Audition Watch

I've really been doing a terrible job of fulfilling the purpose of this blog, which was to document the whole...process of finding my career in comedy thing. To be fair, there hasn't been a huge amount of progress on that front in the past few weeks, but I've been taking steps to kind of course correct. It's weird that after only a few weeks of being here, I could already feel myself getting off track, but my resolve has been strengthened and I've actually been doing some auditioning in the last week or so.

And because I'm THAT obnoxious, there's a logo for me going on auditions. Pretty soon, there will be logos for things like "I Made a Sandwich" or "Walking Down the Street '08," because...let's face it...I'm just that cool. Either way, this is:
Audition #1: Denise's Book Club
The Scoop:
This was a sketch show that was to be staged at Donny's Skybox (the Second City stage where I'm currently doing the American Backwash show). Its previous iteration received positive reviews, so it seemed like a good bet.

How Did It Go?
I spent the day of the audition running around for work, trying to finish up my resume and get my headshots printed in the moments between errands. This probably would have been fine, had my printer not decided to run out of ink on me. By the time I realized I was screwed, it was too late to get over to Costco to get some better quality prints made up. Couple that with the fact that it was raining like a bitch and I was down to 15 minutes left to get over to the theatre and...it didn't happen. I gave up. I'm a quitter, I know, but...I wasn't prepared and I didn't want to go in looking like an ass, so I decided to cut my losses and wait for the next one. It's a shame, though, because I was really looking forward to this one. I guess you can't win them all, right?
Result: FAILURE

Audition #2: Chemically Imbalanced Comedy
The Scoop:
Chemically Imbalanced Comedy has been around for about 9 years...it's a independent comedy theatre over on Irving Park, and I've heard some really positive things in my research on them. The space is small, but well-suited to improv, and the people there seem really cool and into producing quality local comedy. The audition was for a new sponsored improv troupe through the theatre, which means they're putting together a team and providing a coach, rehearsal space, entry into festivals, a spot on the monthly showcase bill, etc.

How Did It Go?
I made sure to leave extra early this time so that I could navigate my way through this as-yet-unexplored neighborhood. Even with an hour lead time, I still barely made it over there after getting turned around nineteen million times. The thing about Chicago is that everything is on a grid, basically, with the exception of a few diagonal streets. But that doesn't make it any easier, because there's still a QUADBILLION on-the-grid streets! Gah! I made it, though, which was already a step up from the first audition.

Stumbling into the theatre, there were maybe...30-35 people there to audition (this was the second audition slot of the day), and most all of them were the kind of young, eager improvisers that I enjoy playing with the most. We split into two groups and basically did two sessions of freeze tag, which was...a lot of fun. Everybody was really sharp, everybody had a unique voice and I, a notorious non-laugher, laughed a lot. I got out about 5 or 6 times and got a response just about every time, which was encouraging. I know that my improv voice is a little...strange, sometimes, but it's good to know that I'm doing SOMEthing right. I'm supposed to hear back about it today or tomorrow, and I'm really hoping I somehow stood out enough to get it. I want to play with those people again...after a rough response from the show last night, they were a reinvigorating push for my faith in this community.

Result: COMING SOON

Audition #3: Robot Vs. Dinosaur
The Scoop: I don't know a whole heck of a lot about this one, other than that it's a sketch group that has gotten good reviews from their previous shows, mostly in New York it seems? The website isn't terribly helpful in this regard, but you can check it out here. The performances on this one would be ideal because it's being staged at the Gorilla Tango Theatre, which is literally just down the street from me here in Wicker Park. With my wonky scheduling on the job, it helps to not have to travel too far to get to rehearsals and stuff.

How Did It Go?
This one takes place this afternoon, so I'll let you know once it happens.

Result: COMING SOON

So there's the first three (or two, if you want to be official about it). I'll be back later to tell you all about my first show at the Skybox last night. It was...well...rough, to say the least. But I have pictures and stories and I'll hopefully be back with that tonight.