How To Beat Audition ‘Jitters’

I believe most actors get nervous before auditioning. Of course, the amount of nerves varies from actor to actor – some performers are literally overcome with anxiety and ‘jitters’ – while others seem able to gain a bit of control over their nerves.

What every actor should understand about this inevitable attack of nerves is this one salient fact: Fear is a conditioned reaction. Which means that fear (anxiety, nervousness, the ‘jitters’) is, at its core, a habit.

Bottom line? Our habitual reaction to an audition is something we built all by ourselves …  probably a long time ago.

This habit of nerves was undoubtedly begun that very first time you decided you would ‘try-out’ for a show. It’s only natural in this first instance – because you had no idea what to expect. Fear of the unknown is hard-wired into us and the jolt of adrenaline we experience is something over which we have absolutely no control.

But here’s where things get dicey: Over time we have probably reacted in the same way to every audition circumstance, because of another hard-wired human trait – our resistance to change.

In other words, rather than change our habitual reaction – even after we’ve been at it for awhile and we know what will be coming at each audition – we generally try to just get comfortable with the idea that being nervous is the natural precursor to ‘trying out.’

The problem is that if you are anxious, nervous, jittery, or in an emotional ‘state,’ during the professional circumstance – it can have all sorts of unintended consequences. We can end up trying too hard, forgetting our plan of action, missing important instructions, or just ‘going up’ on our lines.

Of these, trying too hard is the worst. As any athlete can tell you, trying too hard is precisely the opposite of being ‘in the zone.’ In fact, the impression we give when we’re trying too hard can be misinterpreted by others as lack of confidence, lack of ability, lack of knowledge, or we’re simply seen as needy and non-professional.

In the big leagues of show business, all of these interpretations are pretty much deal killers.

That’s why it’s critical to get a handle on your nerves.

Let me suggest a good first step in that process …

Having assessed actors, in the audition circumstance, for some 40 years (as a producer and director) – the thing that has always stood out for me is the ‘mental state’ each actor brings into the room. Since one’s mental state always has a huge impact on success, that’s where we’ll focus our attention today.

The first thing to ‘get’ is that the audition, in and of itself, is never the issue. An audition is simply an incident – and what really counts is the way you think about it.

To illustrate why how you think about an audition is so important to your results … let’s imagine a scenario:

You are on vacation and visiting an Old West attraction. You are standing with a group of people, waiting for the ‘gunfight at noon’ to start. Suddenly a frightened horse has bucked off its rider … and is galloping toward a small child in the street. Several people see the accident that is about to happen.

One person, with a vivid imagination – but not in charge of her mental activity at all – pictures all the horrors that may happen and is paralyzed by fear. Another thinks only of his own danger and either can’t move – or runs away. Yet another throws his arms around wildly – shouting at the child. Of course, what he is doing comes from his own mental distraction – and only adds to the general confusion.

But there is one person (you ) who sees exactly the same incident that the others see, but who is propelled into action by an entirely different line of thinking …

‘In an instant’ you estimate the distance and speed of the horse, your own running speed, and your distance from the child. You calculate that there is an excellent chance to take successful action – and you spring to the rescue … snatching the child from danger.

You are the hero – and the crowd applauds you. (And, as an actor, you are naturally pleased with this result.)

In this scenario we have seen:

(1) An external incident. (The audition.)

(2) The thinking of each person.

(3) The consequent action of each person.

Although the actions of each person were connected with the same incident – what each one actually DID came from what each one thought, not from the incident itself.

This is always the case.

Between the incident and the action – always comes thinking. Without this thinking, there would be no action at all.

The incident itself never gives you the means to take action. It’s what you THINK about it that decides that.

This is true of all our actions – whether great or small, important or trivial, observed or unobserved.

And the same is true for our auditions. We are nervous or jittery not because of the audition itself – but because of what we think about the audition.

In other words, as soon as you begin to control the way you think about your audition process, you begin to control the way in which you audition.

And that’s a giant step forward on the road to becoming a pro: Learning to control what you think.