Bounce Back From Bombing An Audition

 Okay! Maybe you didn’t completely bomb it. You probably didn’t bomb it at all, actually. That next thought? Well, why didn’t I get the call back? Or you may ask yourself why you weren’t chosen for that job. 

A few years ago I went to audition for A company I really want to work for. I thought everything had gone great— from the ballet section to the modern choreography section. However, something interesting happened before we actually finished the entire day. It was time for center work and the Instructor wanted all of the women to perform fouette turns en pointe. That might have not been so scary if I had actually done a fouette turn before. While this scenario may not sound too bad, I want you to know that while everyone else turned, I attempted, and then proceeded to stand tall and beautiful in a fifth position. that was a bit embarrassing and to this day I’m not sure if that was the cause of my audition outcome but as you can probably guess I did not receive a contract to work with that company that year.

Although there can be a number of factors that contribute to the final decision of artistic directors, here are a few ways you can be sure to always bounce back stronger when the audition or its results doesn’t go as planned.

First, if you are able to, thank the Director.

 And if you receive a rejection letter via email, it is always nice to respond positively to that as well. There is something about gratitude that helps us move forward and extract positive lessons from even the toughest situations. Gratitude has the ability to strengthen your heart to not take things too seriously and to be open to trying again.

Second, take an honest assessment of your performance and commit to improving.

 Sometimes it’s hard to be honest with ourselves especially when we know we could’ve done better. There are also times where we just may not have been as prepared and other times we are just too hard on ourselves. Conducting an honest assessment gives us a realistic approach to improving our technique and artistry where needed.

Lastly, reflect on the audition process and pinpoint where you got uncomfortable.

You know how we can become good test takers? The same is true for auditioning. Reflecting on how the process went can help you acknowledge any hard sections outside of the energy of the audition space. Let’s be honest, some auditions can feel stuffy and very intense. Once you have a moment to decompress and think about how you responded or reacted to the warm-up, center work, partnering or repertory, figure out which parts were tougher than others. Once you do that you can give yourself more grace and stronger mental preparation the next time you hit that spot during an audition.