Have you thought about auditioning to be a character performer? This posts walks you through the audition process.
In order to be considered for a character performer you have to attend one of the DCP specific character performer auditions that are held throughout the application cycle. This post will walk you through what to expect in a character performer audition.
Deciding to Audition
You DO NOT have to have been accepted into the program in order to audition for character performer, however, you must have applied.
A lot of people don't realize that you don't have to be accepted into the program prior to auditioning for a character performer. My audition was the day before I had my phone interview. There are a few rules however that you need to be aware of prior to deciding to audition. The first is that if you are NLIC'd based on your WBI or phone interview, no matter how awesome of an audition you have, Entertainment will not turn around your NLIC. There is an exception to this though! If you were NLIC'd on application received, you can still audition to be a character performer. If entertainment is considering you for a role they will go over your application again. NOTE: you must still complete the WBI and phone interview prior to receiving an offer from entertainment.
So you've decided you are eligible to audition, now what? The first step is determining when auditions are being held and what audition city you are going to attend. Auditions are held for roughly 10 straight days all across the US, and typically occur in the middle of the application cycle. For Fall 2019 auditions were held between February 28 and March 8. Auditions are held in most major cities around the US, think NYC, Chicago, LA, Atlanta, and if you don't live near one of these cities you need to think which one you would be able to travel to. Auditions are also held at different times depending on the city, although most start at either 10:30 AM or 1:30 PM.
What to Wear to the Audition
Many people ask what to wear to their audition and that's a legitimate question especially for someone who is not used to audition culture. Disney recommends you wear comfortable clothes that are easy to move in. When I went to my audition the majority of girls were in leggings and tank tops or T-shirts. A few girls wore leotards under their leggings. Honestly wear whatever makes you comfortable and confident because when you feel good in your own skin you perform better!
For shoes again that's really a personal preference. I wore jazz shoes to my auditions, but I'm a dancer and already own a pair. I would say your main shoe options are ballet shoes (which can be slippery depending on the floor of the studio your in), jazz shoes, or gym shoes. If you're not a dancer I would stick to a nice pair of gym shoes. I've watched YouTube videos of girls who have gone out and bought jazz shoes prior to auditioning and that's really not necessary. If you have ballet shoes and jazz shoes it comes down to personal preference. I personally love my ballet shoes more than my jazz shoes, but have noticed sometimes when I audition in ballet shoes I tend to slide around which translates to me having less control of my body.
For makeup I would recommend keeping it on the more natural side. This is because Disney could also be considering you for a Face Character and they need to be able to see what you really look like. For my audition I didn't cut down on the amount of makeup I wore, but instead applied it in a way that highlighted my natural features. This translates to neutral eye shadow colors, no eyeliner line, skin toned lip gloss, and a brushing of bronzer and blush.
What to Expect the Day of Auditions
Auditioning is nothing to be scared of, especially a Disney Audition!
Prior to the audition I would recommend joining a Facebook group for character performers auditions. This is because a lot of people will arrange to get together prior to the start of auditions. This is really great especially if you are going to the audition alone because it means you'll go in with some new friends!
On the Disney Audition website they list what time the audition starts and what time they start letting people into the room. I recommend getting to the audition location earlier. For my audition the audition started at 10:30 AM and the room was supposed to be open at 9:00 AM, but they let people into the holding room before this. Right before the audition starts, the casting director comes in and has everyone link their audition to their DCP application. It also requires taking a selfie!
After that is done they began splitting people up into groups of 50. As the cast director was handing out numbers if you were in the first 1-50 you went into one room and if you were in 51-100 you went into a second room to begin your audition. If your number was higher than that you stayed in the holding room.
Round 1
Once everyone is settled into the room the choreographer comes in and begins to teach the first march. In my opinion the march was taught at a nice pace and was very simple, however, I'm a dancer so take my opinion with a grain of salt. After the march was taught and practiced a few times the casting director came in for the audition. Everyone was lined up in groups of three and did the march towards the casting director. It was a really fun environment and overall very positive. Once every has gone the casting director told everyone to sit down and called out the number of those who were staying.
Round 2
It's important to note that everyone who makes it past round 1 is in consideration for character performer. You're moved into a different room and are given a sheet of paper to fill out stating basic information about yourself. Then you're brought back into the audition room. This is where you get your photo taken, list any tattoos that you have, and get your Disney height! So exciting! Once everyone has gone through this process you are taught the animation portion. In the animation portion you are given a scenario to act out without talking. You're given ample time to practice and the choreographers give you some ideas if you're stumped. You run through this a few times before moving on to the dance portion. This dance is longer and harder than the initial march, but still isn't anything difficult if you have dance training. The important thing to remember is to look like you're having fun no matter what!
After you run through the dance everyone is filed back out into the holding room. People are then brought into the audition room in groups of 5. When you're brought into the audition room you are placed in staggered formation and are asked to do the dance and then the animation. Honestly it goes by so fast, just remember to live your life and have fun. After you complete the audition the casting director may ask people to stick around. IF YOU ARE NOT ASKED TO STICK AROUND THIS DOES NOT MEAN YOU ARE NO LONGER BEING CONSIDERED!
Round 3
If you made it to round three it generally means you are being considered for a face character or a parade performer. If you are being considered for a face character generally they will take more pictures of you and record you reading lines. If you are being considered for a parade performer the choreographer will go over details of the routine to make sure you are clean before recording you doing the dance. When they record you doing the dance they have you do it with people of similar heights to you and record it twice, from two different angles.
Round 4?
I'm not even sure this is really a thing, but in my audition there was a quasi-Round 4. After people did the dance in round 3, some were asked to stick around. After everyone who was asked to stick around and dance again in round 3 went, the remaining people were brought back into the studio and learned another more difficult dance. After the dance was taught, which was taught more along the lines of a normal dance call where the dance is thrown at you, everyone will be brought back into the room with the casting director. Again people were grouped by height and performed the dance twice being filmed in front of the cast director.
That's it! That's what to expect at a Disney character performer audition. I've been to quite a few auditions and Disney auditions are always the most welcoming and fun in my opinion. Be yourself and have a blast.
Best of Luck! And remember to have fun!
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