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20. A Dancer’s Guide to Dealing with Casting Disappointment
69 Plays1 month ago
You’ve been working for days, months, even years for the coveted role in your upcoming production. You’ve put in the extra time and effort, practicing every spare minute. You feel confident that this is your year.
After waiting what seems like eons for casting to come out, you finally get the notification you’ve been waiting for. You anxiously open the email, scan the cast list…and a huge wave of disappointment washes over you as you see someone else’s name next to your dream role.
So what now?
Tune in to this week’s solo episode to learn my tried and trued strategies for dealing with casting disappointment and turn a frustrating experience into a positive!
Links and Resources:
BLOG POST: https://www.thebrainyballerina.com/blog/howtodealwithcastingdisappointment
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Transcript
Introduction to Brainy Ballerina
00:00:04
Speaker
I'm Caitlin, a former professional ballerina turned dance educator and career mentor. And this is the brand new ballerina podcast.
Purpose of the Podcast
00:00:11
Speaker
I am here for the aspiring professional ballerina who wants to learn what it really takes to build a smart and sustainable career in the dance industry. I'm peeling back the curtain of professional dance world with open and honest conversations about the realities of becoming a professional dancer. Come along to gain the knowledge and inspiration you need
00:00:31
Speaker
to succeed in a dance career on your turns.
Coping with Casting Disappointments
00:00:38
Speaker
Hello, and welcome to the Brainy Valorina podcast. I'm your host, Caitlin Sloan, and I'm here to say with a solo episode, talking about how to deal with casting disappointments. We have all been in this place where we really wanted a role. We've been working for it. We've been putting the extra time and effort. We really feel like this is going to be our year to get the specific role variation. And then when casting comes out, you don't get the part.
00:01:06
Speaker
and it can be super disappointing to be in this position. Today we're going to talk about some strategies you can use when you don't get the part you want, when you're feeling disappointed, how to move forward into a more productive place. Before you start to spiral into that negative place of self-doubt, first we're going to do three things.
00:01:26
Speaker
The first thing is so simple, but so hard to do sometimes in the moment. It's just taking a deep breath, just letting yourself sit with the disappointment and realizing that it is okay. And it's normal to feel upset and you can let yourself feel the feelings before trying to immediately push past them. So just take a moment to sit with it and recognize that. Yeah, that really stinks. You didn't get the part and that's okay to be sad about it. Then.
00:01:56
Speaker
I want you to remember the bigger picture as a dancer, casting feels so personal and it is personal to us. The parts that we get, the roles that we get to dance, that's a very personal thing. But what you have to always come back to and remember is that a company director
00:02:13
Speaker
your teacher is looking at a bigger picture. So they are trying to place dancers in the best role for the entire production. They have to put on a great show. That is their job. So when they're casting, they're casting individuals for the greater good. Remembering that casting is done with the greater good in mind can help you take some of that personal sting out of it and just realize that it is bigger than you.
Strategies for Personal Growth in Dance
00:02:37
Speaker
The next thing you need to do is focus on what you can control. We've talked about that a lot in this podcast.
00:02:42
Speaker
coming back to just being able to focus on what you can control and remembering that as a dancer, you cannot control what roles you are cast in. That is outside the scope of your control as a dancer. You can put in all the work, you can do everything quote unquote, right, and still not get the part that you wanted. What you can control is how you respond to the casting. You can control your mindset,
00:03:08
Speaker
and the level of effort you put into the role that you were given. You can control how you choose to work moving forward to become a stronger dancer. All these things are within your control and by focusing on that, you can accept this performance for what it is and still find ways to make it a positive experience, even if it is not exactly what you hoped for. So once you've done those three things, you know, taking a step back, a deep breath, remembering the big picture,
00:03:35
Speaker
and focusing on what you can personally control. Let's talk about how you can take this experience and turn it into a positive moving forward. You might really be wondering right now, what did I do wrong? Why am I not good enough? What is it about me that they didn't see me in this role? And you can send yourself down to this dark spiral ruminating about it, just thinking about it over and over again. But the best way to get valuable feedback is by going straight to the source, your teachers, your director, the people who are doing the casting.
00:04:04
Speaker
In my experience, many dancers are scared to talk to their director about casting because they don't want to appear ungrateful or self-centered. You don't want to come across as you're not really grateful for being cast at all and having a part. But it is possible to bring up the issue in a productive way. So here are my tips for this. First, I want you to sleep on it. Because in the moment when casting comes out, you see the list, you see your name, not where you want it to be.
00:04:33
Speaker
It's really frustrating. You have a lot of big feelings and you want answers and you want them now, but when you react impulsively, that rarely leads to a productive conversation. So utilize the 24-hour rule. Take at least 24 hours to cool down and think it through before you say anything. By taking this time to gather your thoughts,
00:04:57
Speaker
You can approach the conversation proactively with a fresh perspective instead of coming at it from a frustrated place. You can come at it from a productive place. Just give yourself some time, take the 24 hours, maybe more if you need it, and then come back to it. The next thing I want you to do is schedule a time to talk.
00:05:17
Speaker
A lot of times dancers will kind of bombard their teachers or directors with questions right after class is over or in the hallway between classes. But remember that your teachers, your directors are human beings too. They really care about you and they want to have a conversation, but it's not always a great time because they may be running to their next class. So it's going to be rushed. They might have a family to get home to.
00:05:45
Speaker
So they have to be getting out the door and getting in their car. They have priorities of their own that they might not be able to drop on a whim to have a conversation. And I don't want you to think that they don't care about you or they don't take this seriously. They're just not always available. And it's really important to set boundaries from their ends. They may just not be able to speak about it at that time. So to show your director that you respect their time, I would email them and just say, I would love to get your input about what I can do to improve as a dancer.
00:06:14
Speaker
When would be a good time for you to talk? So now you're ensuring that when you do speak, you have their undivided attention, and you're also allowing them time to gather their thoughts and give you better, considerate, deliberate feedback instead of catching them off guard.
The Value of Understudying
00:06:31
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So now you're both coming to the conversation, really ready to talk about this, and you're going to get way better information. When you do sit down to talk, you've got to show that you have a growth mindset.
00:06:43
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Remember the purpose of this meeting. When you go into it, casting is already done. And you're not going to go into this scenario and you're not going to change their minds. You're not going to get a quote unquote better part. It's done. So if you go into it thinking that you can change this, you're already setting yourself up for disappointment. Go into it with the motive of learning how you can improve for the future. So if you need a conversation starter, something like, I am so grateful for the opportunity to dance
00:07:13
Speaker
this role in this performance. I had been really working toward the goal of dancing this role. I would love your input. What do I need to work on to be ready to dance a lead role in the future? This demonstrates that you are grateful for the opportunity to perform and you're motivated to continue improving, which is a win-win for both sides, truly. Because as a teacher, I love when my students are motivated to continue improving and looking for feedback and ready to hear what they need to do.
00:07:43
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to get to that next level. That's really huge and desirable for a teacher or a director. Finally, you have to take initiative. If you're really serious about gaining the skills you need to reach your performance goals, inquire about understudy opportunities. Understudying is a great way to help you grow as a dancer.
00:08:02
Speaker
even if you never perform the role on stage. Honestly, being a great understudy requires a lot of extra time and effort on your part. You'll have to go to more rehearsals. You'll have to learn multiple roles. But if you are really serious about becoming a stronger dancer and moving into these more leading roles in the future, it's so worth it. Honestly, I have ended up going in as an understudy more times than I can count. Being in the room and being the person who knows
00:08:31
Speaker
The choreography is so, so huge. I remember one Nutcracker season, there was a girl in my company who broke her foot during Snow's scene, and then she was supposed to dance the lead in Chinese in the second act. And for all of you who've done Nutcracker, you know that's a very quick turnaround. Snow is the last scene of the first act. You have intermission and then immediately you're going into the opening of the second act where everyone's introducing themselves, the characters are coming out.
00:09:00
Speaker
And I remember standing on stage during intermission and our director just saying, who knows the part? And one girl raised her hand and she got to go on stage and do it. Okay. So a lot of times it's just who knows it, who's ready to go on stage and who can do this right now because you never know what's going to happen. It's live theater and being an understudy can be a very real opportunity to not just learn more and grow as a dancer, but to actually get more performing time.
00:09:25
Speaker
So be that person who takes initiative, who knows the part, who's ready to go. It will get you a lot of opportunities. One final thought, every single role I have performed has taught me something valuable, even if I couldn't see it at the time. There are times that I might've grumbled and moaned about not getting to do the role that I wanted to do, but looking back, I am really grateful for those roles because they did teach me something that I needed to learn.
00:09:51
Speaker
Even if this part is not the one you really wanted, it is exactly what you need right now. Again, your directors and your teachers are seeing the bigger picture. They're seeing what's going to be good for the whole company, but they're also seeing what you really need as a dancer right now to move forward and to continue growing. Trust that you are in the right place. There's no rush. You're going to get opportunities, I promise. So embrace this opportunity to perform and grow as a dancer because you never know where it might lead you.
Conclusion and Engagement
00:10:21
Speaker
Thank you for tuning into the Brainy Ballerina podcast. If you found this episode insightful, entertaining, or maybe a bit of both, I would so appreciate you taking a moment to leave a rating and hit subscribe. By subscribing, you'll never miss an episode. And you'll join our community of dancers passionate about building a smart and sustainable career in the dance industry. Plus, your ratings help others discover the show too.
00:10:47
Speaker
I'll be back with a new episode next week. In the meantime, be sure to follow along on Instagram at The Brainy Valorina for your daily dose of dance career guidance.