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[0:00] Justin Guarini: There is no such thing as a poor reader unless you're a poorly prepared actor. Have you ever been in an audition and struggled to create a great performance because the person reading the scene with you is giving you all the energy of a dead fish? Well, it happens more often than you think. And sometimes there's a method to the reader's madness. In this episode of Audition Secrets, I'll explain why some readers do things that make it seem like they're out to get you and show you how you can use everything they do, or more often don't do, to your advantage. Let's roll the intro.

[0:31] Justin Guarini: Welcome to Audition Secrets, the podcast. My name is Justin Guarini, and I'm an audition and performance expert with over 25 years of experience in the entertainment industry. You see me on huge television shows like American Idol, playing characters like Lil Sweet in national television commercials from brands like Diet Dr. Pepper, on Broadway, in six musicals and plays, as well as on Instagram and Facebook, where I bring you success mindset coaching on the regular. Each week on this podcast, you'll learn actionable strategies, mindsets, and tips that take the guesswork out of creating auditions and performances that make you stand out from the crowd and help to increase your odds of getting the job, so that you can create the career and lifestyle you work so hard for each day.

If you haven't picked up your copy of the book, Audition Secrets, Volume 1, then all you need to do is visit auditionsecretsbook.com to get instant access to your copy. The Audition Secrets book and this podcast are your secret weapons to rising above your competition, successfully navigating the entertainment business, and keeping your sanity as you rise to the top. So kick back and relax. Five, six, seven, let's go.

[1:49] Justin Guarini: I went into a major casting director's office in New York City for a big musical film, and the first thing the casting director said to me in a voice dripping with sarcasm was, ah, so I guess this is what you do now, huh? And he was referring to movie musicals and one of my failed musicals from Justin and Kelly. And I played it off with a smile and a laugh, and of course, immediately knew that I was screwed. Have you ever stepped foot in an audition room, and within the first 30 seconds, known that you have absolutely no hope of getting the job? Well, yeah, this is one of those moments for me. And that's the worst feeling. To have worked hard to prepare an audition, spent time and money fretted over outfits and every detail, and then to face down the volcanic emotional activity inside you by just having the courage to even step into the audition room, and then as soon as you get there, being disrespected the moment you walk in the door, or getting the vibe that they're just doing auditions because they have to say they did auditions, knowing that they're going to cast someone who has a name or more followers than you, basically realizing that it's been an epic waste of your time.

Anyway, I'm in the audition room, and like a good actor, I immediately swallow a big bite of this casting director's shit sandwich. And then proceeded to turn to the reader and put on my best and really most genuine smile, and at least try and connect with him. And the reader was having none of it. He looked at me like I was something unpleasant that he'd found on the bottom of his shoe. So the hits kept on coming. And I go on to tape and do the scene with this excuse for a reader. And as we started the scene, the reader stayed in the same slouched position, mumbled the lines as if they were slouching at me, and somehow managed to keep the look of complete disdain on his face the entire time, even as we were in a scene where two best friends are having a great time.

Looking back on it, I'm not actually really even all that mad. It was impressive what this guy did. I, of course, did my duty and walked out of the room and instead did some research into why a reader might behave like they're completely disinterested in being in the room, or like they never actually have been in an audition room, or like they're completely out to get you. And I discovered some interesting insights that helped me to never be thrown off by a quote-unquote bad reader again. So here are a few reasons why some readers can be the worst.

[4:25] Justin Guarini: One, sometimes the casting director will read with you and they're just not actors, or they'll pull in an associate casting director, also not an actor, or sometimes even a receptionist, or just a warm body so that they can run the casting session and observe the person auditioning. Not an ideal situation for us, the actors vying for the job to step into. Two, sometimes the reader just got the material right before they stepped in the room and they're discovering it in real time. And look, we know what it's like to read something cold, whether it's at home the first time we read it, or if the casting director asks you to try another role and gives you five minutes to go out into the hall and look it over, it's not great.

I mean, it can be good, but more often than not, it's just not great. And sometimes the reader is faced with the same exact situation. Three, sometimes the reader is really trying to give you their all, really be there for you, instead of serving the story and making sense of the beats and the plot points. And it's not what we have in mind when we put all the work and create a very specific point of view for our characters. And there's this wild symphony going on, and we're just trying to figure it out. I often say that auditions are barbaric, and they're hard enough to do when we are fully prepared. And then when we walk into the room and a reader's throwing everything and the kitchen sink at us, it makes us all the more challenged to create the kind of performance and audition that we want to create.

Okay, moving right along. Number four, and this is the most dangerous point of all. Sometimes the reader is given specific directions to be flat or neutral so they don't get in the way of the actor, or they can be told to mumble, give negative energy, intentionally skip a line, or do something that's designed to throw the auditioning actor off. Why? Simply because the casting director or person running the audition wants to see how the actor responds to the negative stimulus. The actors who fall apart or get thrown rarely, if ever, get the job. But the ones who can skirt around the potholes usually do, or they're more often called back for future jobs.

[6:43] Justin Guarini: How do you overcome a, quote, bad reader, unquote? One of my main aims with this podcast, as well as this episode, is to remove the word victim from our collective vocabularies and replace that word with empowered. One thing we have control over is ourselves and the prep we bring to the room. So with that in mind, let's dive into how you can be fully prepared for anything when it comes to Audition Reader Roulette. One of the greatest tools we have in our arsenal as performers is our imagination. Why is it that some of the best film actors can give amazing performances while being on a set that basically is a big green box with a few plastic props to play with, or on stage night after night after night, a performer can relive moments of terror or deep intimacy?

It comes down to the fact that we are trained to delve deep into our imagination and our personal experiences and live there regardless of the situation or scenario that's happening around us. I want to take a direct quote from an article I read about this that was written by an acting teacher named Paul Barry that sums up this point beautifully. Quote, have you ever seen a child having a temper tantrum about nothing and found yourself smiling at his or her theatrics? Has anyone ever told you how great their life is, but you've grown immediately suspicious that they're compensating for a deep sadness? Have you ever had your partner stumble and stammer over their feelings and felt so incredibly touched at their botched attempt to express their love to you?

The fact is, our reactions are based only partly on what the people around us actually say. The rest of it is made up of what our opinion is of what we see and hear and what we think of the person saying it in the moment. If your opinion of your reader is that they are quote bad or quote ruining your audition, then don't be surprised if your reactions echoed this and that you have a terrible time in the room. End quote. If we as performers come from the position of empowerment that says I am in control of this audition and I am in control of my response to anything and everything that I receive in this audition, then we have the power to receive whatever we receive and return it in a way that serves us and ultimately the story.

[9:03] Justin Guarini: So, what could I have done in my scenario, the one where the reader was giving me a death stare in the best friend scene? Well, I could have used my lines to play with him and to try and shake him, being the character, out of that funk he was in. I could have used my irritation at his malaise to express a deeper truth behind my character's words. I could have just used my imagination to see exactly what I wanted to see in the reader and not ignored him but superimposed over him the kind of person I'd want to be reading with or the exact character that I've imagined that I'm reading across from. I could have found empathy with his complete lack of respect for me. A million different ways I could have handled it and stayed in my own power instead of giving it away to him or being thrown off by him.

So, the next time you find yourself in a room with a bad reader, know that if you are prepared, if you've done the work on the character, have a strong point of view and are ready for anything the reader throws at you because you're grounded in your own power and recognize that you are there to serve the story and can do so no matter what the scenario around you is, you'll be miles ahead of the people who come into the room and are dependent on the scenario around them, dependent on the casting director liking them and ultimately giving their power away. That's all I've got for you today. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving if you're in America and have a great week wherever you are in the world. I'm Justin Guarini, you've been listening to Audition Secrets, and remember, at the end of the day, you're just one audition away.