Reflections on the Auditions

by Lana Bagdasarian

Wow, Charlotte's Web is cast!  What a great first experience on a casting team.  We had eighty children show up to audition last Saturday and twenty-two called back. 

Do you know how hard it is to decide on whom to cast for only thirty-five parts?  Ridiculously hard.   So, what do you use to decide who is cast for this performance and who we cast at a future date?  Well, glad you asked.  Here is the top TEN list for whom to cast for a play when you have double the amount of children as parts.

1. Talent – That one is a given.  However, it is not as easy as it sounds.  We had 80 TALENTED kids audition. 
2. Attitude – We need performers who are excited about being part of the play and who are flexible to play any part assigned to them.
3. Behavior – We need performers who help the play and its rehearsals progress at a good pace.  They keep the others around them on track and keep the director from pulling his or her hair out.
4. Attendance – We need performers who are there for almost EVERY rehearsal, who get there on time and stay for the entire rehearsal.  The rest of the children suffer when one of the characters are not there.
5. Volume – We need performers whose voice can travel to the back of the auditorium without a microphone.  Nothing loses the audiences’ attention faster than them missing lines due to being unable to hear or understand them.
6. Directable - We need performers who will listen to the director and follow through on what is asked of them. 
7. Fluid - We need performers whose movements look natural and enhance the movement of the play.
8. Character – We need performers who “fit” the part.  Looks, actions, and sounds all enhance the characters’ development.
9. Emotion - We need performers who can show a variety of emotions.  They can play the funny, slap stick when needed but can also be believable in the serious, sad scenes.
10. Experience - WAG for Children is proud to give children their first experience in acting. To that end, we try to maintain a balance of new and experienced performers within each performance cast.   

The casting team is so proud of each and every child who auditioned this production.   You made us wish we could have a cast of 80+.  If you were cast, we are excited to see what you bring to WAG and the performance of Charlotte’s Web.   If you weren’t cast this time, we want everyone to know that we want you to come back and audition again.  A NO this time does not mean a NO every time.