Lets talk about casting

Fun Theatre Fact (so you can sound like a pro when you make that post about how excited you are for your kid) : The past tense of cast is still cast (NOT CASTED, that’s not a word in the theatre world!) So you were cast in a show, not “casted.” One less word for theatre kids to memorize — we have enough already.

Make a fun memory

Try to sneakily film your kid when they check the cast list. Hopefully we managed to make your kid happy and that’s something worth recording (and sending to Chelsea if you want!)

A letter from the Staff

Dear Starlight Families,

As we prepare to release our cast lists, we want to take a moment to talk about something incredibly important: how we can work together to make this a wonderful experience for EVERY child in our program. Casting is one of the most exciting parts of putting on a show. It's also one of the hardest. We know how much these kids care. We know they've dreamed about certain roles, practiced their audition songs, and imagined themselves onstage. We love that passion, and we want to nurture it. But before those cast lists go out, there are a few things we need every Starlight family to understand.

1. Casting Is Not a Promise, and It Cannot Always Be Fair

Yes, we asked students to tell us their top role choices. We absolutely take those preferences into consideration, but a role preference is not a promise. Ultimately, our directors must cast each show using their professional judgment, considering the needs of the entire production and every student who auditioned.

What goes into our casting decisions?

• Experience: Previous performance experience, demonstrated skills, and readiness for the demands of a particular role.

• Vocal training: Clear evidence of vocal development, technique, and preparation.

• Acting: Bold choices, strong characterization, confidence, and a willingness to take risks.

• Musical accuracy: Singing ON PITCH and ON TEMPO is essential. These are fundamental skills we look for in auditions.

• The needs of the production: How students work together, vocal compatibility, character relationships, and the overall balance of the cast.

We also consider each student's growth, potential, and what we believe will help them develop as performers. For example, if you just played the sassy sidekick last year, we will try to reach for something that stretches you differently this year (unless of course you made it very clear in the audition that you really want that sidekick role AND you were the right choice for it).

Here's the difficult truth: Casting cannot be perfectly fair. There is simply no way to distribute roles so that every child receives an equal amount of stage time, an equally prominent part, or their first choice. Some roles are larger than others. Some students have more experience or are better prepared for the specific demands of a particular production. We cannot give every child their dream lead, no matter how much we wish we could and unless by some miracle every child had different top five choices, not everyone will end up with a top choice but we will work to make them happy. Furthermore, anyone who has ever been in a Starlight production can tell you that unlike a lot of other show experiences, we work very hard to make sure the ensemble is onstage CONSTANTLY. We do not believe in bored actors. Even in rehearsal we try hard to have everyone up and active most of the time. (Contrary to what you might expect, it is in fact the leads who often sit more because they are not always in all the big dance numbers). Our responsibility is not to make every role equal. Our responsibility is to make thoughtful casting decisions and then work incredibly hard to ensure that EVERY student has a meaningful, rewarding, and FUN experience. And that's exactly what we intend to do.

2. Parents: Your Reaction MATTERS More Than You Know

This might be the most important part of this entire message. Your child will look to YOU to understand how they should feel about their casting. If you respond with disappointment, frustration, or outrage, your child is likely to adopt those feelings, even if they were initially excited about their role. But if you respond with genuine enthusiasm, celebrate their accomplishment, and immediately start talking about all the exciting possibilities their role offers, you have the power to completely transform their experience. You can teach them to see opportunity instead of disappointment. You can help them understand that being part of an ensemble is valuable, that smaller roles can be unforgettable, and that their contribution matters regardless of how many lines or solos they receive. We're not asking you to dismiss your child's feelings. It's perfectly normal for a child to feel disappointed when they don't receive the role they wanted. Acknowledge those feelings, give them room to process, and then help them move forward. Focus on what strengths they may have showed that made them a good fit for the role. Or, if they are ready for it, have a discussion about what strengths their peers showed to get the role they wanted and how proud they are of their friends and brainstorm what you can do this year to develop similar strengths. Your confidence in us helps build your child's confidence in us. The more trust you demonstrate in our teaching team, the better equipped we are to create a positive experience for your child. We need you on our team.

3. Our 72-Hour Casting Policy

Once our cast lists are released, casting decisions are final. We will not be changing roles because a family is disappointed or disagrees with our decisions. Casting is HARD. Your teachers and directors spend countless hours reviewing auditions, discussing students, considering different combinations, and agonizing over decisions. We stay up very, very late trying to get this right. These decisions are never perfect. There will always be things we wish we could do differently, and students we desperately wish we could give bigger opportunities to. We often lament that there aren’t more leads to go around. The blessing and curse of being in a competitive program is that EVERYONE is very very good. This means excellent performers end up in small roles sometimes. This isn’t a slight, it is being a part of a strong program. Please remember that your teachers are real people who care deeply about your children. They have invested enormous amounts of time, energy, and emotional effort into these decisions.

With that in mind, we will be enforcing the following policy for ALL casting discussions:

1) We will not discuss casting decisions or schedule casting meetings during the first 72 hours after cast lists are released. This gives students and families time to process their emotions, reflect on their opportunities, and approach any questions with a clearer perspective. It also gives our teachers some much-needed breathing room after an incredibly demanding process.

2) After 72 hours, if you still feel that a conversation is necessary, we are happy to arrange a meeting. However, there is one nonnegotiable requirement: We will ONLY meet with a parent about casting if the student in question is present. There will be no exceptions. Here's why. Your child is the person who auditioned. Your child put in the work. Your child deserves to be included in conversations about their own artistic development. If you're seeking feedback about their audition, we want THEM to hear that feedback directly from us, unfiltered. We want them to learn how to ask questions, receive constructive criticism, advocate for themselves, and grow as performers. You are welcome in the conversation too but they deserve to be there. These are incredibly valuable life skills. We also believe that conversations are more productive, respectful, and focused on the student's growth when the student is present. Our teachers are always willing to help students improve. We are not available to serve as an outlet for anger or frustration over casting decisions.

3) We will happily make dedicated time for a meeting that you message us to schedule, but trying to pin us down while we are teaching or in the few minutes before or after a class with no warning is not the right time. The building is busy, we are flustered with our mind on our class, multiple people are asking us questions and often this is our only chance at a bathroom break! Lets set up scheduled quiet time.

*** One important exception to the timing of these conversations: If there is something significant that you believe we need to know about your child that could affect casting, PLEASE communicate that to us BEFORE cast lists are released. We cannot consider information we don't have.

4. Remember: There Are Other Children in This Program, Too

We want to address something we frequently encounter in conversations about casting. A parent will sometimes ask: "What did my child do wrong that caused them not to get the role?" We understand the intention behind this question. You want to know what your child could have done differently. But consider what that question implies. It suggests that the role belonged to your child and that they must have made a mistake that caused them to lose it. It completely overlooks every other talented, hardworking child who auditioned for that same role, and believe me, this program is filled with talented and hardworking kids. This is not your school play where only a few children are serious about theatre. This is a room full of young talent, many with broadway aspirations. Many take multiple dance and voice lessons a week to train for this and take it very seriously. Sometimes your child can deliver an absolutely wonderful audition and still not receive the part they wanted. That doesn't mean they failed. It means someone else was selected for that particular role in that particular production.

Instead, consider asking: "What did the students who received the leading roles demonstrate in their auditions, and what can we learn from that?" That's a fantastic question! In fact, it's a question we encourage you to ask your CHILD before you ask us. What did they notice about the other auditions? What impressed them? What skills would they like to develop? What could they work on before their next opportunity? Teach your children to admire excellence in others rather than view someone else's success as their own failure. That's how performers grow.

5. Be KIND. Celebrate Each Other. Lift Each Other Up.

This is an expectation, not a suggestion. When the cast list comes out, there will be children who are absolutely overjoyed. There will be children who are surprised. There will be children who are disappointed. Every single one of those children deserves kindness. That student who received the leading role? They're probably incredibly excited. They worked hard, they're proud of themselves, and they deserve to enjoy that moment. PLEASE don't take that joy away from them. Celebrate them! Congratulate them! Make them feel wonderful about their accomplishment! Do it publicly AND privately. And please extend that same enthusiasm to the students receiving smaller roles, featured parts, and ensemble assignments. Some people deliberately put two line roles as top choices! Every child deserves to feel proud of being part of this production. This also means being mindful of what you say when you think nobody is listening.

Negative comments about another student's casting, questioning whether they deserved their role, or suggesting that someone else should have been cast are hurtful and completely contrary to the environment we are trying to create. And remember: things said behind someone's back have a remarkable way of finding their way back to that person. We expect our students AND our parents to model kindness, generosity, and good sportsmanship. Students are expected to treat their cast mates with respect, support one another, and contribute positively to the rehearsal environment. Students who engage in bullying, unkind behavior, or deliberately undermine their fellow performers may lose roles, solos, or other performance opportunities. We take the emotional well-being of ALL our students seriously and the way students respond to casting, support their peers, participate in rehearsals, and handle disappointment helps us evaluate their readiness for future opportunities. Be the family that celebrates everyone else's children just as enthusiastically as you celebrate your own. We notice. Your children notice. And the other families notice.

6. Finally, Please Trust Us.

We've been doing this for a long time. We know that sometimes the student who was devastated not to receive a particular role ends up having the time of their life in a role they never expected to love. We've seen ensemble members become audience favorites (a janitor in Elf, a flower seller in Annie, goofy guy friends in 13, sometimes these are the ones we can’t forget). We've seen students discover talents they didn't know they had. We've seen lifelong friendships form between children who initially felt disappointed by their casting. And we've seen students grow tremendously because they were challenged to embrace an opportunity they hadn't originally envisioned. We WILL work to make this a wonderful experience for your child. But we need your help. Trust our teachers. Support your children. Celebrate their cast mates. Encourage growth. Model kindness. Our promise to you is that we will put our hearts into creating a production where every student feels valued, challenged, supported, and proud of what they've accomplished. Your part in that process is every bit as important as ours.

When those cast lists arrive, please remember that you're not just reacting to a role assignment. You're helping shape the way your child approaches challenges, celebrates others, and understands their own potential.

Let's make this an incredible experience for EVERY Starlight kid.

With love and appreciation,

Chelsea & the Starlight Theatre Team