What to do when you have to audition in an accent

Nearly every actor has experienced it -- the last minute opportunity to audition for a great role -- but in an accent you are not quite prepared for.

You know you need the help of a professional dialect coach (See how to choose one here) but the clock is ticking. How can you make sure you get everything you have out of the time you've got?

1) Have a key coach

2) Reach out right away. Accents (even refreshers) need time to settle in.  If the audition is tomorrow afternoon, meet with your coach as soon as you can today, if you have two days, meet with your coach as soon as you can, if you have three days until the audition -- you guessed it-- start today. Work with your dialect coach to get on the right track and then use every bit of time you have between then and the audition to practice the physical movements that create the speech features of the accent, and get yourself mentally to the place where you can communicate naturally and accurately through that accent. (This last step is the crucial difference between working 

3) Email them what they need to prepare before your session (free downloadable checklist here!)