Presence in an audition isn’t something you can force or create. It’s a physical and emotional state that occurs only when the actor is living entirely in the present moment.
Under pressure, the nervous system defaults to the state it’s most familiar with, so it’s a good idea to check in with how often you’re willing to totally be present for the moments of your life. That will give you a clue as to what you can expect in an audition.
What most people find out when they begin to explore the degree of their presence is that they actually spend very little time in the present and a lot of time either rehashing the past or rehearsing the future.
So, if our nervous systems have little actual experience of what it’s like to live in the present moment, how can we expect it to be able to stay steady in the audition room?
Here are two strategies for cultivating present moment awareness I hope will help:
MeditationThere are hundreds of different ways to meditate but for our purposes, a basic insight meditation practice is a great way to train in coming back to the present moment—even if you only have a few minutes a day to practice.
Remember, meditation isn’t about not
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