<p>To add to NMR's questions, if you are allocated 90 seconds and are primarily interested in MT, any thoughts on how to allocate the 90 seconds between a song and monologue?</p>
<p>NMR, that is not a silly question. Don't be silly. :D</p>
<p>I cannot give you the definitive answer and part of the reason is because I think it differs from theater to theater. I think some may make an offer that night and some may make an offer a couple days later and some a week later and I guess some even later than that. It will vary but it could be as soon as that day or a couple days later. And this leads to what I say is the tricky part (but this will be part of these performers' lives from here on in) and that is that an offer may be made before they hear from the other theaters and they will be given a short time frame to accept it or not without the benefit of knowing about the other offers (if at all). If you recall from my other post, my D got an offer for a role the night of the callback and was told to reply a few days later and then she went to email them with a couple questions before she decided because she had some hesitations (and hadn't heard from the others yet) since for one thing, this theater would have required her to start straight from college without going home (not ideal to her). Then they never replied to emails or calls which was odd. But the point is that some may request you to accept the offer very fast and you have to weigh whether or not to do so without knowing the results of the others (it is not like college acceptances!!!!). My D just did not want to do that first job given certain circumstances. Then, the theater that did end up hiring her, did so like a whole month later! She hasn't been interested in summer stock since summer of 2006 and so I can't give you too much more than that one experience. </p>
<p>My D's experience at StrawHats had some atypical aspects to it too. For starters, she was very fortunate that they made an exception and accepted her to audition since she was only 17 that summer but had been through one full year of NYU already because she had started college at 16 and the rule for StrawHats is age 18. But they required a parental letter under the circumstances since she had already lived on her own for a year and they accepted her. </p>
<p>Then, my D lessened her chances somewhat the week of the auditions because her a capella group had won a competition and was in the finals for the Northeast for collegiate acapella and she had an allegiance to the group and since she wrote some of their arrangements, she felt she needed to be there and the night of that championship was the night of her StrawHat audition day time slot (and you have to be available at night for callbacks). She spoke to StrawHats and they allowed her to switch her audition day but.....since it was the week of StrawHats at that point, her headshot and resume which get bound in a big fat book that every attending theater receives....was gonna be in the Saturday book and she was auditioning on Friday instead and so at her auditions, none of the theaters would be viewing her head shot or resume! It was a risk she chose to take in order to not miss the a capella championship. So, they told her to arrive at a certain time and they would squeeze her in on her "wrong day" and announce her name to the theaters as she entered and mention why she wasn't in that day's book of resumes. So, her name wasn't even on the list that day and they could not see her background or anything. She still got some callbacks and her name was penciled in for everything. And she did land at a small Equity theater for the summer. It was a good experience but she just hasn't wanted to do summer stock again and has chosen other work in her field instead each summer in NYC. </p>
<p>Michael...if I can recall, I think my D may have broken the 90 seconds in approx. half for the song and half for the monologue. Dance was done at the callbacks....I think there is a dance callback and then later there are callbacks for particular theaters. It was three years ago and so my memory could be off a bit on this stuff.</p>
<p>You have to really love this life where you spend airfare, hotel, cabs for the opportunity to get in front of people for 90 seconds and hope that in that 90 seconds you can make them want to see more of you and offer you a job.</p>
<p>I would add to that the fact that many of these summer stock jobs, particularly non-Equity positions, do not pay that well (but are good experience) and so it is rather nutty to spend money for flights and hotels just to audition. We did not cross that bridge (not sure I would have either) as my D goes to school in NYC and so the StrawHats and some other summer stock auditions she attended (both open calls and agent submissions) the one summer she did this, were right there and so no expense went into trying to get the job that didn't pay well. It was worth taking the job for the experience but I don't think I would PAY to do it. I don't pay for my kids' summers in college. I don't mind if their jobs do not earn much as they are gaining experience in their field but it has to be self supporting and not cost money to do it.</p>
<p>I agree with Soozievt about spending a lot to do some of these auditions. Especially because in addition to the low pay for some of these jobs, you are on your own for housing and food in the summer. I agree that the experience is worth it in most cases. But, there are a lot of regional theaters that hold auditions around the country so my suggestion is that if you are spending a lot of money to go to these, find some in your home or school area to audition for, especially for non-Equity summer stock.</p>
<p>I agree it can be very costly to audition for summerstock work, especially for what is sometimes very low pay. Last year, the first for my then freshman daughter, she chose to do NETC in Boston because we have family there so it was easier/cheaper than NYC for Strawhats and many of the same companies go there. She also auditioned at PCLO in Pittsburgh (we drove her from Syracuse since she was home on Elon's "fake break" between winterterm and spring semester). She also flew to St. Louis for MUNY (we would never do that again--too much money for too little likelihood of being cast in anything). From NETC she was offered a job in TX for 10 weeks, which was $225 or $250 per week. It DID include housing. She was also told she was in the running for a position at a Catskills NY theater which would have been only $125 per week! Ouch! It also included housing. Neither included food. We know of others who were offered jobs which actually cost them money (internships they paid to attend rather than being paid to attend) and another that paid only $100 per week. PCLO, however, gives most hired (but not all) the opportunity to join Actor's Equity and pays very well (almost $1000 per week) and includes an apartment with a maid service every week!
So I think I would say, go for it if you can get to different auditions, you never know what might come of it (we certainly never thought our D would be cast at PCLO), but don't spend a lot to do the auditions unless you really don't need the money, just want the experience. And then compare any offers. There are so many variables, like salary, equity points or card or neither, housing or not, food or not, extra work involved besides performing (some require help with sets, props, etc. or even waitressing in a cabaret).
Oh, and also, my daughter got the TX offer before she had heard from PCLO, and knew that audition had gone well since she was asked to stay overnight for callbacks and then spent the entire day and was never cut, so she actually called PCLO and told them she had another offer and had to give them an answer by the following Monday, and they told her to call back that day and they would have an answer for her. And they did! Very great group of people at PCLO and in that cast--can't say enough nice about them. So that is one way the kids can compare offers even if they are given very short time frame to give an answer. And if one kid turns down an offer, it goes to the next in line at that theater. We know of several Elon kids who ended up with roles that were first offerrd to other Elon kids last year, but like college, you can only be in one summerstock show at a time, so it's almost like a waitlist situation, you just dont know you're on the waitlist!</p>
<p>nydancemom - Congratulations on an amazing accomplishment by your freshman D. That must have been a great experience. </p>
<p>I think there are about 5 regional summer stock events in the NW, SW, Midwest, NE, SE and Strawhats. There are 50 states and sometimes a region can cover 7 or more states. It is nice if you just happen to live driving distance to NYC or St. Louis or Birmingham and if you happen to have relatives or friends in the audition town but for some of us that just isn't the way it is.</p>
<p>A couple of excellent points have been raised, earning potential and the varied experiences at some of these summer stock positions. It's somewhat difficult to do but I think it's wise to do a little research on some of these companies who attend these events. Chances are that if you are offered a position, you will have very little time in which to make a decision, so it's best to be informed prior to the process, if possible. </p>
<p>NYdancemom, I'm happy to hear that your D had such a great experience at PCLO. It doesn't surprise me, though, as they are very well-respected in the theatre community and they do wonderful work. We know many actors who have worked there and positive reviews from them are the norm. How wonderful that your D had this opportunity so early in her career. The contacts and relationships she made there will be invaluable to her. They have a great 2009 season planned. Is your D interested in returning?</p>
<p>Alwaysamom
Yes my D will definitely audition at PCLO again. However, she isn't sure what to make of the season as far as her "type" and whether there is any chance she will be cast. Surely at barely 5 feet tall, Copacabana is out! Last year she was cast in only one show, Peter Pan with Cathy Rigby, and her type was perfect for her role as Tootles. Her height (or lack thereof) was an asset and her ethnicity (Asian) didnt matter. I agree that the contacts she made have been wonderful. Everyone at PCLO and in the Peter Pan cast was terrific, professional and friendly. One example, she texts regularly with Tom Hewitt who was Captain Hook and is now Billy Flynn in Chicago on Broadway (we saw it over Thanksgiving break and went backstage after). For a kid who saw him as Scar in Lion King when she was 9 years old, and had only recently begun doing theater herself, she is still in awe to think that they are actually friends!</p>
<p>Another stupid question. Is the PCLO and Pittsburgh CLO the same thing? Does anyone know when are the auditions for summerstock at PCLO? This is my D's first summer to start auditions and hopefully get summer work so it is all new to me. Thanks in advance for any help/advice.</p>
<p>Yes, they are the same. I don't think they've posted this year's audition dates, but as I recall they are typically the end of Jan/start of Feb. They will post them on their web site.</p>
<p>MusThCC,
Thanks for the info. I'll let D know so she can check the website for audition dates.</p>
<p>Hi to all my CC buds out there! Sorry I've been so long in posting but I do check in now and then. Jess will be auditioning at SETC in March and I was pleased but not at all surprised to see a thread on summer stock that I'll have to follow. Only good things to report on Jess...UF has been great for her and she seems to have successfully combined the best of all worlds--from double majoring in theatre and marketing, to being cast in the school's MT productions and managing to fit in a trip with her mother to the recent SEC championship game in Atlanta. Obviously, any advice on how to survive SETC (or similar weekends) would be appreciated. Hope y'all (and your kids) are doing well...looking forward to updates from several of you!</p>
<p>Whoah Scogor, good to "see you"! I remember seeing your posts when I first joined. Time sure flies! Great to hear your D is doing so well.</p>
<p>S, also glad to see you revisiting here! Also, happy to hear that Jess is having a terrific experience at UF. Keep us updated and good luck to her on the summer stock auditions.</p>
<p>Does anyone know what the criteria for being granted an audition for Strawhats is based off of? It's more than availability on the audition date isn't it?</p>
<p>They do look at your resume to see what kind of experience you've had. Those who have already had summer stock or professional experience are probably going to be chosen first.</p>
<p>My D has gotten an audition slot already. She sent her application in very early this year, vs. on the late side last year. Plus, she is a sophomore this year and was hired by a theatre company last summer after freshman year, so as onstage says, does have 4 productions on her resume from summer stock. If you are going to apply, do it immediately, because the longer you wait...........</p>
<p>Yes, if you haven't already applied to Strawhats, it's unlikely that you'll get a time slot now, no matter how terrific your resume is!</p>
<p>I sent in my application a few weeks ago but came home for break and gave them my apartment address at school so I will know if there are any results when I get back there in a week. I was just curious what they really based the auditions slots on. Thanks!</p>