QUESTIONS TO ASK YOURSELF WHEN BUILDING A CHARACTER

Audition speeches are tricky in the sense that they are completely out of context of a play setting and you haven't had the whole play to build up to this moment - so its a real test of your prep that you can walk into the audition room and instantly capture the feelings, thoughts and emotions of that character under the pressure of the audition.

But don’t worry! We’re here to help you know all of the questions to ask yourself so that you can properly prepare for your audition and walk into the room feeling confident.

If you would like all of this super-helpful-infortmation in a really gorgeous book that you can take everywhere with you...why not check out our Drama School Audition Life journals that have EVERYTHING in them to help you nail your drama school audition journey 😉  

ABOUT YOUR CHARACTER

• How old is your character?
• Where were they born? What was their family life like growing up?
• What did their parents do? What was the relationship like with their family? (How does this influence how they talk and behave around people in the play?)
• What major life events have happened to them so far? (have they had a baby? Split up with their first love? Been in an accident? etc)
• What are their interests? What do they do for a living? Do they study?
• What relationships (good/bad) do they have in the play?
• What do these people say about your character? What do you say about them?
• What does your character wear? How do they stand? Do they have a physical/mental disability? Are they self-conscious? If so, why? 
• Status wise; what status does your character have in the play? Are they powerful? Are they intimidated easily?
• What does your character want from this scene and from the person?
• What does your character want from life?

ABOUT THE SETTING

• Where are they currently? And where have they come from?
• Are they happy to be here? Why are they here? Whats the environment like? What is the landscape like at the moment? (is it during a war? Is there political unrest happening? Is it all rose gardens and happy days? How is this affecting them in the play?)
• Where are they physically? What room are they in? What is the room like? Do they like this place? Are they happy here?
• Who else is here? What is your relationship like with that person? Why are they here? What do you want from them?

Here are just a handful of questions to start asking yourself when fleshing out your character and getting a sense of the world they live in. Note this down, the more questions you answer - the better understanding you have of where you are and what you want. This will make it so much easier to recall when you walk into the drama school audition.

Then narrow it down to just these three questions to help you get in the zone:

• Where am I physically and how does this make me feel?
• Who is here, what's our relationship and what do I want from them?
• Where have I just come from and what am I feeling?

We are always on our Instagram DM’s for advice so please feel free to drop us a message if you need any advice or have any questions about applying!

Tasha x