Simon Greiff: “It can be very hard to find new talent, but extremely rewarding!”

His musical debut in London was in the world premiere of Stephen Sondheim’s SATURDAY NIGHT, in December 1997. In April 1998 he joined SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER cast, at the London Palladium. Since then, Simon Greiff has been mixing his career as a performer with his career as a Casting Assistant, working in castings of Musical Shows as THE LION KING, WE WILL ROCK YOU o BILLY ELLIOT.

After finishing his work in DIRTY DANCING, Simon Greiff tells us more details about this musical and about his work in Auditions.

YOU’VE BEEN PERFORMING NEIL KELLERMAN IN DIRTY DANCING FOR MORE THAN A YEAR. HOW HAVE YOU LIVE THIS EXPERIENCE?
DIRTY DANCING was a long contract and something I’m not used to. It took a lot of concentration for me to perform the same role every night.

WHAT DO YOU LIKE MOST ABOUT PERFORMING THE ROLE OF NEIL?
I liked my scenes with Sarah Manton (who played Baby). We both tried to keep it real & spontaneous every night!

DIRTY DANCING IS ABOUT TO CELEBRATE ITS 2ND YEAR IN LONDON. WHY DO YOU THINK THIS SHOW IT’S BEING SUCH A SUCCESS?
There are so many women who saw the original movie when they were teenagers & now want to re-live that experience again – Live!

THE FILM WAS A FAN PHENOMENON IN THE 80’S, SO ADAPTING IT TO THE STAGE WAS NOT AN EASY TASK. WHAT ARE THE MAIN DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE SHOW AND THE FILM?
There aren’t many! The main difference is that there are more scenes (that were cut from the movie), & my character ‘Neil’ has a more compassionate storyline.

WHAT WHAS YOUR OPINION ABOUT DIRTY DANCING -THE FILM- BEFORE TAKING PART OF THE SHOW?
I knew the movie was loved by women so I knew what to expect!

APART FROM PERFORMING, YOU USE TO WORK WITH SOME CASTING DIRECTORS CREATING CASTS OF SOME OF THE WEST END SHOWS. HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE THIS JOB?
I have always been an Actor that Reads at Auditions (which helps the auditioning actor in his/her audition) and a few years ago I became an Assistant Casting Director (which meant I got to suggest Actors for auditions/roles & I also took the auditions too). 

HOW DID YOU START WORKING IN AUDITIONS?
Pippa Ailon (a West End Casting Director) asked me to Read at her auditions. Pippa was actually my Course Director at Drama School (1994-97), before she returned to being a full-time Casting Director. More recently two other Casting Directors have asked me to Read for them too.

WHAT THINGS DO YOU TAKE INTO ACCOUNT TO CHOOSE ONE ACTOR OR ANOTHER FOR AN SPECIFIC CHARACTER?
If I am going to suggest an Actor for a role I have to firstly admire their work and more importantly know that I feel they may be appropriate for a particular role.

WHAT IS MORE DIFFICULT TO YOU: TO BE IN AN AUDITION AS AN ACTOR OR AS A CASTING MANAGER?
They both have their difficulties. As an Actor you have no control over whether you are right for a role – you can only do your best in auditions & hope the Director likes you. As a Casting Director you can’t make the Director choose your favourite actors, you can only suggest them! 

IN YOUR OPINION, IT IS MORE DIFFICULT TO CREATE A CAST TO FIND NEW TALENTS, OR WHEN YOU NEED TO FIND A STAR FOR A SHOW (FOR ROLES SUCH AS EDNA, NORMA DESMOND, MARGUERITE...)?
It is fairly easy to think of a star for a show, but sometimes very difficult to get them to do it! It can be very hard to find new talent, but extremely rewarding!
 
ON YOUR CAREER AS CASTING MANAGER, WHICH ROLE HAS BEEN THE MOST DIFFICULT TO FIND THE APPROPIATE PERFORMER?
I first Assisted Pippa Ailion when she was casting the Original London Cast of WICKED. The role of Glinda was hard to cast as it requires an Actress who can make an unsympathetic character sympathetic, be funny AND sing soprano! Also, it was difficult to find a Porgy for Trevor Nunn’s recent West End production of PORGY & BESS – there aren’t many Black Actors in the UK who can sing such a demanding score AND play that wonderfully complicated role!

MANY CHARACTERS IN MUSICALS REQUIRE PERFORMERS WHO CAN DANCE, SING AND ACT. IS IT EASY TO FIND ACTORS AND ACTRESSES WHO HAVE A GOOD COMMAND ON ALL THESE DISCIPLINES AT THE SAME LEVEL?
No! In the UK most ‘performers’ excel in one or sometimes two disciplines. Few can do all three to a high standard.

YOUR WEST END DEBUT WAS IN SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER. HOW DO YOU REMEMBER IT?
I remember SATURDAY NIGHT FEVER very fondly now! I hadn’t even finished my final year at Drama school before I was offered the job. I hadn’t planned on doing Musical Theatre straight away as my Course at College was generally ‘dramatic’ theatre. It was an amazing start to my career & I was able to get a mortgage on a house too. Bobby C, the character I played, was such a wonderful part to create. I met & worked with some great people too.

AND, BEFORE DIRTY DANCING, YOU WERE PART OF THE ORIGINAL LONDON CAST OF SPAMALOT. WHAT DID IT MEAN TO YOU TAKING PART OF THIS SHOW?
I saw SPAMALOT on Broadway the year before it came to London & loved it! I am a Python fan anyway & really loved the ‘Musical’ version. I was a Principal Standby on the show which meant I covered Four parts & only went on stage when I was required to play one of those parts!