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Notice to Philadelphia Area AEA Members

For many years, the Theatre Alliance auditions have been used by Philadelphia area Equity theatres for fulfillment of contractual obligations to hold local auditions. Starting this year with the 2006 Theatre Alliance auditions, that will not be the case. The following comes from the 2006 Theatre Alliance audition application form.

"The (Theatre Alliance) Annual Auditions Committee has determined that Theatre Alliance auditions will now be completely separate from member theatre's audition requirements with Actors' Equity Association. As a result, all Equity audition applications will require a $10 fee and will be screened for an audition slot. The $10 application fee will be waived only for Individual Members of the Theatre Alliance."

To clarify, this decision was not made by Actors' Equity. The Philadelphia AEA Liaison Committee received this information directly from the Theatre Alliance. This decision ultimately means that we should see a further increase in open audition calls at area theatres. Please note that local AEA audition requirements differ from contract to contract, be it LORT, LOA/LORT, SPT, TYA, etc.

For those of you who want to participate in the Theatre Alliance auditions, be advised that the rules have changed for Equity participation and that Actors' Equity has no control over those rules. However, The Alliance has no objection to the Philadelphia AEA Liaison Committee maintaining a presence at the auditions. Be sure to carefully review the 2006 audition application for information and instructions.

An important suggestion:
Since there are no more dedicated "Equity" audition days, you will be competing for an audition slot as an equal participant in the talent pool, be it Equity or non-Equity. It's a much bigger talent pool with lots of non-Equity performers looking for the same opportunity to audition. It would behoove you to get your application in as early as possible, to get through the screening process and hopefully secure an audition time.

Know that the Philadelphia AEA Liaison Committee, along with our dedicated AEA auditions department in NYC, will continue to monitor our AEA theatres' local audition requirements throughout the year. Let us know your concerns, share your thoughts, via e-mail at phlliaisoncommittee@yahoo.com .

Applications for the auditions are available at the Theatre Alliance web site at www.theatrealliance.org and at various area theatres. The application deadline is April 3rd.