Are you ready to take your singing to the next level? You’ve come to the right place! Together, we will strengthen your abilities as a vocalist, apply techniques used by working professionals, and build confidence in performing and indeed all aspects of your life!
Do you wish to become the best actor you can be? Let’s work together! From establishing the basics to nailing auditions, from landing a part to preparing a role, you’ve come to the right place. If you’re ready to expand the tools you have in your actor toolbox, let’s do this!
Hi! I’m Carrie Sayer. I’ve been teaching private acting and singing lessons for twenty years. My life’s purpose is to inspire others to be their best. I am thrilled for the opportunity to connect with you and help you meet your performance goals!
It’s time for callbacks. Breathe. Breathe again, more deeply. You can do this.
You rocked your general audition. You have your eye on a role (or several roles) you are passionate about playing.
Or, you’re dying for an acting job because retail income merely fills in the gaps while you wait to practice your craft and authentically express yourself onstage.
Or, you’re trying out for a show, and the post states, “No need to prepare. Audition is simply cold readings from the script.”
AUGHHHHH!
And, breathe. Face your fear. Conquer cold readings. Get the job.
Do cold readings terrify you? or exhilarate you? or a little of both?
Talk about live theatre in its rawest, basic, most freefall form: cold readings. Very little prep. You are flying blind, trusting your instincts, totally not knowing what will happen next.
It’s not like a play you’ve rehearsed, where you’ve got an idea of where you are in the arc, the action, the staging, the give-and-take to expect between yourself and the other players. Once you have rehearsed a play, your job is to execute the action in performance, night after night, with commitment and freshness moment by moment.
In cold readings, though, there is no predictability, no external direction, no practiced plan. However, commitment is built in. You want this role, this gig, this job. You channel your intensity and wholehearted wishing into the character in the scene. The stakes are high for you and the character — and you discover that you and the character are in fact, one and the same. It’s not ACTING, it’s merely being, and gosh what’s so hard about that?
Well, enter the freshness aspect. It can be unnerving to be your natural, relaxed self, while trying to figure out the scene, and what to do, and how to do it. It takes practice to simply be under audition conditions. Cold readings are fresh, all right. They are one hundred percent here-I-am-what-the-heck-is-going-to-happen-will-my-partner-catch-me-and-play-hard-and-lord-help-me-stay-focused-on-the-present-moment-cuz-that’s-all-I-can-do-here. In cold readings, your only hope is to stay mindful, listen, try something and respond authentically.
And I’m here to help you accomplish all this. And more.
It’s simultaneously simple yet not easy to be yourself, focus your action, commit your being, make a strong choice, fire the judge, reveal yourself, connect authentically, have fun (are you kidding me? This is excruciating!) and get the job.
We will conquer this together. And have a blast in the process.
The secret is in the preparation. Yes! There are steps you can take beforehand!
Join me for this 6-week cold reading workshop. I will guide you through the process of preparing, discovering and experiencing what will become the joy and success of cold readings.
We will focus on a different play each week. After you register you will be sent the list of plays you’ll need. They are all available on Amazon.com and may even be in your library. You will be asked to read the play in its entirety before each class. Then, in class, you will be given a scene from the play (you won’t know which scene in advance) to cold read. You will be coached through preparing the scene. As we add to your toolbox each week, you will gain the skills, confidence and practice to ultimately tackle the final scene on your own at the end of six weeks.
Sundays, 7-9 p.m.
June 10, 17, 24; July 1, 8, (no class July 15), and July 22.
Carrie Jay Studio
7570 2nd Street
Dexter, MI 48130
Bring on those cold readings! You can do this! The creative process is limited only by fear. Come to this class, conquer your fear, rock your next audition. Get the job. Click the button below to register and pay $197 for this career changing workshop!
I can’t wait to see you!
P.S. The class is limited to 15 students. Sign up now.
So, let’s say you’ve rocked your monologues. You nailed your song. You hit it out of the park at your audition.
What if you don’t get called back?
OMG, what if you DO?
Okay. Deep breath. You got the callback. Whew. Another deep breath. What’s next?
Most callbacks consist of cold readings. Alright. All you have to do is read from the script, right?
Actually, no. Cold readings are neither cold, nor readings.
Here’s what’s really going on:
The director liked you. They found you to be interesting. Something in your audition touched them. You made them laugh, or you touched a heart string, or they saw a glimmer (or a whole bunch of them strung together) of something they can work with. Now they want to know if you can bring it.
They want to know if you can readily and consistently be yourself. Reveal yourself. Take risks. Play hard. Fight for what you want and mean it.
You can practice all of this in “real life,” by the way. Are you willing to allow yourself to be vulnerable, genuine, open and present on a regular basis? It sounds pretty appealing, actually. Aren’t we all striving for mindfulness, presence, peace, emotional freedom, etc.? What if we were in that state all of the time? Oh yeah, buddy, that sounds very cool and Zen.
In the meantime, practice being in that state as much as you can. Everywhere.
So. Cold readings are really about being yourself. Check. Got it. Do lots of practice. You’re on it.
Okay, now for the text of the play you’ve been called back for. Read the play first, if at all possible. Understand the relationships, setting, and context. Read it aloud. Get a feel for the language in your mouth. As much as you can, get out of your head and into your body. Tune into your breathing. Posture. Heart rate. Emotions. Reactions. Who are you rooting for? What does each character want from the others? What do they do to get it? Do they succeed? Or is there the agony of defeat? Understand the story and its arc.
Next, ask for sides before the callback. These are the script pages you will be asked to “read” (more on how it’s not actually reading in a sec). Recall where this scene lies in the context of the story. Then your job is to do your best to memorize the scene. Become very familiar with the gist of each line. Don’t worry about getting it word perfect (yet — it must be word perfect once you are in rehearsal and performance). Understand what your character (which is simply YOU) wants from the other person in the scene.
Often, you want the other person to come toward you or move away from you. Are you drawing them near or driving them away? “Come to me, my beloved,” or “Take one more step and I’ll chop off your head”?
Be ready to connect with your partner. Remember, you have been practicing connection and presence everywhere in your newfound Zen state. Breathe. Really listen. Determine what you want from the other person, then ask yourself: “What am I going to do to get it?”
Plays are about what people do. How they feel is secondary. The emotional part is not forced, or planned, or pretended; it is a byproduct of action. Expect to get what you want, and then celebrate your victories and grieve your losses. In order to fight for what you want, choose something to do. Literally make it a verb. If you can physicalize the verb, even better.
Here are some examples of active verbs:
corner
move
block
engage
restrain
needle
mimic
enrage
interfere
charge
amaze
comfort
groom
tantalize
nurture
Now pick one of these, and apply it to your scene. Physically do it. Understand why this is important — and I mean life and death — to your character. Channel your own nerves at the callback to be in the space where this is really important to me. Use your chosen verb, take a risk, and fight for what you want. Allow yourself to be fully in the present with your partner, moment to moment, and you’ll be pleasantly surprised if you win. Or shocked if you don’t. Instead of playing the end, hang on every word and action your partner gives you, and respond authentically with all of the passion you carry in your heart, using your verb.
Have courage. Be brave. Don’t go in cold; read the play, understand the story, memorize the scene. Don’t read. Fight. Look at your partner. Absorb them. Glance at your script if you need to, but give all of your attention and focus to your partner. Listen. Open your heart. Try something. Try anything, and do it 100 percent. There is no right or wrong. Fire the judge. Interfere with your partner. If their head is buried in their script, make them look at you. Oh, and be open to changing your verb, if it’s not working. Be in the moment, and your heart will guide you.
Bonus: What if your scene partner is fighting, and breathing, and listening, too? Then you’ve got synergy, passion, combustion. Then, my friends, you have a play.
Welcome to the cast.
P.S. Stay tuned for news on a Cold Reading Workshop I am putting together for this summer! Get ready for hands-on practice, confidence and greatness!
Dear Friends,
I am thrilled to share that I will be directing this summer’s musical with Chelsea Area Players. Performance dates are July 20-22, 2012, at the former Chelsea High School. Come on out and share your talents!
CAPtivating Rhythms: Lovers, Liars and Clowns
Chelsea Area Players invites you to be part of this fun, fresh, inventive musical revue that pays tribute to CAP’s first 40 years of fabulous theatre!
Auditions for adults, teens and children (and callbacks, if needed) will be held at St. Mary’s Church, 14200 E. Old US Highway 12, Chelsea, MI 48118.
Please attend either one (but not both) of these audition dates/times:
Tuesday, May 8, 6 – 10 p.m.
Saturday, May 12, 12 noon – 3 p.m.
Please sign in on Tuesday before 8 p.m., or on Saturday before 2 p.m. Auditioners will be seen in the order they arrive. You will not be asked to stay for the entire time range.
To audition, please prepare 16 bars from one of the following musicals (or in the style of these):
Please bring to your audition:
Callbacks IF NEEDED will be held:
Sunday, May 13, 6-10 p.m.
You will be notified by email on Saturday, May 12, if you are needed at callbacks.
Cast list will be posted on the CAP website at the earliest convenience.
This show is going to be great fun. We will be creating it together, so we are looking for people who love to play, explore, discover, experiment and imagine!
We want to bring out the best in everyone to make this a magnificent show! So bring your most fun and and open-hearted YOU to auditions!
Come be a part of what is sure to be a special, memorable celebration.
So let your light so shine before men,
Let your light so shine…!
–Godspell
What you need is a big strong hand
To lift you to your higher ground
Make you feel like a queen on a throne
Make him love you till you can’t come down
(You’ll never come down)Express yourself
(You’ve got to make him)
Express himself
Hey, hey, hey, hey
So if you want it right now, make him show you how
Express what he’s got, oh baby ready or not
Express yourself
(You’ve got to make him)
So you can respect yourself
Hey, hey
So if you want it right now, then make him show you how
Express what he’s got, oh baby ready or not–Madonna, Express Yourself
Look inside. What keeps you from expressing yourself? Speaking up? Singing out? From stretching and breathing and opening up and allowing others in?
Fear.
What are you afraid of? Exposure? Failure? Judgment? Laughter (not the good kind)?
Have you ever rushed through an audition (or performance or interview or first date or presentation or speech or…) because you thought, “I just want to get this over with. I’m going to plow through. Please, don’t let them snicker, laugh, cough, ask questions, respond, or do anything to stretch this out or throw me off. I’ve got to get through this thing unscathed.”
Fear simmers inside us when the stakes are high.
What if we were to let down our guard and allow ourselves to become scathed? What if we opened ourselves to (what our psyche perceives as) the potential to be harmed, injured, damaged, wasted, destroyed. Yowtch. “He was scathed by calamity.” Well, it turns out the word calamity was first derived from “calamus,” when the corn could not get out of the stalk.
Okay. Alright. Getting out the corn. That doesn’t sound so bad. In fact, it’s rather appealing. Let’s say we want to get our corn out of the stalk. To open up and be deeply known. To express our innermost selves. For actors, this is how we earn our living.
Let’s embrace authentic self-expression as a goal. It is an act of courage and surrender. Let’s not allow ourselves to be intimidated by any aspect of the audition (or performance or presentation or …). Let’s do the opposite of attempting to leave unscathed. Let’s be open, vulnerable, and allow for the possibility of being affected, even wounded, by the other person.
That’s the beauty of a play. We get to go there and do that. We get to harm or be harmed, slay or be slayed, destroy or be destroyed. Then, we wipe off the make-up in the dressing room, throw on our sweats, and go home to catch up on episodes of Smash.
It feels good to go there. It is enlivening!
Acting is behaving truthfully under imaginary circumstances.
When we put ourselves out there in an audition or performance, we feel scared. The stakes are high. This is important to us. Rather than channeling the fear, however, let’s give ourselves something proactive and tangible to do.
Mastering the text is a great place to start. Read the monologue (scene, play), and come up with a game plan. Use the text to activate the other person. Simply, what do you want from them? What will happen if you don’t get it? What are you going to do to make the other person give you what you need?
Own the text. Use the words to get what you want. Consume the text, and breathe out fire.
Make the dialogue your own. Use it to fight, fight, fight. Conquer the language. Squeeze every last bit of juice out of it, ingest it, digest it, and watch it shoot out of you in flames. It will appear in the form of passion, despair, romance, beguilement, threat, gratitude, hatred and love. Use the words to save your life.
Better yet, use the words to get your scene partner to save your life.
Use the words to push your enemy away, or to pull them close and cut them or kiss them. Use the words to get that person to fulfill your desires, quench your thirst, realize your pain, experience your terror, feel your joy.
Use the words. Burn brightly. Be unquenchable. Passionate. Take charge. Be powerful.
Slay it. Kill it. Do it.
Let’s stop playing it safe. Let’s instead play dangerously. Let’s live without caution or judgment. Go forward in the face of fear. It requires courage, and you’ve got it.
You see, you are formidable. You are a force to be reckoned with. I love you and fear you and am exhilarated to face you and battle you.
I cannot live without self-expression. I cannot live without theatre. I am going to show up and fight for what I cannot live without. And I’m going to get it. I’m going to win. I won’t leave until I have left every shred of myself, using the text, on the stage.
You will conquer all when you let down your guard, express yourself, and take command of the text and use it to fight for what you desperately want and need. It’ll make for glorious, high-stakes theatre, and you will have won the biggest battle: To face your fear and win.
Fight and mean it.
Fight and win.
don’t give up
you’re not the only one
don’t give up
no reason to be ashamed
don’t give up
you still have us
don’t give up now
we’re proud of who you are
don’t give up
you know it’s never been easy
don’t give up
’cause I believe there’s a place
there’s a place where we belong–Peter Gabriel, Don’t Give Up
We actors love the thrill of getting out there, updating the resume, prepping songs and monologues, being loose, stretched, relaxed, passionate, primed and ready for action. To act. To audition.
We don’t love…to not get the part.
Auditioning is not just a job interview, you know? It’s putting your true, authentic Self on the line. And then dealing with what we might initially perceive as rejection.
The truth is, we don’t know what is going through the casting director’s head. We can’t read her/his mind. Maybe the person who got the part was simply the right height. Maybe the stars lined up for them that day. Maybe they brought it.
Did you bring it?
The only part of the audition process we have any control over is ourselves. Our preparation, followed by our being fully present and passionate the day of the audition. Practice being fully present and accessible and open. Often. Like, all the time, if you can bear to.
We will drive ourselves crazy if we try to compare our talents, our energy, our delivery with everyone else’s.
How do we pick up the pieces? Don’t take it personally. AUGH! How the heck can we accomplish that?
You have three options: Stop. Keep doing the same thing. Or, push yourself further.
Be yourself. Your true self. Here is the paradox: Your initial reaction is to close yourself off. But you’ve got to put yourself out there more. If you can be more vulnerable, go there. If you can strip your soul more bare, wear your heart on your sleeve more openly, yearn more strongly and doggedly fight for what you want until there’s nothing left? Do that.
Deliver. Dig deep. Wish and pine and rant and scream and wail and fight. It’s all you can do. Go waaaaaay outside your comfort zone; turn it inside out and stomp on it. It’s a cushion, a guard, a wall, self-preservation.
What the hell are we preserving ourselves for? Don’t save yourself, preserve yourself, pickle yourself, protect, diminish, hide, any of it. Put yourself out there. Big time. It’s our job as actors to go there.
If every actor can go there and do that, we have what is no longer the exception — we have universal brilliance, fabulous-ness, astoundingly heartfelt work. In the meantime, stand out. Be exceptional. Do the unexpected. Be uncommon. Embody your unique self, and fight like hell for what you want.
Put your whole Self in. The director wants to see commitment, love, presence. There is nothing more you can give than one hundred percent of yourself. If after all of that, you don’t get the role, it’s not about you. Trust. Have faith. Know that it wasn’t the right job at the right time. Something else will come along that is even better. It has happened to me scores of time, without exception.
Be proud. Be strong. Be brave. Put yourself out there. Even more. Every time.
Your faith will be rewarded.
Who would have guessed I was safety-pinned into my dress?
Who would have known there were still price tags on some pieces of my clothing?
Who would have imagined I was sweating it out earlier that day, going through a litany of crucial decisions:
I did my homework. I prepared. I prepared some more. I did a thorough voice practice before getting into the car. I made important decisions (for the record: shaved, wore new make-up, used hot rollers, sang in the car, sipped water, kept a professional distance–although I super wanted to hug the whole group of directors–and wore leggings).
I took risks. I belted. I moved. I danced.
I won.
Audition season is here. It’s time for your One Woman/One Man Show. Enjoy the process. Do all of the prep, the thinking, the wondering, the deciding. Then throw it all out the window and have a blast!
The Prep
Choose your material. Songs, monologues. Go for what you connect with and showcases your talents and abilities.
Practice. Try stuff. Experiment. Play with abandon. Pan for gold. Throw in every idea that comes to mind, and be especially open to any idea your body naturally expresses. Discover the truth of the monologue or song (which is a monologue put to music).
After rehearsing, execute what you’ve practiced. Freshly. Each time. Know what you want from your (invisible) partner, and fight for it. Use the words and music to get what you want. Repetition is key.
Hold a dress rehearsal. The way we stand and walk and sing in our audition outfit–and especially our shoes–is much different than how we move wearing yoga pants, a sweatshirt and bare feet. Put on your chosen audition outfit and shoes, take off your glasses, let your hair down, and run a couple of dress rehearsals in the days just before your audition.
Practice your introduction. Consider this a mini-monologue and script it. “Hello, my name is Carrie Jay, and I’ll be singing ‘Broadway Baby’ from Follies. My first monologue is Susie from Wait Until Dark. My second monologue is Shelby from Steel Magnolias.”
The Thinking
Bad news for thinking: it’s not part of the creative process. Give it something else factual and logical to do.
Get your route to the audition location on google maps.
Prepare your resume. This will take some thought and memory skills. (All the more reason to keep it current after each job you get!)
So now your brain has been assigned a couple of specific tasks, and can stay out of the way.
The Wondering
Okay, you can drive yourself crazy with this one. “I wonder if I’m [fill in the blank] enough?” “I wonder what the directors are looking for?” Etc.
Here’s what the directors are looking for: a person who shows up, is completely accessible, prepared, professional and passionate.
You don’t have control over the directors’ thoughts and opinions, so just go ahead and Fire the Judge, and be done with wondering.
The Deciding
The outfit. The hair. The car snack. Visualize the audition space, if you’re familiar with it. Make all of these decisions, then forget about them, sing in the car and get in the zone.
Throw It Out the Window and Have a Blast!
You’ve made the most important decision of all: to audition! To perform! To put yourself out there and DO IT!
Love the process.
Love yourself.
Love your life.
‘Cuz you’re livin’ it. With courage and joy.
Tired? Sit down.
No, actually, flop deeply into the most comfortable chair you can find. Yawn, sigh from your gut, and feel your entire body relax into that nice, soft chair. Ahhh….
Nervous? Pace.
Better yet: jump up and down. Turn your head upside down and shake your hair loose. Sprint down the hall. Do twenty jumping jacks. Spring, dance, shimmy, bellow, hoot. Sing. Loudly.
Don’t back away from what your body is telling you. Embrace it.
Stop talking yourself out of your feelings. Allow them.
Let’s be done with second-guessing, self-doubting, denying, and adjusting our authentic selves to fit the expectations of others. Or our own expectations. Let’s stop trying to jam our square selves into a round hole. Instead, just be.
Audition season is underway. Typically, the earliest auditions are the most challenging. We are getting our stage-legs again, even if we have performed in productions over the past year. It’s time for the one-woman/one-man show, and it’s always a bit unnerving jumping back into selecting, polishing and presenting our monologues and songs. We’ve got to Fire the Judge, screw up our courage, and put ourselves out there. Alone on the stage. And nail it.
The reality is, the stakes are high. We want something (an acting job, a dream role, weeks toward insurance from AEA), and we are going to fight to get it.
Let those butterflies, sweaty palms, racing hearts just be. Simply allow what is. The physical state of high-stakes, dread, importance, urgency, and fear is precisely the same physical state required to effectively deliver your monologue and songs (which are actually merely monologues put to music). Your immediate need is crucial. Go out there and fight for what you want. And mean it.
Bring your day with you. Don’t deny it. Don’t try to calm yourself down or crank yourself up, or be anything other than what you honestly are in that moment. Breathe. Be grounded, present, urgent, passionate. Fight, fight, fight. Get the job. Capture your dream role. Win.
Go there. Do that.
I’m right there with you.