CSSSA THEATER REQUIRED ASSIGNMENTS – 2023

The CSSSA Theater Program welcomes students who have a desire to know more about the craft of acting and the process of making theater. Please feel free to apply, even if you don’t feel that you’ve had a lot of experience with live theater, as an audience or a participant. This program is for those with not only a background in theater making, but also, those with a variety of interests and skills, and a genuine curiosity to learn more about actor training. It is designed to be rigorous and is also meant to be inclusive and enjoyable.

Students currently enrolled in grades 8 through 12 are eligible to apply.

Applicants to the Theater Program must submit a completed online application, teacher recommendation forms and upload the following assignments:

A. Video Audition:

Create a video recording where you start out by introducing yourself. SIMPLY tell us your name, your age, and where you are from. Then describe your interest in Theater and what you hope to gain from attending the program. (Please be brief – 15 seconds is enough!)

Performance: Do a monologue or solo speech (from memory) by a single character from a play. Introduce your performance by telling us the name of the work, the author, and the role you will play, but no more information than that. When recording your monologue, keep in mind that the production quality of the video is not as important as making sure that the judges will be able to see you (all of you) and hear you. Students must memorize the monologue – applicants reading monologues will be disqualified.

Please Note: NO GROUP PERFORMANCE VIDEOS, PERFORMANCE DOCUMENTARY VIDEOS, OR EXCERPTS FROM DEMO TAPES will be reviewed.

B. Musical Performance (optional):

If you have a strong interest in musical theater, you can include a performance of 16 bars from a song from the American Musical Theater (no pop songs, please). THIS IS IN ADDITION TO THE REQUIRED INTRODUCTION AND PERFORMANCE described above. Identify your character, the musical, the situation, and the song. Accompaniment is not required. Musical Theater is a limited-enrollment elective class that students may sign up for on the first day of classes.

The length of the audition, including introduction, performance, and the optional musical selection, should be no longer than FOUR MINUTES! (CSSSA does not offer a separate musical theater program.)

RETURNING STUDENTS ONLY:

Make sure that your video is of an original audition that shows your growth as an actor since you have been at CSSSA, and state in your introduction why you think you should be given a second opportunity to enroll in the Theater Program. If you previously attended CSSSA in an artistic discipline other than Theater, you must submit a recommendation from a CSSSA instructor in that department.

FOR ALL STUDENTS, PLEASE NOTE:

Please upload a single video for Assignment A and B (optional) that contains your intro, performance, and optional musical performance.