What separates the 79,800 professional actors in the United States from the wannabes?

Mainly a great audition.

Robert Westenberg knows how to nail an audition. Before joining Drury University and becoming the chair of the theatre department, he worked on Broadway productions and off-Broadway productions as well as in regional theaters, national tours, television, and film.

In 1988, he received a Tony nomination and Drama Desk Award for his role in the original cast of “Into the Woods” as the Wolf and the Prince. His roles have varied from playing Dr. Neville Craven in “The Secret Garden” to a guest appearance on “Law and Order: SVU.”

During his lengthy career as an actor in the entertainment industry, he auditioned numerous times. Because of Westenberg’s knowledge of the audition process and his success as a professional actor, The Scoop: SpringVegas recently met with him to find out a few tips for how to do well at an audition.

Know your lines.

“Get your hands on the sides as quickly as possible and start reading,” Westenberg suggests. A “side” is the script of the scene you will perform in your audition. He also suggests that you read as much of the script as you can in order to gain context of the scene. You normally get these materials from your agent.

According to Westenberg, the amount of time you are given to look at the sides varies considerably. Whether you are given a week or two hours to prepare, you should try to memorize your lines as best you can; however, if you are even a little insecure about them, Westenberg says that you should keep the script in your hand and refer to it.

Ken Davenport, Broadway producer of the Tony Award winning production of “Kinky Boots,” supports Westerberg’s advice.

If you have sides, try to memorize them. But if you can’t, it’s ok. We’d rather hear the material as written with the papers in your hand than hear you make up stuff just to prove that you tried (and failed) to memorize the material.

– Ken Davenport

Research the project.

“Know exactly who and what you are auditioning for,” says Westenberg. If you know the names of the people on the casting team or anyone else who is involved in the project, check out their backgrounds.

Yesi Ramirez, one of the casting directors for “Love and Other Drugs” and “21 Jump Street,” suggests that you find out what kinds of films they work on and what kinds of actors they favor. You should also know the style of the project. If it is a series, then it is beneficial to watch several episodes to get a grasp of its plot. One can never have too much information about the project.

Dress appropriately.

Westenberg suggests subtly dressing like the character you want to portray. You want the casting team to be able to easily see you in the role.

Director Ramirez supports this sentiment: “Dress the attitude, not the part. Don’t come in an elaborate costume. That’s just distracting, and it takes away from the audition. Don’t come dressed or made up to look so different from the character that we really have to strain our imaginations to envision you in the role. But you can help us out a little in terms of the vibe of the character. As a bonus, what you are wearing can help you feel closer to the character.”

Understand your character.

Westenberg stresses the importance of researching your character:

It is crucial to understand the goals, obstacles, tactics, and expectations of the person you want to play. You can develop a complex character that you can connect to with this information. It is your job as an actor to create an exciting performance in which you and you audience are fully engaged.

Therefore, read all the material you can find about your character. Denise Simon, an acting coach and career consultant, recommends that you develop your role by looking for what your character says about himself/herself, what other characters say about your character, and what the playwright or screenwriter says about your character.

Be confident.

Westenberg says that actors should appear polite, yet confident when auditioning for a role. Risa Bramon Garcia, who has worked consistently as a director, producer, casting director, writer, and teacher for the past 30 years, says: “Enter with certainty. Make specific, personal, bold choices. Make no excuses whatsoever.”

Davenport echoes these statements by saying: “Make your first 15 seconds count. When you meet someone for the first time, don’t you make a lot of suppositions? We do too.”

You want to be charismatic and command attention. Davenport continues by saying he wants you to make a choice if asks you to make one. He does not want to hear you say, “It doesn’t matter. What do you want?” Davenport believes actors have to make strong clear choices when developing characters. So, he wants to see that side of you in everything you do.