1. All members in good standing of Scarborough Music Theatre are to be informed of audition dates before the general public is informed.

2. No person under contract to Scarborough Music Theatre shall be a member of the cast of any play in which he/she is involved.

3. All auditions are open to members and non-members. Members of the Artistic Staff are encouraged to give due consideration to a person's prior commitment to SMT when casting the show. The actual format of the auditions shall be determined by the Artistic Staff, the Producer[s], and the Stage Manager, and be subject to the approval of the Board. When casting, Scarborough Music Theatre gives preference to performers who are not members of Equity. Equity members will only be afforded the opportunity to audition after the first round of auditions and callbacks have taken place, and then only if the artistic staff has identified a continuing need to fill one or more positions in the show.

4. Normally, auditions for the first show of the season should be held in the preceding June; auditions for the second and third shows of the year normally will be held during the second week of the run of the previous show. Auditions should not conflict with scheduled performances; call-backs must not conflict with scheduled performances. Rehearsals for the second and third shows should then begin on the Monday following the close of the show which was running.

5. The Artistic Staff's description of the show, of audition requirements, and of the characters in the show, should be provided in writing. These should be ready at the time audition dates are announced, and must be made available prior to auditions. Character descriptions should be made available to members in good standing of SMT, before being made available to the general public.

6. Audition requirements are at the discretion of the Artistic Staff. Audition pieces used at call-backs should be from the show being mounted.

7. At no time should a person who is auditioning for a show be eliminated from performing solely because of his/her known expertise in the technical areas of the theatre.

8. Any person owing money to Scarborough Music Theatre [for tickets, sweatshirts, scripts, scores, cast photos, etc.] shall not be permitted to audition for any Scarborough Music Theatre production until such time as full payment of the amount owing is received, recorded and officially acknowledged.

9. Members of the Board should give careful consideration to the number of shows in which they participate, given the burden of the execution of their responsibilities to the Board, which is their primary responsibility.

10. Auditions will be conducted by a committee consisting of the Director, Musical Director and Choreographer [if applicable], the Producer[s] and Stage Manager. One additional Board member must be present at each audition session. It is desirable that the same Board member attend all the auditions.

11. All members of the artistic staff must be present at every audition session, and for the entire session.

12. No person who serves on the audition committee may also audition for the show during the first round of auditions.

13. The members of the artistic staff MUST include the other members of the audition committee in their discussions when casting the show, although the primary function of those members is an advisory one.

14. The members of the audition committee have the power to select the cast. All persons cast in a show must have auditioned for the show. The Producer[s] will report the cast selected to the Board.

15. In the event of a dispute over casting, the Board shall reserve the right to make a final decision. Such a dispute may be brought to the attention of the Board by any person who served on the audition committee.

PLEASE NOTE : Under the terms of their contracts, members of the artistic staff of a show [Director, Musical Director,Choreographer] must not enter into discussion with persons who have auditioned concerning any decisions made in casting the show. All such questions must be directed to the show's Producer[s] only.

16. No person shall be informed whether or not they have been cast in the show until all auditions and call-backs have been completed.

17. No score or script will be handed out until one's membership fees have been paid. All persons in the show who are issued a printed copy of the script and/or score [chorus book] will be required to pay a deposit in cash or by cheque. Cheques will be cashed upon receipt. Deposits will be refunded as long as scripts/scores have been returned in good condition by the closing night of the show.

18. If any role[s] is/are not cast during the first round of auditions, members who auditioned for said role[s] should be notified that an open audition is being held.

19. If, after the show has been cast, a role comes open, it may be offered to the person who was designated as the back-up for that role. Otherwise, members who originally auditioned for that role should be notified that an open audition is being held.

20. Any role which it has not been possible to cast using the above-outlined procedures will be filled by the agreement of the Director, Musical Director and Choreographer [if applicable], and Producer[s] of the show, based upon an invited audition.

21. Any cast member who misses more than three [3] rehearsals over and above those prior commitments indicated on his / her original audition sheet may be replaced.

22. A copy of this policy will be given to all members of the audition committee and to all persons who audition.

Revised June 3, 2007