as opposed to roles/musicals etc, the notice of audition letter tells me that they are not concerned with confirming that we are capable performers, but that we are in fact creative, imaginative, and to see how we participate and contribute in groups. I would feel most comfortable with my year 12 monologue character, however I don't know whether it is assumed we wouldn't do this, that they would want to see we have things prepared aside from vce purposes, the fact that it is only 2 minutes also makes me assume they just want a compete mini monologue rather than exerts of a large one, as 2 mins isn't enough time to make use of non-nat elements etc,so really they are looking at acting ability as opposed to creativity? This is a load of vague questions, however any advice, general opinions or audition information would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
Whoa... I was planning on
Fri, 18 Jan 2008, 11:32 pmWhoa... I was planning on replying to this, but after a few seconds of reading it.... I know there's punctuation in there somewhere, but that's really hard to read.
Basically - from what I can tell - you want to know:
a) what to perform at the audition
b) what kind of exercises they'll do at the audition
c) what you should be worried about in terms of what they judge
To answer as best as I can:
Monash won't be judging you based on whether or not you re-use a year 12 monologue or not. They will be judging you on how well you perform it; which means being comfortable with whatever piece you choose is more important. If this happens to be your year 12 piece, then go with it.
The most important thing to do at these things is to be prepared, and to be relaxed. If you go and have fun, your creativity will shine through, and so will your acting talent.
Don't worry about getting the exercises right; they're not there to figure out whether or not you are a good actress, they're there to figure out whether you have the potential to be good. (Otherwise, why bother teaching you?) This is why improv is used so much, as improv encourages you to go with the flow, relax, and generally tests your abilities.
I can't speak on the range of exercises they use at the audition, but it's probably no different than any you've done in drama class before.
Treat it like any other audition. More importantly, just treat it like another notch to your 'experience' belt. If you fret about impressing people, you'll just stress out. But if you go just expecting to have fun and have another opportunity to experience the audition process, you'll be less nervous and more likely to perform well.
Don't forget, these are lecturers. They're not just looking at your performance skills. They want to know that you'll commit your time and energy to the course (drop-out students cost the course money), as well as the drive to continue with performance once you graduate. Many performers underestimate these two things in auditions for courses, and if you can show them a dedication and passion, all the better.
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