nycdaug Chapter 194: Audition
Chapter 194: Audition
Joanna was frustrated. ’This script is cursed,’ she thought. She had spent ages combing through it. There were plenty of female characters, but the only one that truly stood out was the female lead. The only other role that could be called a supporting actress was the male lead’s secretary-slash-bodyguard, who appeared a total of eleven times. In those scenes, she was either a background prop, getting beaten up, or crying.
"Fine, as long as you’ve made up your mind. Just don’t get scared later!"
Having said all that needed to be said, the two of them walked into the audition hall. It was only 8:45 AM, a full fifteen minutes before the casting was officially scheduled to begin, yet there were already at least thirty or forty people in the hall.
And, of course, she recognized quite a few of the actresses by name.
’Looks like the competition is really fierce.’
Nana pulled her to a secluded spot to sit down, with Rocco trailing beside them, in charge of holding their cups and bags.
"You have some time. Go over the script again."
’As far as I know, my artist was the first one to get the script, which means Director Chenning must favor Riley Perry the most. If she doesn’t pass this audition, it’ll be incredibly difficult to get another script from Director Chenning in the future.’
’After all, if you’re given a golden opportunity and you can’t seize it, you have no one to blame but yourself.’
At 8:50 AM, a crew assistant started handing out number tags. At 9:00 AM sharp, a group of people walked into the audition room.
This meant that the day’s auditions had officially begun.
Rocco showed the number tag he had received to Riley. It was number 4.
"Nice," Riley said. "The sooner I perform, the sooner it’s over."
Rocco asked casually, "What if I had gotten number 40?"
They were casting for both the female lead and supporting roles at the same time, so they definitely wouldn’t finish in half a day. When he’d gotten the number, he had asked and learned that they were only auditioning actresses today—over fifty in total.
"That would’ve been fine, too. I could have taken a nap around noon," Riley replied offhandedly.
Joanna muttered under her breath, "Hah, so you *do* know how to talk nicely. Why is it that when we’re filming a show, your mouth is so unforgiving? Do you have any idea how many people you offend like that?
For the next show, you can’t just say whatever comes to your mind."
Riley gave a noncommittal nod in agreement. ’But she wasn’t the type to swallow her anger. If someone made her unhappy, she had to clap back on the spot. Her health was important, too! Why should she be the one to endure it all in silence!’
The auditions were moving quickly. Riley watched as actress number 2 went in. When she came out, she didn’t leave; instead, she sat back down.
’That wasn’t a good sign!’
’It meant the director was relatively satisfied with her performance but wanted to see if someone more outstanding came along later. If not, the role of the female lead would likely be hers.’
Soon, number 4 was called. Joanna took the bag from Riley’s hands and gave her a look, signaling for her to hurry inside.
"Don’t be nervous. If you get it, you get it. If not, then forget it. It’s not like we’re short on job offers."
She wasn’t just bluffing. Ever since the last episode of the show aired, she’d received a tall stack of offers for variety shows and scripts, but she had passed on all of them.
After all, no variety show was currently hotter than *Go on an adventure together*, and no script was generating more buzz than Director Chenning’s upcoming *Female Police Officer*. So, she had put all her focus on this show and this movie.
But she didn’t want to put too much pressure on Riley, so she kept telling her not to be nervous. It would be great if she got the part, but if not, no big deal. They weren’t lacking for offers, anyway.
But in reality, she was even more nervous than Riley!
’Every agent dreams of cultivating an A-list celebrity, maybe even a best actor or actress. But alas, whether it was due to her poor judgment or just bad luck, she had managed a dozen or so artists over the years, and not a single one had made it big. The best she had managed was a C-list actor, and even he had left her for another agent.’
Now, she was pinning all her hopes on Riley.
’My dear Riley, you absolutely have to succeed today!’
Inside the audition room, Riley bowed to the five people on the judging panel. As she straightened up, she took a careful look at the director seated in the center.
He looked to be in his sixties, a skinny little old man, but his eyes gave off an incredibly shrewd feeling.
"Hello, everyone. I am number 4, actress Riley Perry. I will be auditioning for the role of the female lead, Flora Sutton."
Director Chenning looked Riley Perry up and down. White shirt, blue jeans, flat-soled sneakers. There was a scene in the script where the character, dressed just like that, catches a thief while off-duty. Besides, Riley Perry herself was tall, standing at 172cm even in flats. Most importantly, her looks were a perfect fit for the character’s image—a combination of campus belle and police beauty.
"I’d like to ask, you performed a sword dance on a variety show. Have you studied martial arts?"
Riley nodded and then smiled confidently. "I have. I should be able to perform any of the action choreography designed for this film."
Director Chenning was amused by the young woman’s confidence. "Alright, then let’s see you perform a dramatic scene."
The producer let out a snort of laughter. Director Chenning shot the producer a glare, then cleared his throat. "Perform the scene where Flora Sutton is expelled from the police force."
Riley: "Yes, Director."
Flora Sutton receives the news. Because she has repeatedly made mistakes, ignored criticism, and on top of that, beaten up the well-connected Joel Zane.
The other party was relentless, filing multiple complaints against Flora Sutton, clearly intending to not stop until she lost her job. He even invested five million in the police department. In the end, the leadership decided to fire Flora Sutton.
Upon receiving the notice, Flora Sutton began to angrily pack her personal belongings, her face a cold mask. A colleague tried to console her, "Flora, don’t be so angry. We’re police officers. The force is a place with rules. You can’t just do whatever you want."
"You’re just too reckless. If you don’t follow the rules, you get weeded out."
The words were a bit harsh, but they were also the truth.
Flora Sutton’s hands, which were packing her things, paused for a moment. After glancing at her colleague, she sped up her packing. The complex emotions swirling in her eyes made it seem like she would burst into tears if anyone said another word. This made the other colleagues who had wanted to offer a few more words of advice fall silent.
Flora Sutton quickly finished packing. She looked around the place where she had worked for over half a year, her eyes filled with reluctance and regret. Then, she hardened her heart, turned, and walked out of the police station step by step, out of everyone’s sight.
It was a scene with no lines, driven entirely by emotion. Riley very carefully prepared herself emotionally, and then her performance officially began.
"Director, I’m ready."
Director Chenning nodded. "Then I’ll read the other part for you."
He proceeded to read the colleague’s lines in a monotone. But as he spoke, Riley’s performance had already begun. She pantomimed packing up her things, her face a mask of cold fury that instantly drew everyone into the scene.
Five minutes later, Riley’s performance ended. The scriptwriter’s eyes were shining. Director Chenning picked up a bottle of mineral water from the table, twisted it open, and took a sip. "Let’s do another one. There’s a scene in the movie where she chases a thief down the street. Our space here is limited, so just improvise."
Riley: ’...You want me to act out a street scene indoors? You’re well aware the space is limited... Anyone who didn’t know better would think you’re just trying to mess with people!’
’Still, this wasn’t really a challenge for her.’