Online MUSICAL THEATER Audition Master Class with Merri Sugarman, Casting Director, Tara Rubin Casting

Tuesday, August 24, 2021, 6:30pm ET / 3:30pm PT

From one of the busiest Broadway casting offices in NY, Actors Connection is thrilled to have Merri teaching this ONE NIGHT ONLY virtual Musical Theater Audition Master Class.

For this Master Class, please prepare your best song with music/track and have a list of other songs with tracks ready to go in case Merri wants to work with you on something else. 

This online intensive will start off with a Q & A, and then each actor will perform for Merri using your prepared material in a group format. She will coach, give direction and offer possible recommendations of material to "check out" if what you are currently using doesn't "work".

Please note that an accompanist will not be provided.  All actors will need to provide their own music/track for this intensive.

PLEASE NOTE: This class is limited to ADVANCED Musical Theater actors (18+).

 

Please follow the procedures listed below:

• Please update your headshot and fill out the MY INFO section of your AC account upon registration.

• Arrive at least 10 MINUTES before your event is slated to start. Your host will give important information about the event at this time.

• Instructions and the ZOOM link for access to this online event will be emailed to you in advance. If you have not received the link by 12pm (EST) the day-of the event, please reach out to registration@actorsconnection.com at least one hour PRIOR to the start of class.

**Actors Connection classes and programming are for ADULTS (18+). With permission, some teens (14+) are allowed to take adult programming. To inquire about getting permission, please send an email to: info@actorsconnection.com**

**No recording of any kind is permitted by participants during class.**

**Please keep in mind that all programs at Actors Connection are for educational and professional development purposes. Participating in any class or event is not a promise of employment.**

Merri Sugarman

Initially an actress ('Les Miserables', 'Aspects of Love', et al.), Merri found herself out West some years back where she quickly made a name for herself at Liberman/Hirschfeld Casting, then Liberman/Patton Casting, working on such shows as Seinfeld, Party of Five, HBO’s Band of Brothers, the feature film My Big Fat Greek Wedding and the Miramax feature film Playing By Heart, starring Sean Connery and Angelina Jolie. 

In 2000, Merri moved to Dreamworks Studios as the Casting Executive in charge of TV Pilots and Series- including "Spin City", "Freaks and Geeks" and the critically acclaimed "The Job", starring Denis Leary. She was then offered a position as the Director of Casting for Dramas and Movies at ABC Television, overseeing the casting of "Alias", "NYPD Blue", "The Practice" and the 'made for television’ movies "Gilda Radner - It's Always Something" and "The Music Man", starring Matthew Broderick and Kristin Chenoweth, to name just a few. 

Merri then returned to the East Coast to teach and coach actors – something she still does (and loves) as time permits, when Tara Rubin offered her a Senior Casting Director position where she’s been happily ensconced ever since, working on, among many others - the Broadway, touring and international companies of AIN’T TOO PROUD, DEAR EVAN HANSEN, THE WIZ, SIX, SING STREET, BAD CINDERELLA, HERE LIES LOVE, ALADDIN, JERSEY BOYS, THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, LES MISERABLES, SCHOOL OF ROCK, MISS SAIGON & A BRONX TALE for Broadway. CLUELESS and TREVOR the Musical are just a couple of examples of her Off Broadway work.

She also casts for many theaters regionally – including The Papermill Playhouse, Lyric Opera of Chicago, The Old Globe, Seattle Rep, The Goodman and The LaJolla Playhouse.

Merri is also the very proud Casting Director of the critically acclaimed web series SUBMISSIONS ONLY and also boasts having cast many other independent TV & film projects, workshops and readings.

On a more personal note, Merri has been a Big Sister to Jenny via the amazing Big Brothers/Big Sisters program for the last 21 years, is an alumni officer of the professional sorority Kappa Gamma Chi (BFA in Musical Theater - Emerson College), a member of Who’s Who in American Colleges and Universities and was recently recognized with the Distinguished Alumni Award from Emerson College. She has been a Tony Voter for the past eleven years and is a proud member of CSA (Casting Society of America).