Values

The Traverse Theatre is committed to the active pursuit of equality and diversity which addresses the needs and rights of everyone to be treated with respect and dignity in all processes and aspects, in an environment in which a diversity of backgrounds and experiences are valued. In all circumstances, the Traverse Theatre acts in accordance with the practices detailed within in our Equality & Diversity and Recruitment & Selection Policies.

We support equality of opportunity and are committed to opposing all forms of unlawful or unfair discrimination on the grounds of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation.

Process

• We are committed to the Equity Code of Conduct for auditions – encompassing details relating to facilities, personnel, and special provisions - which can be found here.
• Traverse productions are created in a range of timelines and for a variety of circumstances/settings. Our productions are mostly cast by audition, led by the director and overseen by the producing team of the Traverse Theatre. As a new work theatre, this is often done in close consultation and collaboration with the writer. Each casting process is tailored to the individual casting needs of the play and the director’s preferred process, but in all cases, we commit to the values outlined above with adjustments made to support those with additional or varying needs to ensure an inclusive and equitable process at all stages.
• Casting breakdowns for upcoming Traverse productions and relevant opportunities will be advertised on our website, social media and on Spotlight, as well as being shared with relevant acting agents in Scotland and beyond. From time to time, in addition to the above, should the project require artists identifying as being part of a specific community we will also publicise to those communities and groups to ensure as many people are made aware of the opportunity as possible.
  
• On occasion we will work with a casting director, but we endeavour to advertise those opportunities through our own channels, in addition to that of the casting director, to ensure transparency and greatest reach within our casting process. On occasion, we may make a direct offer for a role.
• On occasion we may ask auditionees to provide a self-tape where an in-person meet is not possible.
• We will always respond to actors called to audition with a decision and endeavour to do so within a reasonable amount of time. This will ordinarily be via the actor’s agent, or directly if self-represented.

Safeguarding

A minimum of two people will be present at in-person auditions and we will let attendees know who they are and what role they have a minimum of 48 hours in advance of the audition. The Traverse's designated safeguarding contact is Kevin McCallum, Head of Production.

Open Auditions

We regularly hold open auditions, either independently or in partnership with other organisations, in order to identify actors we may not otherwise get the opportunity to meet. We’re keen to meet Scottish-based actors we’ve never worked with before and from as wide a range of backgrounds as possible. Please keep an eye out on our Jobs and Opportunities and Get Involved pages for the next round of open auditions.

Casting Opportunities Outside of Productions

In addition to our main-stage productions, we also work with a wide range of actors throughout the year on script developments, education work and in creative development settings. Since these are often short engagements lasting several days or up to 1 week, we usually cast these from the people we’ve met during past auditions, through our open audition rounds, or from actors we’ve seen in shows at other theatres, drama schools, university showcases etc.

Attendance of shows

All members of the Traverse team regularly attend shows throughout Scotland and beyond, both online and in-person, to ensure our working knowledge of performers remains as up to date and comprehensive as possible.

If you’d like to invite a member of the team to your show – whether that be a reading, fully produced large scale show, drama school or college production, or anything in-between – please do get in touch by emailing us at casting@traverse.co.uk