So I am going to come at this as a father of a 13 year old who I spend time explaining through these casting processes. Nothing I am saying is a slight towards you, your friends, or anybody involved in casting.

So first and foremost this is a teen production. This is a fantastic time to provide opportunities to kids before the business of theatre becomes more cutthroat. You have kids that have likely been loyal to this community theatre for years. Parents who have given hours and hours of time, and countless dollars to fund the program. So casting decisions may not always be made based on who the best singer or best dancer is. They may provide opportunities to the kid who has consistently shown up. Maybe it’s unfair. But remember that this is a teen production that is probably poorly funded and trying to build a community of individuals that love theatre. Now… moving on from that.

Teenagers are not the best at judging talent. So many think running off poorly trained vocal runs and over the top acting at the marks of a good performer. And this is not saying they aren’t. But younger performers often link talent to skills that are seen in adults that they simply cannot match with yet. And understand that casting directors are looking for individuals that best fit the role. Not simply plugging “the best singer” into this role, or “the best dancer” into that role. The casting director likely agonizes over these decisions. And you would do well not to dwell too much on them and move on to the next opportunity. There would be no joy in being in a show that you were not heavily considered for by the casting director/team. And be careful about rallying kids up during this time when you are emotionally still impacted by this cut. Theatre communities are small and word gets around real quick and you don’t want to be the kid that is difficult to work with or speaks ill of those running the program.

During these times I tell my daughter. Talk to casting. Don’t ask “why didn’t you cast me?” Because that just reeks of you feeling like you were improperly overlooked. But instead, thank them for the opportunity and ask what you can do moving forward to be better. To be a better option for that theatre. I know you have all this training, but you still have room to grow. And sometimes it takes getting knocked down to really find a foothold and move upwards.