Directing Part 4: the Aftermath

There were auditions, and auditions, and auditions, and then a couple more auditions. Yes, I ended up having 4 separate auditions, and I think I could have had a couple more -- I'm still getting emails from people asking if they can try out.

Nope, too late, it's cast! Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeee!

When "12 Angry Men" auditioned the week before, they got 38 men showing up for 12 roles. Let me repeat that: they got 38. Men. Most theatres can't get 3 men to show up for a 4-man show, and here we could have cast "12 AM" 3 times and still had guys left over. And for the most part, all these guys were pretty darn good -- there were maybe 3-4 who were just awful, and another 4-5 who needed some tips on effective auditioning, but the rest were *really* castable.

And so I had high hopes for "Glass" auditions. Surely I'd pull as many people for this classic of American theatre, this play with iconic roles for both men and women -- surely.

I had 18 audition, total. And I'm counting dear Seyhan, who showed up at an audition, filled out the form for me, then said, "I'm not the right age for either of these female roles, am I?" And when I admitted she wasn't, she left without auditioning. So really I only had 17 people to choose from.

The good news is, most of them were really good -- if this same group came to audition for "Arabian Nights" next spring, I'd be a very happy woman. The bad news is -- well, I'm not sure what the bad news is. The show is cast, I'm very happy with my cast, and I'm sorry I couldn't use a bunch more of these folks.

And 18 is a fine respectable number. But damn it, it's not 38!

Fooey.

So who did I cast? Well, Pat B. will be Amanda. She's done the role before, down at Amish Acres (though she had a wildly different script than the one we'll be using--what's up with that?). Pat's very directable -- as an actress, she'll bend over backwards, literally, if a director asks her to -- she'll try anything you suggest, and *really* try to make it work (unlike some actors -- like me -- who'll sort of half-heartedly try something they don't really want to do, then argue that it "just doesn't work"). She understands the character -- heck, she admits that in some ways she *is* the character -- and she can carry a show if she has to. Audiences *enjoy* watching her, and that's a rare quality. I only have one concern about her doing the role, and it stems from her personality -- she's a very grounded person, doesn't put on airs (except obviously artificial ones for purely humorous purposes), doesn't pretend to be anything she's not -- and Amanda is nothing but airs and pretense. The underlying emotions Amanda feels are real, but her affect is unconnected with that reality in many ways. It's not a major concern, I don't think Pat's going to let her own personality overwhelm the needs of the character, but it's something I'm aware of, and it's something I thought about when I was casting the part.

Tom will be played by Rick E. I really only had one choice -- Rick blew me away. It was weird -- I can think of at least two other men at auditions who would have been terrific as Tom, but they didn't bring the passion or the commitment I got from Rick. Frankly, no one was more shocked than I was -- I knew he was good, but I didn't know he was *that* good. Even if his Tom never changes or grows from the audition Tom, I'll be happy. I just hope I don't ruin him. I've directed him before in a couple of shows, and I realized something then -- he's too much like me for me to be a good director for him. It's hard for me to pull away from what he's doing and give him an objective evaluation of his work -- so much of what he does is exactly what *I'd* do if I were playing his role, so of *course* I think it's wonderful. My main concern about Rick as Tom is concern for myself -- I don't want to let him down as an actor who's looking for directorial input.

Emily P. will be Laura. She was one of the few who showed me Laura's inner life, plus she didn't annoy me in auditions -- I find the character of Laura very annoying in general, so any actress who can show me a Laura I don't want to slap is an actress I want to work with. I've never worked with Emily before, and I've only ever seen her in one show, so I'm not sure what to expect from her, ultimately. She has a good reputation around the theatre -- people I know speak highly of her work ethic, for example -- so right now I don't have any particular concerns about her in the role. I have to get to know her better before she makes me nervous, I guess.

And finally, Aaron N. will play Jim, the Gentleman Caller. It's not (I hope) a thankless role; Jim doesn't show up until Act 2, but he's a vitally important character. I wasn't sure what I was looking for in Jim when I started auditions, but I eventually realized what the role needed -- an affability, a good humor, and a sympathy that none of the other characters exhibit. Jim's the representative of the outside, "normal" world, and he needs to be 180 degrees from the others. Aaron's audition was fairly low-key, and I ended up appreciating that -- he didn't "act" for me, he just showed me a very natural, very "normal" young man, someone who's very likable without being a caricature of a Hearty Fellow. Aaron's Jim was real, and genuinely *nice* to Laura -- I could see him being the sort of person to whom Laura would automatically be drawn. I've never directed Aaron before, though he was my percussionist for Zombies, so I have known him in other settings.

So that's it -- the Glass Menagerie cast. We won't start rehearsals until after Labor day when Pat gets back from California. Should be very interesting. Even though I don't like the play . . .