With the end of 2024 comes a good bit of contemplation. The “new normal” of auditions by submitted video is problematic. As Aaron Burr put it (according to Lin-Manuel Miranda), I kind of need to be “in the room where it happens”. There is something about walking in, greeting the folks at the table, the stuff outside the actual audition. Maybe I got the job, maybe I didn’t, but when I was IN the room I could smile, I could be … human. I don’t even know if the video submissions are being looked at. And, do those who really know lighting, have the room for a professional background — do they have an edge? Not sure. I do what I can with the space I have. I have the ubiquitous ring light. But I don’t have a reader. Is it good enough? Should I be spending my time, as an actor, worrying if my tech is acceptable? I haven’t booked a single gig from a video submission. I didn’t book often outside of that (it’s a tough business), but I DID book from time to time. When the folks behind the table could give me an adjustment, when I could ask a question, where I could sense the mood of the room. Now, it’s just a void. And it’s not working for me. This is an art about connecting. How very odd that we are now in a time when the audition process is utterly disconnected from the human element.
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