Hundreds audition for one of Mirvish’s biggest shows. Only a select few make the cut. Inside the fiercely competitive process

For the hundreds of musical theatre hopefuls who arrived at the Sheraton Centre on Sunday to audition for Mirvish’s new production of ”& Juliet,” it took just one minute, or 16 bars of a pop song, to leave a lasting impression. 
Nail it and they proceed to the next round. Or falter and their journey is over in an instant. 
Auditions like these, open to anyone willing to try out, are rare. Most mainstage musicals presented by Mirvish are touring productions cast out of New York City. Even sit-down shows featuring Canadian performers don’t necessarily select their actors through an open call. 
But these fiercely competitive auditions present a unique opportunity. Professional actors and amateurs alike, who might not otherwise be able to try out, are all offered a fair and equal shot. And it’s often at open calls where stars are born, with unknown performers catapulted into leading roles.
Even before registration started at 9 a.m., the line of auditionees stretched well beyond the main hallway outside the sign-up room, winding along the second floor of the downtown hotel and conference centre. 
Some, clutching sheet music in one hand along with a resumé and photo of themselves in the other, looked stoic as they waited for their turns. Others warmed up nervously, testing their voices before entering the audition room. 
At the front of this queue was Isobel Arseneau, a fourth-year engineering student from the University of Toronto. She was the first person to arrive for the open call, staking her place in line, alongside her friends, at 5:40 a.m. 
Though Arseneau has been performing since she was a child, most notably with the Canadian Children’s Opera Company, she was one of the numerous auditionees hoping to land their big break. The audition, in fact, was the first open call she’d ever attended. She had only learned about it after a friend shared an Instagram post with information about the casting call. 
“At first I was hesitant, but then we just decided to get up at 5 a.m. to be here and do it,” said Arseneau. “I was attracted to how empowering this show is … and I just want to be in the ensemble. I love to dance.” 
Arseneau sang a passage of “That’s the Way It Is” for her audition. The song, made famous by Céline Dion, is one of the many Max Martin hits featured in the jukebox musical, which reimagines what could have happened if Juliet didn’t kill herself at the end of Shakespeare’s “Romeo and Juliet.” 
It would be a long day for non-unionized auditionees like Arseneau. Equity performers, who are part of the actors’ union, are prioritized and seen first. For others, it could take hours. But organizers promised that everyone who signed up on time would be seen — no matter how long it took.
In the end, when the open call concluded at 8:30 p.m., some 551 people had auditioned.
The process consisted of two stages. First, candidates were “pre-screened” by one of three casting associates. If successful, they would then get to sing in front of casting director Stephanie Gorin, who makes the final call about whether to offer performers a coveted “callback package,” with scenes for a specific role they would need to learn for their next audition.
Gorin is a familiar name in the theatre industry and one of the most well-known casting directors in the country. Over the past three decades, she’s cast everything from the original Canadian production of “Miss Saigon” to the recent Mirvish remount of “The Lion King.”
“I just love it,” Gorin said of the process, speaking with the Star before welcoming her first slate of candidates. “The people who come to audition for musicals usually have a lot of joy in them. It’s their chance to perform.”
Gorin approaches each show differently. For ”& Juliet,” she’s looking for performers with a great voice, specifically a “very high pop chest belt.”
“It’s about the talent,” she added. “And it’s lovely when somebody has got the right spirit for the show, who understands how joyful it is.”
Among those who made the cut was Dillan Chiblow, who delivered an impassioned rendition of “Whataya Want from Me,” another Max Martin song featured in the musical. 
Though Chiblow hadn’t seen ”& Juliet,” they were familiar with the story and had colleagues who were in the original Toronto production, which transferred to Broadway in 2022. 
“What really drew me to the show was its inclusiveness,” said Chiblow, who’s a member of Actors’ Equity and was one of the first to be auditioned. “It’s a musical that I could see myself in.” 
Speaking with the Star immediately after their audition, Chiblow said they were “flattered” to be offered a callback for the role they wanted: François, a Parisian engaged to Juliet who then finds love with May, one of Juliet’s close friends.
“It feels really, really great,” they said, beaming. 
But there’s still a long road ahead for both Chiblow and Gorin. Chiblow will need to familiarize themselves with the role and the new material ahead of their callback. 
Gorin, meanwhile, has hundreds of other additional performers to see. Some who couldn’t attend the in-person open call will submit a video for her to review. There’s also a dance audition next month to cast select performers in the show. 
As the callbacks continue, the list of auditionees will slowly be whittled down. And around this time next year, the roughly two dozen actors who made it all the way through, some beginning their journey at a conference room in downtown Toronto, will take their first bow in front of an audience.