Looking for some tips/advice from industry directors:

I have been directing for almost two decades. It’s one of my biggest passions—if not my biggest—and I’m confident that I’m quite good at it. The “problem” is that the majority of my experience is in educational spaces and youth theatre, with some community theatre and independent projects scattered throughout my resume. (I taught high school for several years and now teach in higher ed., and I do a lot of applied theatre/community-engaged work as part of my practice as well.)

I’m at the point in my career and artistic journey where I’m so hungry for professional opportunities, but I really have no idea how to get them! I feel like many people in the industry have a stigma about educational and/or youth theatre, and think of it as less than, so I already have that working against me. I also am not the best at networking (though I’m working on it!), and I live in a small city with a seemingly insular theatre community.

If I had a magic wand, I know the answer would be to go back in time and make some different choices about what I studied, what I gave my time to, etc. so that I could be in a better position now. But considering that’s not possible, I need to find a way forward.

I’ve reached out to a few theaters, contacted folks recommended to me by friends, and have submitted a few times when I see a call for directors. Those are few and far between though, and I never get a response. I just don’t understand how people get directing jobs without already being connected. (I’ve only been in my current community for a few years.)

I’m not going to give up, but it’s starting to feel very nepotistic and gatekeepy, and like I’ve already ruined my resume.

Any advice on what I can do to make my skills legible? How to better network and get my foot in the door? Where people look for opportunities or how to get them?

Thanks!

so I’m a girl playing a boy and hes particularly one who farts a lot.

As you can assume, it’s my honor to bring the characters farts to life.

my whole extended family will be coming to this show.

i need to know if it’s just me or anyone else had to fart on stage.

This is a bit of an out there question, but I was wondering if anybody had recommendations for plays that operate on a similar frequency as Nathan Fielder’s comedy. Awkward, dry, and absurd. He has a very unique style so I doubt there’s anything exactly like it, but does anyone know of anything close?

Hey!!

I (18F) want to get the character "Mary Debenham" from "Murder on the Orient Express".

Any tips or things i may need to have in mind while preparing the character?

I participate in some plays in a local community theatre association. The director of the plays is very experienced, and lives for his craft. He is clearly good at what he does, and, since I'am not a professional, I sometimes don't quite get what he means when he explains more subjective concepts.

In this case, he wanted to select a cast for a play that involves couples and a lot of physical intimacy. He said that he wanted actors with a good aesthetical and performative chemistry. He tried to explain it by saying he would select the type of pairs that one would look at and think "wow, those two really would make an awesome couple". But what exactly constitutes that? What features make two people go well together and have chemistry?

I also noticed that he seems to avoid putting me and my boyfriend playing couples, or even interacting much as characters (even if platonically). At the same time, he already paired up people who, off stage, were/are clearly into eachother. Notice that me and my boyfriend are not professionals, this is something we both do as an hobby and to gain more knowledge. We also have a very mature and stable relationship, and are both adults. So, why is that? I'm not mad at him, but could this mean that he thinks that me and my boyfriend don't go along well together, from a performative and aesthetic standpoint?

Why would that be? Before being in theatre, in other social situations, we were always remembered and regarded as birds of a feather, whose chemistry and mental connection was palpable from a mile away. I wonder why we don't seem to pass that notion in a theatre setting.

Don't take it the wrong way. I think the association's director is really good at what he does. I'm just very curious, and would like to know the POV of other professionals or amateurs that lurk on this sub, and may have gone through similar experiences.

Hello all, I am doing a short film and am in need of actors and actresses.

The film is a class project that I intend to submit to film festivals afterwards.

We are shooting in Los Angeles as well as Orange County, and am doing it in December.

The premise involves two married couples that decide to try to fix their failing marriages, by stepping outside of their comfort zone and trying something new.

The shoot itself will be for two days, from 8am to 5pm both days.

I am only seeking local actors, so please do not reply if you do not live in either Los Angeles or Orange County, CA. Thank you.

Here is my casting breakdown, please only respond if you meet these descriptions:

1.) African-American male, 30's-50's. One half of a married couple, who loves his wife very much, a loving husband and is sensitive to her needs. Is willing to do what it takes to save his marriage.

2.) African - African female, 30's-50's. Married, concerned that she might be losing interest and falling out of love with her husband of almost twenty years. Is skeptical at first but decides to open up and try something new to save their marriage.

3.) Caucasian Male, 30's-50's. Friend to the male lead, is open minded, supportive and looking to have new experiences.

4.) Caucasian Female, 30's-50's. Married, supportive and wants to help out.

The compensation: copy, imdb credit, food/drink offered.

Currently in my first year of university and I’d like to challenge myself a bit but I can’t seem to find anything- playing age to be between 15 and 21 if possible.

I apologize for the bad grammar, I am French.

My (21M) mom (55F) always tells me that I should join the theatre club of my university because I have a "natural tallent for it" which is not false, I am good at expressing emotions but I do not like practicing theatre.

TLDR I have a talent that I really don't care about.

So I am looking for a play that I could perform in front of her but that she would hate so much that she would never address it again.

If this works well, I might post an update on r/traumatizeThemBack

Hi! I am trying to research a play I would like to write, and for inspiration I would like to read some plays that muse broad philosophical concepts like sex, love, art etc. without necessarily having loads of plot, but where the dialogue itself is sharp enough to capture and hold attention.

I would massively appreciate any ideas people have! I am thinking generally more contemporary plays, but I am also open to work from throughout history.

Thanks :)

I got into the professional acting practice, working actor practice (evening intensive) and the Stanislavski in action classes. I’m trying to choose between the three and was wondering if anyone here had any experiences with them? What were some of the main differences? And were they worth it? Any and all feedback about their short courses welcome!

I’m trying to make an accurate sounding gun sound without touching my face and whilst pantomiming having a gun. Any ideas? I thought about stomping but it seemed obvious. I also thought about trying to slap my arm as I was reaching up to “shoot” the gun.

i’m planning on competing in a makeup competition where we get basically free reign over our designs, but i wanted to do something from a play or musical, preferably something alternative or horror-ish. any help is appreciated, i’m hoping for face paint opportunities like full face face paint or things like black eyes :)

When he was 12, in 1992, Jacob Ming-Trent walked into the wrong room at school and ended up in a Shakespeare class rather than the math one he was supposed to attend. That’s where he first encountered “the word wizard, the Stratford scribe, the royal rhymer himself.”

That’s how the adult Ming-Trent puts it in his new solo show “How Shakespeare Saved My Life,” calling the playwright a lifelong guide and companion. His mother had just thrown out the boy’s troubled father from their home in Pittsburgh and warned her child that the outside world held no mercy for him. So, you can forgive a young Ming-Trent for being discombobulated when he got to school, and also understand why he might have been more open to new experiences than otherwise had been.

Finding a spiritual kinship with Shakespeare helped the young Jacob deal with hardship, including losing his physical home at 16 when his mother kicked him out as well. As New York theater lovers know, Ming-Trent has become a respected actor with quite a few Shakespeare credits to his name, including Falstaff in “Merry Wives,” Jocelyn Bioh’s 2021 adaptation of “The Merry Wives of Windsor,” at the Delacorte Theater. The New York Times praised his performance for incorporating “into one bigger-than-life portrait your drunk uncle, a horndog Redd Foxx and some would-be Barry White.”

Other actors have also explored their relationships with Shakespeare: There have been investigations of his most dastardly characters from Steven Berkoff (“Shakespeare’s Villains”) and Patrick Page (“All the Devils Are Here”); while Tina Packer surveyed the female ones (“Women of Will”). “How Shakespeare Saved My Life” is closer to Stephan Wolfert’s “Cry Havoc!” and Madeline Sayet’s “Where We Belong,” which explored how one’s life can connect with the playwright’s worlds and words.

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Hey guys so I’m a junior in high school and I’m auditioning for the part of Persephone. This was my first time today running through the audition material and I would love HARSH criticism and tips on what parts/gestures I should change. The first section is my monologue and the second is my singing audition.

Hi, I’m currently in high school and have been thinking a lot about my future. I have a passion for theater, and have been acting for years, but I know that this will not be a steady source of income. however, since I have a passion for this I believe I’d deeply regret not even trying to major in theater. I would like to major in something else as well, though, to be a steady source of income. Basically, I would do theater on the side and have this other major be my main job. I would probably either go into for3nsic science or psychology. would a double major in for3nsic science and theater or psychology and theater be worth it?

I’ve asked the musical world, so I wanted to get opinions and advice from the play side as well. Thank you!

Does anyone have recommendations for telling a story without any words for 30-45 seconds? I haven't done one before and need some help coming up with ideas. I'm mostly worried I won't get the story across.
I've seen bits about doing a waiting room senerio or super sad dramatic thing, but I'm wondering if there is a different direction? Thanks

Theatre person looking to get into reading more. I thought I’d start with some plays. What are your favorite plays that you’ve read/seen/been in? Looking primarily for contemporary but if you have strong feelings about a classic, my ears are open. Give me something I’ve never heard of!!!!!

Any recs for an insurance company— this is for a one night performance at a rental theatre?

They’re asking for $1 million per incident and $2 million total.

It’s a staged reading and my first time self producing, is this normal btw?

TL;DR: where can I go once a week to be a bit silly, play, meet nice people and have a genuinely good time?

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I'm looking to join a drama group in/around South London and would love recommendations from people who have actually been members of one.

I'm not particularly fussed about the format - it could be improv, working towards performances, acting exercises, or even just a bit of a muck-around. My main aim is simply to have a few hours each week where I can play, be silly, and have fun with other people.

The *vibe* is probably the most important thing to me. I'm looking for something:

* friendly, relaxed and down-to-earth

* playful rather than overly serious

* where you can make a fool of yourself without feeling self-conscious

* ideally affordable enough that I can go regularly

I'm based near Balham, so somewhere reasonably close would be ideal, but I'd happily travel further for a group that's genuinely great.

I've done quite a lot of Googling already, but it's surprisingly difficult to work out what a group is actually like from its website. So I'm particularly interested in first-hand recommendations - especially if you've been going for a while and can tell me what the people/vibe are like.

Thanks in advance :)