CALLING ALL COMEDIC NU ACTORS!

The Cold Cut is Hollywood’s first-ever showcase competition of Cold Open scenes from original TV comedy pilot scripts. It is co-sponsored by NUEA West and The Black List. The event will take place June 3^rd at the Zephyr Theatre.

Format:

Up to eight (8) original half-hour comedy pilots written by NU alumni will be selected, and NU directors and actors will stage live performances of each script’s Cold Open scene. Then, Battle of the Bands-style, the audience will vote on their favorite scene. After intermission, the winning Cold Open that makes “the cut” will have its entire script read on stage.

The Acting Ensemble:

About 10-12 actors will be selected to perform the Cold Open scenes. The performances will be off-book, and each actor should expect to handle main roles in 2 scenes (approximately 3-5 pages each) and possible minor speaking parts. For each Cold Open scene, directors will schedule at least two scene-specific rehearsals, in addition to one all-cast rehearsal on Tuesday, May 19, in Culver City and one all-cast Tech Rehearsal on Saturday May, 30, at the Zephyr Theater.

All actors will also be needed for the entire June 3^rd show, which is split into two halves. The first half will feature performance (off-book) of the eight Cold Opening scenes from up the selected Finalist Scripts. Staging and props will be minimal, and narrators will be employed as needed.

In the show’s second half, the ensemble will read the entire script of the winning Cold Open. Actors will be seated for this and on-book. Actors who performed in the winning Cold Open will reprise their roles, and the remaining roles will have been pre-assigned to the rest of the ensemble. (Actors will receive their pre-assigned roles in each script well before the performance date.)

Actor Requirements:

• Be a current NUEA West member. To join or renew today, visit this link: nueawest.org/join.
• Submit the following to   by Saturday, April 11:
  • Resume
  • Headshot
  • Link to online reel, if available
• At the casting stage (details below), submit self-taped auditions. Our casting director will provide materials for each self-taping.
• Be available on June 3^rd for the entire event. This includes the first-half Cold Open performances and the staged full-script table read after intermission.
• Pre-event, attend:
  • Final casting Table Read on Monday, April 27, at the Attic in Culver City
  • All-cast rehearsal on Tuesday, May 19, at the Attic in Culver City
  • At least two additional scene-specific rehearsals for each scene as schedule by the directors
• Have access to a digital tablet to download all scripts for the April 27 Table Read, all rehearsals, and the June 3^rd second-half script reading.

Casting Process / Audition Format:

After the Finalist scripts are selected, the Casting Director consults with the writers and directors on casting needs. During the third week of April, actors will be emailed possible roles in different Cold Open scenes. The actors will receive sides for each of these roles, and they will self-tape their line readings and send online to Casting Director. (For those unable to self-tape, the Casting Director may cast off the actor’s online reel.)

Actors will be assigned potential Cold Open roles and given scripts for the April 27 Table Read. Only the Cold Opens will be table read. Afterward, the casting director, scene directors and writers will finalize Cold Open role assignments and actors notified soon after.

The Cold Open scenes will feature only a fraction of the characters featured in an entire half-hour TV script. All remaining roles in each Finalist script will be pre-assigned by the Casting Director to allow actors to review their lines to be familiar with whichever script wins the audience vote. The full-script table read will be conducted seated and read “script in hand” from each actor’s tablet.

Any other questions? E-mail us at .