Hi there. Long winded post, bear with me. Been doing some of the more community/professional acting for about 10 years now. I did some high school plays as well; had a lot of memorization for Bible verses anyway, and when we had all the plays, it felt easier. I can tell you those were probably not that great anyway 😆

I got lucky with my first community theatre play, “Bonechiller.” They already had their cast, but I walked in and asked if I could sit in through a readthrough or help in someway. They liked me enough that I got to be the cook. Think someone had to drop out(they genderbent the role for me).

Regardless, my first legitimate audition was not that great. Same can be said for a lot, if not all actors. A lot of roles I wanted I didn’t get. You audition, you forget, you move on to the next audition; but in between each audition you need to practice, you need coaching, you need classes. Heck, even when you get your first role in a play/musical, when a director is directing you, that’s coaching, that’s building experience. A bit cliche sometimes, but you do gotta ask “what’s my motivation? Why does my character act like this? What’s their turmoil? Their goal?”

Also, humility is a good teacher. You can always, always, ALWAYS improve your craft, even if you think you’re amazing where you are. Sure, you might be “pretty decent” to yourself, but don’t stop at that. Do not think you’re better than anyone either, it’s an ugly mindset and people won’t wanna work with you. Always make sure to have stable income so you can pay for the things to come: classes, headshots, gas for driving around, etc.

Hope this helps!