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[0:00] Kerry Butler: Once I played a panty who just couldn't stop the beat. Yes, with roller skates on her feet. A girl who loved to beat a girl who's recently deceased. A real cool mom, a musical version of Tina Fey. Tina Fey! Now come with me and fly, fly. I am your host, Miss Kerry Butler. Together you and I are Breaking Broadway!

[0:54] Kerry Butler: Hey, welcome back to Breaking Broadway. I know the biggest question on everyone's mind is usually how can I get an agent? How do I get the auditions? So today I have RJ Magee on who has worked for 10 years with the Jamie Baker Management Company. And he's booked hundreds of actors on Broadway, national tours, television shows, cruise ships. Also a visiting assistant professor of theater at Midwestern State in Texas. Welcome to the show.

[1:28] RJ Magee: Thank you for having me. It's so good to see you virtually.

[1:31] Kerry Butler: Great to see you too. How do you usually find your clients?

[1:36] RJ Magee: Well, it's really all of the above in terms of all of the different ways that actors can procure an agent or a manager. Just for full transparency, for about a year now, I've represented your lovely and talented niece, Margo.

[1:56] Kerry Butler: Yes, who's been on the show several times.

[1:59] RJ Magee: Yes, and she's actually become a good friend of mine now. And that came through you, you know. So recommendations are always great.

[2:10] RJ Magee: But I know that for a lot of people, that's just not always feasible because we don't always have someone to recommend us. Right. So I am always available to take cold submissions.

[2:24] RJ Magee: And New York based performers can always email me.

[2:30] Kerry Butler: Explain even what that is for other people, you know, who might not live in New York City.

[2:34] RJ Magee: So that means that any professional actor and we're New York based, we're a New York based office. So you do need to be based in the tri-state area. So New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, something like that, so that we can submit you for in-person things as well as virtual. And we do have clients all over the country. And I have some clients in Atlanta and on the West Coast. But again, we are really a New York office. So we try to, you know, work with people that are New York based.

[3:07] RJ Magee: And so a cold submission for me is you send me an email with your headshot and resume and footage of your performance work. I prefer really, really stripped down material, almost like what you would do in a general audition.

[3:26] RJ Magee: So for singers, that would be, you know, 32 bars of a song. It can just be pre-recorded accompaniment in a studio, in your bedroom with just sort of a blank canvas behind you. I really want to see what you do in an audition, because remember, as an agent or a manager, that's the medium that we work in is the audition and or the self-tape audition. So it's sort of important for me also to see how you put together an audition for camera.

[3:51] Kerry Butler: So do you want them, are you saying that you don't want them to have like a really well-produced video? Do you want it like in a rehearsal studio, like it's an actual audition? Or do you want the camera, you know, head and shoulders where it would be like a self-tape?

[4:04] RJ Magee: However they feel most comfortable presenting it, I'm fine with. What I'm most interested in is seeing them in their most sort of exposed, vulnerable, raw, like audition place. Do you know what I mean?

[4:29] RJ Magee: So that also goes for repertoire. So it's really important for me to see what kind of repertoire they're working with and how relatable that repertoire is to the kinds of projects that I would be submitting them on. And that is a big old disconnect right now in terms of people that are graduating from these undergraduate theater programs and the kinds of projects that I would be submitting them on.

[4:58] RJ Magee: For whatever reason, people aren't graduating with books, with rep books that are super reflective of today's theater market, musical theater market. And I know that there was sort of the trend back in the day to go like as obscure as possible with your material. And at least for my purposes, I actually sort of need the opposite. I need you to be as commercial and as sort of on the nose as possible for what is being cast right now, what's being produced right now.

[5:33] RJ Magee: So we all know what are the shows that are being produced right now regionally? Quite a bit.

[5:38] Kerry Butler: Okay.

[5:39] RJ Magee: Waitress, Mean Girls, Beautiful, Frozen.

[5:45] Kerry Butler: Okay.

[5:46] RJ Magee: If I'm meeting with a young female identifying actress, you know, we all know what the songs are from those shows that are sort of like the heavy hitters.

[5:54] Kerry Butler: Right.

[5:55] RJ Magee: So I need to either hear those or I need to hear songs in that vein.

[6:00] RJ Magee: Right. So that I know that you are competitive for the jobs that I am submitting people for on a daily basis. There's probably a breakdown for Wicked every two to three months. So if you're someone who could be Glinda, Nessa Rose, or Elphaba, I need to either hear that packet from you or I need to hear a song that lets me see that you could be competitive for one of those roles. Does that make sense?

[6:30] Kerry Butler: Yeah.

[6:31] RJ Magee: So when people send you their stuff, you would rather them send you stuff that maybe you've heard a million times, but it shows you that, oh, okay, I know exactly what to send them out on.

[6:39] RJ Magee: Exactly. It almost needs to be something that I've heard a million times.

[6:43] RJ Magee: Oh. Something I haven't heard a million times, but that is so obviously reflective of something else. Do you know what I mean?

[6:53] Kerry Butler: Right.

[6:54] RJ Magee: And there are ways, I mean, there are many really unique, creative repertoire choices that actors make that sort of immediately put your mind on a specific show and it maybe isn't a song that you immediately, you know, are familiar with. Do you know what I mean?

[7:10] Kerry Butler: Yes.

[7:11] RJ Magee: So I'm cool with that too. I love it when people do that. Disney material or Disney-esque material. Rodgers and Hammerstein shows, obviously never going anywhere. So I need to hear Facility in That, Grease, Hairspray. So I need to hear great 50s, 60s cuts in your book to know that you can be competitive in that world.

[7:34] RJ Magee: And then for our purposes, I really look for versatility. I almost represent all exclusively people that sing. Like, that is the common denominator. I have all ages. I have all union statuses, although I typically prefer nonunion because I like you to be open to all work, union and nonunion right now, because it is such a nonunion-heavy market.

[7:59] RJ Magee: And I know that that's tough for some people to hear, but it just sort of is the reality of the business right now. I even say when people are starting out, like when you become union, it's a very personal decision and it's not always the right decision right when you're starting out.

[8:13] RJ Magee: I've had a few people recently text me, a couple of clients that were like, it's just so hard to get seen at the required calls right now. I'm really thinking about joining the union because, as you know, it's open enrollment right now. So there really aren't a lot of barriers to joining the union right now, not like there were, especially back in our day.

[8:30] RJ Magee: And I pretty much across the board tell people no, because it just limits what kind of work you can be considered for so significantly. And the turnover in Broadway shows right now is really pretty low. So there haven't been a ton of openings in New York-based theater.

[8:49] RJ Magee: So then that really limits what equity members can be considered for. So I just feel like if people are young, if they're under the age of 30, essentially, I really think they should stay nonunion. I also really.

[9:04] RJ Magee: Look for people that can do plays. So when people are submitting to you, you mentioned, do they just submit one tape? They can submit as much as they want. Frankly, I like them to submit a lot of stuff, multiple cuts, maybe a few monologues.

[9:22] Kerry Butler: Do they do that through a website usually?

[9:27] RJ Magee: No, they can send it to me, rjmageecasting at gmail.com. But they need to be New York based. So I know that your podcast reaches people probably all over the world. As long as they're New York based, I would love to hear from them.

[9:36] Kerry Butler: Okay. Hey everyone, I have some exciting news. I am revamping my YouTube channel, Kerry Butler Official. And I'm going to, my first episode is all about Beetlejuice. And I know so many schools are doing Beetlejuice now. So I'm focusing in on the creation of Beetlejuice and what you need to think about for each of those characters, if you're auditioning for them, or if you're working on them and kind of what our backstory was in creating those characters. And a fun little thing I'm doing on the YouTube channel is people can submit their auditions to me, and I will give you feedback at the end of my YouTube videos. So if you would like to be included on my YouTube channel, then on kerrybutlercoach at Instagram, I put a form for you to fill out.

And I have an email address for specifically for submissions for people who want to submit an audition that I will give you feedback and try and help you hit those notes or hit the acting beats. But I just thought it would be a fun way to connect and be sure to subscribe to my new YouTube channel, Kerry Butler Official, for all the behind the scenes stories of the shows that I've done.

[10:50] RJ Magee: So they can send you as much as they want, but you were talking about looking through their repertoire. Would that be something you would want to look at, like in an interview with them? Or would that be something after you sign?

[11:00] RJ Magee: Well, the repertoire would come when they submit to me, ideally. And then what happens is, is once we start working with someone, they create an actor's access profile if they don't already have one. And then that gets added to a website called Breakdown Express. This is something that they do not teach in any of the undergraduate programs right now.

[11:23] Kerry Butler: Yes, please tell more.

[11:24] RJ Magee: And trust me, Kerry Butler herself is on Breakdown Express, I can guarantee you. And it is the primary way that her representation is submitting her for things. Now, she is at a higher echelon, so there's also auditions that aren't using the agent breakdowns where they're just requesting to see people specifically. But I guarantee you that you're with Stewart Talent, correct? That they also are going on the breakdowns every day and submitting Kerry using Breakdown Express, which is the sister site of Actors Access to submit you for roles that have been posted by casting directors on the agent manager breakdown.

[12:02] RJ Magee: This can only be viewed by agents and managers and only casting directors can post on Breakdown Express. And the jobs have to be vetted. Any job pretty much can go on Actors Access, but the ones on Breakdown Express are vetted really more for salary, union status, a lot of things. I've worked on both sides. I still have an active freelance casting practice as well. And if I'm just doing a reading that pays a couple hundred dollars and that's non-union, a lot of times they won't let me post it on the agent manager side of it. They'll only do Actors Access. It's a very strict kind of company and I think that's because they're very protective of the fact that this is proprietary information that's going out to the agents and managers.

[12:54] RJ Magee: You have to remember that a lot of times, even before things get announced in the trades, they'll go on the breakdowns because they'll start having auditions for it. So you'll know about things even before they were announced on Variety, on any entertainment platform. I'll never forget the first one was the Snow White movie that's coming out in March, the musical remake of Snow White, the live action. That hadn't been announced anywhere, but they put out a breakdown for the role of Snow White. So you sort of find out about things before everyone else does. And so I think for that reason, breakdowns, it's just very strict about a lot of different things. And so it's through that website that we submit people.

It's all done virtually. So it is a job that's 100% remote. Not that agents and managers don't have brick and mortar offices, although it's becoming less and less common. But my time with Baker for the past 10 years has almost been 100% remote. There was a time that I lived in the city, a long time actually, where I would keep office hours, but I left the city in 2020 to go to grad school to get my MFA.

[14:04] RJ Magee: Did it all the way through my MFA. And then last year was in Virginia to university. That's where I met Kerry because we brought her to do a concert and masterclass. She was amazing. And now I'm at a university in Texas. So every day I log into the breakdowns, see what has been posted. I particularly just look at theater and musical theater or on-camera projects that are looking for singers. I'll sometimes look at on-camera projects just if it's a franchise or something that I'm familiar with, but my specialty is theater and musical theater. And then I will read the breakdowns, compare what they're looking for against my client list in terms of union status availability, because sometimes people are only available for certain dates if they're getting married or they have a prior family commitment or they're doing another show.

Also many clients, and this is a tricky piece and this I'd like people to know also before they submit to me, we really don't take on new clients that have any strong objections to things that they won't do right now. So if you're someone that won't tour or cruise or do children's theater or do regional theater or do international traveling, I typically don't take on new clients that won't do those things because that's just such a huge chunk of where the work is right now.

[15:26] RJ Magee: Cruise ships are Broadway salary and the contracts are 9 to 12 months long, which can be much longer than a Broadway contract, depending on how long the show runs, as you know. And a great way to save money so that then you can save up your money and come back to New York and audition, take time off just to audition. Absolutely. And also once you've done some of those jobs, you do get better auditions because now you've built up a resume that shows that you just have more street cred. My clients who have done a couple ships or done a non-union tour or done a theater works or done some of the lower tier regional theaters or done an international sound and music, I know you had Matt Lenz on. After they've done those, they get so much better auditions because now they have just a lot more on their resume and it really proves that they've worked in the trenches of our profession.

So it's very difficult to get people auditions that have really just done school stuff, you know what I mean? Even if they went to a great school. So that's a big thing that I'm a proponent of is just working as much as you possibly can. And for whatever reason, a lot of people come out of their undergraduate programs with really strong things that they will and will not do. And for us, it's just not something that we can work with, you know? So if you're someone who is really interested in going out and sort of seeing the world and auditioning for any type of project under the sun, and also feel like you have the facility for both really contemporary material, but also legit material, definitely write me because I have worked for you.

But if you sort of feel like that's not quite your jam, then I totally understand. We're probably not the office for you. Versatility vocally is something that we really look for. There was so much information to cover in this episode that we are coming back next time with a part two. So stay tuned.

[17:34] Kerry Butler: Thank you so much for listening. If you would like me to come to your school or theater group and give a masterclass or a talk back, please reach out at kerrybutlercoach.com. If you like this podcast, subscribe and leave a rating. And in the comments, let me know what topics you want me to cover. You're listening to the Broadway Podcast Network.