An audition lasts a few minutes. Preparing for it starts the moment the casting email arrives, and the quality of those few minutes is decided almost entirely before you walk into the room, or before you hit record.
The short version: 1) read the brief and the project all the way through; 2) analyze the scene (who, to whom, to get what); 3) learn the lines well enough to look at your reader; 4) prepare one clear choice and a variation, so you can adjust if you're redirected; 5) rehearse hearing the other part; 6) sort out your slate and logistics; 7) afterwards, write down what you learned and let it go. Stage and screen share these steps; only the scale of the performance changes.
1. Read the brief and the project
Write down everything casting gives you: the character, the scenes, the tone of the project, the date, the place or format (in the room, video call, self-tape) and any specific instructions. If the project is public (a known play, an existing series, a film by a director whose work you can watch), look into its world. You don't have to guess what they want, only understand what you're playing in.
2. Analyze the scene
Before learning, answer in writing:
- Who is your character in this scene? Not their whole biography, what matters here.
- Who are they talking to, and what do they want from them? One action verb per unit of the scene: convince, push away, confess, trap.
- What's stopping them?
- What has changed by the end of the scene?
The breakdown method is in How to break down a scene into beats.
3. Learn the lines
The goal isn't always word-perfect (some auditions allow sides in hand), but you must be able to look at your reader. How to memorize lines gives the method; on a short deadline, Get off-book fast has an hour-by-hour plan.
4. One clear choice, and a plan B
Casting isn't looking for the "right" version of the scene: they want to see how you think and how you react. Come in with one strong, readable choice. Then prepare a clearly different variation (another objective, another rhythm), because a redirect ("do it colder", "as if you're lying") is common. It shows whether you can take a note and play it, and that's often where the audition is decided.
5. Rehearse hearing the other part
In an audition, someone reads with you: a casting director, an assistant, sometimes an actor. They often read without acting. If you've only rehearsed alone, saying both parts in your head, you discover the scene as you play it. Hear the other part while preparing: a friend, a recording, an app. How to rehearse without a scene partner compares the options.
6. Stage or screen: scale
Preparation is the same; scale changes. On stage, the house has to receive you. In a camera close-up, a clear thought is often enough. See Stage vs screen audition: adjust your scale.
7. On the day
The day before: check the address, time, route, printed sides and clothes. See What to wear to an audition.
Before you go in: warm up body and voice, then reread only your objectives, not the whole text.
The slate: your name, maybe your agent, and whatever they ask. If they ask questions, answer simply, without reciting a bio. See Audition interview questions: answer naturally.
Nerves: they don't disappear, they get channeled. See Beat audition nerves.
Cold reads: if they hand you a new scene on the spot, see Cold reading: how to prep the unpredictable in 5 minutes.
8. After the audition
Write three lines: what worked, what surprised you, what you'd change. Then move on: the outcome depends on criteria you don't control (age, height, chemistry with another actor, budget, availability).
Special cases
- Monologue of your choice: see Audition monologue: how to choose and build one and How to memorize a monologue for an audition.
- Self-tape audition: see How to make a self-tape.
- Preparing alone, no reader: see Prepare for an audition alone.
Common mistakes
- Preparing a single version you can't adjust.
- Learning lines with a fixed inflection.
- Never hearing the other part before walking in.
- Playing for casting instead of playing with your reader.
- Replaying the audition in your head for three days.
Where La Réplique fits
La Réplique helps with steps 3 and 5: import the scene you received (PDF, Word, photo or pasted text), choose your role, and natural voices read the other character while the app listens and prompts you if you blank. You can run the scene with several intentions to prepare your variation. For a self-tape audition, the studio reads the other lines while you film. The analysis and the acting choices stay yours.
FAQ
How long does it take to prepare for an audition? Ideally several days for a scene of a few pages, in short sessions. With under 48 hours, follow the plan in Get off-book fast.
Do you need to be off-book for an audition? Enough to look at your reader. Some auditions accept sides in hand, but eyes stuck to the page stop casting from seeing your work.
What if casting asks me to play it differently? That's a good sign: they want to see whether you take direction. Commit fully to the new note without trying to hold on to your previous version.
How do you prepare for an audition with nobody to read the other lines? With a recording of the other lines, a reader over video call, or an app that reads them aloud. What matters is not meeting the other voice for the first time on the day.