My d had me conduct practice interviews with her before each audition or, at Unifieds, once a day, so that she would be relaxed and feel prepared. The first time that we did this she was shocked at how “off balance” answering interview questions made her feel, and so she insisted that we practice for about two hours until she felt comfortable and ready for her first audition. Answering questions succinctly and with the information that you want to convey about yourself is a skill that can take some time to develop. Some people are naturally gifted at this, for others, it can take some thought, preparation and practice in order to avoid the, “oh, I wished I had remembered to mention…” syndrome.
The point of practicing is to be able to quickly formulate informative and insightful answers to questions about yourself, rather than to try and be an “interview robot.” You don’t want to come off as giving “canned” answers, but you do want to have thought about a few key points that you want to make about yourself in a typical interview.
Some questions to consider:
“Why are you in theatre? What motivates you to pursue a career as a professional actor?”
“What are your career goals?”
“Would you say you are first and foremost an actor, singer, or dancer? Why?”
“What do you like best about theatre?”
“How did you get started in theatre? Can you describe a moment when you just knew that you wanted to become an actor?”
“How would your theatre teachers describe you?”
“What three words would you use to describe yourself?”
“How did you prepare for your role in ?" (typically this is going to be the first or second show listed on your resume)
"I see you were in __ by __________________. What other plays/musicals are you familiar with by the same author(s)?”
“What are your three or four favorite musicals?” (hint: maybe consider some shows other than Hamilton, Book of Mormon, and Wicked)
“What activities have you pursued outside of theatre and why?”
“Describe your acting training.”
“Describe an example where you were able to apply something you learned in your academic classes in a theatrical role or as part of the theatre process.”
“What has been your most challenging role and why?”
“What academic classes are you most interested in and why?”
“Why are you interested in our program?”
“How did you learn about our program?”
“What are you looking for in a program?”
“If you are admitted, what do you hope to accomplish at our school?”
“What schools are you applying to ? Which is your favorite?”
“Did you use an audition coach? If so, who?”