How to overcome nerves and anxiety before an audition

Everyone experiences audition nerves, including those who have been acting for twenty years. The goal is not to eliminate them—without that energy, a performance can become lifeless—but to ensure they don't get in your way. The difference between helpful and harmful nervousness comes down to one thing: where your attention is focused.

Helpful vs. Harmful Nervousness

Helpful nervousness is mobilization: heightened awareness, quick reactions, and energy. In this state, your attention is directed outward: toward the text, your partner, and the objective.

Harmful nervousness is anxiety: thoughts about how you look, what people think of you, and whether you will succeed or fail. Here, your attention is directed inward, leaving no resources for the actual work.

Almost every technique listed below serves one purpose: to shift your focus from the inside to the outside.

A Day Before

• Memorize the text until it is automatic. Knowing your lines is the primary source of calm. If you are afraid of forgetting words, your mental resources will be wasted on that fear.
• Analyze the scene. Define the event, the objective (using an active verb), and the obstacle. A clear objective provides a foundation.
• Prepare two options. Knowing you have a backup approach removes the fear of being asked for a "different take" or a correction.
• Prepare your clothes and belongings the night before. Morning chaos only amplifies anxiety.
• Check the address and travel time.
• Get enough sleep. Sleep deprivation increases anxiety more than any other factor.

An Hour Before

• Arrive early. Rushing and nervousness compound one another.
• Warm up physically. Physical movement processes adrenaline: shake your limbs, roll your shoulders, and take deep exhales.
• Warm up your voice. Do this quietly, with humming—a voice strained by nerves is immediately noticeable.
• Stop repeating the text endlessly. One run-through is fine; the tenth is not—it becomes an anxiety ritual.
• Avoid studying the "competition" in the hallway. Comparing yourself to others is a direct path back to internal focus.
• Put away your phone. Scrolling through feeds before an audition scatters your attention.

A Minute Before

1. Make the exhale longer than the inhale. Inhale for four counts, exhale for eight; repeat for three or four cycles. This physiologically lowers your heart rate.
2. Drop your shoulders and unclench your jaw. This is where the body holds tension and anxiety.
3. Focus on one specific thought: what do I want from my partner in this scene? One phrase, one verb.
4. Recall what happened a second before the scene began. This shifts your attention back to the circumstances of the character.
5. Grounding. Feel your feet on the floor and the weight of your body. It is a simple technique that works.

What Hinders You

• The "I must be liked" mindset. This shifts the focus onto yourself. Replace it with "I must achieve my objective in the scene."
• Sedatives and alcohol. These remove anxiety along with your reactions and vitality. On camera, this appears as lethargy.
• Excessive coffee. It increases tremors and dries out your throat.
• Over-rehearsing the lines. This turns a living performance into something mechanical and memorized.
• Discussing the project with other candidates. This almost always increases anxiety.
• Trying "not to be nervous." Fighting nervousness only intensifies it; accepting it and shifting your attention is what works.

If You Panic in the Room

It happens to everyone. Here is what to do:

• Be honest. "Give me thirty seconds, please" is a normal request, and professionals understand it.
• Take a long exhale and return to the task with one clear phrase.
• Rely on a physical action. Pick up an object, sit down, or stand up—physical movement triggers the mind to reset.
• Look at your partner or the reader. A real person is the best anchor.
• Do not apologize repeatedly. Once is enough.

If Nervousness Is a Constant Struggle

When anxiety consistently turns prepared work into a failure, willpower isn't the answer—systemic work is:

• Recording experience. Regular self-tapes at home reduce sensitivity to the camera.
• More auditions. The more often you enter the room, the less weight each individual audition carries.
• Public speaking in any form trains your ability to handle attention.
• Body work. Breathing practices and movement classes.
• Professional support. If anxiety extends beyond your professional life and interferes with your daily living, this is the realm of a psychologist, and seeking help is completely normal.

Shifting Your Mindset

One simple change can transform your approach to auditions: you are not coming to take an exam; you are coming to present an option. The casting director is not a judge, but a person looking for a solution to a problem. Sometimes your option fits, sometimes it doesn't—and the latter happens more often, usually for reasons that have nothing to do with you. Note that market standards, contract forms, and tax rules vary by region, but the creative process remains the same.

In Brief

• Nervousness is useful as long as your attention is directed outward.
• Memorized text and a clear objective are your primary sources of calm.
• One minute before: long exhale, dropped shoulders, one specific task.
• Sedatives, alcohol, and too much coffee work against you.
• If you panic: ask for thirty seconds and rely on a physical action.
• Regularly auditioning lowers the stakes of each individual attempt.

Find projects and auditions in the castings section.