Will You Like Driving Your Child to Acting Auditions?

How do you think you’ll like driving your child to acting auditions? Do you enjoy driving? Does driving in traffic stress you out?

When my daughter first started auditioning, I had no idea how much driving I would be doing.  While we lived in the Southeast, we often drove 1 to 3 hours each way to her modeling and acting auditions and jobs.  It seemed fun, probably because it was new and did not happen very often.

When we moved to Los Angeles, the reality of what driving to acting auditions really meant hit me like a brick.  My previous driving experience in no way prepared me for driving in Los Angeles traffic.

From the moment we arrived in LA, I did everything I could to avoid the freeways.  At the suggestion of my daughter’s manager, I bought a Thomas Guide for the LA Area and studied the Burbank and Hollywood sections of it.

Since I have no sense of direction, driving to my daughter’s acting auditions was particularly stressful for me. There were many times that we got lost or missed an exit and drove miles out of the way.

Sometimes we ended up in dangerous areas with no clue how to get back to where we were or to where we were trying to go!  It was very upsetting to me and to my daughter.

We even missed an audition or two and were late to some because of getting lost.  That was embarrassing, and sometimes we arrived in less than a relaxed frame of mind, which is not helpful in the auditioning process.

So how can you make the process of driving to and from auditions less stressful for you and for your child?  Here are a few suggestions that should help:

• Buy a Thomas Guide for Los Angeles County and possibly Orange County also.
• If you can afford it, purchase a GPS system to help you, preferably one with live traffic reports if traveling in LA or another big city to help you reroute if you run into a traffic jam.

Then, particularly if you don’t have a GPS system, it is important to do the following before each audition:

• Map out your route using mapquest, yahoo maps, AAA, or your favorite program and print out the directions there and back.
• Look into possible alternate routes so that you have some options if you encounter traffic or other road problems.
• Look at a map of the entire trip and familiarize yourself with all the roads you will take to get there before you leave.
• Make sure you have detailed maps in your car for the entire trip and surrounding areas in case you get lost.
• Make sure your gas tank is full or close to it.
• Pack up items for the trip hours before your departure time so you won’t be frantic doing that at the last minute.
• Check for special events along the way that could cause delays such as sporting events or award ceremonies.
• Allow extra travel time — at least 30 minutes – 1 hour more time than expected for the trip. In the LA area, double the time or even triple it if you’ll be driving in busy areas or during busy times of day.
• Use SigAlert to check the roads for major problems just before you leave and plan to take an alternate route if necessary.
• Make sure you have a fully charged cell phone (hands-free if you are in California because it is against the law to drive with a cell phone in your hand — probably in some other states as well) for emergencies or if you need to call for extra directions.

The one thing that is the most helpful, particularly if you are new to the  LA area, is a GPS device. If you don’t already own one, consider buying one. It is extremely difficult to drive and read road signs and street signs in the LA area, especially when you are unfamiliar with the area.

A GPS device can save you gas and time and reduce your stress and your child’s stress, making it worth every penny of the cost.  Having a GPS device in your car could even increase your child’s chances of booking a job, because your child’s state of mind is so important when auditioning.

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