# Equity Chorus Calls: What to Expect and How to Prepare

> What an Equity Chorus Call is, how numbered cards, typing, and dance groups work under Equity's procedures, how it differs from an EPA, whether non-Equity actors can be seen, and how to prepare your song cut and your dance call.

- URL: https://www.offbook.com/blog/equity-chorus-call-tips
- Published: 2026-10-27
- Last updated: 2026-10-27

The notice says "NYC ECC Dancers (Afternoon - All Genders)," and underneath it, a list of what to wear and a line about choreography being taught. Another one for the same show says "Singers" and asks for 16 to 32 bars of a song that isn't from a musical. You've heard people talk about chorus calls like a rite of passage: the crowded hallway, the numbered card, the moment casting looks down the line and sends part of the room home.

It's less mysterious than it sounds. Chorus calls run on a short set of written union rules, and once you know them, you can spend your energy on the part that matters: walking in ready.

The short version: an Equity Chorus Call (ECC) is the union audition for ensemble roles in musicals. Singers and dancers often have separate calls. Members get numbered cards and are seen in order; casting may "type" at the start and see only the people who look right for the show; dancers learn a combination in groups. Non-Equity actors can be seen only after members, if time allows, and never once typing is announced. Prepare a song cut you can sing at 16 or 32 bars, arrive warm, and don't leave the holding room.

## What an Equity Chorus Call is

Actors' Equity's guide for producers lists [Equity Principal Auditions (EPAs) and Equity Chorus Calls (ECCs)](https://actorsequity.org/resources/producers/casting-call-how-to) among its audition notice types. The EPA is for principal roles. The ECC is for the chorus, the singers and dancers in the ensemble. Equity's page also notes that since January 2, 2023, all required Equity auditions take place in person, so an ECC means being in a building, not sending a tape.

BroadwayWorld's 2026 guide to [how non-Equity performers get seen](https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/How-Do-Non-Equity-Performers-Get-Seen-At-Equity-Auditions-20190829) describes ECCs as calls generally used to cast ensemble roles, especially in musicals, that move quickly and may be split by discipline, dancers first and then singers. That split is why one show can post several notices for the same week: a dancers' call, a singers' call, sometimes morning and afternoon sessions.

In New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles, chorus calls run under a short document Equity publishes, the [Equity Chorus Call Audition Procedures](https://www.actorsequity.org/docs/librariesprovider2/resource-documents/casting-call/ecc-procedures.pdf?sfvrsn=c63f83b2_1), last revised in August 2023. An Equity monitor attends calls run under those procedures. Outside those cities, theaters run their own calls, so read the notice for how sign-up works.

## How the day runs under Equity's procedures

The procedures are only two pages, and every rule in them changes what you should do on the day. Here's the sequence for members in the three monitor cities.

- **Sign up online, or show up early.** Online sign-up through the Member Portal opens at 9:00 am one week before the call and closes at 2:00 pm on the business day before. If you didn't sign up, you can arrive 30 minutes before the call starts and get a card after the list has been read.
- **The monitor reads the list.** Starting 30 minutes before the call, the monitor reads the sign-up list in order and hands numbered audition cards to members who are present. If you're not there when your name is read, you lose your place and get a card after the whole list.
- **Bring your card.** You need a paid-up membership card or written proof of membership. The procedures say status "cannot be verified by telephone."
- **No holding cards.** You can't collect a card for a friend who's running late.
- **You're called in number order.** A card guarantees you'll be seen, or typed if typing is used.

Two rules catch people out. First, once the first member has walked into the audition room, casting may close that call, and no more cards are handed out. "Thirty minutes early" is the latest you should arrive, not a target. Second, if you leave the holding room and miss your number, you lose your turn. You can line up again at the end of the Equity portion of the call, but you've given away your place.

Actor Maggie Bera's guide to [signing up for an ECC on the day](https://www.actoraesthetic.com/blog/ecc-sign-up-day-of) describes the same routine from the hallway: members line up in arrival order until the monitor arrives, show their card, and take a number. Her advice for the wait is three words: "Don't go anywhere!"

One more rule shows how the day is protected. If one call, say the male singers, is running so long it would eat into the next call, the procedures say the first call must stop and the second start on time. Casting then has to offer appointments to the members who still hold cards for the first call.

## Typing: what it is, and what you can do about it

**Typing** is the part of an ECC that people dread most. Equity's procedures let casting audition only the members they judge "physically right for the production." In practice, casting looks at the room and keeps some people and thanks the rest before anyone sings or dances.

The rules around it are specific:

- It's up to casting, call by call. A show might type the female singers' call and not the male singers' call.
- It happens only at the start, and it must be finished before the first member goes in to audition.
- It's done in person, in the audition room. Casting can't type members from headshots or resumes alone.
- Once typing is announced, no non-Equity actors may be seen at that call, and once typing is done, the call is closed.

BroadwayWorld's guide explains why typing exists: ensemble casting is about fitting a group as much as about talent, so a show may need a particular height range, look, or style of mover. Being typed out is a decision about this production's picture, not a verdict on your work.

You can't control the picture, but you can control how clearly you read. Dress like a sharp version of the show's world, wear your hair the way it is in your headshot, and stand like you belong in the company. Casting director Jeffrey Dreisbach, who has sat behind the table at both ECCs and EPAs, says on his [podcast episode about dancers](https://broadwaypodcastnetwork.com/podcasts/casting-actors-cast/in-the-room-dancers/142) that your headshot should look like the person who walks into the room.

## ECC vs. EPA: how a chorus call is different

If you've been to an EPA, an ECC will feel faster. Equity's [principal audition procedures](https://www.actorsequity.org/docs/librariesprovider2/resource-documents/casting-call/aea_principal_auditions.pdf?sfvrsn=30137229_3) run on 20-minute slots of six appointments, with the alternate list filling open slots. A chorus call runs on numbered cards, group dance calls, and the option to type. Our guide to [Equity Principal Auditions](https://www.offbook.com/blog/what-is-an-equity-principal-audition) covers the EPA side in detail.

The material can change mid-call, too. The chorus call procedures leave the length of each audition to casting and have the monitor pass on what they want, such as "up-tempo," "ballad," or "16 bars." The length can change during the call: a call may start at 32 bars and drop to 16 later in the day. So prepare your cut at both lengths.

Chorus jobs can include more than singing in the ensemble. A notice may mention swings or understudies, and our guide to [understudies, swings, and standbys](https://www.offbook.com/blog/understudy-vs-swing-vs-standby) explains what those tracks involve.

## Can non-Equity actors go to a chorus call?

Yes, but go in with clear expectations. BroadwayWorld's 2026 guide says non-Equity performers sign in on an official list managed by the Equity monitor and are called only after members and alternates have been seen, and only if there's time. At dance calls, it says, Equity dancers are seen first, followed by non-Equity dancers. Under Equity's own procedures, once typing is announced at a call, no non-Equity actors may be seen at it.

Two recent changes make older advice wrong. In April 2025, BroadwayWorld reported that Equity had [ended unofficial lists](https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/No-More-Midnight-Sign-Ups-Equity-Ends-Unofficial-Lists-at-Auditions-20250404), the sign-up sheets posted on the building's door, which actors sometimes signed at midnight. BroadwayWorld reported that the official list must stay on the monitor's desk and opens only when the building's doors open, and each person writes only their own name.

And Equity Membership Candidates no longer have a priority place. Equity's 2023 announcement says that [as of May 8, 2026](https://actorsequity.org/news/PR/2023/02/08/OpenAccessPermanently), former EMCs are seen on the same basis as other non-Equity actors. If a guide tells you to sign an EMC list or start a list at dawn, it was written before these changes.

If being seen at Equity calls is central to your plans, look at whether you can join. Our guides to [how to join Actors' Equity](https://www.offbook.com/blog/how-to-join-actors-equity) and [open call auditions](https://www.offbook.com/blog/open-call-audition), where everyone is seen on the same basis, are good next reads.

## How to prepare your song for a singers' call

Start with the notice, every time. The singers' call for *Hadestown* on Broadway in October 2026 asked for [16 to 32 bars of a song that isn't from musical theater](https://www.broadwayworld.com/equity-audition/HADESTOWN--Broadway--Hadestown-Broadway-LLC-2026-52404), such as folk, rock, jazz, or gospel, and told everyone to bring music for the accompanist plus their book. That's typical of what a chorus notice does: it names a style, sometimes a length, and leaves the choice to you.

Dreisbach's [episode on singers at ECCs](https://broadwaypodcastnetwork.com/podcasts/casting-actors-cast/in-the-room-singers/143) adds the habits he saw holding people back. In short:

- Don't oversing. Tell the story to one specific person instead of listening to your own voice.
- Unless the notice asks for it, don't sing a song from the show. Pick something in its style.
- Bring a well-prepared printed copy of your music; it's easier for the accompanist than a tablet. It's easier for the accompanist than a tablet.
- Don't apologize for your voice if you're under the weather. Sing and let them decide.
- When you finish, don't look to the table for approval. Hold the moment, then thank the accompanist.

Mark both a 32-bar and a 16-bar cut in your music, with clear start and stop points, so you can switch if the monitor announces a change. Our guide to [cutting 16 bars](https://www.offbook.com/blog/how-to-cut-16-bars-for-an-audition) shows how to choose and mark a short cut, and [building a musical theater audition book](https://www.offbook.com/blog/musical-theater-audition-book) covers keeping songs in several styles ready.

Then know the words cold. Nerves in a packed holding room go after half-learned lyrics first, and you can't be telling a story while hunting for the next line. Say the lyric out loud as text, without the tune, until you can do it from memory. Our [free line memorizer](https://www.offbook.com/tools/first-letter-memorizer) turns any text into first-letter cues, which works as well for a verse as it does for a speech.

## How to prepare for a dancers' call

The dancers' notice for the same show said it plainly: [be warmed up and ready to dance](https://www.broadwayworld.com/equity-audition/HADESTOWN--Broadway--Hadestown-Broadway-LLC-2026-52402) when the call begins, choreography will be taught, wear clothes you can dance in and flat dance shoes or sneakers, and there will be no singing at that call. Equity's procedures add that dancers may be called in groups to learn combinations and audition in groups, with group size set by the room and how much space the combination covers.

So warm up before you arrive, not in the line. When the combination is taught, Dreisbach's advice is to get the footwork first, then the arms, then the character, and to keep your energy up while you're learning, not just when your group performs. He also tells dancers to stop performing for the mirror and play to the casting team instead.

If you're a singer who moves rather than a trained dancer, our guide to [dance call tips for actors who don't dance](https://www.offbook.com/blog/dance-call-tips-for-actors) covers learning a combination in chunks and what to do when you lose a step.

## What to bring, and a plan for the week

Notices like *Hadestown*'s ask for the same things: your Equity card if you're a member, a headshot and resume stapled together, and for singers, your music and your book. BroadwayWorld's guide adds the detail people forget: staple at all four corners, trim the resume to the photo, and bring several copies. Add water, a snack, a warm layer, and a second pair of shoes for a dance call.

1. **A week out:** read the notice twice. Note the call (dancers or singers), the style, the length, and the time. If you're a member in New York, Chicago, or Los Angeles, sign up online at 9:00 am when the window opens.
2. **During the week:** sing your cut at both 16 and 32 bars every day, out loud and from memory. Dancers, take class in the show's style.
3. **The night before:** staple your headshots, mark your music, pack your shoes, and check the studio address and floor number.
4. **On the day:** arrive well before the 30-minute mark, warm. If you're non-Equity, arrive when the doors open and sign the official list.
5. **In the holding room:** stay where you can hear the monitor, and don't leave until your number has been called.

Callbacks can include sides as well as singing. Our guide to [preparing for a callback](https://www.offbook.com/blog/how-to-prepare-for-a-callback) covers that step. For the sides themselves, Offbook lets you upload the pages, pick your role, and have realistic voices read every other character, waiting for you to finish each line before playing the next cue, so you can rehearse the scene before you walk in.

## Questions actors ask

### What is an Equity chorus call?

An Equity Chorus Call (ECC) is a union audition for ensemble roles, mostly in musicals, that producers hold when their Equity agreement calls for one. Singers and dancers often have separate calls. In New York, Chicago, and Los Angeles, an Equity monitor attends and the call follows Equity's written procedures.

### What happens at an ECC?

Members sign up online or arrive 30 minutes early, receive numbered cards, and are called in order. Casting may type at the start and keep only the people who look right for the show. Singers sing what casting asks for, which the monitor announces, for example 16 or 32 bars, and dancers learn a combination in groups.

### Can non-Equity actors go to a chorus call?

Yes. Non-Equity actors sign the official list at the monitor's desk and are seen only after members, if time allows. If casting announces typing at a call, no non-Equity actors may be seen at that call. Unofficial lists have ended, and since May 8, 2026 former EMCs wait with other non-Equity actors.

### What does "typed out" mean at a chorus call?

It means casting looked at the room at the start of the call and didn't keep you for that production. Under Equity's procedures, typing has to happen in person, in the room, before anyone auditions. It's about fitting a specific ensemble, so it says little about your talent.

### Should I prepare 16 or 32 bars for an ECC?

Both. The notice may name a length, but Equity's procedures let casting change it during the call, for example from 32 bars down to 16. Mark both cuts in your music so the accompanist can follow either one.