how beginning actors can get speaking roles and work?

Until you have some professional acting experience (speaking roles), you won't be able to get a legitimate agent to represent you. The so-called agents who claim they'll represent inexperienced, aspiring actors are frauds who make their money by charging for classes, head shots and other promotional materials that are completely useless. Legitimate agents NEVER ask for money in advance, since they're paid on commission. They only get paid when their actors do, since they earn a percentage of what an actor is paid for a job. And the reason casting directors contact legitimate, reputable agents when they're hiring actors is that they know agents will only send them actors who have enough professional experience to know what's expected of them on the job. TV and film production is incredibly expensive, so directors can't afford to provide on-the-job training, especially since there are many thousands of experienced, professional actors looking for jobs at any given moment.

Most open auditions for TV shows and movies are actually publicity stunts to generate interest in an upcoming project. Thousands of people will show up to audition and every one of them, plus all their friends and family members, will watch the movie or show when it comes out. But the roles still go to experienced actors. Holding an open audition doesn't cost a lot of money, but generates thousands of dollars of free publicity.

Your best chance of finding an agent (a legitimate one) will require that you get some professional experience and some acting credits first. Just about everyone you see on TV and in movies started out in community theater, since that's about the only place an aspiring actor can learn while gaining the experience required to access other opportunities. If you enroll in classes at a local theater and show that you're talented and committed to learning and mastering the craft of acting, you'll be considered for roles in upcoming productions. Once you've appeared in a few of those, you'll have the experience required to shop for an agent who may be able to find you other work. Most stage actors also work in commercials, TV and movies, so your theater peers will be able to recommend legitimate agents when you're ready to take that step.

Acting is like any other career in that you have to start at the bottom and work your way up the ladder, proving your worth at every step. Most actors spend years doing low-profile theater roles so they'll be ready for any bigger opportunities that arise. But since there are millions of people who want to be big TV and movie stars, but have no intention of actually focusing on becoming actors, it's easy for fake agents to make fortunes promising shortcuts that don't exist. Legitimate agents, though, need to know that the actors they send to auditions are qualified to work in the field. If an agent sent an inexperienced actor (even if he/she was talented and showed promise) to audition for a TV show or movie, the agent's reputation would be ruined and casting directors wouldn't call him any more when they were looking for actors. But if an agent knows you can recreate the same character night after night on stage without your performances becoming stale and predictable, he'll know you're the real deal, rather than a wannabe who sees acting as a means of getting famous.

If you are getting non speaking roles, you are doing much better than most.

What to expect from an agent

They are in business. They are trying to make money. They should not however insist that you take their classes or use their photographer. They do not look at your picture and resume and go out and try to find you a job.

You should give them enough information about your skills and decent photos of you.

Almost all agents know where to find out about casting for theater and movies.

When these castings are announced they look through their files to see who might have a chance. If you appear to have a chance they will notify you.

Until you have found work several times they are not going to go out and try to sell you to a producer

.Read these web sites and all their links.

http://www.actingbiz.com/articles/how_to%E2%80%A6

http://www.agentassociation.com/

This one for finding an agent in your area.

http://www.sag.org/content/find-agent