The Audition Road Goes Ever On

In my last post on auditions, I had taken it upon myself to go to an open Equity audition because agent appointments had been hard to come by. That audition began a string of roughly a week of auditioning. The second audition my agent called about and one more Equity open call followed. The audition my agent got for me was interesting, a well paying job at a relatively unknown theatre on a project I knew very little about. A light romantic comedy/musical. Not normally something I gravitate towards, but things have been slim and there were elements that intrigued me. And did I mention it paid well? The other open audition was for a concert version of a large musical I've always wanted to perform at a new and emerging theatre. Again, appointments were hard to come by , but I knew it was the type of show that suited me and was determined to attend (see: Actor Know Thyself).
In a stroke of good fortune, all three auditions led to call backs. I've often heard it said that if you get a call back, you should feel you've done your job. To some extent, that's true. Once into the call back process, any number of factors beyond your control could affect the outcome. Height. Weight. A resemblance to a director's ex- boyfriend or girlfriend (seriously). A role being cast in advance. A star expressing interest. A limited number of union contracts. You get the idea. However, while it's a personal victory to get a call back, the bottom line is that actors need jobs and until one is offered you've only got your personal accomplishment with which to eat and pay the bills. In any event, I hunkered down and dove into the next round of auditions.
In every case, the people holding the auditions were very kind and helpful. That's often, but not always, the case. When that does not happen, a tense and stressful process is magnified. This time, though, they were all great. To give some idea of what the call back entailed: call back one consisted of me singing a short piece and performing a monologue in both an Irish and a Scottish dialect, audition two consisted of learning 11 pages of music and three scened overnight to perform for the creative staff the next morning, and audition three consisted of a short song and a scene read two different ways with two different dialects. That is all just to give some perspective on what was required throughout the 8 days from initial audition through final call back. ( My personal opinion on giving actors a lot of material to learn for an audition is this: it most often prevents the actor from doing his/her best as they are more focused on not making mistakes and remembering the notes and music they learned rather than giving the best audition they can with material they are comfortable performing. To hire the right actor I think all actors should be given every chance to succeed. Just my two cents and the people who "assigned" the material were gracious and professional throughout the process.)
As of now, I've booked the concert job. It's the shortest contract and least money but arguably the most prestigious. I have yet to hear about the other jobs which is usually not a good sign. There is an informal network among a few of us to let the others know if any of us received an offer. To this point, no one I know has heard anything. Most likely offers have been made, but we just don't know. Remember: No one calls to tell you that you don't have the job.
So, on we go. Entering the holidays and with a short job coming up in January while maintaining a faint hope that one of the others will call. But not holding my breath. Isn't it all glamorous?
P.S. I don't at all mean to make this seem completely grim. The process of getting a job is grueling and often lonely and deflating. However, the friendship and spirit shared with the other actors is rewarding. And when you make it onto the stage, in something you respect, with people you appreciate, there is nothing quite so magical.