RYT is an inclusive charity for any young person who is of an eligible age*. Although we are a youth theatre organisation, we are not a theatre/performance school. We help, not just to develop the skills of budding young performers who want to go in to performing arts, but also provide a safe, nurturing environment for young people to grow their confidence, social, team working and organisation skills and more.

*RYT invites young people from Year 2 onwards at audition (with the school year beginning on September 1st), provided they are under 18 by the time of the final show. If someone will be 18 or over on the final show date, they may audition with Committee approval, but must complete a DBS check.

Before each show, auditions are held to decide on the cast and roles. EVERY young person who auditions will be offered a part in the show, whether a main, small part or ensemble.

Before the audition:

RYT will post any audition material* to practice in advance of the audition day. This is usually one to two weeks before audition day. This will be posted on the Risborough Youth Theatre page. If your child will be auditioning for a role in the show, please then ask to join the RYT Cast & Crew Facebook group, as that is where the cast list will be published.

*Audition pack material usually consists of:

• confirmation of timings for audition day
• confirmation of tech, dress and show dates
• names of key production team
• character list
• any material to practice before audition day (such as song(s) to learn & perform at audition, any script excerpts for bigger roles (seniors)
• what to bring with you

On the day:

Auditions are split into juniors (up to end of primary school age) and seniors (secondary school age). Timings will be confirmed before the date but typically will be 12.30-2pm for juniors and 2.30-5pm for seniors.

Juniors:

Auditions for juniors are very relaxed and primarily based around group work: introductions, ice-breaker games, learning a short dance section, singing a song in a group and sometimes some role play of an excerpt from the show script. For those juniors who are confident and would like to apply for a particular/bigger role, there will usually be opportunity to perform a solo, or role play piece to demonstrate their ability. However, please set expectations with your child(ren) that juniors will usually be part of the ensemble and NOT necessarily get a speaking part/main role. The ensemble members are still HUGELY important to the show's energy and success, and there will be plenty for them to be involved in, and time on the stage.

We want to create a welcoming, fun environment: no-one will be forced in to doing anything they are not comfortable with at the audition, so for instance, if they don't want to try out for a solo, that is absolutely fine. Please be aware though, that if a bigger role requires this, they are unlikely to be considered for that role if we cannot assess their suitability. If for any reason you cannot make the audition in person, you can send in a video audition of them performing the audition material BEFORE the audition, to be considered.

Seniors:

We will start with an introduction and some ice-breaker games, and then learn/perform a short dance piece, and a group song. We will then call auditionees in one by one to demonstrate any solo singing if they are applying for a main part / role requiring solo singing. As with juniors, if your young person is not comfortable performing a solo, they will not have to. However, this will preclude them from being considered for a role if this is required. There will be an opportunity for the auditionees to say wish to be considered for a particular role. (Note: they may be offered a different role to the one they want). After this, all auditionees will come back in the main room and perform some role play excerpts from the script (usually provided beforehand to look through) - these can be playing different characters more than once, so we can assess not only their acting and delivery, but how they work with other cast members.

Decisions:

Immediately after the auditions have been held, the panel (usually consisting of Director, Artistic Director and Choreographer) deliberate over the auditionees to draw up a cast list with their roles. Casting for a show is an extremely difficult job and one we do not take lightly. The panel aim to make a fair decision on role allocation, based on a number of criteria from performance and conduct at the audition, to skill level suitability and working with others. Note: Although it is the aim to produce the highest quality production, the audition panel are mindful of the inclusivity of all skill levels and aim to allocate roles based on the strengths they do have. This list will be published usually later on the evening of auditions (occasionally the following day if further discussion needed) on Facebook.

Acceptance:

There will be an acceptance form to be completed in order to accept and secure the part in the show. This will need to be completed within 48 hours to enable the production team to make amendments to the cast prior to start of rehearsals as needed. Occasionally this requires some reallocation of roles - this will only be done if absolutely necessary to avoid disappointment wherever possible. We understand not everyone will get the part they hope for, but it is not always possible to keep everyone happy. We do encourage them to take the part they are offered instead, as they are still a hugely valued member of the cast, regardless of the role, and this rarely hampers their enjoyment of being in the show.

**PLEASE ONLY ACCEPT THE ROLE IF YOU CAN COMMIT TO REHEARSALS, TECH, DRESS AND SHOW DATES**

Rehearsals are primarily every Sunday from 1-5pm at Risborough Youth Centre. Punctuality is expected, as we only have a limited amount of rehearsal time for a show, and require all the time to get the best out of our cast, so young persons are expected to be at the Youth Centre ready to START rehearsal at 1pm promptly.

IMPORTANT: **For the first rehearsal, we invite parents (all existing and new cast) to come in for the first 10 minutes, so you can hear all of the commitments and expectations that we set out to the cast from the outset**

We will be happy to answer any questions you may have in that first session.

On occasion, we may not require the whole cast some weeks, or only for a shorter time. This will be communicated at the earliest possible opportunity.

We are aware that there may be occasions where attendance at rehearsal is not possible - either important previously booked commitments, or illness etc but please instil commitment into your young person(s) that absences have a big impact to the company as a whole. Please advise us of any planned absences on the acceptance form and any illness/inability to make rehearsal as soon as possible, to allow us to shift things around as needed.

Upon acceptance to the show, you will be provided with a link to join a private, closed Facebook group for the show. This will be used for:

• A featured (pinned) post with a rehearsal schedule, where any changes to the usual 'everyone 1-5pm' will be updated (ie. some weeks may only need 'mains', or just certain cast members for (eg) 1-3pm, then everyone else 3-5pm, to avoid particularly the younger members from hanging around getting bored
• Any videos from rehearsals to be viewed at home to practice
• Any other information / communication regarding the show (requests for parent helpers, shout outs for costume items you may be able to help with etc)