[Menvi-discuss] Thoughts and questions regarding auditioning for and Performing in community theatre?

[Kaiti Shelton]

Hi,

I have not done community theater, but I have been in the cast and
crew for several school productions.  I was a townsgirl/fairy in
Cinderella, the sexton in Much Ado About Nothing, and ran curtan for
Once Upon a Matress.  Smaller roles, but I've had some stage
experience including learning dance numbers, singing, lines, etc.

I'd go for it.  If the theater is willing to make accomodations for
you then it sounds like they'd be supportive of having you in the
cast.  You can take extra time to learn the blocking with someone
outside of blocking sets in rehearsal, which really helps.  Although I
have some vision, I was greatful for having taken the extra time when
navigating myself off stage after the lights had gone out at the
conclusion of my scenes because I knew exactly where steps, were,
where props like a table and chair were so I could walk around them,
etc.  And Les Mis is such a cool musical too and would be a great
opportunity.  I'd go for it, just bearing in mind that the blocking
might take extra time on your part.  Otherwise, I don't think you'd
have a problem.

BTW, I have a friend who is blind and who was in his high school's
production of Les Mis earlier this school year.  He was the bishop and
the director actually altered the play slightly to make the blindness
part of the character.  (This was done when he was cast in Spamalot as
well, albeit for more of a comedic effect than in Les Mis though).  It
was also kind of done in my school's rendition of Much Ado, as I was
the clerk character anyway.  Since we modernized the play I went from
being a clerk to being costumed as a nerd, and because I wear really
thick glasses my character was made near-sighted.  If you don't mind
that sort of thing being put into the play it can be kind of funny and
contribute to the performance.

On 4/14/13, Bettie Downing <bnbdowning70 at embarqmail.com> wrote:
> My first thought is "go for it."  You will regret it if you don't.
> Opportunities like this come infrequently.
>
>
>
> On Apr 14, 2013, at 5:12 AM, Miranda wrote:
>
>> Hi everyone,
>> First, I want to apologize for this long message, but I need to think
>> through this, and I’m sure you all will understand my thoughts.
>> Considering my school schedule for this fall, I may be very crazy to even
>> be thinking of this, but alas I am. Our local community theatre is holding
>> auditions in May for Les Miserables. I learned of this during chorus
>> rehearsal at the local community college this past Thursday, and my first
>> thought was, “No way! Not happening!”
>> Then, my brain wouldn’t quit. LOL. Our director had encouraged us by
>> saying, “Even if you don’t get a call-back, the audition is worth the
>> opportunity in itself.” Um, thanks for helping me and my irrational
>> thoughts… LOL.
>>
>> Registration for the fall semester of classes at my university hasn’t even
>> opened yet, so I could very well base my courseload on whether or not my
>> audition goes well. If necessary, I could go half-time or 3-quarter time.
>> Half-time would mean either one course at a time or no classes during the
>> first 8-week sub-term and two courses during the second 8-week sub-term.
>> Three-quarter time would mean one class for the first 8-week sub-term and
>> two classes for the second 8-week sub-term. I also plan to take piano and
>> Spanish at the local community college, so I’m thinking about that as
>> well. My main degree program is online, so that presents many advantages,
>> one of which being that I can do homework any time of the day/night as
>> long as I meet my assignment deadlines.
>>
>> Rehearsals for Les Miserables are on Monday evenings, so that would
>> essentially work as I would have piano, chorus, and Spanish on Tuesdays
>> and Thursdays. I teach private voice lessons in my home, but I can set my
>> limits of the number of enrolled students for each semester. My fall and
>> spring semesters are usually low enrollment anyways, so that’s not a major
>> concern.
>>
>> I then wondered about performing in community theatre as someone who is
>> completely blind, and I knew I needed to come here for tips and advice. I
>> did participate in community theatre in high school as one of the Birdie
>> fanclub members in Bye-bye Birdie *cringes*, and that went extremely well.
>> To be completely honest, the director originally wanted me to play one of
>> the main characters, but I politely declined as I had never been in
>> community theatre before. The information for Les Miserables auditions
>> says, “All of us at the Civic are committed to the practices of flexible,
>> imaginative casting. We encourage volunteers of all ethnicities and
>> backgrounds to participate in our creative endeavors. Also, reasonable
>> accommodations will be made for those requiring special needs.”
>>
>> If anyone has any thoughts regarding this opportunity, I would greatly
>> appreciate them! Do you have any experience auditioning for or performing
>> in community theatre? Any tips and advice would be very helpful as I think
>> through this.
>> Thanks in advance, and have a wonderful weekend!
>>
>> In Christ, Miranda
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-- 
Kaiti