By Karen Kohlhaas

1. Not having the lines memorized well enough!

Believe it or not, this is the single biggest problem that most actors have in the audition room. The auditors of a recent EPA (Equity Principal Audition), told me that they could tell that the majority of actors, even subtly, were still trying to remember their lines. Therefore they were not fully acting their monologues. I completely disagree with the theory that not quite having the lines will keep an actor fresh. Would a serious musician in a competition dream of not quite knowing the piece? If any of an actor energy is going into remembering the line, that energy is not at his disposal to truly act the piece. Solution: Be like Anthony Hopkins, who runs his lines 200 times before shooting a scene. I think most people agree that his efforts are worth it. Maybe your number isn’­t 200 but find out what your number is and how much rehearsal do you need to have the monologue memorized so you can bring all of yourself to playing it?


2. Having no staging choices

This is second, if not equal to, not having lines. An auditor of another EPA said that none of the actors who came in during a whole day of auditions had made specific physical choices for their monologues. Instead, they just acted the piece and left the movement up to chance. Would anyone dream of sending a cast on
stage on opening night with no staging, just hoping that the actors’ acting instincts would take care of everything? An auditioning actor is under just as much pressure. Solution: Having clear, fun staging will instantly improve your monologues and make you less nervous. Think carefully about what you want your monologue to look like from the outside, and give yourself a few concrete moves to help you tell the story. P.S.: Working in a chair is not a solution to having no staging! You need to make physical choices in the chair as well, so that your piece doesn’t have low energy/physical sameness all the way through.

3. Looking at the floor

Many actors look on the floor before, during and/or after their monologues. Unless it is for a specifically staged moment that actually refers to something on the floor in the plot, looking at the floor during the piece can look like you lost your line and it almost always drops the energy of your performance. Looking at the floor after the piece can look like you are ashamed or unsure. Solution: Look up! I do suggest dropping your eyes only (not your head) for a brief 3-second countdown into the piece at the very beginning, but otherwise, let the audience see your eyes as much as possible. This will involve them in the piece and keep them with you.

4. Having an unsupported voice and/or mumbling

Both having an unsupported voice and mumbling are marks of an amateur. Regardless of whether your audition is for theater, TV or film, your commitment to a supported voice and clear speech demonstrates how committed you are to the character’s point of view, and your audience’s experience. It is also an indication of how versatile you could be as an actor. Solution: work on your voice and speech! For recommendations in New York and Los Angeles, see Great NYC/LA teachers and classes. My favorite Mamet quote about voice is ‘Voice work is the easiest, cheapest way to happiness as an actor.’ Look to your favorite actors and I think you will find them vocally committed and articulate, no matter the role or the style.

5. Paraphrasing and/or removing the writer’­s punctuation

For serious theater auditions it’­s absolutely essential that the lines are said as written, and as punctuated even if you think you have a better idea. Paraphrasing is often accepted in tv or film work, but I still suggest paying attention to the way a line was written if you commit to it you may find out something essential about the character. If you paraphrase in a theater audition you are showing that you may not honor the writing when you rehearse a play. Playwriting is next door to poetry: meter, rhythm, and emphasis are all factors, and how a line sounds is often as important as what it literally means. Writers cringe when actors don’t pay attention to their carefully worked out lines, rhythm and punctuation. The playwright Jerome Hairston says, ‘When an actor paraphrases, that means he doesn’­t understand the line. Once he understands the line, he’­ll know that it can’­t be said any other way.’ Solution: When preparing an audition, embrace the way each line was written, and practice until the language is part of you.

6. Fidgeting

We all have fidgets, mannerisms we do unconsciously. Monologue work tends to put your fidgets under the magnifying glass because you are the only thing happening in the room. Fidgets can include: shifting weight from side to side; beating out the rhythm of the lines with arms or head; thrusting the head and also upper body forward so that alignment is pulled off and the voice suffers; fussy and/or repetitive hand gestures; blinking. Fidgeting is distracting and instantly takes the audience out of the piece. Fidgeting can be worked on however, and I have seen some incredibly fidgety actors transform themselves into focused, purposeful, riveting performers by working patiently with their fidgeting habits. Solution: Know that every body movement read is apparent to your auditors, and that every movement needs to be either a choice or a full expression of a spontaneous impulse (if it is less than full it becomes a fidget). Having purposeful, fidget-free staging for a monologue helps immensely. Work with movement and acting teachers, work with partners, to ground yourself and practice both stillness AND the full discharge of your movement impulses. For those who can stand it: have a partner videotape you from a side view while you act your monologue fully. When you watch it, watch it without the sound, and you will quickly see your fidgets, and when you are using your body purposefully and powerfully.