The very best way to get better at your craft is for you to work with people better then you. You’ll never get better at tennis if you insist upon playing with people at your own skill level. Too often actors are afraid that if they play a scene with someone better or more advanced then they are – – that they will look weak in comparison. Not true. If your acting partner is genuinely more advanced then you – – they will raise your ability to create communion. They will make you shine. All stress and all stage fright will disappear as this superior actor works to hold your full presence. It will be both a relief and an inspiration to work with them. My advice to actors is to find the most talented member in the company and do what ever it takes (bake cookies, do their homework, clean their car) to convince them to play off of you for the audition.
To be a successful actor you MUST get out of your comfort zone. I would never recommend working on scenes, much less auditioning with your close friends. Although it may be more comfortable to be with them – – you are never going to experience them in a new light – – and that new light is exactly what will bring energy into your scene. Play a love scene with an actor you have never worked with – and every moment they take – every breath, every pause, and every change in inflection will write the scene anew. You will be wide awake. You will be unsure, unsteady, uneven and totally off-guard. The predictable does little for your personal love life and does precious little for capturing the audience.
Next time an audition approaches – consider your “tennis partner.” Choose someone far better than you who can make you work the court like never before.