BWW Blog: Micah Young - By The Book 

Whether we like it or not, appearances matter, especially in auditions. How you look, dress, walk all tell the casting team who you are and how you think of yourself. Likewise your audition book is a representation of how you view your audition.

When I've played piano for auditions, I seem to get music handed to me in all shapes and states of disrepair. Some actors hand in tattered old pieces of paper, some loose sheets that fall off the music stand, some are loose sheets and double-sided making it extremely hard to play. Recently I had a first: a student brought in a cell phone, asking me to play the PDF off the screen. I thought playing off an iPad was tricky.

Friends and fellow cast members, lend me your ears: your book is an extension of who you are as an actor. If your book is sloppy filled with ripped pages and poor photocopies, or if there is no book, that says something. It's the equivalent of showing up to a job interview in ripped jeans and a tank-top. The effort of a clean, legible book not only prepares you for the audition, but it makes it easier for your accompanist to play for you, which in turn makes you look even better.

Photo Credit: Caio Resende