Linehan Audition & Portfolio Review Guidelines

Trouble in Mind by Alice Childress. Fall 2022. Photo by Kiirstn Pagan ’11.

Linehan Acting Audition Guidelines

Audition Requirements

Prepare one 60-90 second contemporary monologue. The piece may be either comic or dramatic. Try to select something that you feel connected to and excited to perform. We prefer monologues from published plays rather than from monologue books.

Please Note: this is a live audition over Zoom, it is not to be pre-recorded.

Immediately following your audition, you will complete a brief interview with the faculty. Interview questions can be found below.

Tips for Zoom Auditions:

Here are some things to keep in mind as you prepare your at-home audition:

  • Set up your camera so that you are framed from head to toe.
  • It’s okay if you don’t have a perfect filming set up. We aren’t worried about your background. Pick a spot where you aren’t too cramped so you can do your best work.
  • Make sure we can see you. We aren’t looking for professional studio lighting but set up near a window or in a room with good lighting so we can see your work.
  • Try to limit background noise. We understand if your dog barks or if a car honks, but see if you can find a relatively quiet spot for your audition.
  • Set your camera in one spot and keep it at eye level. No fancy camera work here. Find a table, a sturdy stack of books, a tripod, or a reliable family member to hold the camera steady for you.

Find a printable PDF version of this information here.

Linehan Portfolio Review Guidelines

Portfolio Requirements

Prepare a digital portfolio of visual material that represents your theatre work. We recommend you prepare this using Google Slides, with any appropriate links made live in the document. Be prepared to present your portfolio to the faculty.

Please add Eric Abele (abele@umbc.edu) as a VIEWER of your portfolio.  Make sure the title of your portfolio is LAST NAME – LINEHAN PORTFOLIO. Portfolios will be due at least one day prior to review day, so that faculty may have access to your materials for your presentation.

Immediately following your portfolio review, you will complete a brief interview with the faculty. Interview questions can be found below.

The portfolio can include any of the following:

  • Photographs of Productions: No matter your job, large and clear photographs of the set, theatre, performance venue, etc., help us see the scale of the show and its inherent storytelling.
  • Unrealized Class Projects. Drawings, renderings, light plots, costume sketches, fabric swatches, etc. for shows you did in class, for yourself, or for any after-school program.  These should all be clearly labeled with the show title and playwright.
  • Side Projects: Cosplay, church, and event work, even non-theatre, are good to include.
  • Paperwork Samples: Paperwork is vitally important to your process!  This could include stage management scripts or prompt books, action charts, budget, marketing plans, logos, or anything you generated to communicate for your production.
  • Audio or Video Clips: If your design area is in sound or media, then install links to YouTube or SoundCloud to share your work so that we may experience it.

How much should I include in my portfolio?

  • There’s no right or wrong answer, but make sure you can share your work in 5-7 minutes
  • Put your absolute best work first, however you define it, so you’re sure to share your most awesome self; then add in your remaining work
  • You don’t have to share everything.  We’re not necessarily looking for artists with lengthy resumes, rather artists who have made interesting and compelling choices with the experiences they have had.

Find a printable PDF version of this information here.

Linehan Scholar Interview Questions

After your monologue, or portfolio review, the faculty may ask you the following questions. There’s no need to prepare scripted answers; we are just looking to get to know you a little better.

  1. Why are you interested in the UMBC Department of Theatre?
  2. Choose one of your recent roles/performances OR production/class experiences.  What did you learn about yourself both as an artist and as a person from working on this process?
  3. In addition to acting/performance OR design/production/stage management, what are your other academic and artistic areas of interest
  4. When you see yourself working in your craft, where is that?
  5. What other colleges are you looking at?