Audition Etiquette: What Casting Directors Want You to Know

Good audition etiquette is simple: arrive about 15 minutes early, stay focused in the waiting room, let the casting director lead on handshakes and chat, take adjustments with a yes, and leave without apologising for your read. We put the etiquette questions actors worry about to 26 casting directors, and this is what they told us.

How early should you arrive for an audition?

About 15 minutes. That's Kym's standard: walk into the waiting room a quarter of an hour before your time, which leaves room for parking and a wrong turn. Don't sign in more than half an hour early, and if you want to come much earlier, ask your agent or the casting office about their audition window first.

Running late? Call your agent, who can let casting know. Sign in and out of the sheet accurately; our commercial casting expert said the times can matter on union commercial sessions, and casting appreciates a little grace.

How should you behave in the waiting room?

Quietly, and focused on your own work. Actor and acting teacher Anthony Brandon Wong suggests headphones and music that puts you in the scene, rather than listening to the room. Ricki Maslar's reminder: people are watching you in the waiting room, so warm up gently, not theatrically.

Don't ask another actor to run lines with you before their audition. Kym says they'll feel obliged, and it could throw them off; once they're done, it's different. Networking expert Ajarae Coleman said the waiting room isn't the place to work the crowd either. Parents of young actors should wait outside or in the foyer, not in the room, as Jess Orcsik told us.

How should you walk into the audition room?

Ready to work. Kerry Barden said the actors who impress him walk in with confidence, not arrogance, keen to show their take on the character. Ricki Maslar asked actors to come in prepared rather than desperate, with nerves handled before the door opens, and not to ask "what are you looking for?" Show them what you brought.

Skip the preamble. Bonnie Zane said the audition is your time with the role, not the moment to tell them about your day. Kerry Barden added: don't apologise on the way in for getting the sides last night, and if you're sick, don't come in at all.

Should you shake hands at an audition?

Let the casting director lead. Of the nine casting directors we asked, six said handshakes are now a no. Deborah Barylski stopped about ten years ago, and Kahleen Crawford, who once encouraged them, now suggests finding another warm way to say hello. Carmen Aiello doesn't mind either way, and Faith Martin said a handshake simply isn't necessary.

Kym's reasoning: casting directors meet around a hundred people a day, so it's about their health, not coldness. If they offer a hand, or a hug, take it. More in our acting audition tips.

Should you make small talk or compliment their work?

Keep it short and genuine. Producer Shaked Berenson said there's a big difference between real appreciation of someone's work and the first credit that came up on Google; the first can land, the second feels hollow. If you need information to do the scene, ask. Kahleen Crawford said it's fine to say you only have three scenes and aren't sure what happened before them.

Save the chat for afterwards. Ajarae Coleman's view is that you're there to tell a story; once the scene is done, if the people in the room want to talk, that's the time to be your warm, professional self.

Can you direct the reader or ask for another take?

Within limits. Kym says you can ask the reader for one or two practical things, like sitting down on a certain line so your eyeline lands, or holding a beat. For physical action such as a kiss or a fight, ask the casting director how they've been playing it. And if producers are on their phones as you start, don't wait: begin when they say ready. Some people listen rather than watch.

Another take is fine if you read the room. Kym restarts within the first few lines in plenty of her auditions, and Carmen Aiello said she'll stop in the first 20 seconds if she hasn't locked in, with no complaints. Near the end, or in a rushed producer session, it's usually better to finish.

How should you take an adjustment?

Say yes and do it. Bonnie Zane's pet peeve is an actor answering "trust me, this is what we need" with "yeah, but I planned it this way"; she knows what the producers have asked for. Rachel Sutton said seasoned actors arrive with a couple of versions ready, so a redirect doesn't throw them, and actors who can't adjust are ones she can't send on.

Listening is the skill. Kahleen Crawford said relaxed actors actually hear the notes. Kerry Barden told us of an actor who missed a director's note, realised in the car, called back, and was seen again that afternoon.

What gets you remembered for the wrong reasons?

Behaviour, more than a bad read. Manager Chris Roe told us casting directors have reported clients' behaviour in the room, and some of those clients were let go. Shaked Berenson said a producer won't hire someone who seems difficult or negative, because the job runs through marketing and press as well as the shoot.

Never bring a weapon, real or fake; Kym suggests a pen for a knife and your hand for a gun. Leave gifts at home: she calls a present at an audition an 80 percent no. And if you were rude, that's the one thing casting directors said is worth an apology.

How do you leave, and should you apologise if it went badly?

Say thank you and go. Ricki Maslar said the professionals perform the role, are themselves, and leave. Don't apologise for the read. Of the 22 casting directors we asked whether actors should reach out after bombing, 16 said there's no need. Josh Einsohn and Ricki Maslar both warned an apology can plant doubt that wasn't there, and Rachel Sutton once met an actor who had worried for a year about an audition she'd forgotten.

If you truly fell apart, several suggested having your agent ask whether you can send a self tape. A short thank-you note is always fine: see thank you notes after auditions.

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