What are some of the best practices for auditioning and casting dancers for a musical?

1 Plan ahead

Before you announce your auditions, you need to have a clear vision of what you are looking for in your dancers. Consider the genre, style, and level of difficulty of your musical's choreography, as well as the number, type, and size of your dance roles. You also need to decide on your audition format, location, date, time, and duration, and communicate them clearly to your potential candidates. You may want to have separate auditions for lead dancers, ensemble dancers, and singers who dance, or combine them in different stages. You may also want to have callbacks for some roles or groups.

2 Prepare materials

To run a professional and successful audition, you need to prepare the materials necessary for both you and your dancers. This should include a sign-in sheet and registration form that collects dancers' contact information, availability, experience, training, and special skills. Additionally, you should provide a clear synopsis of your musical's characters, songs, and dance numbers as well as the expectations and requirements for each role. Furthermore, you should have a choreography video or demonstration of the dance combinations that you will teach and test at the audition. This can include different combinations for different styles or levels of difficulty such as jazz, tap, ballet, or contemporary. Additionally, have a music playlist or live accompanist that matches the tempo and mood of your choreography. Lastly, you should have a camera or recorder to document and review the dancers' performances.

3 Evaluate skills

At the audition, you need to evaluate the dancers' skills and abilities in relation to your musical's choreography and vision. You may want to use a scoring system or a checklist to rate the dancers on various criteria, such as their technique, expression, style, versatility, and stamina. For technique, consider their execution of steps, movements, and transitions as well as their alignment, balance, coordination, and control. When evaluating expression, look for the appropriate facial expressions, gestures, and dynamics that convey the emotion, mood, and story of the dance. Style should encompass the genre, style, and level of difficulty of the choreography with an appropriate flair and finesse. Versatility involves performing different styles or roles with range, flexibility and creativity to switch between them. Finally, consider their energy, endurance and quality throughout the audition to see if they show signs of fatigue, injury or stress.

4 Consider fit

When considering the dancers for your musical, you should observe and assess them on various aspects. Personality is an important factor, and you should evaluate how well they interact with you, your team, and other dancers. Additionally, their availability should be taken into account to ensure that they match your rehearsal and performance schedule. Finally, you should assess their appearance to make sure that they fit with the aesthetic and character design of your musical. Costumes and props should also be taken into consideration to ensure that the dancers complement your musical.

5 Make decisions

After you have evaluated and considered all the dancers, you need to make your final casting decisions. You may want to consult with your team, review your notes and recordings, and compare your options. You may also want to have a backup list of alternates or understudies in case of emergencies or changes. Once you have made your decisions, you need to notify the dancers as soon as possible, and provide them with feedback, instructions, and contracts. You also need to thank all the dancers who auditioned for your musical, and appreciate their time and effort.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?