Broadway Credits Please

Today was the first time I auditioned for Little Mermaid. The combo was confusing and seem disjointed at first, but all the moves were easy, sort of congo line-ish to Under the Sea, with a double stag jump and two single turns requiring basic technique.

There were a few disasters (probably singers crashing a dancer call), and a few dancers with no personality (come on, this is Disney). But in general everyone looked fine, like many audition combos there was no challenge to overcome, no chance to stand out. So why did they pick who they did to stay? A friend and I (both rejected) went out to eat and break it down afterward.

We realized the casting people had made a comment to everyone they ended up keeping about a credit on their resume - 'oh, you did Cirque' or 'I see 42nd Street on Broadway.' So they seemed to keep dancers with Broadway, National Tour or other impressive credits. Which is fine, except those girls weren't necessarily the best dancers in the audition. Some of them looked great, others weren't even smiling.

Getting a Broadway credit is often a matter of being in the right place (with the right look) at the right time. There are people on Broadway way more talented than me, but plenty that aren't. Still, once you're in, it's easier to get other shows. At least the casters know you're capable of showing up for eight shows a week, whatever the quality of those performances may be (though I've heard plenty of stories of Broadway performers with questionable attitude and work ethics - that doesn't show up on the resume though).