Aaron Marcus says actors bomb comedy auditions by trying to be funny instead of playing it straight. Deliver lines deadpan and literal, let the other performer's choices land the joke, and know the show's tone inside out. Casting depends on age, look, and fit too, not just performance.
Hey, I'm Aaron Marcus, and I just finished doing a self-tape for a TV show that I really love. But really quickly, if you haven't subscribed yet to my Acting and Modeling Quick Tip channel, make sure you click the subscription button now and also the little bell, the notification button. And that way, every time I upload a new quick tip video, you'll be notified. So this is a TV show that I, I really love. I'm not going to mention the name of it. But it's, it's a really funny show, and, uh, I just want to give you a couple and share with you some— a couple strategies that I used that I believe gave me my best chance for, uh, having success. Actually, you know what, I take it back. Not for having success, because look, chances of booking the job are incredibly slim. I really don't think I'm going to get it, but What I do believe is that the strategies and techniques that I used gave me my best read. That's all I can say. It's out of my hands now. Other people have to look at it. They have to believe that I am the perfect person for the role. And that's why it's— I never think I'm going to book anything. So here's what I did. Number one, If you're ever auditioning for a TV show, make sure you are very, very familiar with the show, the style. Is it a comedy? Is it a drama? How do people talk to each other? People cut each other off? Is it more laid back? So I'm very, very, very familiar with the show. Now here's, here's the tricky part. It's a comedy, and the person who— well, one of the people who I'm talking to Just did something crazy, just absolutely insane. And so my thought was, I don't want to try to make anything that I say funny, even though I do have some, some funny things to say. But the point is, the straighter that I read my lines, the funnier the other person is. And so You know, it's my job to make things— look, I'm a team player. It's my job to make things as great as I possibly can. So it's not a matter of, oh well, if I try to make my lines really funny, people are going to laugh, they're going to like what I do. It's not about the actor. It's about serving the scene. It's about making the, the actual scene work. And what will make this work is me saying my lines as straight as possible, because when you see this opposing view here and you see this, this outrageous stuff the other person's doing, it makes it even more outrageous and even funnier. So yeah, it's just a strategy that I thought about, and it made a lot of sense to me. And once again, it's— I'm not going to say I'm right or wrong based on whether I book the role because I don't think I'm going to book it, number one. And number two, they might have loved what I did, but maybe they think, you know, the hair doesn't— the hair color doesn't look right. Maybe he's too old. Maybe he's not old enough. Maybe he's too thin. Maybe he's not thin enough because he looks too much like some of the other characters. Who knows? There are a million and one reasons. Why you book and don't book the job. And quite often it can have very little to do with your actual performance. I'm not saying you can be horrible and expect to get a job, but, you know, everybody who's auditioning for this, I'm sure, are gonna— they're gonna do a great job. And then it comes down to who they think is the best match, you know, for the job. So here's the key thing: if you're doing a comedy, Don't necessarily try to make it funny. Like I said, most of the time, you know, unless it's slapstick stuff, but most of the time, play it straight. Let the words make it funny. The straighter, you know, you, you say your lines, the funnier it can be. And once again, for me, it served the scene much, much better if I play this very straight. So anyhow, I just wanted to share that with you. Um, feel free to share this with other people. Um, Like, that's why I'm doing this. So, you know, send it out throughout your social media. You can post it on Facebook or Instagram, however you want to do it. You know, let other people, you know, learn from this as well. And 2 other really, really quick things. I'd love to hear if you auditioned for a comedic piece and what your strategy was. So share it below, and that way, you know, we can all learn from each other. The other thing too, if you could, I'd love to have you be a part of my YouTube channel. If you could make a donation, that would be wonderful. There's a PayPal link below, and just make a donation, whatever you feel is good for you. I would greatly appreciate it, uh, and having you support this YouTube channel. Anyhow, I'm Aaron Marcus, and I can't wait to talk with you again soon. See ya.
