Audition brings out the best from local actors

WASILLA — The drama between Mariah Schachle and Shellie Riggan drew an attentive audience. It seems Schachle and Riggan, one a hairdresser and the other her client, were dating the same man.

As they chatted about their boyfriends while in the beauty shop, it became clear they were talking about the same guy — a tall drink of water with crystal blue eyes who works on the crew of a fast-food restaurant, but who has management aspirations. In short, a real keeper.

But before the women could come to blows, Vanessa Warner intervened.

“That’s the scene,” said Warner, director for the upcoming Valley Performing Arts production of “See How They Run,” a fast-paced comedy.

Schachle and Riggan were among a couple dozen actors who showed up at the VPA theater in Wasilla Saturday to audition for Warner.

Unlike other directors who ask actors to read for specific parts of a play, Warner has them go through a pantomime and partner up to perform improvised scenarios, like the same boyfriend skit Schachle and Riggan made up.

“Stage presence is a big thing for me,” Warner said. “Having them do the pantomime and improv, it shows me if they can stand on stage and not look terrified. If they can show some stage presence, that’s huge for me.”

When Dave Nufer and Chris Ruge paired up for their scene, they didn’t know what Warner would throw them. When she gave them “boyfriend caught cheating,” the men gave a hilarious improvised audition.

Chris, the “cheater,” said he relied totally on his acting and not any real-life experience as an unfaithful boyfriend.

“No experience with that here, none at all,” he said. “It’s just acting.”

Nufer, the jilted boyfriend, said he’s a veteran actor in local productions, but still has nerves at audition time.

“I’ve been to a lot of auditions, like 20 or so, and I still get nervous,” he said. “I think it’s the unknown, but there’s also that adrenaline rush you get (from being on stage).”

He also likes auditions like the one Saturday.

“I like (improv) because, for whatever reason, I have a mind that tends to work that way,” Nufer said. “I enjoy that.”

Laura Horning also likes the auditions process, but said she doesn’t get nervous.

“I don’t anymore,” she said. “The first time I did it, I felt like people could see my heart through my chest.”

Part of that is because most of the people in the theater are friends and fellow actors she’s known for awhile.

“I just love it all. Somebody once said that you’re in trouble if you don’t get nervous, but I just enjoy it,” she said. “It’s a rush.”

It’s the same for Scott Allred, who improvised a scene with Horning. They were a couple arguing over money. Turns out, Allred went out and bought an expensive barbecue grill and tried to explain how it was really a gift for the family instead of his own high-octane meat-charring toy.

And like Ruge, Allred said he did not draw on real life for his performance.

“Not at all,” he said. “In fact, I’ve got a crappy little barbecue grill.”

Although he said doesn’t experience nerves when auditioning for a part in a play, Allred said he’s also a cellist. Performing music, he said, is a different story.

“I play the cello, so if I were performing that, I would probably be more nervous,” he said.

Those nerves — or at least the fear of them — is what keeps many theater hopefuls from trying out, Warner said. And that’s too bad, because VPA needs to expand its talent pool.

“Nerves can be an issue, … but new people make everybody better,” she said. “Plus, we don’t want to typecast people into roles. That’s not fair to anybody, the veterans or the newcomers.”

Still, Warner said she understands the fear some have about going out for an audition.

“I’ll be honest. I’ve been in theater most of my life, and while auditioning I still freeze to this day,” she said. “Even as a director, I know what other directors are looking for, but I’ll stand on that stage like a deer in the headlights.”

For those who have some trouble corralling their butterflies, Horning has a suggestion: “When you audition, you become somebody else. So, it’s not you that has to be embarrassed anyway, it’s the character.”

“See How They Run” is a great opportunity for someone looking to dip his or her toes into the waters of community theater, Warner said.

“It’s very fast moving, one door closing, one door opening, people running across stage in their underwear,” she said. “It’s nuts.”

Contact Greg Johnson at 352-2269

or greg.johnson@frontiersman.com.