BWW Blog: Amanda Bohlmann - Audition Anxiety

I think it is safe to say that all actors hate auditions. No matter how big or how small, there is nothing relaxing about standing in front of a table of people whose jobs are to sit there and judge you. Although auditions are not fun, it is something that we all have to endure in order to make it into shows (unless you're Idina Menzel and can just get roles thrown at you all the time. But sadly there is only one Idina).

Although I have never auditioned for anything outside of school (yet), I still tend to get the worst audition anxiety. I always feel confident going into auditions but then once I see my competition, I psych myself out.

For some reason when I went to audition for Sweeney Todd this year, I felt more confident than I ever did at an audition. I remember walking out of my audition for RENT at school last year and instantly crying because I felt so disappointed with how it went. It was not until this year that I realized I made a mistake on my song choice. I sang a song that was not fit for my voice at all; I just wanted to sing a song that would fit the character of Mimi.

It is SO important to choose a song that you feel comfortable in. Yes, people always say to try to pick a song that is something the character you are auditioning for would sing, but research it as much as you can. There will be songs that fit both the character and your voice. It is important that you choose something that you feel showcases your voice the best because if you are not happy with your song choice, it will show in your audition.

I walked into the audition for Sweeney Todd feeling pretty good. First we had to just get onstage and speak in a British accent which terrified me to no end because I am the worst with accents. It didn't turn out as bad as I thought it was going to. Then I waited in the theater while we individually went into a different room to do the music portion.

Waiting for your name to be called is the WORST, especially when you're further down in the list. It's hard to find things to do in the mean time that will keep you vocally warmed up and calm. I pace a lot when I get nervous so I always walk around the back of the theater and keep singing my audition song to myself. One of the worst things about waiting in a room full of people is hearing your competition. As I was sitting down before my audition, I heard all of the new people auditioning practicing around me. It honestly brought my confidence down a little bit. There were some extremely talented people in the room with me. When I start to get psyched out about that, I usually pop in my headphones, listen to music, and just breathe so I do not get too caught up in my own mind.

Once my name was called I went into the hallway and stood outside the audition room. As I stood outside, I heard one of my biggest competitions for the past 2 years auditioning and this girl had an incredible voice. It was extremely hard to sit there and have positive thoughts about my audition knowing that I had to follow that. I took a deep breath and walked into the room telling myself to just do the best I could.

I walked out of that audition the happiest I have ever been walking out of an audition. I chose to sing All That Matters from Finding Neverland since I had more than one role I was going for. That song is one of the songs I feel most confident I singing and it covers a decent range. I decided to take a different path than my RENT audition and just focus on a song that made me feel confident. Regardless if I got a role or not, I knew that I went in there and did the best I could. No pun intended, but that was all that mattered.

It is so easy to get psyched out at an audition and I give everyone who auditions for Broadway shows so much credit because even auditioning for a tiny school production was nerve wrecking for me! You have very few minutes to walk into that room and show these directors YOU. Not the character you are auditioning for, they want to see you and what you can do. It is so super important to make sure you go into an audition wearing something you feel confident in, singing a song you know will show off what you can do (without showing off too much). Be the most confident you you could be. Define whatever that means to you and run with it. At the end of the day, it is important that you walk out of that audition room feeling great, knowing that you poured your heart into the audition and did the best that you could.