Today was my last day of casting kids (I think) and it has been quite an experience. I was watching the boys read today and they were so damn cute I couldn't stand it.

When they finished with the audition, I was tempted to ask "why don't you hang out for a little while, we can go get a hot dog at Crif Dogs, a sundae and go to the park?" But obviously it was time to leave, so instead I tried being creative and not end the audition with the cliché line, "we'll be in touch" but I couldn't come with up anything...my mind drew a blank.

One of the boys was hilarious, he was 10 years old and walked in reading the musical Sweeney Todd. Tom (the writer) asked if he wanted to shoot some hoops, he replied "no, I don't like sports" and continued to read his book. After a few minutes the two started conversing and the boy began describing the play which he's currently writing, "Phantom of the Auditorium". He explained how it's a take-off of "Phantom of the Menace" and then asked Tom about writing in general and said how he was having difficulty sitting down everyday to write his play.

The boy was 10 years old!

He was also an incredible actor. Tom asked if he wanted to look at his part before reading, he replied "no, thank you" and went back to Sweeney Todd. When it was time for him to read, he nailed the part, without any preparation or knowledge of his character, he simply nailed it and it was amazing.

I was in awe because it seemed as though he knew the part better than I and I've read the whole screenplay, not to mention, I've never read or seen Sweeney Todd.

This kid is the theatrical version of the character Doogie Howser.

Actually, Neil Patrick Harris is the Doogie Howser of Sweeney Todd; he's played Tobias Ragg in four stagings, and he's in Sondheim's Assassins right now.