# How to Prepare for Theater General Auditions

> A season general is one short slot to meet a theater company's artistic team before it casts a whole year. How to read the notice, pick two pieces that fit this company's season, build them to finish under the clock, and leave a record they can cast from.

- URL: https://www.offbook.com/blog/theater-general-auditions
- Published: 2026-10-22
- Last updated: 2026-10-22

The notice goes up on the theater's website, often months before the season starts: general auditions for next season, two days, ten-minute slots by appointment, two contrasting monologues. No roles listed beside your name, no sides, no scene partner. Just you, a room, and the people who will cast that company's plays for the next year.

It can feel like an audition for nothing in particular. It isn't. A general is how many theaters meet actors they don't know yet, and it's one of the few ways in if you have no agent and no history with the company.

The short version: read the notice like a contract and follow every line of it. Choose two pieces that sit inside the plays this company is actually producing, show two different sides of you, and finish comfortably under the time limit. Know the words so well that the panel watches a person, not a memory test. Then tell them clearly when you're available, and keep a record of what you did.

## Know what a season general is for

A general audition is held by one company, for its whole season, before most of the shows are cast. Riverside Theatre in Iowa City puts the purpose plainly in its [2026/27 general audition notice](https://riversidetheatre.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/Summer-2026-General-Auditions.docx.pdf): it's a chance for area actors "to be seen by artistic decision makers," or to say they want to work with the company again.

The same notice explains what happens next. Actors are asked about their availability and interests at the audition, and separate callbacks may be held for each project later. So a general rarely books you a part on the day. It gets you into the pool that each director draws from when their show comes up.

That changes how to think about your slot. You're not trying to be perfect for one role. You're trying to leave the panel sure of two things: what kind of parts you'd be right for, and that you'd be good to work with for a few weeks of rehearsal.

### Generals, EPAs, and unified auditions

Three kinds of call get lumped together, and they work differently. A company's own general is the one this guide is about. A unified audition gathers many companies in one hall for a single short slot; our guide to [unified theatre auditions such as SETC and UPTA](https://www.offbook.com/blog/unified-theatre-auditions) covers that format.

Equity Principal Auditions, or EPAs, are the union calls that theaters on Equity contracts hold. Actor and Equity member Maggie Bera's [guide to EPAs for newcomers](https://www.actoraesthetic.com/blog/equity-principal-audition-for-newbies) explains that they're for leading and featured roles and that each 20-minute slot holds six appointments. Four of the six can be booked online by Equity members starting a week ahead, and the other two are signed up in person on the morning of the audition. Do the arithmetic and you get roughly three minutes each. Non-Equity actors can attend as guests, but she notes there is never a guarantee they'll be seen.

Some theaters run a season EPA that works like a general. The mindset in the rest of this guide applies to both, but Bera notes that most EPAs ask for a 32-bar song cut, while others ask for a short or one-minute monologue or cold readings from sides, and she advises keeping the whole audition under two minutes. Check the material and sign-up rules for the call you're attending.

## Read the notice like a contract

Every general sets its own rules, and the panel notices who followed them. Compare two real notices from 2026. Riverside asked for two contrasting monologues of no more than two minutes each, four minutes in total. [Theatre Calgary's generals notice](https://www.theatrecalgary.com/assets/downloads/Auditiion-Notices/TC-GeneralAuditions2026-notice.pdf) asked theater actors for two contrasting monologues of no longer than two minutes each, and musical theater actors for two contrasting songs (a 16 to 32 bar cut) plus a short monologue.

Calgary was just as specific about paperwork: one PDF with the headshot first and the resume second, named with your last name then your first name, sent by email with "General Auditions" in the subject line. An actor who sends two loose files called IMG_4471 has told the company something before anyone has seen them act.

Before you choose a piece, write down the answers to these questions from the notice itself:

- How many pieces, and is there a limit for each piece, for the total, or both?
- Does the notice say "contrasting," "contemporary," or "classical," and does it name an era or a country of origin for the plays?
- Is there a song, and is there an accompanist, a track, or nothing at all?
- How do you book a slot, by what date, and in what format do they want your headshot and resume?
- Who gets priority, such as union members or local actors, and is there an open call for everyone else?

That last question matters. Calgary gave priority to members of Canadian Actors' Equity and to local artists, and invited those not contacted for appointments to its open call the next day. Knowing that up front tells you which day to plan for.

## Choose two pieces that belong in this company's season

Generals usually come with a clue that most actors skip: the season itself. Riverside's notice listed the shows it was casting, from *The Turn of the Screw* to *Waiting for Godot* and *Intimate Apparel*. That list is the best brief you'll get for what the directors will need.

Andrew Gallant's [tips for season general auditions](https://www.greenshirtstudio.com/blog/5-tips-for-season-general-auditions) make the same point: pick material that suits the theater's season, and learn about the company's work, ideally by seeing one of its shows. A company that produces new American plays and a company that produces Shakespeare in a park are not looking at the same two minutes.

So look for parts in the season you could actually be cast in, by age and type, then find monologues from other plays that would sit next to them comfortably. It's usually safer not to perform a speech from a play in the season unless the notice invites it. You'd be auditioning against the director's own picture of that role before they've cast it.

### Make the contrast real

"Contrasting" doesn't just mean one sad piece and one funny piece. It means two people who want different things in different ways, so the panel sees two sides of what you can do. Our guide to [choosing contrasting monologues](https://www.offbook.com/blog/how-to-choose-contrasting-monologues) goes through the ways to pair them. Our [monologue library](https://www.offbook.com/monologues) is a good place to start looking.

Fresh material helps too. In [an article on choosing an audition monologue](https://castingfrontier.com/choosing-an-audition-monologue/), built on casting director Erica Arvold's advice, the writers note that monologues from monologue books are overrepresented in the audition room. Arvold's own view is that something different from those books is "nice and fresh and memorable." A panel that hears the same speech four times by lunch is not watching the fourth actor with fresh eyes.

## Build the package to finish under the clock

A two-minute limit doesn't mean you should bring two minutes. At the very least, leave a cushion: the same article on choosing a monologue suggests that if casting asks for 60 seconds, you choose a 50-second monologue so you aren't cut off for running long. For generals, Gallant goes further. His rule of thumb is forty-five seconds to a minute per monologue, and his reason is simple: leave them wanting more.

Time the whole package, not just the speeches. That means your introduction, the pause to set up the second piece, and the change between them. Run it three times out loud with a stopwatch, or use our free [monologue timer](https://www.offbook.com/tools/monologue-timer), and use the longest run as your real time. Nerves can make you rush, but a long pause you didn't plan can make you slower.

Plan the transition as carefully as the speeches. Decide where you'll look, whether you'll turn away or simply reset, and how many beats you'll take before the second character speaks. A clean change between pieces is part of showing contrast.

## Make the first moments count

Panels at a general see many actors in a day, and they form an impression fast. Research on first impressions gives a sense of how fast. In a 1993 study, psychologists Nalini Ambady and Robert Rosenthal found that strangers' ratings of college teachers from [silent video clips under 30 seconds long](https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.64.3.431) significantly predicted the teachers' end-of-semester student evaluations. In a later study in the same paper, clips of 6 and 15 seconds still related strongly.

Nobody has run that study on an audition panel, so don't read it as a rule about casting. But it's a reasonable bet that how you walk in, how you stand, and how you say your name are read before your first line. So rehearse the walk to your mark and your introduction the same way you rehearse the text.

- Walk in at a normal pace and go straight to your spot.
- Say your name and the titles and playwrights of your pieces, in the order you'll perform them, unless the notice says otherwise.
- Take one breath and find the person you're talking to before your first word.
- At the end, hold the final moment for a beat, then come back to yourself and say thank you.

## Know the words cold, then forget about them

A general is the worst place to find out you only half know a speech. There's no scene partner to carry you, and no sides to glance at. The fix is to test yourself out loud from memory, not to reread. Our guide to [memorizing a monologue](https://www.offbook.com/blog/how-to-memorize-a-monologue) walks through the method.

Offbook helps with that test. Upload the play your monologue comes from, hide your lines while the rest of the script stays visible, and swap your speech for first-letter cues while it's still new. When it holds, hide the entire script for a final run. Our free [first-letter memorizer](https://www.offbook.com/tools/first-letter-memorizer) turns any speech into cues without an account.

Video: [Hide your lines](https://www.offbook.com/learn/hide-your-lines) (1:07)

A speech lifted out of a play also needs the moment that came before it. In Offbook you can pick your role and have realistic voices read the scene that leads into your monologue, so your first line comes out as an answer, not a recitation. Then you can put the script away and run the speech alone, the way you'll do it in the room.

## Leave them a record they can cast from

Riverside's notice says actors are asked their availability and interests at the audition. Have that ready in a sentence: the months you're free, any dates you're already committed to, and whether you'd take a small role or understudy. A director casting a show next spring will look at that note long after they've forgotten your second piece.

Bring printed copies of your headshot and resume even if you sent a PDF. Make sure the resume lists your current contact details and the training a director would look for. Our free [acting resume builder](https://www.offbook.com/tools/acting-resume-builder) helps if yours needs an update.

Afterward, Gallant suggests sending a thank-you note to companies you felt good about. Keep it short and specific. Then write down what you did, which pieces, what you wore, and anyone you met, in a notebook or in our free [audition tracker](https://www.offbook.com/tools/audition-tracker). Calgary's notice says artists seen by its artistic team at any of its auditions over the past two seasons won't be expected to apply or audition for that season's generals, so a good general can keep working for you for a while.

## Questions actors ask

### How many monologues do I need for a general audition?

Two contrasting monologues is the most common request, but the notice decides. Riverside asked for two in 2026, and so did Theatre Calgary for its theater track, each capped at two minutes. Musical theater calls may swap monologues for songs: Calgary's musical theater track asked for two contrasting songs and a short monologue. Bring exactly what the notice asks for and, if you can, keep a third piece ready.

### Do I need to sing at a theater general?

Only if the notice asks or you're auditioning for musicals. Calgary split its call into a theater audition with two monologues and a musical theater audition with two songs and a short monologue. If a song is optional and you don't sing well, a strong second monologue does more for you.

### Can non-Equity actors go to an EPA?

Often, but with no promise of being seen. Bera's guide explains that non-Equity actors can attend as guests, and that there is never a guarantee they'll be seen. A company's own general, where non-union actors can book a slot, gives you a set appointment instead of a wait.

### Should one of my pieces be classical?

Only if the notice asks or the season calls for it. A company producing Shakespeare will want to see you handle verse; a company producing new plays may not. If you need one, our guide to [performing Shakespeare monologues](https://www.offbook.com/blog/how-to-perform-shakespeare-monologues) covers the verse work.

### What should I bring to a general audition?

Printed headshots and resumes, even if you submitted a PDF, a short note of your availability, water, and anything the notice asks for, such as sheet music. Wear something you can move in that lets the panel see you clearly, and plan to arrive early enough to read any sign-in instructions.