Booked!

Now here is a secret that may discredit any audish advice I may have posted- after 8 months of vo audishes, I had not booked any actual work. UNTIL.... Monday! I was put on hold Thursday afternoon (see previous post re: whirlwind Thursday). I was excited but trying to not be too excited because basically it just meant they were checking my availability. Then on Monday my agent called and said I booked it (funnest thing to say, ever). The hilarious thing about all of this is that I got booked off my demo, not an audition. In fact when they called me Thursday I had to ask what it was for because besides that afternoon, I hadn't had a vo audish in weeks.

I haven't seen the script yet and it is for a "radio demo", so it's not going to air unless the production company sells it to the client.

I will report on the session later this week!

Triple Audishle

Thursday was a whirlwind.

First I had an audish that I found for myself through craigslist- a software company that creates virtual tradeshows and needs voiceover/on camera hosts. I got there and was led into a huge green screen room with the script projected onto the wall. They had me go through it about 5 times and said that they would be cutting it together to create a library of talent for their clients to choose from. At the end they said I was 'ahead of the curve.' So either it went well or I was being compared to everyone who answers craiglist ads.

Second, I had an audish with my voiceover agent. I got there and found out it was actually for 2 different spots which is always fun and double the cab value. The first one was for a contest for kids to win a trip to space camp, supercute. The second was for a vapid Valentine's Day commercial for cell phones. If I could have a red phone that directly connected to every copywriter in the city, I would tell them to please stop using the following formula for radio spots: "Guy does something stupid, Girl is mad." Come on, more credit is due on both accounts.

Guy: I got you this cell phone. AND I programmed our song as the ring tone!
Girl: Oh so swee- (not the right ring tone) that's not our song!

In real life, the girl would be mad as soon as she saw that the gift was a cell phone. Unless it was hidden inside a flower inside a chocolate flower inside of a diamond necklace. Am I right ladies???

Audish Definish

Tourco audishes are this week, break a leg everybody!

I get word of the day emails from www.m-w.com and recently this appeared in my inbox:

audition \aw-DISH-un\ noun
1 : the power or sense of hearing 2 : the act of hearing; especially : a critical hearing 3 : a trial performance to appraise an entertainer's merits

Did you know? Today, “audition” most often refers to a theatrical or musical tryout, but that wasn’t always the case. “Audition" is rooted in the Latin verb "audire," meaning "to hear," and was first used in the late 16th century to refer to the power or sense of hearing. "Audire" is also the root of such "hearing" words in English as "audible," "audience" (which first meant "the act or state of hearing"), and the prefix "audio-," which appears in various words relating to sound. It wasn’t until late 19th century that the noun “audition” began being used for an entertainer’s trial performance. And the verb “audition,” meaning "to test or try out in an audition," didn’t appear on the English language stage until the mid-20th century.

The original meaning of audition is a wonderful thing to think about going into an audish. For one thing, we all know that listening is a huge part of a successful improv scene. For two things, what really applies to any audition is hearing what the auditors are asking for and doing your best to deliver. Every VO audish I have been on has included some character description. Am I really listening and delivering what I think a depressed superhero would sound like? I try :) I think every tourco audish I have done has started with a speech from the SC folk saying that after watching tons of audishes they do not want to see inappropriate scenes or language. And then I see why they have to make that speech, because someone freaks out and does a prostitute-incest-seduction scene that freaks everyone else out.

New Years!!!

Whoo hooo! Way to go 2007- in Winter 07 I finished my voiceover class and got new headshots. I did a headshot/rezy mailing. I made a voiceover demo and sent it out. Spring 07 I got called in to audition for a Hispanic focused talent agency (I will have to write that up), was 'registered' but never got called in again. I got called in to a VO agent and have been audishing on a regular basis. I joined the cast of a great improv theater out in the burbs where I get paid for shows. Fall 07 I started the writing program at iO and just finished the third level. Winter 07 I revised my VO demo and on Monday mailed out another round to agents.

Oh yea! And I started this blog to keep track of my auditions. I hope to write many more entries in 2008.