How to Prepare for a Dance Audition

For most dancers auditions are daunting to say the least. Here at Move Dance, as well as helping you find your perfect dancewear and dance shoes, we want to help you to prepare mentally for your upcoming auditions.

We’ve put this post together to provide you with three top tips to consider when preparing for an audition and some advice to stay calm so you can excel and impress. We also spoke to one of our Move Dance models, Joshua Shanny-Wynter, for some insights into what he’s experienced in auditions in the past.

It goes without saying that you need to put in a lot of practice for every audition you attend. Obviously to get the part, or even a callback, you have to be the best of the best and you can’t do that without endless hours of practice and rehearsal time.

Joshua has had his fair share of auditions in the past, including one for Britain’s Got Talent. He actually made it all the way to the semi-finals, so he knows how to impress when it matters. Prior to an audition, Joshua believes it’s vital to do your research so you have a good idea of exactly what they’re looking for. Preparation is the key to success - as well as a great dance performance of course!

Comfortable Dance Shoes

The dance shoes you wear for an audition could really make or break your audition. It’s essential your shoes fit well, if you’re dancing with shoes that are too small or too big you could damage your feet. As well as size, you should take into consideration how your dance shoes need to suit your individual needs, your shoes should fit your arches snugly but not too tightly. When choosing dance shoes for an audition, Joshua says he must have shoes he’s worn before and knows that he feels comfortable dancing in. If you have an audition approaching and you need new shoes, it's a good idea to buy them in advance and wear them for a few classes or rehearsals beforehand. Even if you buy the exact same shoes you had previously, it’s likely they’ll need breaking in and adapting slightly to your feet. Your dance shoes are key to every audition you attend, so make sure you’re prepared!

Dancewear that Gives You Confidence

If you feel amazing, your performance will be amazing. Confidence is key during an audition and where better to start than feeling good in your dancewear? Deciding what to wear for an audition can be tricky, often, you will have been given instruction on what you should wear, but of course, in your audition you don’t want to disappear into the crowd of other dancers.

We asked Joshua what he would normally wear to an audition.

“Some auditions will have a brief on what to wear, if that’s the case then stick as close to it as you can whilst inputting your own unique style. At the end of the day you want to stand out but for the right reasons. And have options! If you look around the room and there are people dressed very similarly, you want to be able to switch it up.”

We love this advice from Joshua, obviously, you want to stick to the brief you have been given, but it’s equally as important to make sure you stand out from the crowd.

Don’t Be Disheartened From Previous Auditions

We spoke to Joshua about how to deal with being cut during the audition process. Here’s some great advice.

“It’s not always about your dance ability, being cut doesn’t mean you’re terrible, sometimes you simply just aren’t the right look, height, hair colour or skin colour. There’s a lot that goes into casting, but that being said, make sure you’re always working to improve as a dancer. Don’t wallow in self-pity for long, learn from the audition. It builds character and resilience, as dancers, we are going to face so many rejections before we get the ‘Yes’ we are looking for. I was once told to treat myself, no matter how small or big, after every audition because getting to that room is an accomplishment in itself.”

It’s important to keep a positive mindset, and as Josh suggested, take each audition as a learning experience. The perfect role for you could be your next audition, you just don’t know it yet!

As we mentioned before, Joshua has previously auditioned for Britain’s Got Talent, but what’s more daunting? The majority of dance auditions where you’re in a room with the judges, or auditioning in front of a live crowd in an arena?

“Auditioning in front of more people means there are more opinions on your dance ability. Also, with a show like Britain’s Got Talent, the audience can influence the judges against you or in your favour.”

Auditions are always extremely competitive whether you’re male or female, we wanted Joshua’s opinion as to whether he feels it’s more competitive to be a male or a female in the dance industry.

“It’s no secret there are more girls than boys in a standard audition. That means the girls have a lot of competition in the room, whereas, the boys are up against boys from auditions from another day, so you’re not always aware of your competition. That being said always dance to your absolute best, it’s not about who’s around you. I think the universe balances it out, because even though there are physically less boys, there are also less roles. For example, 20 girls audition for 8 roles, 8 boys audition for 2 roles, so regardless of gender you still face tough competition."

Do you have a dance audition coming up? Make sure you’re prepared with comfortable dance shoes which you’ve danced in multiple times before and dancewear that you feel confident in. Move Dance are here to help you out, we have a large range of both our own and other leading dancewear retailers leotards in all styles so you can find dancewear that helps you shine.

Find the leotard to help you be unmissable in your audition

Check out our Dancer Help section of our blog for some of our Dance Shoe Buying Guide’s to ensure your comfortable and confident for your audition.

And finally, here are some words of wisdom from Joshua to take with you to your next audition.

"The moment you tell yourself you’re the worst dancer in the room is the moment you become the worst dancer in the room. But the moment you block out any doubt and wholeheartedly believe in yourself, your ability and your training, you begin to surprise yourself. Mental fortitude is incredibly important and half of the job. Be KIND, Be NICE, Be FRIENDLY, Be WARM. The audition starts as soon as you enter the room, they are looking to see how you are as a person not just a dancer."

Is this person going to get along with the cast?

Are they rude, stuck up or are they going to be problematic?

These things all factor into their decision. Most importantly, ENJOY EVERY MOMENT. We are so lucky we live by passion, so don’t make dance a chore, remember to always find joy in the moment. Dance is fun.”

Good Luck!