Hi-Line Living: The world is a stage

The auditions for "Nine Circles," Montana Actors' Theatre's January production, had people cold-test lines for a chance to be in the show.

"Nine Circles" is a play about a man who fought in Operation Desert Storm and is accused of committing war crimes.

Jay Pyette, the principal director of MAT, said that there was a lot that drove him to choose this script.

"One is that it's this powerhouse role for an actor," Pyette said.  

Chad Zuelke was already cast as the lead character, Private Reeves, before the auditions were held. Pyette said that the role was a natural fit for Zuelke.

"The character is him on some levels," Pyette said. He laughed and added, "Though, he hasn't committed any war atrocities that I know of."

For "Nine Circles," the playwright says that the play is best played by two men playing five roles and one woman playing three, though this choice is optional.

"He wants the audience to have that perspective of everybody outside of Reeves is the same," Pyette said.

He said that he chose to have each role played by a separate person.

Pyette said that these types of plays draw him more than others.

"I believe that theatre is really about storytelling and emotional reaction and this is a compelling story," Pyette said. "It's a timeless story. We hear about it all the time, these instances of violence in society."

Pyette said the audition process is different for every production, but with plays like "Nine Circles," the people trying out are more few and far between than the bigger name productions like "Fiddler on the Roof."

Something that stays constant for him, as he chooses who to cast out of the handful of people who try out, is sincerity.

"I really push for people to not act," Pyette said. "I just want to hear naturally what they have. People tend to say, 'well, I gotta be in actor mode.' Then it's fake."

He said that when he listens to people cold-read scripts at auditions, he is looking for how honestly they read the lines. Oftentimes, he won't even watch them; he'll just listen.

"Training somebody to use their body is relatively simple," Pyette said. "It's the delivery of the lines, the interpreting of the lines - that's a little more difficult."

He said he always encourages new people to try out the stage. Sometimes, someone new will walk on to try out and is perfect for a role.

"I'm just like, 'wow, where has this person been?"

Confidence is always a major player in whether or not a person will be cast in a play at MAT, but lack thereof will not disqualify them.

Cold-reading a script is a struggle, Pyette said, and there will always be a little stumbling if the person is not acquainted with the lines. As long as they bring something to the role and invest themselves in it and interpret the lines given to them, they have a much higher chance of securing the role.

However, not all tryouts will be successes.

"Sometimes you can just tell," Pyette said. "You can listen to somebody and you can watch somebody and you can be like, they're never going to be able to get to the level you want them to. I'm not saying that to be mean, but that's a blunt reality in anything."

He likened it to a football team. A coach who has been put in a role of choosing the best people for his team must choose the strongest players.

A director also has some preconceptions of what he or she wants in a role. If someone comes on stage and over-acts the lines, they seem to be trying too hard. Overdoing the role will cheapen their appearance.

"Just be honest," Pyette said.

Zuelke has been working with MAT for more than 10 years now and said that the nervousness he feels going into an audition never goes away.

"Auditions are hell," Zuelke said. "I'm always nervous. Even for this show, where I was already coming in with the pre-emptive notion of being cast as Reeves. Here I am, and I'm still nervous."

Zuelke said that one of the benefits of being nervous for auditions is that is pushes the person auditioning out of their element,

"It gives you a little push to step outside who you are," Zuelke said. "The person you see on stage will not be the person you meet off-stage."