Andrea D’Arco is a junior Acting major from New Jersey. This semester she is starring in The Rover, a story of adventure, between a group of Englishmen, and love complications set during Mardi Gras in modern New Orleans. The Rover is being put on by the Main Stage Theater at IC on April 27-30. Make sure you check it out, but first, learn a little about the lead!
Her Campus: What is your role in The Rover?
Andrea D’Arco: My role in The Rover is Florinda. She is a Spanish Noble woman and one of the female leads.
HC: How did you prepare for the audition?
AD: How our audition process in Dillingham works is we have one day of General Auditions before classes start, and we fill out and audition form and sign up for a time on Sakai. At the General Audition, we audition for all the shows this semester by performing a 16 Bar Cut of a Legit Musical Theatre Song and a 1 minute monologue. Then after that callback week starts. Each morning the callback lists are on Sakai and all callbacks occur starting after classes at 6:30-11 at night. Each day it depends on the show, and the time for when your callbacks are. The first day I had callbacks for other shows in the season from 6:30-11 straight and the next day I had all my callback auditions for The Rover. Callbacks usually include learning sides for the character you are called back for or songs if you get called back for the musical. I got called back for almost every girl character in The Rover, so it was very difficult, but it involved knowing each character, reading the sides over and over, making sure you understand the heightened text, possibly dressing like the character, and lastly making bold choices in the audition room.
HC: What other acting experience have you had at IC?
AD: My sophomore year I was cast in the Ensemble of She Kills Monsters directed by Norm Johnson, and last semester I was cast in the dance concert called Winter Bodies and was in Courtney Young’s piece of the Oklahoma Dream Ballet as a Friend/Pin-Up Girl. I have also been in a variety of Park Films and Senior Thesis Films, as well as member of IC Unbound Dance Co.
HC: Is there any advice you would give to a student wanting to try out for shows at IC?
AD: DO IT and do it without fear and with your whole heart! A lot of people tell me they always want to audition, but they are always intimidated by theatre majors in the program who audition all the time. You just have to block them out, do what you know you can do. When you start worrying about other people is when you inhibit yourself from shinning. Just because certain people aren’t in the theatre program does not mean that you are not talented. The teachers will cast who every is right for the show and the role. The only thing you can do it is bring yourself and show who you are.
HC: How do you balance stage life with school life and free time?
AD: I’m not going to lie it is not always the easiest to balance. When rehearsals start I always get in this mindset of class, rehearsal, homework. I try to see friends in between class as much as possible and on the weekends because my friends are important to me, it just gets difficult to see them because I will have class all day and then rehearsals from 7-10 week nights and from 1-5 on Saturday. It involves a lot of planning when you will hang out with people, getting homework done right away in order be fully focused on rehearsal and allow yourself down time.
HC: If you could have a dream role, what would it be?
AD: I think my dream role would be Annie Sullivan from A Miracle Worker.
HC: Do you know what you want to do after you graduate?
AD: After I graduate I would love to do theater and film. I want to audition in NYC and maybe go to LA for a few months and audition there. I also want to become a Sign Language interpreter as a part time job and hopefully use it in theater one day such Deaf West.
HC: Finally, what are you most excited about for this play?
AD: I’m most excited to work, learn, and create the fights I am involved in. We just had a week of fight training with Michael Jerome Johnson and when he comes back in 6 weeks we will be creating our fights with him. He is a very collaborative fight chorographer which I really enjoy that he works with us instead of just giving us stuff to do. I’m also super excited to work with this big cast that has already started to bond together as well my director Greg Bostwick. He is a teacher I have had before and work very well with, but it will be interesting to see how the setting is either different or similar with him as my teacher by day, director by night.