Acting : Dealing With Rejection When Auditioning by Tammy Hunt

In the world of auditioning, no news is often the only news: If you don’t hear back, it means they went with someone else. While it would be great to receive closure via direct rejection, casting directors may not have the bandwidth to notify every auditioner who didn’t get a callback or book the part. They are also not in a position to disclose why a role went to one performer over another. “Casting has huge amounts of work and time is tight,” casting director Louise Collins says. “So please don’t be disheartened if you don’t receive feedback.”

The best way to cope with rejection is to try to reframe the feeling of rejection and the act of auditioning itself.

Rejection is unavoidable, and it will most likely be frequent. With this in mind, consider setting a rejection quota for yourself. Acting coach and Evolving Artist creator Teri Wade’s quota method flips the script, turning rejection from a fear into a goal. “I suggest giving yourself a numerical quota, such as getting rejected 30 times per month, or 10 times per week, and recording your points,” she says. “When the goal becomes meeting your quota, you stay motivated and you keep going.”

Also, remember that by getting through the door and in front of the casting directors, you have already been given the chance to perform. Make the most of it. “Treat an audition as a chance to practice and gain a new experience,” actor Joanna Pickering says. Think of Cassie’s iconic “The Music and the Mirror” moment in “A Chorus Line.” She starts off by pleading to director-choreographer Zach for the chance to dance, but soon enough she’s not asking for permission to perform; she’s giving him an unforgettable, powerhouse demonstration of her technique. It’s her audition, but it’s still very much a performance.

These steps help actors achieve a state that actor Douglas Taurel refers to as thinking extraordinarily, or “the ability to experience failure and have the discipline to ignore it, move on, and immediately focus on the next audition or performance.”

- Backstage

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