Backstage Magazine, Digital Edition: April 10, 2025

DRESSED TO KILL

HAILEE STEINFELD STEPS INTO THE HORROR GENRE

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CATCHING UP WITH

KIT CONNOR

By Vinnie Mancuso

IT CONNOR, WHO BROKE OUT IN THE ROLE OF A gentle high school jock on Alice Oseman’s “Heartstopper,” is all grown up—and heading o to war. Fresh from his acclaimed Broadway debut in Sam Gold’s “Romeo and Juliet,” Connor is starring in Alex Garland and Ray Mendoza’s harrowing military drama “Warfare” (in theaters April 11), which is based on Mendoza’s real-life experience as a Navy SEAL in Iraq. Here, the actor discusses the intense physical preparation he underwent for the lm and a mistake that he’ll never repeat.

What did you appreciate most about collaborating with Ray and Alex?

Ray was in charge of the characters and of us. Because he knew these guys we were playing, it was incredibly personal to him, and he was good at giving us everything we needed. And Alex, being a veteran filmmaker and storyteller, was there to craft the movie around it. The two of them worked brilliantly together; they felt like a team we could

rely on.

‘‘ I always felt this desperate need to be older; I always wanted people to see me as a grown-up.’’

What’s the most memorable thing about the boot camp–style prep you did for the film?

It was probably when we all did Navy SEAL pushups— or burpees—which is an exhausting and difficult exercise. We would do 100 of them at a time as a group every other day. It was exhausting, but also kind of amazing. We did them in the park or in the training center; we would do them everywhere. It was just a great bonding [experience].

You made your film debut in Christopher Smith’s “Get Santa” when you were 10 years old. Did you have any formative experiences on that set?

My parents got me this Samsung phone. It was my first phone. I was probably a bit young, but they were like, “You’re going to be filming in Leeds, so you should be able to call us.”

And I remember the phone went off in the middle of this sweet scene between me and Rafe Spall. It was the most embarrassing, terrifying moment. I thought I would get in such trouble; it was awful. And my phone has never, ever gone off since. I’ve made sure of it. So it was formative in its own way.

What’s your worst audition horror story?

I was auditioning for this film in which I had to sing. It was down to the last two people—me and this other guy—and we did the

audition almost together. We had to sing this song; they set us up with a full mic and headphones. He was a singer, so he really did his thing and was rocking out and everything. I was already terrified because I’m really not much of a singer. I start going for it, and he stops me and goes, “Hey, by the way, you should really take one of your headphones off your ears like this so you can hear better.” I felt like such an idiot. I was like, Oh, fuck, there’s no way I’m gonna get this role; he’s made a fool out of me. But luckily, I got the role, so it’s not quite a horror story. But in the moment, it was awful.

What advice would you give your younger self?

As a child actor, I always felt this desperate need to be older; I always wanted people to see me as a grown-up. I still have that to a certain degree. I hope that the people I work with respect me and see me as an equal, but I also think that there’s a real joy and value in embracing your youth. I feel incredibly lucky: I just turned 21, and I’m promoting this wonderful movie. So I would say to just be able to embrace the youth.

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

DAVID REISS

“Agents, casting directors, and producers want what the public wants, craves, and needs—that is, human beings. Actors are human beings who train themselves to reflect for humanity what it means to be human. Actors therefore serve a vital role in our society and in civilization as a whole.”

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THE GREEN ROOM

Education Anna Deavere Smith’s 10 Essential Lessons for Acting Students

By Alex Ates

‘‘ What if this craft is not about self, but about being an observer of the world?’’

● YOU MAY KNOW

ANNA

Deavere Smith from her prolific TV work portraying pragmatic, principled characters on shows like “The West Wing,” “Nurse Jackie,” and “Black-ish.” But she’s also one of the premier dramatists of the modern age, creating a distinctive style of one-person theater in which a single actor seamlessly embodies multiple characters.

Her plays draw from interviews with everyday people navigating complex societal issues, from riots (“Fires in the Mirror,” “Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992”) to the culture of death and dying (“Let Me Down Easy”) to the school-to-prison pipeline (“Notes From the Field: Doing Time in Education”). Highly regarded by critics and audiences alike, her one-of-a-kind plays are incisive, empathetic, and transformational, often exploring pervasive racial tensions in America.

Smith is also a powerhouse professor at New York University, where she teaches interdisciplinary graduate classes at the Tisch School of the Arts. She’s one of the country’s leading public intellectuals, and has educated students about multidisciplinary performance at several renowned universities. In 2006, she published a book on the subject: “Letters to a Young Artist,” which offers straightforward, heartfelt lessons for up-and-coming creators.

Here, Smith (who, full disclosure, was my grad school professor) offers 10 pieces of advice for current and aspiring acting students.

JEFF RIEDEL

1. Acting isn’t about you. Smith notes that theater students often focus on their own experience rather than the audience’s. She believes that this tendency to turn inward isn’t because young performers are self-centered, but because the Stanislavsky-based techniques widely taught in the U.S. focus on psychological realism, which encourages actors to look inside themselves to find their creative identity. “I think the first part of the curriculum needs to be that it’s not about you,” she says. “What if this craft is not about self, but about being an observer of the world?”

2. Empathy comes from observation.

To help students redirect their attention outward, Smith advises drawing inspiration from the people around them. “What if acting—contrary to what Elon Musk said [about empathy being a ‘fundamental weakness’]—is about really focusing on others? Acting is an inquiry; it’s a real investigation of humans.”

3. Define your goals. If you’re thinking about pursuing a career in acting, Smith believes it’s essential to consider artistry before practicality. “ ‘How can I have a career? How can I do this? How can I do that?’ Those are questions for a career adviser or a life coach; they’re not the questions you should take into the study of theater. The questions should be structured around the world and the humans in it.”

4. Look for art in unexpected places. When Smith was an MFA student at the American Conservatory Theater in San Francisco, one of her instructors encouraged her to go see t he opulent window displays at a downtown department store and to observe labor union gatherings at the city docks. This exercise helped her pay attention to the creativity all around her. “What is so-called ‘art’? Store windows

are art, right?” she posits. “You need to be in the world. On the one hand, training can be a monkish, controlled existence, to a certain extent. But on the other hand, you should always be in relationship to the world around you.”

5. Foster a culture of collaboration.

“Theater has to be a community, and everybody has to have a role,” Smith says. In her courses, she assigns community positions to each of her s tudents, both to encourage participation and to emphasize the importance of embracing the actor’s role in society at large. “Everybody has a responsibility for [the success of] our class,” she explains. “It’s not just me; the class belongs to the students. If I’m successful, I talk a lot in the beginning and much less at the end.”

6. Pay attention to all critiques. Smith believes that learning the craft isn’t just about listening to the notes that professors give you individually. “Pay equal attention, if not more, to what the teacher is saying to somebody else,” she advises. “Because when you get a sense of how the teacher is really talking, you get a sense of their values.”

7. Get to know your instructors. Every professor you encounter in drama school has a distinct creative identity and body of work—so it’s vital to consider the methodologies, ideologies, and approaches of each. “Know who you’re studying w ith,” Smith says. “[For example,] my specialty is emotions and language; take advantage of that.”

Edie Falco and Anna Deavere Smith on “Nurse Jackie”

8. Cultivate self-awareness. Smith encourages students to think about how they see their own work. “In ‘Letters to a Young Artist,’ I write that you need to be developing your own sense of whether [your performance] worked or not, which is very hard.” In her classes, she stresses that “the most important thing is to get rid of [asking yourself,] ‘Was it good?’ You have to stop listening for that. That’s how we train dogs: ‘Good girl.’ ‘Good boy.’ And you’re not a dog, right? It’s a more intellectual prospect than that. You’ve got to be able to take it in and build that system [of self-awareness] over time to know what lands and what doesn’t.”

9. Know your body. Acting begins with maintaining your physical well-being. “ Take care of yourself,” Smith advises. “Everybody has a different kind of body, and everybody’s body does different things, right? There are really talented people who take drugs and drink alcohol and don’t go to sleep at night. Know what your body can withstand rather than being dogmatic about it.”

10. Inspiration can come from anywhere. When I ask Smith what works have inspired her to maintain and expand her commitment to the craft, her response is wide-ranging: Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, Mike Wallace’s 1959 interview with pioneering Black playwright Lorraine Hansberry, Jack Whitten’s abstract 2014 painting “Atopolis.” For her, the latter is emblematic of an actor’s relationship with the world. “ ‘Atopolis’ is really about the idea that, in the end, you have to work very hard to find a sense of belonging; it’s not given to you.”

BOOKS

Must-Reads by Smith

“ Fires in the Mirror ”

THIS ONE-WOMAN SHOW DIGS INTO THE 1991 RIOTS that rocked Brooklyn’s Crown Heights neighborhood following the accidental death of a Black child and the subsequent murder of an Orthodox Jewish student. The play, which proved to be Smith’s breakout work, was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

“ Twilight: Los Angeles, 1992”

SMITH INTERVIEWED MORE THAN 200 INDIVIDUALS to compile this incisive exploration of the 1992 Los Angeles riots. To create a full picture of the events, she spoke to a wide variety of Angelenos, including Rodney King’s aunt, a former police chief, and a disabled Korean man.

“ Let Me Down Easy”

SMITH WIDENED HER LENS FOR THIS DEEP DIVE INTO the way American society approaches death and dying. To tackle such a complex subject, Smith spoke to doctors, professional athletes, activists, religious leaders, and everyday people across the nation. —Jenna Scherer

Career Dispatch

To Thine Own Accent Be True

By Molly Osborne

British actor Molly Osborne is making her Broadway debut as Desdemona in Kenny Leon’s revival of “Othello,” performing opposite Denzel Washington and Jake Gyllenhaal. The production runs through June 8 at the Barrymore Theatre.

FROM SEEING WHERE THE ACTORS I ADMIRE TRAINED, I KNEW I really wanted to go to drama school. I applied everywhere I could, but I didn’t get many callbacks. At the last minute, I sent an application to the musical theater course at the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music & Dance. I loved it; the school just had really good vibes and energy. That was probably because Trinity Laban made me feel happy and safe, even during the audition process. And fortunately, I got a place there.

Acting through song is one of the hardest things I’ve ever done; but learning storytelling within the confines of the magical realism of musical theater is such a good challenge. I didn’t go into drama school as a dancer, but throwing yourself into something that you know you’re going to look like an idiot doing is really good for you. It taught me discipline.

I got a self-tape notice for a production of “Othello” on Broadway starring two unnamed A-listers. It said: “American accents only” and “Show us a couple of your own Shakespeare monologues, if you want.” Particularly because they were looking for people with American accents, I was like, Yeah, sure, this is going to happen. I really didn’t think I had a shot, which was good, because it meant that I felt comfortable doing the work I wanted to do. Sometimes when I think there might be a sliver of hope, it works against me.

Then I got a call saying that Kenny was going to be in London, so I met with him for a couple of hours. I bumped into him the next day on the red carpet at the premiere of “The Picture of Dorian Gray.” At the end, he said, “Great to see you. Take care,” and I was like, “Take care.” I was like, Wow. Kenny Leon. Wow.

It is such an honor and privilege to be in the room with this company. I’m learning so much every day from being in everyone’s orbit; Jake and Denzel have been so generous about sharing their wisdom and their process. I feel so grateful to be a part of it. I’m trying to find the balance between admiring these incredibly talented, huge people and saying to them, “I’m your scene partner. Here’s the truth; here’s my presence. Let’s do it.”

From watching them, I picked up the concept of being quiet enough inside myself to let the truth come out. It’s been a big learning curve for me—teaching myself to strip everything away and trust that instinct and honesty; the level of truth and presence is mind-blowing. We’re at the Barrymore, which is such a beautiful theater with more than 1,000 seats, so we’re learning how to communicate that to the audience.

Desdemona really believes in finding the good in people. I think she represents this hope for change; she’s a shining light before her ultimate demise. It’s been interesting to really dig deep and find that.

This essay is by Osborne, as told to Esther Zuckerman.

‘‘ I’m trying to find the balance between admiring these incredibly talented‚ huge people and saying to them‚ ‘I’m your scene partner. Here’s the truth; here’s my presence. Let’s do it.’ ”

Molly Osborne

“The wig references the bouncy, ridiculous, bratty girls in Disney’s ‘Cinderella.’ The inspiration is literally a cartoon, which is apt for Mary.”

“ The ball gowns really were that huge, but they would never have a short style. There’s a silliness about the shortness, and it also tells us who Mary is as a person; she’s a bit of a rebel.”

Cole Escola in “Oh, Mary!”

“It’s like a cancan boot. We had LaDuca build custom shoes for all the Marys. It’s also a lot more secure in terms of the ankle; it has a lot more support.”

The Essentialists

“ All of the Marys are doing these crazy feats of acrobatics—jumping up on the desk, falling on the floor. We had to make sure that the hoop material was collapsible so it wouldn’t injure the actors.”

“It’s very satisfying for the audience to know immediately who someone is based on their costumes.”

“The blue gown, for me, is Mary saying, ‘Here’s who I really am; here’s what I want to show to the world.’ ”

“With the material for the hoop, the lighter the weight, the better it can swing around and be this whirling thing. It’s almost like a character in itself; the Marys learn to swoosh it around so it’s this ridiculous sort of thing.”

Holly Pierson Costume Designer

By Emma Fraser

“There is a blue velvet dress Mary Todd Lincoln wore—not that night to the theater, but it was a big inspiration for the color.”

“I drew from photos of Cher in her showgirl costumes, and this was one of the colors she happened to wear. It was a Bob Mackie outfit that was a bright teal-turquoise.”

●EARLY IN HER CAREER, HOLLY PIERSON MOSTLY designed costumes for historical reenactment projects. But it was a contemporary TV series that led her to creating the look for Mary Todd Lincoln in “Oh, Mary!”

Pierson first crossed paths with writer-actor Cole Escola on the set of truTV’s “At Home With Amy Sedaris,” and the two became frequent collaborators—most recently on Escola’s hit Broadway comedy. Though the show plays fast and loose with the facts of Mary and Abraham Lincoln’s lives, Pierson’s costumes tip a (stovepipe) hat to the styles of the 19th century.

In Escola’s version of history, Mary cares very little about her first lady duties, yearning to return to her glory days as “a rather well-known niche cabaret legend.” After debuting Off-Broadway in February 2024, the show quickly made the jump to the Great White Way. Escola originated the role, later passing it on to Betty Gilpin and then Tituss Burgess, before stepping back into Mary’s bouncy hoop skirt earlier this month.

Just try taking your eyes off that voluminous black frock when Mary first bursts onto the stage; its exaggerated swooshing punctuates jokes and highlights her larger-than-life persona. Though this look is typically associated with mourning, Pierson’s interpretation adds playfulness while also taking into account the demands of the show’s physical comedy. A bold blue gown that appears later in the play lets Mary’s star truly shine.

“It’s very satisfying for the audience to know immediately who someone is based on their costumes,” Pierson says. Here, she breaks down the intricate details that went into creating Mary’s iconic look.

When It Comes to

‘

The Last of Us‚’ Craig Mazin Is a Fan First

By Derek Lawrence

●MANY YEARS AGO, “Fast & Furious” screenwriter Chris Morgan urged his friend Craig Mazin to try out a certain hit postapocalyptic video game. Mazin’s reaction? “Eh, zombies. Not high on my list.” But when Morgan finally wore him down, he bought a PlayStation and gave “The Last of Us” a spin. “I was just blown away,” he recalls. “I’ve never felt that much about a game— until ‘The Last of Us Part II.’ ” Now, he’s the co-creator and showrunner of HBO’s critically acclaimed adaptation.

Set in the aftermath of a fungal pandemic that’s transformed most of the human race into vicious, zombie-like creatures, “The Last of Us” follows the journey of jaded smuggler Joel Miller (Pedro Pascal) and Ellie Williams (Bella Ramsey), a teenager who might just be the key to curing the infection. More than two years after the release of the first season, which earned a whopping 24 Emmy nominations, the second installment is set to debut on April 13. Back when he first fell in love

with the game, Mazin knew he wouldn’t be at the top of anyone’s list to bring the story to the small screen. At the time, he was a comedy guy, best known for co-writing the scripts of the third and fourth installments of “Scary Movie” and the second and third of “The Hangover.” He’s also co-hosted the popular screenwriting podcast “Scriptnotes” since 2011.

“I really wanted to work in the entertainment business. But it’s hard to break in and hard to stay in,” he explains. “I had a wife and kids, and I just

Pedro Pascal, Craig Mazin, and Neil Druckmann on the set of “The Last of Us”

Meet the Maker

‘‘ Our job is to enhance, explore, rearrange, reimagine, and rethink, but all within the matrix of understanding that we love the game.’’

understood that the more [projects] I did that got produced, the better I would get—because it’s in the making of things that you really learn.”

Though he’s since made the shift to dramatic work, Mazin believes that comedy is the ideal training ground for writers. “It’s the hardest thing to do, and the most technically demanding,” he says. “You are so accountable to the audience. And that is a discipline I apply as much as I can to dramas to make sure that we’re not being self-indulgent or boring.”

About a decade ago, Mazin finally felt he’d reached the point where he could go to his wife and say, “I think we’re OK; I can now take a swing and see what happens.” That first big gamble was his 2019 HBO miniseries “Chernobyl,” which told the story of the infamous 1986 nuclear power plant meltdown. The show proved to be a home run, taking home 10 Emmys— including a win for outstanding limited series and a writing statuette for Mazin.

Suddenly, he found himself perfectly positioned to adapt “The Last of Us” for television. But first, he needed to convince the game’s co-creator Neil Druckmann, who had been struggling to get a film version off the ground for years, that it would find far more success on TV.

“I said, ‘Neil, what you’re trying to do is literally impossible,’ ” Mazin recalls. “ ‘If you take that story and push it down to movie length, what you’re going to get is a lot of plot. And the joy of “The Last of Us” is watching this relationship between this man and girl blossom into this beautiful parental thing, and going through those things within the context of that relationship.’ ” Not only did

Druckmann agree—he signed on to co-create the series. Mazin’s approach stems from his passion for the source material. “I began as a fan. So instead of me thinking, Well, fans will want to see this, or they need to see this, what I think is, I want to see this; I need to see this. I say, ‘OK, this is load-bearing; we don’t touch this. But this feels like an area where we can punch a hole through this wall and find a new room.’ And sometimes Neil’s the one who’s like, ‘We could touch this, though.’ And I’m like, ‘No—the fan in me says that stays right there.’ Our job is to enhance, explore, rearrange, reimagine, and rethink, but all within the matrix of understanding that we love the game.”

Season 1 covered the full arc of the first installment. But adapting “The Last of Us Part II” presented a unique challenge for the team since it tells

a far more sprawling tale. This led to Mazin and Druckmann’s decision to break the story into multiple seasons. “As we expand our ambitions, each episode becomes bigger, more expensive, and more complicated,” Mazin says.

The first season culminates in (spoiler alert!) Joel going on a hospital-wide killing spree after he discovers that the doctors are planning to perform a fatal surgery on Ellie in order to synthesize a cure. When she wakes up from the anesthesia, Joel lies about what happened, claiming that the doctors had tested the procedure on others who had the cordyceps immunity with no success.

The second installment picks up five years later. Joel and Ellie are now living a quiet life in Jackson, Wyoming, but their relationship has become strained. “We know that he lied to her in a pretty huge way,”

Mazin says. “And then when people get a little too complacent about how safe the walls [around the settlement] are, the world reminds them that, just as they’ve been evolving on the inside, the world out there is evolving, too.”

Though Mazin is both “thrilled” and “terrified” about how the second season turned out, he knows the effort was worth it. “Just like at the end of Season 1, I was like, How am I going to do this again?” he says. “I’m not going to be here forever, and I just think about how this is a big part of my life.”

WE SEE YOU

WHO:

FIONA DOURIF

LATEST GIG:

Max’s “The Pitt,” a medical drama from R. Scott Gemmill set in a bustling Pittsburgh emergency room

CHARACTER:

Dr. Cassie McKay

STANDOUT SCENE:

While interviewing a patient (Bess Rous) who’s struggling with addiction, Cassie reveals her own past experience with dependency. When a misguided but well-intentioned interruption from her mentee (Shabana Azeez) drives the patient away, Cassie offers a lesson in the art of listening that balances medical ethics and human connection.

WHY SHE’S GREAT:

Thanks to Dourif’s naturalistic performance, Cassie isn’t just another brilliant-but-difficult TV doctor; she’s a levelheaded woman whose recovery journey and experience as a single mother has gifted her with a wisdom born of earnestness and humility. Dourif brings a relatable tension to Cassie’s determination to do the right thing—even if it compromises her ability to do her job.

NOTABLE PROJECTS:

The actor broke out on HBO’s “Deadwood,” going on to deliver memorable turns on “True Blood,” “The Blacklist,” and “Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency.” Horror fans will recognize her from the “Chucky” franchise—a fitting legacy for the daughter of longtime Chucky voice actor Brad Dourif.

COMING UP:

A starring role in Greg Vrotsos’ indie drama “Situations” — Christiane Wartell

To read the full interview, visit backstage.com/magazine.

‘‘ My niche has been this feral element where I play a character who feels a little dangerous but also kind of vulnerable.”

Clockwise: Dourif in “The Pitt,” “Chucky,” and “Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency”

Pro Tips

Uncanny Valley

Three audition experts on how to make sure your self-tape doesn’t look AI-generated

By Alex Ates

IS THE ACTOR ON that self-tape the real you? Or could they be mistaken for a concoction cooked up by generative artificial intelligence? With publicly accessible tools out there that can conjure realistic human faces and voices, actors may be tempted to use AI to simulate or enhance their recorded auditions. In an era when self-taping has become the norm, this presents a major worry for casting directors and college admissions officers alike.

“During COVID-19, there was a necessity for more schools than ever to do prescreen auditions,” says Gigi Watson, the director of My College Audition. “Many programs that hadn’t required them before liked prescreens and didn’t get rid of them. It’s a critical—and increasingly competitive—first step to getting seen.” With that in mind, she stresses that “colleges and institutions must stay vigilant” about watching out for AI-generated videos.

Whether you’re auditioning for a college drama program or a professional production, here’s how to make sure your self-tape looks like the genuine article.

money spent on equipment or anything fancy,” Watson says. “Make it as easy as possible for auditors to quickly and fairly evaluate your talent.”

Know when to stop.

TELEVISION

Peacock Sets Up for a Slam Dunk

By Jalen Michael ● “GLOW” CREATORS

Showcase your humanity. “We really are interested in who applicants are as people,” says Eric Weiss, the director of performing arts programming at Emerson College. “Overly produced material can act as a barrier to getting a sense of who they are.” This means it’s imperative to avoid using AI to auto-tune your voice, enhance your appearance, or smooth out minor mistakes.

“I’m always looking for: Where does the imperfection come through? Because that’s what makes it relatable,” says Joe Salvatore, the vice chair for academic affairs at NYU Steinhardt’s Department of Music and Performing Arts Professions; he’s also the director of the school’s Verbatim Performance Lab.

Prioritize your performance over flashy video production.

Though it’s tempting to amp up production values on your self-tape, this can easily backfire. Remember that CDs and college admissions officers are assessing your acting skills, not your technical flair. “ Many of the best prescreens are filmed at home, with not a lot of

Generative AI can build on itself endlessly, resulting in videos that feel eerily perfect—a quality that doesn’t exist in real life. So don’t waste your time (or sanity) obsessing over making your self-tape look flawless. Watson advises her clients to spend no longer than an hour recording. “Set a timer, do the thing, and then stop. If you want to do it again the next day, you can; but I encourage students to give themselves one hour and three chances max. If you’ve prepared your material well, that’s all you should need.”

There can be a place for AI in your prep work. “There is an organizational role for AI to play,” Watson says. “The number of requirements [for college auditions] has become so cumbersome. Many students are paralyzed by the mountain they have to climb just to get their audition organized.”

Weiss agrees. “Any tool that actors can use to help organize the process is absolutely a good thing.” This could mean using AI to keep track of deadlines and application requirements or even to research the given circumstances of a monologue. Ultimately, Salvatore says, “It’s about academic integrity. You have to present yourself in a true way that is authentic to you.”

Carly Mensch and Liz Flahive are moving from the world of women’s wrestling to women’s basketball with “The W,” a new scripted series from Peacock, in collaboration with two-time WNBA All-Star Chiney Ogwumike. The show follows a rookie player and her agent as they enter the competitive realm of women’s professional basketball. The story is loosely inspired by Ogwumike’s own experiences when she was first coming up in the WNBA. A production start date is currently unknown.

Taking It on the Cheek

By Mara Reinstein

● A FEW YEARS BACK, Laura Wright slapped a woman right across the face; but she totally had her reasons! You see, she’d just discovered that her presumed-dead husband was living in another town and suffering from amnesia, and the woman in question fell in love with him and neglected to tell her friend about the affair.

“That kind of betrayal just shouldn’t happen!” Wright says. Mind you, she’s referring to

considered an over-the-top joke. “We take our scenes extremely seriously, and we don’t want the smacks to take away from the work we’re doing,” she says. “So we want them to be justified. They usually come when there’s high emotion or crying, or when something upsetting has happened.”

person to stop coming so close to my face, because I want to make sure I can do it without actually hitting them. There’s always a stunt coordinator on set to make sure nobody gets hurt. They’ll always say, “You can miss them by a mile, and it will still look great.”

Can you break down your technique?

You need a good windup, like you’re coming right at them. I try to come up high with my hand, like I’m hitting them near the eye area and I’m going to smack their nose. I also try to leave anywhere from six to 12 inches between my fingertips and the person’s cheek.

How do you prepare for the other actor’s reaction?

There is actually way more pressure on the person taking the hit, because you have to be emotional to sell the reaction. If you know it’s coming and you don’t turn your head at the proper time, the whole thing looks off. No one just stands there in real life after getting slapped, right?

Carly Corinthos, the character she’s played on ABC’s “General Hospital” since 2005. Over the past three decades, which have included stints on daytime soaps like ABC’s “Loving” and CBS’ “Guiding Light,” Wright has slapped more people than she can count. So it’s safe to say she’s an expert on the subject— and she has some thoughts. Wright stresses that she doesn’t condone violence in real life; but she also doesn’t want the onscreen slap to be

The TV slap has evolved over the years. Back when Wright was starring on “Loving” in the early ’90s, she’d make physical contact with her costar’s face. Now, thanks to modern technology, she can pull it off without even touching them. “It’s all about the camera angle,” she says. “You really have to sell it.” Here, she breaks down what goes into a great screen slap.

Is there a lot of rehearsal required?

Not a lot, but I like to practice it four or five times. If I’m having an argument scene before I smack someone, I’ll tell the

Has a slap ever gone wrong? No. But I do remember one time when I was working with Michael Weatherly on “Loving” and I had to hit him. We must have done the scene, like, 10 times. And even though I was only hitting the fatty part of his cheek with the tips of my fingers, his face was starting to get pink. We couldn’t stop laughing about it. He was like, “Is this some kind of joke? Who paid her to do this?” I’m so sorry, Michael!

Is it cathartic, in a way?

Everybody wants Carly to be their best friend because she has no problem going up to someone and mouthing off and giving them a smack. I definitely get all the anger out of my system through her. [In my own life,] I don’t even like arguing with people!

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

Backstage Guide

“General Hospital” star Laura Wright on mastering the art of the small-screen slap

SUMMER INTENSIVE

May 19 – June 27, 2025

Students work with dramatic texts and are instructed in a disciplined approach to script analysis and working truthfully moment-to-moment.

Two year full-time course empowering aspiring acting professionals with technical, creative, personal rigor, and a lifelong community that fuels success beyond our doors. Have you met

CERTIFICATE PROGRAM (2 YEARS ACTING)

Begins September 10, 2025

EVENING CONSERVATORY (1 YEAR)

Begins September 29, 2025

Distills the physical, emotional, and analytical tools of acting into a concentrated three-semester program.

TRAINING & NURTURING OUTSTANDING ACTORS FOR 40 YEARS, ALL YEAR ROUND!

HAILEE STEIN FELD FINDS HER

HO W THE ACTOR CHANNELED HER GREATEST FEARS INTO A STELLAR PERFORMANCE IN RYAN COOGLER’S “SINNERS”

BY VINNIE MANCUSO

PHOTOGRAPHED BY

ERIC RAY DAVIDSON

(2022). The opportunity to work with a filmmaker so deft at blending social commentary with genre trappings was irresistible.

But first, she had to audition. Despite being an industry veteran at 28, she still approaches the process with trepidation.

HENEVER HAILEE STEINFELD GETS A NEW SCRIPT, her first instinct is to identify her biggest challenge. “There’s always a scene or two or three that I feel like I could circle in red pen,” she tells us, settling in after her cover photo shoot. “That’s the daunting hill I’m going to have to climb at some point.”

This moment was easy for her to find in “Sinners,” Ryan Coogler’s genre-bending Prohibition-era vampire tale that’s hitting theaters April 18. We’ll avoid specifics to preserve the many surprises in the deliriously twisty story. Suffice to say that the scene, which blends vulnerability, intimacy, and shocking violence, is more than worthy of Steinfeld’s red pen.

The actor headed to New Orleans secure in the knowledge that the scene in question was penciled in for later in the shoot. But the unpredictable spring weather in the Big Easy had other plans. A series of turbulent storms swept in that upended the production schedule, meaning Steinfeld had to climb that “daunting hill” on the very first day of shooting.

“What I’m about to say is going to sound very actor-y, but I had really hoped that would happen later down the line—just for the sake of building rapport and comfortability and confidence in the space, the wardrobe, and the character,” she says. “But it came up out of nowhere, so we did it, and it was done.”

Then she reflects, “That one scene was like our North Star.”

The moment became a touchstone for everything that followed, anchoring Steinfeld’s most intense, mature performance to date. That’s saying a lot, considering she got an Oscar nomination at the age of 14 for her turn as the headstrong Mattie Ross in the Coen brothers’ 2010 Western “True Grit.” Since then, she’s built a successful career as a pop singer while continuing to shine onscreen. She cornered the market on youth-in-revolt roles like Nadine in the coming-of-age dramedy “The Edge of Seventeen” (2016), rebellious poet Emily Dickinson on Apple TV+’s anachronistic “Dickinson” (2019), and Young Avenger–to-be Kate Bishop (aka Hawkeye) in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Still, “Sinners” marks a leveling up of sorts, giving Steinfeld the chance to truly elevate her craft. Set in the 1930s, the film follows twin brothers Smoke and Stack, both played by Coogler’s longtime collaborator Michael B. Jordan. Fleeing from a life of crime in Chicago, the two return to their Mississippi hometown to open a juke joint. They enlist the help of Sammy (Miles Caton), a preacher’s son who dreams of being a bluesman; alcoholic musician Delta Slim (Delroy Lindo); and Annie (Wunmi Mosaku), a Hoodoo practitioner with romantic ties to Smoke. Then there’s Mary (Steinfeld), Stack’s iron-willed old flame; though she’s married to another man, she’s still mourning what she could have had with her first love.

On its opening night, the establishment becomes a celebratory refuge for the local Black community; but all that joy attracts something supernatural—and hungry for blood. “Sinners” is a remarkably crafted creature feature with a clear, impactful allegory: The second people of color find a spot where they can be free, pale-skinned predators emerge from the shadows to drain them dry.

“Sinners” shows audiences a new dimension of Steinfeld’s star persona; the performance feels more complex and considered, but also more personal. Mary wrestles with the ways the color of her skin affects whom society allows her to call family. Like her character, Steinfeld is mixed race: In addition to British and German heritage, her maternal grandfather was a Black Filipino man.

The actor knew she wanted to be a part of “Sinners” as soon as she heard it was Coogler’s first film following his culture-shifting success with the MCU’s “Black Panther” (2018) and its sequel, “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever”

“I AM STILL THAT 13-YEAR-OLD IN ‘TRUE GRIT’ WHO JUST HAS SO MANY QUESTIONS WITH NO ANSWERS AND IS IN AWE OF EVERYTHING GOING ON AROUND ME‚ IN DISBELIEF THAT I’M EVEN THERE.”

“I had a period after shooting ‘True Grit’ where auditioning was incredibly difficult for me. Being in a room with a tripod, a camera, and white walls was the most foreign thing after being on a set with a wardrobe, having to button up 10 buttons on each shoe,” Steinfeld recalls.

“Every actor can tell you horror stories of literally feeling like you can hear someone’s watch ticking,” she continues. “And it’s like: I’m taking up too much of their time. This is not going well. You’re in your head, and you feel like these people hate you.”

Steinfeld’s “Sinners” audition was the opposite, and it changed the way that she saw auditioning altogether. “The people in the room want you to win,” she says. “They’re looking for somebody that’s going to make this great, and they want it to be you.”

The stakes were particularly high since she was reading not only for Coogler and Jordan, but also Francine Maisler, the Emmywinning casting director behind acclaimed projects like the “Dune” movies, “Succession,” and “Challengers.”

“You’ve got Ryan and Michael, who have the craziest, most incredible history and track record, and then Francine, for that matter,” Steinfeld says. “For them to make you feel like a part of that [legacy], even for 20 minutes… I have moments like that, where I walk out and I’m like, Damn, I want this so bad. But if I don’t get it, at least I got that moment with them.”

Luckily, she did get it—and the environment in the audition room bled over onto a set defined by creative breakthroughs and crackling chemistry. One moment that immediately springs to Steinfeld’s mind was a bit of on-set improv between herself and Jordan. Before the horror and bloodshed of the night kicks off, Mary and Stack find themselves face-to-face for the first time since separating, neither willing to voice how painful the years in between have been for both.

“Mary has spent years grieving the loss of what could have been, thinking they’d had this plan they were going to stick to,” Steinfeld says. “Michael was so good in that moment. I just got wrapped up in the love that these characters have for each other and the tragedy that they won’t be able to ever fully live that out.”

The scene, which is one of the more heartbreaking moments in the film, is the result of an effort between the actors and Coogler to

pare the loaded interaction down to its essentials. “We [all wanted to] keep it concise,” Steinfeld explains. She adds that much of the production was like this—a true collaboration.

“For convenience’s sake, directors are sometimes shouting notes from afar; and suddenly, it’s like everyone is now watching to see if that note is received,” she says. “But Ryan would make it a point to come over and make sure you were the only person that heard him and he was the only person that heard you. It gave me a sense of security; there was such a level of trust there.”

Coogler wasn’t the only creative Steinfeld sought out for advice. Having developed a passion for photography in recent years, she found herself drawn to “Sinners” cinematographer Autumn Durald Arkapaw and her 65 mm camera.

“I’m so grateful to Autumn and our crew for being so patient with me,” she says, “because they’re so in the zone, they’ve got a job to do, and I’m just behind them asking questions about the reload and what the heck happens if stuff gets damaged in transit, and do we have to reshoot the entire movie?”

I ask Steinfeld if that interest in what goes on behind the scenes signals plans to step behind the camera herself. “If I’m lucky enough,” she says. For now, she’s more interested in slowing down and capturing snippets of her whirlwind life in an intentional way. “We all walk around with phones on us all the time; we’re always snapping pictures. And we think it’s not good enough, so we take another picture, and then we’ve lost the magic of the moment that was probably perfect in the first photo.”

It comes down to a boundless curiosity that’s been there from the beginning. “I am still that 13-year-old in ‘True Grit’ who just has so many questions with no answers and is in awe of everything going on around me, in disbelief that I’m even there,” she says with a laugh.

This sense of coming full circle struck her often on the set of “Sinners.” She found herself “working on something where the writing is so good that there’s nothing to fill in, with a cast that is so wickedly talented and a filmmaker who has the strongest vision, point of view, patience, drive, and ambition.

“I haven’t been [on a set] with all those things for a long time,” Steinfeld continues. “I’ve gotten so lucky on all the projects I’ve worked on, where they have certain components of that experience I had on ‘True Grit.’ ‘Sinners’ may be the closest [I’ve come] to having all of them.”

That happens a lot, actually; her memory comes back around to that breakout role. “I find that every time I’m on a set of any kind, somehow, someway, at some part of the day, ‘True Grit’ makes its way to the front of my brain,” she says.

In particular, Steinfeld thinks back to a piece of advice she received from her older costars Jeff Bridges, Josh Brolin, and Matt Damon. The day filming wrapped, she was “an emotional mess,” unable to conceive of what would come after that last “cut.” “They all had their own way of telling me not to take this life too seriously and not to get wrapped up or lose myself in all the madness that may or may not come with this world,” she recalls. “As a crying 13-year-old, I nodded, and it went in one ear and out the other.”

But as time goes by and Steinfeld evolves both onscreen and off, she often finds herself returning to that wisdom. “As I get older, I realize that life is short,” she says. She’s energized by the thought of maturing as an actor and taking her “Sinners” experience into what’s coming next—including her highly anticipated (and top-secret) return to the MCU.

“I’m excited about the idea of continuing to grow with a character like Kate, especially in something as huge as the Marvel Cinematic Universe,” she says. “ You get to go back to your family; you get to go back to that little home that then becomes part of this grander picture. I love that character, and I totally understand why she is so loved.”

It’s still a work in progress, though, to recognize success in the moment. At the tail end of our interview, she takes a deep breath to shake off the oddness of discussing yourself for an hour. For her, taking stock of her arc from “True Grit” to today feels both overwhelming and rejuvenating. “That was a conversation we had from time to time [on the set of ‘Sinners’]—just: ‘This is so crazy that we get to do this.’ ”

It’s this perspective that drives Steinfeld to keep taking on new challenges. It’s why she savors any and all opportunities to be in the room, no matter how fleeting, and why she’s trying to learn about photography so she can capture memories while they’re still perfect—yes, even after her next inevitable rough audition.

“I’ll have to go to therapy over it, for sure,” she says. “But I got that moment. I had that, and I’m going to walk away with it.”

With Jeff Bridges in “True Grit”

With Michael B. Jordan in “Sinners”

SCHOOL FOR THE SUMMER

Where to spend the warmer months studying acting in the U.K.

By James Robinson

DON’T GET US WRONG—THERE are plenty of world-class summer acting courses available in the United States. But if you’re interested in studying on the other side of the pond, the U.K. offers a host of engaging programs that are open to international applicants, each appealing to a certain kind of aspiring actor. Want to prep for drama school? Interested in learning the ins and outs of screen performance? There’s a course for that. Read on for our rundown of summer acting schools in the U.K. for adults and young performers, along with specifics to help you decide which program is the best fit.

Adults

Guildhall School of Music & Drama

LENGTH: 2 weeks (July 14–25)

COST: £1,425

LOCATION: London

● Founded in 1880, Guildhall is dedicated to promoting innovation across the performing

arts, and its summer program has a strong practical focus. Craft-based master classes and intensive workshops explore movement, voice, and various acting techniques taught by a blend of Guildhall tutors and visiting industry professionals. Expect to participate in scene studies, devising, improv, and monologue performance. Though previous acting experience isn’t required, applicants should have a willingness to share and discuss their work.

HOW TO BOOK: Through the school’s website. Bookings close either at the end of June or when the course reaches capacity. This is a popular program, so don’t sleep on securing your spot.

Royal Academy of Dramatic Art

LENGTH: 2 weeks (Aug. 4–15)

COST: £1,900

LOCATION: London

● The high standards of RADA’s “rigorous and detailed” summer program reflect the institution’s pedigree; the academy has held a royal charter since 1920. In the summer school

program, tailored for experienced actors, you’ll workshop a modern or contemporary monologue; attend acting, voice, and movement classes; and receive plenty of individual attention. The course closes with a performance for your fellow students. You’ll also have the chance to sit in on RADA graduate rehearsals and participate in Q&A sessions with the performers.

HOW TO APPLY: Via written application, including a personal statement and a reference. Application reviews are ongoing, but places typically fill by June.

Royal Central School of Speech & Drama

LENGTH: 3 weeks (July 21–Aug. 8)

COST: £1,800

LOCATION: London

● This school’s Summer Theatre Company course is all about collaboration. Rather than rehearsing monologues to perform in a showcase, students work with their fellow actors to create a piece of live theater from a pre-assigned text. You’ll be supervised by an

experienced director, culminating in a studio performance. When you’re not rehearsing, you’ll explore contemporary acting techniques, and sharpen your voice and movement chops. You’ll also get the chance to hone your skills at researching and closereading texts. Participants don’t need to have prior experience—only a passion for theater.

HOW TO BOOK: Through the school’s website. Keep in mind that places are first come, first served.

Royal Conservatoire of Scotland

LENGTH: 4 weeks (July 28–Aug. 22)

COST: £2,295

LOCATION: Glasgow

● Despite its name, RCS’ Acting: Stage and Screen Intensive primarily focuses on the ins and outs of screen acting, with an emphasis on realism, naturalism, and the differences between acting on camera and onstage. Beyond classes in voice and movement technique, students leave prepared to study acting at the degree level. You’ll put together a portfolio and an outline of your career plan,

Students at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland

The Summer Theatre Company at the Royal Central School of Speech & Drama

Students at the Royal Central School of Speech & Drama

Participants in a RADA short course

• Seeking— Ensemble Dancers: all genders, 18+, all ethnicities; Ensemble Singers: all genders, 18+, all ethnicities.

•Equity Chorus Calls will be held April 15 at 10 a.m. (singers; lunch, 1:30-2:30 p.m.) and at 2:30 p.m. at Pearl Studios (500), 500 8th Ave., Holding room - Studio 404, New York City, NY 10018-6504. And May 14 at 10 a.m. (dancers; lunch, 1-2 p.m.) and at 2 p.m. at Pearl Studios (519), 519 8th Ave., 12th Fl., Holding room - Studio B., New York City, NY 10018.

•ECC Procedures are in effect for this audition. An Equity Monitor will be provided.

• Dancers: Bring whatever footwear (flats or heels) you feel most comfortable in, and appropriate dancewear that shows off your line. Bring a hardcopy headshot and resume stapled together.

• Singers: Prepare 16-bars of a legit contemporary musical theatre song that shows range (no pop/rock or pop musical theatre please). Bring a hard copy headshot and resume, and sheet music in the correct key. An accompanist will be provided.

• The producers, creative team, and casting team are committed to an equitable, inclusive, and accessible casting process for “Death Becomes Her.” Actively seeking performers of all races, ethnicities, cultural backgrounds, abilities, gender identities, and body types to audition.

•Professional Pay. Pays $2,638/wk. Equity Production (League) Contract.

‘Guys on Ice’

•Seeking Equity actors for roles in “Guys on Ice.”

•Company: Lake George Dinner Theatre. Staff: Fred Alley, book-lyrics; Jarel Davidow, dir.-artistic dir.; John Benware, musical dir.

• Rehearsals begin June 23; runs July 11-Aug. 30 in Lake George, NY.

• Seeking— Lloyd: all genders, 18+, all ethnicities. Marvin: all genders, 18+, all ethnicities. Ernie: all genders, 18+, all ethnicities.

•Equity Principal Auditions will be held April 24 from 9:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m. (lunch, 1-2 p.m.) at Actors’ Equity New York Audition Center, 165 W. 46th St., 16th Fl., New York City, NY 10036.

•EPA Procedures are in effect for this audition. An Equity Monitor will be provided.

•Prepare 16-bars of a song and a monologue from the play which will be provided on the morning of the audition. This monologue should be performed with a Wisconsin accent. Bring sheet music in the correct key. An accompanist will be provided. Also bring a headshot and resume stapled together.

• Note: All must have an impeccable Wisconsin accent with great comedic timing and strong vocal ability. Songs feature close harmonies and some a cappella singing. The show will be performed with piano only. Lake George Dinner Theatre is a small venue, and actors will not be wearing body mics.

•For more info, visit lakegeorgedinnertheatre.org

•Professional Pay. Pays $630/wk. Equity Dinner Theatre Contract.

‘The Outsiders,’ B’way,

•Seeking Equity chorus dancers for future replacements in the Broadway production of “The Outsiders.”

• Company: Outsiders Broadway LLC. Staff: Danya Taymor, dir.; Rick Kuperman, Jeff Kuperman, choreo.; Justin Levine, music supervisor-arranger-orchestrator; TRC Company, Xavier Rubiano CSA, casting; Nancy Braun, choreo. supervisor; Tilly Evans-Kreuger, Kristen Carcone, assoc. choreo.; The Araca Group, American Zoetrope, Olympus Theatricals, prods.; 321 Theatrical Management, general mgr.; Adam Rapp, book; Jonathan Clay, Zach Chance, music-lyrics.

•Currently running at Bernard B Jacobs Theater in NYC.

• Seeking— Equity Dancers: all genders, 18+, all ethnicities.

•Equity Chorus Calls will be held April 11 at 10 a.m. (male characters; lunch, 1-2 p.m.) and at 2 p.m. (female characters) at Pearl Studios (500), 500 8th Ave., New York City, NY 10018-6504.

•Holding room - Studio 312. ECC Procedures are in effect for this audition. An Equity Monitor will be provided.

•Be warmed up and ready to dance. All dancers should bring flat shoes. Also, bring your headshot and resume stapled together.

•Professional Pay. Pays $2,638/wk. Equity Production (League) Contract.

‘Wicked,’ B’way & Tour

•Seeking Equity dancers for chorus parts in “Wicked.”

•Staff: Marc Platt, Universal Pictures, The Araca Group, Jon B. Platt, David Stone, prods.; Joe Mantello, dir.; Wayne Cilento, choreo.; Stephen Schwartz, music-lyrics; Winnie Holzman, book; Stephen Oremus, music supervisor; Lisa Leguillou, assoc. dir.; 321 Theatrical Management, general mgr.; The Telsey Office, casting; Corinne McFadden Herrera, assoc. choreo.

• Currently running at the Gershwin Theatre and touring nationally.

• Seeking— Dancers Who Sing: all genders, 18+, all ethnicities.

•Equity Chorus Calls will be held April 10 at 11 a.m. (break, 1-2 p.m.) and at 2 p.m. at Ripley-Grier Studios (305), 305 W 38th St., New York City, NY 10018-2902.

• Studio 304, Holding; Studio 311, Auditions. ECC Procedures are in effect for this audition. An Equity Monitor will be provided.

•Be ready to dance with jazz shoes or sneakers. Do not wear jazz pants or leotards. Bring a headshot and resume stapled together.

•Professional Pay. Pays $2,537/wk. (Broadway); pays $2,499/wk. (Tour) Equity Production (League)/Touring Agreement.

casting California

General Sta + Crew

Lake George Dinner Theatre

•Seeking Equity stage managers for Lake George Dinner Theatre’s 2025 Season. Season includes “Guys on Ice” (Fred Alley, book-lyrics; James Kaplan, music; Jarel Davidow, dir.-artistic dir.; John Benware, musical dir.); and “Incident at Our Lady of Perpetual Help” (Katie Forgette, playwright; Jarel Davidow, dir.-artistic dir.).

•Company: Lake George Dinner Theatre. Staff: Jarel Davidow, artistic dir.; Sara Friedman, managing dir.

•Rehearses and runs in Lake George, NY.

• Seeking— Equity Stage Managers: 18+, all ethnicities.

• Seeking submissions from NY.

• For consideration, submit your resume to Sara Friedman, Managing Director at sara@lakegeorgedinnertheatre.org.

Resume submission deadline is April 24.

• For more info, visit lakegeorgedinnertheatre.org

•Professional Pay. Pays $728/wk. (SM, 2024 rates); pays $660/wk. (ASM, 2024 rates). Equity Dinner Theatre Contract.

TheaterWorksUSA Season

•Seeking Equity stage managers for TheaterWorksUSA’s 2025-2026 Season. Season includes: “Dog Man: The Musical,” “Cat Kid Comic Club: The Musical,” “Pete The Cat: The Musical,” “The Pout-Pout Fish: The Musical,”

“Magic School Bus: Lost In The Solar System (Musical),” “Click, Clack, Moo (Musical),” “Don’t Let The Pigeon Drive The Bus! The Musical!,” “Ada Twist, Scientist And Friends,” “Stuntboy, In The Meantime: A New Musical,” and works in development based on children’s literature and YA novels.

• Company: TheaterWorksUSA. Staff: Barbara Pasternack, artistic dir.; Tegan Meyer, interim managing dir.; Jillian Carucci, assoc. artistic dir.-casting dir.; Sarah Hogewood, casting coord.

•Season runs in NYC.

• Seeking— Equity Stage Manager: 18-99.

• Seeking submissions from NY.

• Submit your resume for consideration to bobrien@twusa.org or mail to TheaterWorksUSA, Brendan O’Brien, Production Manager, 158 West 29th Street, 5th Floor, New York, NY 10001.

Submissions deadline is June 1. All stage managers must be available to rehearse and travel from NYC.

•For more info, visit www.twusa.org.

•For tours: All actors are on Actor/ Assistant Stage Manager contracts. Actor/ASMs will be required, as such, to lift scenery and sound equipment during daily load-in and load outs. All actors participate in assembling and disassembling the set at each venue and school at which they perform. The company travels by car and van across the U.S. to theaters and schools each day. All shows are musicals. For more information on each show, please visit: https://twusa.org/shows-artists/ on-tour-2/.

•Professional Pay. Pays $769/wk. + health Stage Manager. Equity Special Agreement.

Southern California Play

Arvada Center for the Arts

• Seeking Equity actors for roles in Arvada Center for the Arts’ 2025-26 Season. Season includes “The Mousetrap” (Lynne Collins, dir. Rehearsals begin Aug. 7; runs Sept. 5-Oct. 12; LORT B); “Lady Day At Emerson’s Bar And Grill” (Christopher Page-Sanders, dir. Rehearsals begin Aug. 28; runs Sept. 26-Nov. 2; LORT D); “Disney’s Frozen” (Kenny Moten, dir.; Alec Steinhorn, musical dir.; Taeler Cyrus, choreo. Rehearsals begin Oct. 23; runs Nov. 21-Jan. 4, 2026; LORT B); “Romeo and Juliet” (Lynne Collins, dir. Rehearsals begin Jan. 15, 2026; runs Feb. 13-March 29; LORT D); and “Come From Away” (Kenny Moten, dir.; David Nehls, musical dir.; Jessica Hindsley, choreo. Rehearsals begin Feb. 26, 2026; runs March 27-May 10; LORT B).

•Company: Arvada Center for the Arts & Humanities. Staff: Kenny Morten, casting dir.-dir.

•Rehearses and runs in Arvada, CO.

• Seeking— Equity Actors: 18+.

•Equity Principal Auditions will be held April 23 from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. (lunch, 1-2 p.m.) at Actors’ Equity Association - Los Angeles, 5636 Tujunga Ave., North Hollywood, CA 91601.

•EPA Procedures are in effect for this audition. An Equity Monitor will be provided.

•Musicals: Prepare a song(s) in the style of the show(s) you are interested in. The total length should be no more than two minutes.

•Plays: Prepare two short, contrasting monologues of no more than one minute each.

•If auditioning for both plays and musicals: Prepare a one-minute short song and a one-minute monologue. All should bring a photo and resume and your book of music if singing.

•All roles will be understudied. For more info, visit arvadacenter.org

•Professional Pay. Pays $1144/wk. Equity Non-Rep LORT B contract; $839/wk. Equity Non-Rep LORT D contract.

Pioneer Theatre Company

• Seeking Equity actors for roles in Pioneer Theatre Company’s 2025-26 Season. Season includes “2 Pianos 4 Hands” (Ted Dyksta, Richard Greenblatt, writers. Rehearsals begin Aug. 18; runs Sept. 12-27; LORT D); “Dear Evan Hansen” (Steven Levenson, book; Benj Pasek, Justin Paul, musiclyrics; Karen Azenberg, dir.-choreo. Rehearsals begin Sept. 29; runs Oct.

24-Nov. 8; LORT B); “Noises Off” (Michael Frayn, writer. Rehearsals begin Nov. 10; runs Dec. 5-20; LORT B); “10 Brave Seconds (World Premiere)” (Will Van Dyke, music-lyrics; Jeff Talbott, book-lyrics. Rehearsals begin Dec. 29, 2025; runs Jan. 30-Feb. 14, 2026; LORT B); “King James” (Rajiv Joseph, writer. Rehearsals begin Feb. 23, 2026; runs March 20-April 4; LORT D); and “Come From Away” (Irene Sankoff, David Hein, book-music-lyrics; Karen Azenberg, dir.-choreo. Rehearsals begin March 30, 2026; runs April 24-May 9; LORT B).

• Company: Pioneer Theatre Company. Staff: Karen Azenberg; artistic dir.; Eric Jackson, assoc. artistic dir.-casting rep. •Rehearses and runs in Salt Lake City, Utah.

• Seeking— Equity Actors: 18+.

•Equity Principal Auditions will be held April 11 from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. (lunch, 12:301:30 p.m.) at Actors’ Equity AssociationLos Angeles, 5636 Tujunga Ave., North Hollywood, CA 91601.

•EPA Procedures are in effect for this audition. An Equity Monitor will be provided.

•Prepare either two brief contrasting monologues or a short cut of a song in the style of the season.

•For both plays and musicals consideration, prepare one brief monologue and 16 bars of a musical selection that shows range. Talent is welcome to sing from one of the shows. An accompanist will be provided, bring sheet music properly marked and in the

correct key. Bring your headshot and resume stapled together.

• Pioneer Theatre Company is seeking all races, ethnicities, body types, gender identities, actors with disabilities, and actors of all ages for roles in this production. Some roles will be understudied. For more info, visit pioneertheatre. org.

•Professional Pay. Pays $1144/wk. (LORT B) and $839/wk. LORT D). Equity NonRep LORT B & D contracts.

Musical

Disney’s ‘Frozen’

•Seeking Equity chorus singers and dancers for Disney’s “Frozen,” a musical.

•Company: Arvada Center for the Arts & Humanities. Staff: Lynne Collins; artistic dir.; Kenny Moten, dir.; Alec Steinhorn, musical dir.; Taeler Cyrus, choreo.

• Rehearsals begin Oct. 23, 2025; runs Nov. 21, 2025-Jan. 4, 2026, in Arvada, CO.

• Seeking—Ensemble Singers: 20-55. Ensemble Dancers: 20-55.

•Equity Chorus Calls will be held April 24 at 9 a.m. (singers; female characters), at 10:30 a.m. (singers, male characters; lunch, noon-1 p.m.), at 1 p.m. (dancers, female characters) and at 3 p.m. (dancers; male characters) at Actors’ Equity Association - Los Angeles, 5636 Tujunga Ave., North Hollywood, CA 91601.

•ECC Procedures are in effect for this audition. An Equity Monitor will be provided.

•Prepare a short cut of a song that matches the season of shows. Bring your book in case production needs to hear a contrasting piece. Also, bring your headshot and resume stapled together.

•All roles will be understudied.

•For more info, visit arvadacenter.org

•Professional Pay. Pays $1144/wk. Equity Non-Rep LORT B contract.

Pioneer Theatre Company

•Seeking Equity chorus dancers and singers for Pioneer Theatre Company’s 2025-26 Season. See EPA for season breakdown.

• Company: Pioneer Theatre Company. Staff: Karen Azenberg; artistic dir.; Eric Jackson, assoc. artistic dir.casting rep.

•Rehearses and runs in Salt Lake City, Utah.

• Seeking—Equity Singers: 18+. Equity Dancers: 18+.

• Equity Chorus Calls will be held April 10 at 9 a.m. (dancers), at 11 a.m. (singers; lunch, 12:30-1:30 p.m.), at 1:30 p.m. (dancers) and at 3:30 p.m. (singers) at Actors’ Equity Association

- Los Angeles, 5636 Tujunga Ave., North Hollywood, CA 91601.

•ECC Procedures are in effect for this audition. An Equity Monitor will be provided.

•Bring a hard copy of your headshot and resume stapled together.

•Singers: Be prepared to sing 32-bars of a song in the style of the season. Talent is welcome to sing from one of the shows. An accompanist will be provided, bring sheet music properly marked and in the correct key.

• Dancers: Wear comfortable clothing you can move in, and sneakers or another comfortable flat dance shoe. Talent may be asked to stay and sing. Bring 16-bars of a song that shows range. An accompanist will be provided.

• Pioneer Theatre Company is seeking all races, ethnicities, body types, gender identities, actors with disabilities, and actors of all ages for roles in this production. Some roles will be understudied.

• For more info, visit pioneertheatre.org. •Professional Pay. Pays $1144/wk. Equity Non-Rep LORT B contract.

General Sta + Crew

Center Repertory Company

• Seeking submissions from Equity stage managers for positions in Center Repertory Company 2025-26 Season. Season includes “Indecent” (Paula Vogel, writer. Rehearsals begin Aug. 5; tech Sept. 2; previews Sept. 7; runs Sept. 13-28), “A Christmas Carol” (Harrison David Rivers, adaptation; Jared Mezzocchi, dir. Rehearsals begin

casting National/Regional

Nov. 4; tech Dec. 4; previews Dec. 10-11; runs Dec. 12-21), “Crimes of The Heart,” (Beth Henley, writer. Rehersals begin Febr. 24, 2026; tech March 24; previews March 29, 2026; runs April 4-19, 2026), “and “Jagged Little Pill” (Diablo Cody, Alanis Morisette, Glen Ballard, writers. Rehearsals begin May 5, 2026; tech May 26; runs June 6-28, 2026).

• C ompany: Center Repertory Company. Staff: Matt M. Morrow, artistic dir.; Rebs Chan, artistic assoc.; Frankie Hughes, prod. mgr.; Kimberly Donovan, casting dir.; Sarah Wilcox, casting assist.

•Rehearses and runs in Walnut Creek, CA.

• Seeking— Stage Manager: all genders, 18+, all ethnicities.

• Seeking submissions from CA.

• For consideration, submit a resume to Frankie Hughes, Production Manager, Hughes@centerrep.org or by mail at 1601 Civic Drive Walnut Creek, CA 94956. Submissions deadline is May 31.

•For more info, visit https://www. centerrep.org/getinvolved/audition.

•Professional Pay. Pays $678/wk. (SM) and $626/wk. (ASM) ”A Christmas Carol” pays $704/wk. (SM) and $643/ wk. (ASM). Equity LOA Ref. to LORT Contract 2024-25 rates.

National/ Regional Play

‘All The Natalie Portmans’

•Casting Equity actors for roles in “All The Natalie Portmans.”

•Company: Cain Park. Staff: C.A. Johnson, writer; Jeannine Gaskin, dir.; Ian Hinz, gen. mngr.-prod.; Scott Stanley, production mngr.

•Rehearsals begin Aug. 25; runs Sept. 25-Oct. 5 at Cain Park, in Cleveland Heights, OH.

• Seeking— Equity Actors: 18+.

•Equity Principal Auditions will be held April 14 from 2-10 p.m. (break 6-6:30 p.m.) at Cleveland Heights Community Center, 1 Monticello Blvd, Cleveland, OH 44118.

•An Equity Monitor will not be provided. The producer will run all aspects of this audition.

•For an audition appointment, fill out the following form: https://www.theaterforms.com/cainpark/ AlltheNataliePortmans/auditionform/. The theater will contact Equity members to schedule your specific audition appointment.

• Prepare two contrasting monologues in the style of the show, not to exceed three minutes total. Production may only ask to hear one.

• For more info, visit: cainpark.com

•Professional Pay. Pays $435/wk. Equity SPT 3 Contract.

‘The Game’s Afoot’

•Casting Equity actors for roles in “The Game’s Afoot: Holmes for The Holidays.”

•Company: Theatre Arlington Inc. Staff: Cherly Denson, dir.; Steven D Morris, exec. prod.; Maria Leon Hickox, production mgr.

•Rehearsals begin Nov. 3 (Mon.-Fri. evenings 6:30-10 p.m. and Sat. mornings); runs Dec. 5-21 (Thu.-Sat., 7:30 p.m. and Sun. 2 p.m.) in Arlington, TX.

• Seeking— Equity Actors: 18+.

•Equity Principal Auditions will be held June 14 from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. at Theatre Arlington, 305 W Main St., Arlington, TX 76010-7115.

•An Equity Monitor will not be provided. The producer will run all aspects of this audition.

•For an appointment, email Maria at maria@theatrearlington.org. No video submissions. Arrive at least 15 minutes early with your headshot and resume. Audition sides will be available on the website to read as well.

•For more info, visit Theatrearlington. org.

•Professional Pay. Pays $323/wk. Equity SPT 1 Contract.

General Staff + Crew

Pittsburgh Public Theater

•Seeking Equity Stage Managers for Pittsburgh Public Theater’s 2025-26 Season. Note: Some roles may be understudied.

• Company: Pittsburgh Public Theater Corporation. Staff: Brian Pope, casting & literary dir.

•Season rehearses and performs in Pittsburgh, PA.

• Seeking— Equity Stage Manager: 18+.

• Seeking submissions from PA.

• For consideration, submit your resume and cover letter to bpope@ppt.org.

Submissions deadline is April 14.

•Professional Pay. Pays $1259/wk. (SM); and $1058/wk. (ASM) Equity LORT C Non-Rep Contract.

Purple Rose Theatre Season

•Seeking Equity stage managers for Purple Rose Theatre’s 2025-26 Season. Season includes “Norma & Wanda” (Jeff Daniels, playwright; Rehearsals begin Aug. 25; runs Sept. 25-Dec. 21); “The Classic King” (Richard Johnson, playwright; Rehearsals begin Dec. 29; runs Jan. 29-March 8); “Murder on the Links” (Steven Dietz, playwright; Rehearsals begin March 3, 2026; runs April 2-May 31); and “Emma’s Wedding(s)” (Carey Crim, playwright; rehearsals begin May 26, 2026; runs June 25-Aug. 30).

•Company: Purple Rose Theatre. Staff: Jeff Daniels, artistic dir.; Katie Hubbard, managing dir.; Lucas Daniels, Rhiannon Ragland, artistic assocs.; Amy Klain, company mgr.

•Rehearses and runs in Chelsea, MI.

• Seeking— Equity Stage Managers: all genders, 18+, all ethnicities.

• Seeking submissions from MI.

• For consideration, submit a resume to casting director (artistic associate) Rhiannon Ragland at info@ purplerosetheatre.org or Purple Rose Theatre, C/O Casting Director (Artistic Associate): Rhiannon Ragland, 137 Park St., Chelsea, MI 48118. Include “ATTN Stage Manager Submission” in the Subject Line. Resume submission deadline is April 23.

•PRTC utilizes the option of a bi-weekly pay schedule. PRTC may utilize an 8 out of 10 rehearsal schedule.

• Rehearsals are held a minimum of five days a week, 5-8 hour days, a maximum of 38 hours a week, in Chelsea, MI. Day, evening, and weekend rehearsals may be scheduled depending on actors’ and director’s schedules. We are unable to give specific call times in advance at this time. Expect to attend every day of rehearsal.

• Performance Schedule: Wednesday, 3 p.m.; Thursday, 3 p.m., and 7:30 p.m.; Friday, 8 p.m.; Saturday, 3 p.m., and 8 p.m.; and Sunday, 2 p.m.

•For more info, go to purplerosetheatre.

org

•See PRTC Prevention of Workplace Harassment and Discrimination Policy at https://www.purplerosetheatre.org/ wp-content/uploads/2024/05/ Revised_08.2022 _PRTC_Harassment_ Discrimination_Policy_plus-Form.pdf

•Professional Pay. Pays $900/wk. (stage manager); pays $789/wk. (assistant stage manager). Equity SPT 8 Contract.

Writers Theatre Season

•Seeking Equity Stage Managers for Writers Theatre’s 2025-26 Season.

• C ompany: Writers Theatre Inc. Staff: Katie Galetti, casting dir.-artistic prod.

•Rehearses and runs in Glencoe, IL.

• Seeking— Equity Stage Managers: 18+.

• Seeking submissions from IL.

• For consideration, submit your resume and cover letter to kgaletti@ writerstheatre.org. Submission deadline is April 14.

• Writers Theatre is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All submissions will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, familial status, sexual orientation, national origin, ability, age, or veteran status. Actors who are contracted for any role may be asked to change their hair for the production.

• To promote the health and safety of all participants, Writers Theatre requires that all members of the cast, crew, production team, and staff be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Full vaccination is defined as receiving both doses of a two-dose vaccine or a single dose of a vaccine at least two weeks prior to an individual’s first day of work on the project.

• Professional Pay. Pays $1,123.25/wk. (stage managers); $1,029.65/wk. (assistant stage managers). Equity CAT Tier V contract.

Musical

‘Hocus Pocus Villian Spelltacular’

• Seeking video submissions from Equity actors and dancers for “Hocus Pocus Villian Spelltacular.”

• Company: Walt Disney World Company. Staff: Dan LoBuono-Wahl, casting dir. •Performs August-October 31 in at the Magic Kingdom® Park at the Walt Disney World® Resort near Orlando, FL.

• Seeking— Dancers: 18+. Winifred Sanderson: 18+. Mary Sanderson: 18+. Sarah Sanderson: 18+.

• Seeking submissions from FL.

•To apply visit DisneyAuditions.com and go to the submission and online audition check-in instructions section. Links to the combination for submission on disneyauditions.com. Submission deadline is April 11 at 1:30 p.m. ET. In-person callbacks to be held May 10 in Orlando, FL. Candidates invited to the callback will be notified by April 26.

•Professional Pay. Pays $24/hr. Equity

Walt Disney World Contract. Upon signing of Walt Disney World® Individual Employment Contract, candidates are eligible to immediately apply for membership in Actors’ Equity Association.

‘Menopause The Musical 2’

•Seeking Equity stage managers for “Menopause The Musical 2: Cruising Through The Change.”

• Company: GFour Productions, LLC. Staff: Seth Greenleaf, dir.; Alan J. Plado, supervising musical dir.; Jonathan Stahl, choreo.; Karie Koppel, casting.

•Rehearsals TBD 2024/2025; tour is currently running until June 15, 2025; 2025/2026 Tour runs SeptemberNovember 2025 and January - June 2026.

• Seeking— Equity Stage Manager and ASM: 18-99.

• Seeking submissions from FL.

• For consideration, submit your resume to info@gfourproductions.com. Submissions deadline is May 1. Note: 2025/2026 Tour will include stops in Canada, you must have valid passport and clean criminal record to be granted entry by Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA).

•Professional Pay. Pays $211.73 per performance and $41.20 per hour rehearsal (with a minimum 4 performance/2 hour per week guarantee) for Stage Manager. Pays $188.84 per performance and $36.62 per hour rehearsal (with a minimum 4 performance/2 hour per week for Assistant Stage Manager - guarantee.) Equity LOA-PP to LORT Agreement.

Pioneer Theatre Company 2025-26 Season

•Seeking Equity actors for roles in Pioneer Theatre Company’s 2025-26 Season. See EPA in Southern California for season breakdown.

• Company: Pioneer Theatre Company. Staff: Karen Azenberg; artistic dir.; Eric Jackson, assoc. artistic dir.-casting rep. •Rehearses and runs in Salt Lake City, UT.

• Seeking— Equity Actors: all genders, 18+, all ethnicities.

• Equity Principal Auditions will be held April 16 from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. (lunch, 1-2 p.m.) at Simmons Pioneer Memorial Theatre, Rehearsal Studio, Salt Lake City, UT.

•EPA Procedures are in effect for this audition. An Equity Monitor will be provided.

•Prepare either two brief contrasting monologues, two brief contrasting song selections, or a brief monologue and a brief song in the style of our season. The talent is welcome to sing from one of the shows. An accompanist will be provided. Bring sheet music properly marked and in the correct key. Also bring the talent’s headshot and resume stapled together. Note: Some roles will be understudied.

• Pioneer Theatre Company is seeking all races, ethnicities, body types, gender identities, actors with disabilities, and actors of all ages for roles in this production. Some roles will be understudied. For more info, visit pioneertheatre. org.

•Professional Pay. Pays $1144/wk. (LORT B) and $839/wk. LORT D). Equity NonRep LORT B & D contracts.

Student Film

‘The Counselor’

•Casting and seeking crew for “The Counselor,” a student film. Synopsis: A disconnected couple seeks help from a

therapist to mend intimacy issues, but the session takes a jaw dropping turn when unconventional measures are taken for treatment.

• Company: Bvrgvndy Wine Media. Staff: Cyrus Bryant, Screenwriter-Director; Elizabeth Blackmon, Director-Producer.

•Rehearses April; shoots May at 4101

McEwen Rd. Dallas, TX 75244.

• Seeking— G & E: 18+. Tonya: female, 18-27, all ethnicities. Chris: male, 18-27, all ethnicities. Dr. Ivy: female, 30-35, all ethnicities.

• Seeking submissions from TX.

• Apply on Backstage.com.

• For consideration, note your availability in your cover letter.

•No Pay, but meals included.

Social Media Ad

Erectile Dysfunction UGC, Models and Content Creators

• Seeking confident models and content creators to participate in a UGC project focused on Erectile Dysfunction (ED.) Applicants should be comfortable portraying a romantic couple alongside another actor, discussing ED openly, and highlighting the benefits of our client’s products.

•The project will be filmed by a professional videographer at a location based on the talent’s availability.

•If you have experience with UGC and are comfortable discussing ED, production would love to see your submission.

•Company: READY SET. Staff: A S, Casting Director.

•Shoot location will be determined based on the locations of the two selected talents.

• Seeking— Female Partner : female, 25-40, all ethnicities, In this commercial, you’ll be paired with a male partner portraying your boyfriend. Your character is a lifestyle influencer who shares personal recommendations with your social media followers. You will discuss how our client’s ED product has positively impacted your boyfriend’s sexual performance, sharing your experience and how it has improved your relationship.Note: The final ad will include a disclaimer stating that participants are actors and not sharing real-life experiences. Male Partner : male, 25-40, all ethnicities, In this commercial, you’ll be paired with a female partner who will portray your girlfriend. Your character is a lifestyle influencer who has struggled with ED but has found a solution through our client’s product. You will share your experience, discussing how the product has improved your sexual performance and your relationship, as your girlfriend highlights the positive changes on her social media.Note: The final ad will include a disclaimer stating that

NEW FROM Silman-James Press

participants are actors and not sharing real-life experiences.

• Seeking submissions nationwide.

• Apply on Backstage.com.

• For consideration, submit links to your TikTok and/or Instagram profiles. If available, include previous UGC ads you’ve been in.

•Professional Pay. Estimated Payment: $1000.00 (Estimated Duration: 5 Hours)

Other UGC

Beep Media, Video Sales Letter

•Seeking voiceover talent for a 50-minute video sales letter (VSL) production. The VSL will be used for an online product launch. The company is seeking confident, persuasive voices with a natural delivery style. Remote work with direction provided.

• Company: BeepMedia.

• Records remotely.

• Seeking—VO Talent: 35+.

• Seeking submissions worldwide.

• Send submissions to andrei@ beepmedia.com.

•Professional Pay. Estimated Payment: $1500.00 (Estimated Duration: 2 Hours)

’’Stephen Book is a gifted and deeply experienced teacher with both encyclopedic knowledge of contemporary practice and the wisdom to know that no two actors approach the work in the exact same way. In Secret Magic Stuff for Actors, he has arrayed voluminous prompts and instructions in craft: there are treasures for any actor with a growth mindset.”

—James Bundy, Dean/Artistic Director, Geffen School of Drama at Yale/ Yale Repertory Theatre

Secret Magic Stuff for Actors is an extraordinary reference book of unique and powerful solutions for almost every acting situation. You can easily find multiple tips for responding to directors’ notes or any of forty-four different problems. Also included are seven remarkably useful tools that will enable the actor to instantly create any emotion, think spontaneously as the character instead of for the character, and discover the character’s physicality, personality, and essence.

Ask an Expert

Carla Marie Manly, Ph.D., is a clinical psychologist and author.

Jessica Steinrock is an intimacy coordinator and the CEO of Intimacy Directors and Coordinators.

Dr. Alexandra Stockwell is a relationship and intimacy coach.

I have feelings for my costar. How can I pursue a relationship with them without compromising my work?

●PAUL NEWMAN AND Joanne Woodward in “Picnic.” Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith on “The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air.” Kit Harington and Rose Leslie on “Game of Thrones.” The list of actors who have fallen in love (or lust) behind the scenes is a long one—so don’t be surprised if it happens to you. If you’re not careful, however, getting into a relationship with your costar could jeopardize your performance—and even your career. Whether or not you decide to pursue a romance, it’s vital to honor your feelings and treat both the other person and your coworkers with respect. Here are a few things to keep in mind.

Make sure it’s the real thing. If chemistry sparks between you and a fellow actor, consider where your attraction is stemming from. If your characters share a romantic connection, it can be easy to absorb those feelings as your own. “Clarify whether you’re in love with them in that role or whether you’re genuinely responding to their personality apart from acting,” advises relationship and intimacy coach Dr. Alexandra Stockwell.

Weigh your options. If the attraction is mutual, Stockwell suggests deepening your connection “by having more meaningful conversations without bringing in romance. This will be a good foundation if you get together in the future.”

Intimacy coordinator

Jessica Steinrock (“Little Fires

Everywhere”) cautions against acting on impulse. “It is best to wait until the project has concluded before beginning a new romantic relationship with a coworker,” she says. Either way, she advises “checking with the HR team regarding any protocols or guidelines that are in place” when it comes to on-set relationships. If you do choose to wait, Stockwell says to “use this time to foster friendship, and even acknowledge that you’re interested once the project completes.”

Keep the lines of communication open. The honeymoon period can be thrilling; but it’s also a very fragile time. Your main consideration, says Stockwell, should be supporting each other in your work and avoiding doing “anything that will complicate your relationships with other cast members and crew.”

Ryan Gosling and Eva Mendes starred opposite each other in Derek Cianfrance’s 2012 crime drama “The Place Beyond the Pines.” Though their characters’ romance ended in tragedy, Gosling and Mendes’ didn’t; in 2022, they revealed that they’d tied the knot.

If there’s an intimacy coordinator on set, Steinrock says you should feel free to discuss the situation with them. “One of the reasons intimacy coordinators can be so helpful is that all intimate moments are choreographed using the boundaries of the actors to tell the story,” she explains. “These boundaries can help separate personal interests from the needs of the scene.”

Be prepared in case the relationship goes south.

Even the most passionate connections run the risk of ending while you and your partner are still working together. If you do break up, clinical psychologist Carla Marie Manly, Ph.D., advises fostering “true acceptance of yourself, the other person, and the outcome of the relationship.” This will help you steer clear of the “blame, resentment, and anger that often create friction post-romance.”

—Danielle Winston

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