What to wear to an audition?

College Majors Theater/Drama Majors
1

<p>I know this may seem like a very superficial question, but I was wondering what one usually wears to an audition. </p>

<p>I have my first audition ever (aside from school plays) for a part-time program at a highly selective drama school on Wednesday.</p>

<p>The weather forecast for Wednesday where I live is 64F and partly cloudly/sunny if that helps..</p>

<p>I'm 17 and auditioning for a program that is usually 18+, but the director is allowing me to audition as I will be turning 18 two weeks after the program commences. I'm very, very short (5ft) and an average weight so I want to wear something that will make me look slightly older if possible as most people think that I'm 13 years old (!)</p>

<p>I need some general advice - smart/casual? Plain/bold clothing?</p>

2

<p>There are lots of threads in this forum about what to wear at a college auditions. I’d say that your situation is essentially the same. You might want to do a search.</p>

<p>In general, it’s best to wear something flattering that is not distracting in any way and does not call too much attention to any part of your body. You want the auditors to focus on your face and your general bearing, not your clothes. </p>

<p>Casual and neat are best; you don’t want to be too dressy, and you also don’t want to go the other way and wear something like a t-shirt and torn jeans.</p>

<p>Good luck at the audition!</p>

3

<p>Black dress pants that fit but aren’t too tight. A nice blouse that is not too low cut in a flattering color, but not a busy pattern. Again, nothing too tight. It should just fit. Shoes with no more than a one inch heel. There is a great article by a professor who sits on audition panels and says he does not understand why all the girls who audition think they should wear three inch stilettos. They wobble in and ask if they can take their shoes off before the audition.
Small pieces of jewelry. Keep your hair away from your face.
You should be able to move well and your clothes should flatter you and not be a distraction.
Good luck!</p>

4

<p>“There is a great article by a professor who sits on audition panels and says he does not understand why all the girls who audition think they should wear three inch stilettos.”</p>

<p>I’d like to read the article, it sounds interesting! Could you post a link please?</p>

<p>Thank you for the advice and for wishing me good luck.</p>

5

<p>We have discussed this before here.</p>

<p>There are no hard and fast rules such as “You must wear X, and you must NOT wear Y!!!”.</p>

<p>If everyone dressed the same, the auditors would have problems telling people apart!! Because they are probably meeting a lot of people for the very first time.</p>

<p>NJTheatreMom has given some good advice. You want to look like somebody who is ready to start work at rehearsals. So you don’t want to dress up too fancily, that makes you look like someone who won’t be willing to do hard work. You also don’t want to look like a complete slob, people will again think you are too lazy to do work.</p>

<p>As NJTheatreMom says, avoid wearing anything distracting. So no “dangly” jewelry, no slogans or distracting artwork or distracting patterns on clothing. And don’t try to distract by being “sexy”–wear proper underwear and so on.</p>

<p>The auditors want to see your face. So no hat, and use a hairstyle that keeps your hair out of your face.</p>

<p>Also remember that they may ask you to do some sort of improvisation or movement exercise. Milkshakespeare had an idea that I think makes a good rule of thumb–can you do a cartwheel in that outfit?</p>

<p>Don’t wear a costume (I would guess you know that, but I always like to be sure to cover the bases in case someone is reading this who doesn’t know that)</p>

<p>Do think about incorporating some color. Remember how in “A Chorus Line” before the auditors learn everyone’s name, it’s just “You in the green! You in the grey!”. This also means that it is a good idea to wear the same outfit to callbacks as you did for the original audition. They may just be thinking of you as “the girl in purple”.</p>

<p>Do think about whether you will feel comfortable in the outfit you have chosen, that you will be comfortable and confident on stage before the auditors and won’t feel awkward.</p>

<p>Now, you say you are almost 18 but look like you are 13? There’s an old saying in theatre “if you have a hump, put a frill around it!” That is, don’t hide the things that make you different, celebrate them! I guarantee you there are directors who are trying to cast a role that the script says is a 13 year old girl, but the director would rather cast an adult because of the difficulty of the role and the difficulty of working with children. The best example of this is the role of Juliet in Romeo and Juliet. Shakespeare says she is 13. Everyone holding auditions for Romeo and Juliet is hoping and praying that they find an adult actress who looks like she is 13 to cast the part–because it is too difficult a part for an actual 13 year old. And there are many other roles like that. You have already explained to the director how old you really are. So take the opportunity to demonstrate what roles you can play.</p>

<p>This may well follow you throughout your life, that you will always look much younger than you actually are. I guarantee you that almost every Hollywood actress, as well most women I know, would be perfectly happy to have such a “problem”!!!:)</p>

6

<p>I think you have to strike a balance between trying to look as mature as the other students auditioning and playing up the youthfulness that, as KEVP says, might be extremely valuable for casting.</p>

<p>A difficult balancing act. Or, one might say, a challenging design problem!</p>

7

<p>Would this skirt be suitable:
<a href=“ASOS | Online Shopping for the Latest Clothes & Fashion”>ASOS | Online Shopping for the Latest Clothes & Fashion;

<p>I bought it last week and I could wear a nice blouse with it?
I’m not sure if it’s a little too edgy though</p>

8

<p>Cute skirt, but I think that asymmetrical hemline would be just a tad distracting.</p>

9

<p>I’ve spoken to a few MT Majors and they all said the same thing (it was like they rehearsed it lol) “wear what you would wear on a first date”, nothing to formal but nice and well suited for you.</p>

10

<p>Zoenatasha, I think NJTheatreMom is right–the skirt is awesome but not audition-appropriate. Definitely would call attention to itself and away from your face! Also, it seems like it probably would not be easy to wear if you need to do any serious movement. Something low-key and comfortable would be best. :)</p>

11

<p>This is what my daughter wore to an audition for a touring company/community theater and she got the job. I am sure it was not the dress but it will give you an idea of what she wore. She loves the 50’s style and she wears this type of dress all the time so she felt very comfortable in what she was wearing which I do think calmed her nerves a bit. I like the analogy of wearing something that you might wear on a date. Find something you feel really at home in and shows a bit of your personality. (She also wore saddle shoes )
[Amazon.com:</a> Lindy Bop ‘Rhonda’ Vintage 1950’s Plum Polka Dot Peter Pan Collar Rockabilly Swing / Tea Dress (2XL): Clothing](<a href=“http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009H4HME2/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B009H4HME2&linkCode=as2&tag=athmo-20]Amazon.com:”>http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009H4HME2/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B009H4HME2&linkCode=as2&tag=athmo-20)</p>

12

<p>OMIGOSH, bisouu! I want that dress for me. I love 50’s style dresses.</p>

13

<p>Ok so Bisouu gave me the great idea of wearing a dress!</p>

<p>[Kimchi</a> Blue Knit Ballerina Sundress - Urban Outfitters](<a href=“http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/urban/catalog/productdetail.jsp?id=28601961&color=046&navAction=jump&itemdescription=true]Kimchi”>http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/urban/catalog/productdetail.jsp?id=28601961&color=046&navAction=jump&itemdescription=true)</p>

<p>What about this one? Any opinions would really help</p>

<p>(Also I look strangely like the model - hair, skin color etc.)</p>

14

<p>My D was at a mock audition, in a dress, and they were doing some kind of movement exercises. She could not bend over all the way without flashing. One of the moderators came over to correct her positioning… Which was wrong because of the dress and not because she didn’t understand how to do the move. Afterwards she said “no dresses ever again!”
Or you could add shorts underneath the dress. :smiley:</p>

15

<p>I was thinking black tights?</p>

<p>There are no movement exercises only a two minute monologue so I should be fine</p>

<p>Thank you for telling me as I will know for future auditions!</p>

16

<p>A skirt over black tights (like dance tights, or the tights I own for when I do Shakespeare) could work well, so you don’t have to worry about any movement you are asked to do.</p>

<p>You have no idea what they are going to ask you to do. Even though all they asked for was a monologue, they may ask you to do something else. Like “Now do your monologue again, while stacking up those chairs”. Or some other physical activity. This is why I like milkshakespeare’s “could you do a cartwheel” rule of thumb.</p>

<p>Remember, you are not trying to look “sexy”. That could well distract from your audition (because auditors are only human). They may also think you are trying to use sexiness to because you don’t have confidence in your talent.</p>

<p>(I don’t know where this idea of “dress like a first date” came from. Lots of people dress “sexy” for a first date, which is not what you should do at an audition).</p>

<p>The short leather skirt looks too “sexy” to me, but maybe that’s because of the model in the photo. It seems to attract too much attention to the legs, and to the fact that the skirt is leather. It’s the kind of piece of clothing that is designed to attract attention to itself, to say “look at me, I am wearing a short tight black leather skirt!!”</p>

<p>The ballerina sundress looks to me like something that should be worn over ballet tights, and probably a leotard as well. So a dancer can quickly take off the dress if they need to do dance moves. I think it would be a good thing to wear over a black leotard and tights so that you have a bit of subtle color in your outfit, so they remember you as “the girl in the blue”.</p>

17

<p>I don’t know what part of the country you live in, but the sundress doesn’t look warm enough enough for this time of year.</p>

<p>You could combine the sundress with tights as suggested above, but then the look might be unbalanced, because the lower half of you would be covered but you would be showing a lot of skin above the waist.</p>

<p>A dress something like this, with tights, might be better:</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/urban/catalog/productdetail.jsp?id=28883627&parentid=W_APP_DRESSES[/url]”>http://www.urbanoutfitters.com/urban/catalog/productdetail.jsp?id=28883627&parentid=W_APP_DRESSES&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>In this picture, the model is wearing tights because they look appropriate with this type of dress. I don’t think most people would wear tights with a sundress…but maybe I am old-fashioned. :)</p>

18

<p>No, NJTheatreMOM, not old fashioned at all :slight_smile: I have never had to think about putting an outfit together before so I am grateful for everyone’s advice - as you can see I’m not so great at this</p>

19

<p>Yes…the second dress in burgundy looks great. The sundress is just too casual (but very cute)</p>

20

<p>It is so true that you could be asked more than just your monologue at an audition. My son had to do situps while repeating his monologue, for one of his college auditions. At an audition for a play, he was asked to demonstrate his skill at whistling, which he had listed on his resume under “special skills.” I know of people who have been requested to do monologues from plays listed on their resumes, and someone who had listed American Sign Language had to redo his monologue in ASL. The more you audition, the more you learn to take all these variables in stride. You are smart to plan what to wear ahead of time. I am sure this discussion will be helpful to others as well.</p>