Harry Déboux

19, Acting and Auditions. 3rd Year Drama School Auditionee

[dramaschoolblogs-blog]

Guildhall School of Music and Drama (GSMD) audition @ Vermont Hotel (Newcastle), March 2018

If I’m being completely honest, I thought I’d love Guildhall; I really did. I admire so many of their alumni and even have friends there. That said, this school; from the get-go, just wasn’t for me.

We started with a warm-up, but, I mean, they said we weren’t being assessed but it totally felt like we were. As opposed to quelling our nerves, for me, it just heightened them — I felt as if they were judging how far we could stretch; and, to be real, the panel straight up humiliated this little 17-year old that was noticeably very anxious. We were made to line-up, come to the centre, and then tell them about something we love, something we hate, and then speak a line of our Shakespeare. But this poor girl couldn’t find the centre of the room without glancing at her feet and they totally just ripped her for it… it just wasn’t cool.

We stretched, spoke our speeches in a circle; basically just the usual jazz you do in acting class (but with the intense pressure of a drama school panel hawking over your every move).

After the thirty minute warm-up, we went off and waited to be called up for our speeches. I was fifth, which was fine, I guess.

So, I went in said hello and they let me do my first speech, uninterrupted. Then 1/3 or so through my second speech I got some redirection, then some more, and then some more. Actually, I didn’t get halfway through before they cut me off and asked for my song. I went for it and totally bombed the thing, I mean, the panel were cringing whilst I was singing (yes, it was that bad). I was stopped halfway through, told to run around the room and do it again (it was still dead as fuck). They sat me down for my interview where they asked me all these really specific questions: “what’s the difference between stand-up and acting?”, I replied, they then asked me to elaborate and I just choked — another one was something like “tell us your favourite syllogism...” and my mind just blanked, I sat there just sinking into the chair (lol); trying to push out something intellectual and I really couldn’t, oh God! It was so fucking awful. Then came the normal questions “what have you been doing? etc. etc.” As I was in the middle of telling them they asked for my third speech, I gave it; there was some redirection, then they asked for my song again and my second speech after that. We then resumed the interview and that was that.

The moment I left the room I knew I’d fucked that audition. I mean, yeah, it was kinda fun; really intense, but ultimately I knew the school was not for me.

After about an hour they came in and told us that nobody had been recalled and that was it. It’s a really weird school, I’m also probably salty as it’s my first rejection this season (crazy, I know!) but hey, at least I know not to audition next year. That school totally ain’t for me haha.

Oh well, onwards and upwards!

[dramaschoolblogs-blog]

Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) audition @ Northern Stage (Newcastle), February 2018

September 3rd 2017, it’s around 3:20pm and I’ve just left Foyles; I have a Shakespeare monologue but no contemporary... yet. I hop on a tube (or two) and end up on the Southbank, powerwalking toward the National Theatre. My train leaves in two and a half hours, there isn’t much time, I should’ve found a conetemporary by now! Shit, fuck, shit! I’ve fucked myself, haven’t I? I hurry on inside and squeeze into the bookshop, I’m not alone, though. I’d say four or five other 18-25 year olds were there; looking just as desperate and flustered as me — I am positive that at least half of them were looking for monologues. Wasting no time, I grab every play I can flicking to the front page hoping for a “Male, 18-20” character introduction. About an hour later, I’ve got an armful of post-2000s plays and I’m scanning for chunks of text. I swear, if I ever wrote a play, I’d make sure to put in at least 5 monologues per act... I mean, seriously Jack Thorne? No monologues?! You write a play starring teenagers and you didn’t put one monologue in there?! “Let The Right One In”, into where? Clearly not drama school! (Sorry Jack, if you’re reading this; the play was really good). Anyway, long story short, I’m about ten minutes away from having to sprint back to London Bridge station and pray I don’t have to pay another £100 for a train ticket when I find it... Amy Herzog, you beautiful woman! 4000 Miles! Oh, what a glorious monologue! Yes! Yes! Yes!! Now, because I’m, like, poor, I was planning to snap a photo on my iPhone and buy the bastard on Amazon when I get back to Durham... but I just gotta bite the bullet! I NEED to read this on the train, and so, the drama school journey of 2018 begins!

When I get back, the first thing I do is apply to RADA, Guildhall, and LAMDA because, I mean, they all audition up here so I knew my dates would all be around March meaning I’d have plenty of time to work on this piece. If you’re wondering, I attached a headshot to my RADA application form since we had to get them at the end of the foundation course I’d just graduated from in Manchester, but I’m 99% positive a selfie would normally suffice. I package the thing in one of those cardboard supported, A4 envelopes slapping a large letter stamp on that bad boy and off I send it! I hear back around 3 weeks later giving me an audition date.

I know a lot of people spend time in specially designed classes honing their speeches to perfection but, as mentioned previously, mans poor innit? So I basically did most the work myself, in my bedroom... alone, occasionally id venture out to show my acting friends or go a workshop. But most of the work was just from lil ol’ me.

Right , okay, I’m sure 90% of you just skipped to this part anyway as you’re all like me and have just finished an audition and you’re looking to compare... so, without further ado:

I walk in around 10 minutes early and sit in the waiting area, a really nice graduate calms my nerves and tells me what’s about to happen and all that jazz. I fill out the sheet telling them about my speeches and whatnot and then, after around a 15 minute wait, they call me in.

Not going to lie, my first attempts at conversation of to the handshake were, uhm, awkward as fuck. Mainly because the head of RADA was sitting on the panel, Edward. They intro’d him as a tutor on the Foundation course for some reason but I knew, and I’m pretty sure that he knew that I knew, but when I was making signals that I knew... well, let’s just say he may not have knew as much as I’d thought he knew (if that makes sense). But yeah, they ask me about my foundation course, my last name and where my family originally come from, I told a few anecdotes they found funny(?) and then after about five minutes of chatting they asked me to do my speeches with that 1/3 of the room instruction joe synonymous with them.

I did my contemporary first, and it started off okay... defiantly went off the rails and a little flat near the middle but I’m just going to go out on a limb and pretend that I saved it at the end. Because I kind of did, I mean, it’s the best I’ve started and finished... just the Middle was ‘meh’. It wasn’t bad, though (I hope).

I then went straight into my classical, which was better. I haven’t been too confident about my classical but I’d definitely say that this was a ‘better than usual’ performance. Fucked up the comedic ending, big time, though. Kind of just let it end — this is probably me imposing emotions here but the panel did kinda look a little confused.

Nonetheless, they asked to see my 3rd speech (I’d normally see this as a good sign but IDK — a lot of drama school bloggers have ended up doing their 2nd classical and got straight no’s.) Though, I will say this is the best I’ve done that one. It was actually the best piece I did for them!

Afterward, they called me back over and we had a brief chat about Shakespeare and theatre and stuff (I rambled on) and then my 15 minutes were up. They shook my hand and off I went. That was that.

Well, actually, that was yesterday so now I’m just left here trying to analyse the situation. I really hope I get at least a 2nd 1st because I like RADA a lot... but yeah, not quite sure what to make of it all. Pls email me RADA!

Guildhall next. Will update.