Soaps are taped in New York and Los Angeles. Living near NY or LA makes auditioning a lot easier then living far away from NY or LA. It is also possible to get an opportunity to audition if you live near secondary market cities in the US and Canada (Chicago, Miami, Houston, Toronto, Vancouver, etc.) Auditions are taped locally and later reviewed by the casting people in NY or LA.

The soaps hire several hundred full-time principal cast members as well as hundreds of extras (atmosphere players), under-fives, and day players each week. Atmosphere players say no lines. If a performer says five or fewer lines, then they're called an "Under-five" and earn more money than an atmosphere player. Extras can be upgraded to under-fives if:

1. a principal player addresses them individually
2. they are alone in a scene
3. they speak as part of a group

A character who has more than five lines is called a "Day Player". A "Recurring Day Player" is a day player who appears in more than one episode. These folks earn more than under fivers or atmosphere players.

Atmosphere players, under-fives, and day players do not get steady work. They might get work for a day or two or possibly longer, but then not get work on a soap for weeks or months. Getting work as an atmosphere player can give you some good experience on a studio set so you can learn how the business works. It gives you an opportunity to earn some money (and pay the rent) while you audition for speaking roles. It might also give you an opportunity to upgrade your status from atmosphere player to under-fiver and day player - both of which can proudly be included on your resumé.

Contract Players are the regular, full-timers you see day after day. These performers get paid the most.

Soap work is grueling, even for atmosphere players. The shooting for an entire half hour or hour long episode is done in one day. The day might typically begin at 7am and not end until 7pm or later. Rehearsals are brief if at all. A lot of the character work a soap actor does is done on their own. There is little input from the director. An atmosphere player's day might not be so long since there is less for them to do and no lines to learn. But the shooting day can still get pretty long.

After the day's shoot, the cast heads home to learn their lines (maybe 20-40 pages of script) for the next long day of work. This schedule goes on day, after day, after day, after day. Needless to say, soap work requires discipline, stamina, initiative, a deep love and commitment to acting - excellent memorization skills.

How do you find out about soap auditions? Generally, you find out through a franchised agent. What if you don't have a franchised agent? Work real hard until you get one (see the AWOL lesson "I GOTTA GET AN AGENT ! ! !" on the AWOL homepage.)

Atmosphere players are also cast through agencies. Some agencies, like CENEX CASTING and CENTRAL CASTING, specialize in casting atmosphere players.

If you don't have an agent, or if you decide to market yourself even though you have an agent (which is what you should always do agent or no agent) you can send the various soap casting people your resumé and photo on the chance that you will be exactly what they are looking for that week.

Theatre work is good training for the soaps and it can give a casting director or agent an opportunity to really see you work. If you are in a theatre production (in LA or NY) you can send them an invitation to attend. If they do attend (no guarantees of course,) and they like your work, you might possibly get a call to audition or interview.

Below you will find casting contact info. You should send in your resumé and photo. DO NOT CALL OR DROP IN!!! It really annoys them.

This page is not updated too often. To get the most current casting contact info (you do want to send your resumé and photo to the correct person, don't you?) subscribe to or get a current copy of the Ross Reports.

What will happen after you send in your resumé and photo? Probably nothing. Your photo was one of several hundred that arrived that day and you did not have the "look" they needed. So your stuff went into a file with a few thousand other resumés and photos.

Of course, you realize that simply sending your resumé and photo once is not going to instantly get you an audition, so you develop a mail campaign that includes sending postcards and updated photos and resumés once in a while - just to let them know you still exist and are still interested in a chance to audition.

You might also be "discovered". How does this happen? Most casting people look for new talent by attending theatre productions. This gives them an opportunity to see someone's actual work (more desireable then listening to monologs in an office.) When they see someone they like, they will contact them after the show and arrange an audition or interview.

So-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o if you want to be "discovered", go to auditions, get good parts in good shows and do excellent work (see the FREE Acting Lessons on the AWOL homepage.)

Another way to get in a soap is to be hired as an extra. This definitely requires you to live near LA or NY. Why? Because an extra doesn't earn nearly enough to cover the cost of traveling long distances, living in a hotel, eating in restaurants, etc. And in case you are wondering, the soap producers aren't going to pay your expenses. They'll hire local actors for extras.

How do you get hired as an extra? You get an agent or you send in your photo and resumé.

LA Based Soaps

THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL - CBS
Bell-Phillip Television Prods, Inc.
CBS Television City
7800 Beverly Blvd.
Suite 3371
Los Angeles, CA 90036
(323) 575- 4138
Casting: Christy Dooley

DAYS OF OUR LIVES - NBC
Corday Prods., Inc. with Columbia Pictures TV
NBC Studios 2 & 4
3000 W. Alameda Avenue
Burbank, CA 91523
(818) 840-4089
Casting: Fran Bascom (Director); Linda Poindexter (Atmosphere) at Columbia Pictures Television

GENERAL HOSPITAL - ABC
ABC-TV
ABC Television Center
4151 Prospect Ave.
Los Angeles, CA 90027
(310) 557-7777
Casting: Mark Teschner

PASSIONS - NBC
NBC Studios
4024 Radford Ave.
Studio City, CA 91604
Casting: Jackie Briskey (principals only), Don Philip Smith (under5 and extras)

THE YOUNG AND THE RESTLESS - CBS
Bell Dramatic Serial Co./Corday Prods, Inc./Columbia TriStar TV
7800 Beverly Blvd.
Suite 3305
Los Angeles, CA 90036
(213) 852-2532
Casting: Meryl O'Loughlin (Director), Gail Camacho (Assoc.)

NY Based Soaps

ALL MY CHILDREN - ABC
ABC-TV
320 West 66th Street
New York, NY 10023
Casting: Judy Blye Wilson (Director), Elias Tray (Associate) (Under 5's & Extras).
Send photos, resumé, portcards.

AS THE WORLD TURNS - CBS
TeleVest Daytime Programming for Procter & Gamble
524 West 57th St.
New York, NY 10019
Casting: Mikie Heilbrun (Carting Director) Tom Alberg (Under 5's/Extras)

GUIDING LIGHT - CBS
TeleVest Daytime Programming for Procter & Gamble
222 East 44th St.
New York, NY 10017
Casting: Glenn Daniels (Casting Director), Melanie Haseltine (Associate)
Accepts postcards/showcase invitations

ONE LIFE TO LIVE - ABC
ABC-TV
56 West 66th St.
New York, NY 10023
Casting: Julie Madison (Director); Victoria Visgilio (Associate), Sheryl Baker (Assistant)
Send photos & resumé or porstards only to:
157 Columbus Ave., 2nd Floor
New York, NY 10023