The It Factor

In the series premiere, we go behind the scenes and watch hundreds of talented New York City actors as they go through the nerve-wracking process of casting calls and auditions. From the forty-eight actors casting director Billy Hopkins calls back, who will be chosen for the It Factor's cast of twelve?

Daisy won the Tony Award for best actress when she was eleven. Now at 21, she finds herself auditioning with aspiring actresses fresh out of college. The grind of paying his dues is starting to wear on Godfrey. He performs as a stand-up comedian by night, auditions by day and the cycle continues when he's back on stage at a comedy club the following night. Miranda auditions for and gets cast in Third Watch - her first television role. Could her days as a cleaning lady be over?

Life seems sweet for Miranda as she waits for the call to start shooting her role in Third Watch. Joy quickly turns to disappointment when her part is written out of the script. Katheryn's life as a Tae Kwan Do instructor in Toronto is in sharp contrast with the way she races around New York City. We try and keep up with her as she auditions for an O-Town video, paints her apartment, and bickers with her boyfriend, Steve. Everybody says that Kevin has ""IT"" - now he just has to audition and prove them right. Will he succeed?

We follow Kevin as he models to pay his bills and learns that sessions with casting directors aren't necessarily self-esteem building. He balances his disappointment in auditioning with his newfound love - the craft of acting. Chelsea must choose between the promise of a pop music career and the life of an aspiring actress. After much deliberation (and a visit to a psychic) she arrives at her choice. Latarsha leaves the ranks of open call supplicants by signing with an agent. Big league representation doesn't mean she won't still encounter racism in some of its more subtle forms.

Daisy gets a tattoo, proving (to herself at least) that she has grown beyond the little girl from The Secret Garden. Her conflict between past and present is further illustrated as she struggles with the musical theater world's expectations of her and her dreams for herself. PJ' s role as a fairy in The Donkey Show looks like lots of fun. At least at first. We learn that his glamorous-seeming job is taking an unglamorous toll on his body and career. Queen Esther is a woman of many talents. We see a sampling of these as she clowns with her brother, performs at PSNBC, and researches her one-woman show about reparations, The Big Payback. Jimmy isn't satisfied with his role as an understudy in The Full Monty so he auditions for a part in the network sitcom, Ed.

Jimmy distracts himself from his anxiety about waiting to hear from Ed by a trip to see his family in small town New Jersey where he's treated like a big star. While visiting with his parents, he learns that he didn't get the role; he wasn't fat enough. Godfrey goes on a series of amusing commercial auditions, but late nights in smoky comedy clubs are taking their toll and he's losing his voice. Godfrey gets a voiceover job for AT&T, but he's contracted laryngitis and loses the gig. Michaela packs and prepares to make the transition from New York to Los Angeles. Before she goes, she auditions for Sex and the City. Will she get the part and have to change her plans? Nathan is frustrated by New York auditions. When he first started out as an actor getting cast came easily now, each time he goes up for a role he's videotaped, the tape is sent to LA and who really knows what happens next? He decides to travel to LA so that he can meet some casting directors face-to-face.