Cathy was very enthusiastic about my chances for this project after the audition a month ago and finally the day rolled around for the callback. They were collecting all the PIKE, CLAY, and NINA candidates to read together in different pairings (triplettings?) to see who "meshed" I guess. So four Pikes, a couple Clays, and a few Ninas all showed up at high noon to duke it out for the leads in this no-pay low-budget extravaganza.
Luckily my friends Jeff Parise and Kelly Waymire were there to read as well since no one went in for the first half hour or so. Finally they moved onto the triumvirate auditions and still this meant a lot of waiting as different groups plied their wares. I went fourth of the four Pikes, so my first moment of performance at this twelve o'clock audition was about 1:30. I read with Kelly and a gentleman named Eddie. It was a fine scene. I did a couple of bits that felt funny and the lines came out all in the right place, so it felt good. I left and waited another half hour or so while they did more mixing and matching.
The final round of the aforementioned mixing/matching was just Eddie and Kelly and a couple of other Pikes. I did not go back in during this round because I had already read with them. They were sent on their way and then the final final stage was a scene between Clay, Pike, and DEKE, another character who had already been cast. So Eddie, this guy, and I read one more scene together and by 2:30 everything was finally wrapped up. It would seem like I was their choice since I was the last Pike standing, but you never know what's going to unfold. There's always the chance they offer the role to Fred Savage as a joke and he decides it would be a fun adventure. Or they may not even choose me from the stable gathered in front of them. We shall see.