Sam Kilgard-
There are many events in this world that get one’s heart pumping: asking your crush out on a date, starting a new job, even attending your first day of college, but nothing compares to the feeling of standing in front of an audience and performing.
Public speaking is a common phobia. So many people fear the daunting task of having to perform in front of an audience that one might ask, who exactly wants to? Well, there just so happens to be a multitude of these talented individuals right here on campus.
Britta Sicora, a senior studying Early Childhood Development for the University of Wisconsin-Stout, has auditioned nine times in her life for a variety of performances. “My first audition was in fifth grade. I auditioned for an all-girls choir; my mother and my choir teacher helped me prepare for the role,” said Sicora. After her first audition, Sicora was selected into the choir and described the feeling: “The audition was so nerve-wracking that when I found out I had made it, I was overwhelmed.”
Another student, Gus Johnson, a junior studying Entertainment Design with a concentration in Digital Cinema, has auditioned over 15 times and described the process as “almost like controlled panic, you’re putting yourself out there 100% and the director will either like it or not.”
Johnson has auditioned many times and has not always gotten the part, but offered great advice on the subject. “I auditioned for ‘The Good Doctor’ my freshman year and did not receive a call back,” added Johnson. “I used that as motivation to keep getting better, and the next time I had an audition, I got in.”
But what keeps these individuals coming back to the audition? Is it the thrill? The feeling of accomplishment once they’ve gotten the part? In fact, it may be both. Johnson added, “It doesn’t matter how many times you’ve been on stage performing; you know that once you step on stage you need to nail the audition, because nothing is guaranteed.”