Expert: J. Spyder Isaacson - 12/10/2007

Question
Hello! My name is Nick and I'm 18. I love Seattle. But it's daunting. I am desparate to get into the acting scene, but don't know where to start my career. Which theaters are -- how to phrase this -- the easiest to audtition for? I mean, Are there, like, less professional community theaters? Because I doubt I could get a part in any of the ultra-professional theaters when my resume is so tiny, you know? Every tells me to start small to build up your resume.

Any help or information is appreciated. I want to know as much as I can about the theaters around here.

Answer
Thank you for giving me an easy question to answer (I don't get many easy ones).

From your age, I am assuming (feel free to correct me) that you are recently graduated from high school.  This opens up the possibilities nicely.

Your best bet to start building your resume is working with *anyone* who will cast you.  Your best bet in this regard are the community theatres.  Most of them are good; some have an enviable longevity that results in frequent (if not, in some cases, consistent) excellence.  (Please note that I hesitate to criticize *any* theatre company, simply because you can still get good experience from a less-than-professional theatre.)  Valley Community Players in Renton is typically quite good - and it's where I spent a fair portion of my early days paying my dues.  Burien Little Theatre is quite a bit smaller, but also has a sterling reputation.  Also, don't discount Redwood Theatre out of Redmond - they often get professionals working for them, even though they are a community theatre.

You might also want to check out the fringe theatres as well.  They have the advantage of luring working and aspiring professionals, and paying small stipends.  I recommend Waffle Theatre, a small theatre that performs in small venues but draws excellent talent.  Also, Tanja Productions and Black Cat Productions do extraordinarily good work (personally, I think Tanja Pineda of Tanja Productions is one of the single best directors I've ever worked with).  Theatre Schmeater (known amongst local actors as "the Schmee") has been struggling lately, but still draws audiences with (among other things) their stage adaptations of Twilight Zone episodes.

Don't discount the full-fledged Equity houses, though - you may be just what they're looking for and, as the saying goes, "fortune favors the bold".  (Hey, that's how I got my first professional [non-Equity] job - I was what they needed at the time!)  A.C.T. (A Contemporary Theatre) has every-other-month first-Thursday open auditions for ALL actors.

Lastly, there is a superb resource available to you to not only get familiar with the various theatre companies, but also to get regular audition notices and to participate in a Unified General Audition for ALL of the local theatres - Theatre Puget Sound (www.tpsonline.org).  TPS is the theatre industry association for our area, and also offers headshot services from professional photographers and classes and workshops.  (For education, if you can afford it, try Cornish College of the Arts, the University of Puget Sound and University of Washington, all of whom have excellent theatre programs.  If not, try Northwest Actors Studio and/or the Freehold Conservatory, which offer classes that can be taken for college credit. Additionally, Green River and Shoreline Community Colleges have well-respected programs, unlike Highline Community College.)

I hope this gives you a "leg up", and that you get to break it often!  If you have additional questions, feel free to ask!

-- Spyder