The Audition

September/October 2008 Issue | Posted by Robyn Lee in Back Porch

By Robyn Lee

“All the world’s a stage,” said William Shakespeare. Now I know what he means.

Some people ease into a new hobby by knitting or learning to draw. But I wanted to take up acting. So I figured that emailing a big-name theater and asking if they could recommend an amateur-friendly community theater was a reasonably modest start.

When the producer emailed me back that same day and encouraged me to audition for his musical, my confidence was bolstered.

My muse was speaking. You can do this, she told me. You can! There would be no easing in here. I would jump into the deep end.

I picked my favorite song from the show and rehearsed it in the car, in the shower, and in front of my book club. Sign me up for “American Idol.” This is going to be a breeze.

When the day for my audition arrived, I strutted into the theater with my head held high.

While I put on my shoes, though, I saw a woman looking at me over her stacked portfolio. Her makeup was perfect, and she was wearing a flowing black dress with high heels. She flipped her hair and said, “My last play was Guys and Dolls, but right now I’m in The King and I.”

Arriving next was a sophisticated, older gentleman with a gray beard and a booming voice. “Sorry I’m late,” he said. “I was just over practicing for Miss Saigon. My musical director is stuck in traffic, but he’ll be here shortly.” Wow, I thought. What’s a musical director?

When the director called my name, my neck prickled with sweat. It was time to sing.

“There’s a saying old, says that looooove is blind,” I began. “There’s a someone I’m looooonging to see!” Your voice is shaking. Breathe from the diaphragm. Soft palate up! Not so bad.

After each person sang, a lady with fancy shoes shouted, “Okay, put on your tap shoes! Everyone on stage!” Umm, tap shoes?

“Okay, this is how it goes,” she announced. “Shuffle step, shuffle step, ball change, hop, kick!” I watched dumbly as the Fred Astaires around me tapped along in perfect unison.

“On to the next part — ball change, cross over, lunge, turn! Any questions?” Questions? Yeah, I’ve got one. What does all of that mean?

Fancy Shoes Lady stepped off the stage and the music began. There was nowhere to hide. I had to dance or flee.

I flapped my arms and jumped up and down in an attempt to track my fellow dancers’ movements, but I was an awkward bear in a herd of graceful gazelles. Wait, I think I might have gotten that one move right. Did you all see it? I hope so, because I’m pretty sure it will not happen again.

When we paused, Fancy Shoes Lady turned to me with kind eyes. “It’s okay,” she smiled, “if you don’t know tap.” Laugh now. You must laugh. Because the only other thing you could manage right now would be to cry and that would be even more humiliating than learning to tap dance in the middle of an audition.

My purgatory finally ended when someone from the panel announced, “Thank you! We’ll let you know.”

The only thing I needed anyone to “let me know” was how to get out of there as quickly as possible.

So, what did Shakespeare mean about the world being a stage?

Maybe he meant that what you get out of life’s challenges sometimes is what I got after my first step outside my musical comfort zone: a Dear John phone call from the big-name theater.

Maybe he meant that sometimes, when we take a chance or try something new, we crash and burn. But that’s okay. Whatever the details of our audition, God’s challenges are a means of drawing us closer to him.

God might not ask us to try out for a musical, but he does continually challenge us to step outside our spiritual comfort zones — to pray daily, defend our faith, say Yes to life, volunteer, or do a weekly holy hour. Our Yes may not work out at first. So what?

My next move was to audition for a small part in Oklahoma! at a small community theater. The director called the following week. I got the part!

It just goes to show: You may not know the shuffle step, but if you put on your tap shoes and give it a shot, God’s rewards will be abundant. C

Assistant Editor Robyn Lee

played Virginia in a Meriden, Conn.,

production of Oklahoma!

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