Well guess what you lucky thespians? Uncle Matt is back from Florida and ready to start with the blogging again. I hope you’ve all been busy and prosperous while I was away. If you have a story or a question to share or ask please don’t be shy about using the “comments” section. I love to hear from all y’all!
I’ll keep it short but important today. Anytime an actor goes out of town for any significant length of time there is a real possibility of career damage due to atrophy. All of a sudden we’re not auditioning, we’re probably not able to easily send postcard updates, and that means our contacts can dry up if we’re not careful. Some tips to prevent this:
1.) Before you go to start your out-of-town job send out a big mailing to announce your booking. This can be a simple postcard affair or, if you’re savvy with such things, a flashy pamphlet with info about the show and venue.
2.) Also before you go, make up a batch of postcards announcing that opening night was awesome and the reviews are great. Take these with you and mail them out the Monday after opening weekend. Don’t bring blank postcards with you unless you have a laptop and printer to support the mailing. Otherwise, you are almost guaranteed not to find the proper equipment, and nobody likes writing out 100 postcards by hand.
3.) Start submitting yourself electronically for auditions 4-7 days before you will actually be back in town. If you wait until you’re back you’ll find that most of the auditions are a week or more away– it’s like extending your absence.
4.) If you are fortunate enough to have representation keep in touch with them while you’re away. If your agent booked you into the show you don’t really have to do this– they know you’re away and are probably enjoying the weekly commission checks. But if you have other agents that are not involved in your job (commercial agents while doing a play out of town, for example) don’t let them forget about you. Every few weeks shoot them an email and let them know the show is going well and remind them of when you will be back.
5.) When you do finally come back do a postcard mailing immediately to your entire list. By “immediately” I mean “before you unpack your suitcases.” Call all of your agents and remind them you’re back in town (if they prefer emails send emails, if you’re nervous about calling do it at night when the office is closed so you can just leave a voicemail).
6.) Be sure to send thank-you cards to the major players that made your out-of-town job possible! The producer, director and casting director will appreciate it and might be more inclined to think of you when suitable roles come up again in the future.
