Actors over 50
Actors over 50
#1Actors over 50
Posted: 9/3/13 at 10:44pm
Just curious if the competition for roles that require actors over 50 are harder or easier to come by. I would imagine less people are trying out, but there are probably much less jobs available.
I was in shows in college but I did the expected route of getting a job and following the career path. Now that I am older, I always thought about retiring in about 10 years and auditioning for older roles.
Not to be confused with Dave19.
#2Actors over 50
Posted: 9/3/13 at 10:55pm
It's more difficult to break into the business at an older age. So much of casting is your resume, reputation, and who you know. If you're seasoned, it's known what to expect from you.
Amongst the veteran actors who are up for the same gigs all the time, that is difficult for them as well. Try putting together a shortlist of seasoned actors to play Horace Vandergelder in HELLO, DOLLY. It's not so short.
"The Spectacle has, indeed, an emotional attraction of its own, but, of all the parts, it is the least artistic, and connected least with the art of poetry. For the power of Tragedy, we may be sure, is felt even apart from representation and actors. Besides, the production of spectacular effects depends more on the art of the stage machinist than on that of the poet."
--Aristotle
--Aristotle
#2Actors over 50
Posted: 9/3/13 at 11:08pmTrue indeed. Who you know is always the key in any business.
Not to be confused with Dave19.
FindingNamo
Broadway Legend Joined: 7/22/03
#3Actors over 50
Posted: 9/3/13 at 11:15pmThere are definitely less "fewer" vs "less" debates.
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mamaleh
Broadway Legend Joined: 5/11/04
#5Actors over 50
Posted: 9/4/13 at 2:26pm
It's a double-edged sword. Acting has a huge drop-out rate, mostly from people in their twenties and thirties. Middle aged and old aged actors do face less competition for that reason, but those coming into the business at an older age face two problems: first, that they have no connections, and it is very much a "friends hiring their friends" sort of business; and second, that unless they were spending all that time in their twenties and thirties taking classes and doing non-Equity shows, they frequently do not have the skill and experience expected of a middle-aged professional actor.
That said, despite John Mahoney famously telling people not to follow in his footsteps of entering showbiz late, it's very possible and lots of people have done it successfully. Mike Nussbaum, one of Chicago's greatest character actors, didn't start until he was in his late thirties/early forties and hasn't stopped working for the past forty years!
#6Actors over 50
Posted: 9/4/13 at 5:01pm
Sounds like great advise. Most likely, you need to start with local theater and go from there.
I am just thinking it might be easier, because I wouldn't be dependent on getting a job just to put food on the table. It would be simply going to auditions and seeing what happens. I would think less stress would be involved compared to someone in their 20s just trying to find work.
Not to be confused with Dave19.
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