ATLANTA — Quick, make a sound resembling the Aflac duck in love.
Do you opt for a deep-voiced, seductive “Aflac” based on Barry White’s vocal stylings?
How about a high-pitched, flirty “Aflac” modeled after teenage infatuation?
Those questions dominated Tuesday’s Atlanta casting call for the new voice of the Aflac duck. The two-day event, held at Stilwell Casting, attracted about 150 hopefuls between Monday and Tuesday.
Participants scheduled appointments in advance on a first-come, first-served basis.
The setup was simple: Check in for your appointment, sit in a waiting room and prepare for your moment of truth.
When that moment arrives, you enter a studio-like setting, where you introduce yourself before debuting your best duck voice.
Then, you must adapt your Aflac squawk to a variety of emotions.
Among the challenges: sad duck, revenge duck, duck walking on a tightrope. And, of course, duck in love.
Oh yeah, your audition vocabulary is confined to “Aflac.”
“What Aflac is looking for is a person who can best convey a wide range of emotions using a single word,” said Jon Sullivan, external communications manager for Aflac.
How did auditioners fare under the pressure?
“Everything went real good. They were more cordial than I was expecting,” said Gary Goodman, 64, of Columbus.
The retired Atmos Energy worker came to the auditions with “duck” already on his resume. He’s held multiple local duck gigs, including a stint as the Astro Duck, the mascot for a former minor league baseball team in Columbus.
When we asked him a question, his voice unexpectedly morphed into what sounded like a version of Donald Duck.
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