NOISES OFF AUDITIONS February 19, 2011 10AM Cailloux Theater Director: Jim Boman The performances of Noises Off are April 1 16 of 2011 Audition participants should be prepared to read from the script. Scripts will be available for check out February 7 th for 1 week. Characters Lloyd Dallas: The director of the play, Nothing On. Temperamental. One third of a Lloyd Poppy Brooke love triangle. Dotty Otley: A late-middle-aged actress. Forgetful. Dating Garry, though she attempts to make him jealous by meeting with Fred. Garry Lejeune: A stuttering actor, easily fired up, repeatedly tries to attack Fred after believing that Dotty was cheating on him with Fred. Speech affectations disappear onstage but are ever-present offstage. Always is stuttering and completing sentences with, "you know..." Dating Dotty. Frederick Fellows: An actor with a serious fear of violence and blood. Gets nosebleeds easily. Often questions the meaning of his lines and moves. Blames himself often for things going wrong. Belinda Blair: Cheerful and sensible, a reliable actress. She may have feelings for Fred. Poppy Norton-Taylor: Assistant Stage Manager. Emotional and over-sensitive, and envious of Brooke, whom she understudies. Carrying Lloyd's child. One-third of a Lloyd-Poppy-Brooke love triangle. Selsdon Mowbray: An elderly alcoholic man who hides his bottles onstage. If he is not in sight while rehearsing, the stage crew must find him before he passes out. Timothy Allgood: An over-worked Stage Manager. Understudies Selsdon and Freddy. Brooke Ashton: A young inexperienced actress from London. It is suggested she is a porn star. Pays no attention to other performers, neither in performance nor backstage. She rarely takes stage direction, and continues performing regardless of any other action onstage. Is always losing her contact lenses. One-third of a Lloyd Poppy Brooke love triangle. Plot In his plot for Noises Off, Frayn plays on the concept of a play within a play, in this case a dreadful sex comedy titled Nothing On the type of play in which young girls run about in their underwear, old men drop their trousers, and many doors continually open and shut. Nothing On is set in "a delightful 16th-century posset mill" that has been converted to a modern dwelling for which renters are solicited; the fictional playwright is appropriately named Robin Housemonger. Each of the three acts of Noises Off contains a performance of the first act of Nothing On. Act One is set at the dress rehearsal, the night before opening at the Grand Theatre in Weston-super-Mare, with the cast still fumbling with entrances and exits, missed cues, misspoken lines, and bothersome props, most notably several plates of sardines. Act Two portrays a Wednesday matinee performance one month later, at the Theatre Royal in Ashton-under-Lyne. In this act, the play is seen from backstage, providing a view that reveals the deteriorating personal relationships among the cast that have led to offstage shenanigans and onstage bedlam. Also, there appears to be no true resolution. The play simply falls into turmoil and disorder before the curtain is pulled. In Act Three, we see a performance near the end of the ten-week run, at the (still fictional) Municipal Theatre in Stockton-on-Tees, when personal friction has continued to increase and everyone is bored and anxious to be done with the play. The actors attempt to cover up a series of mishaps but only compound the problems and draw attention to the bungling performance. Much of the comedy emerges from the subtle variations in each version as off-stage chaos affects on-stage performance, with a great deal of slapstick. The contrast between players' on-stage and off-stage personalities is also a source of comic dissonance.
ANNIE AUDITIONS March 26 & 27, 2011 March 26: 10am Children 16 and under 2pm Adults over 16 March 27: 2pm Children 16 and under 4pm - Adults over 16 Director: Heather Cunningham The performances of ANNIE are June 3 18. Audition Notes: Audition participants should come prepared with 16 bars of music that shows off their voice. Piano accompaniment will be provided or participant may use a CD WITHOUT a vocal track. We will have reading from the script and a short movement workshop. Please dress to impress but still be able to move and stretch. This show will be double cast for the main children s roles!!! CHARACTERS: ANNIE BERT HEALY BOYLAN SISTERS: Spunky, friendly, big-voiced, street-wise urchin--one of the orphans 11 years old Mezzo- Soprano: A - high F Radio Personality Bonnie, Connie, Ronnie Singing sisters, perform on "Oxydent's Hour of Smiles" radio Program Warbucks's English Butler The biggest orphan 13 years old DRAKE DUFFY FDR, President Baritone (C-flat - E- sharp) GRACE FARRELL Faithful Assistant to Warbucks Soprano: A - high G JULY The quietest orphan 13 years old KATE Next to littlest orphan 7 years old LILY Rooster's floozy girlfriend Soprano: D - high G MISS HANNIGAN Cantankerous and mean old orphanage director Mezzo- Soprano: A - A flat MOLLY The littlest orphan 6 years old OLIVER WARBUCKS Warm-hearted, stiff-collared host to Annie for 2 weeks at Christmas Baritone: C - high F PEPPER ROOSTER TESSIE MRS. GREER MRS. PUGH The toughest orphan 12 years old Miss Hannigan's no-good brother Baritone: B - high G The cry baby orphan 10 years old The Housekeeper The Cook NBC PAGE PEGGY ROOSEVELT CABINET MEMBERS Francis Perkins, Cordell Hull, Harold Ickes, Henry Morganthau SECOND COP SOPHIE The Kettle SOUND EFFECTS MAN STAR TO BE WACKY Radio Personality A MAN AN ANNOUNCER AN USSHERETTE ANNETTE A French Maid APPLE SELLER Artie BUNDLES McCLOSKEY The Laundryman CECILLE, A French Maid CORDELL HULL Male Cabinet member DOG CATCHERS EDDIE FRANCIS PERKINS Female Cabinet member FRED McCRACKEN Radio Personality Harold Ickes Male Cabinet member Henry Morgenthau Male Cabinet member HONOR GUARD HOOVERVILLE DENIZEN IRA JIMMY JOHNSON JUSTICE BRANDEIS KALTENBORN's VOICE LOUIS HOWE Associate to Roosevelt LT. WARD MARY The Tony Award winning musical that ran for six years - An orphan, Annie, and her dog Sandy are placed in the lap of luxury for a week as a part of a publicity campaign for Oliver Warbucks. However, Annie's stay turns out to be much more than anyone had bargained for as she works her way into everyone's hearts with Tomorrow, Little Girls, and Hard Knock Life.
KING ARTHUR CHRONICLES AUDITIONS MAY 14, 2011 10am CHILDREN 16 and UNDER 2pm ADULTS over 16 Director: Jeff Cunningham The performances of King Arthur are July 15-30 Audition participants should be prepared to read from the script. Scripts will be available for check out February 7 th for 1 week. Characters Arthur- the virtuous but illegitimate son of King Uther. Captain of his father s cavalry. Merlin- Chief Druid priest of Britain. A sardonic and clairvoyant genius Vivian- Druid priestess, Merlin s attendant. Quiet and graceful Pahdrig- Irish Christian priest. Robust and lovable but devote Mordred- Uther s only legitimate heir. Brash and snide Morgaine Uther s daughter. Cranky, outspoken, fiercely loyal to Arthur Guinevere- Arthur s wife. Beautiful, proud, and ambitious Lancelot- Arthur s second in command. Handsome, capable, obsessed with image Galahad- Lancelot s younger brother. Painfully honorable and loyal to Arthur Pellinore- Aging knight, wise, solemn, fragile Bors- Man-at-Arms. Roughed, and street smart Cedric- Saxon warlord. Cold and intense. Calculating and dispassionate, but powerful Other Knights, Ladies, Druids, children of the Tor, and Saxon fighters. Story The sudden death of King Uther of Britain throws the royal court into chaos. Every character s agenda comes out as they vie for the power of the crown. All while the threat of a Saxon invasion looms heavily. For the sake of Britain, Arthur must assume the authority that he has resisted all of his life and lead his people. Treachery and disloyalty are everywhere and Britain s safety might cost Arthur his life. Narrated by the wily Merlin, the story twists and turns through the corridors of Tintagel Castle and out into the battlefield where the Knights of the Round Table will cross blades with the Saxon hordes. Romance, Adventure, and Pageantry ensue as the tale explodes at the final Battle of Camlann, where the story reaches its exciting and ultimate conclusion.
MUSIC MAN AUDITIONS JUNE 11, 2011 10am CHILDREN 16 and UNDER 2pm ADULTS over 16 Director: Jeffrey Brown The performances of Music Man are July 12 27. AUDITION NOTES: Audition participants should come prepared with 16 bars of music that shows off their voice. Piano accompaniment will be provided or participant may use a CD WITHOUT a vocal track. We will have reading from the script and a short movement workshop. Please dress to impress Characters: ALMA HIX AMARYLLIS Gossipy wife of a Quartet member Marian's young piano student Alto: C - E A rival salesman CHARLIE COWELL CONDUCTOR CONSTABLE LOCK ETHEL TOFFELMIER The "pianola" girl EULALIE MACKECKNIE SHINN Mayor Shinn peacock Wife Alto: D D GRACIE SHINN HAROLD HILL MARCELLUS WASHBURN MARIAN PAROO A dynamic con man Baritone: A flat - High F Harold's chummy friend Tenor: G - High A Stuffy, "stuck-up", town librarian and music teacher Soprano: Low G - High A MAUD DUNLOP Gossipy wife of a Quartet member MAYOR SHINN A blustery politician Non-singing MRS. PAROO Marian's Irish mom Mezzo-Soprano: A flat - E flat MRS. SQUIRES Gossipy wife of a Quartet member NEWSPAPER READERS RIVER CITY KIDS RIVER CITY TOWNSPEOPLE THE QUARTET Ewart Dunlop, Oliver Hix, Jacey Squires, Olin Britt Four judgemental school board members TOMMY DJILAS TRAVELING SALESMEN WINTHROP PAROO The town "bad" boy Marian's lisping baby brother Alto: C - E flat An affectionate paean to Smalltown, U.S.A. of a bygone era, Meredith Willson s The Music Man follows fast-talking traveling salesman Harold Hill as he cons the people of River City, Iowa into buying instruments and uniforms for a boys band he vows to organize this despite the fact he doesn t know a trombone from a treble clef. His plans to skip town with the cash are foiled when he falls for Marian the librarian, who transforms him into a respectable citizen by curtain s fall. Featuring the songs Ya Got Trouble, 76 Trombones and Shipoopi, Pick a Little, Till there was You, and Wells Fargo Wagon.
MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING AUDITIONS JULY 16, 2011 10am Director: Heather Cunningham The performances of Much Ado About Nothing are September 9-24. AUDITION NOTES: Please be prepared to read from the script. CHARACTERS: Beatrice - Leonato s niece and Hero s cousin. Beatrice is a pleasant-spirited lady with a very sharp tongue. She is generous and loving, but, like Benedick, continually mocks other people with elaborately tooled jokes and puns. She wages a war of wits against Benedick and often wins the battles. At the outset of the play, she appears content never to marry. Benedick - An aristocratic soldier who has recently been fighting under Don Pedro, and a friend of Don Pedro and Claudio. Benedick is very witty, always making jokes and puns. He carries on a merry war of wits with Beatrice, but at the beginning of the play he swears he will never fall in love or marry. Claudio - A young soldier who has won great acclaim fighting under Don Pedro during the recent wars. Claudio falls in love with Hero upon his return to Messina. His unfortunately suspicious nature makes him quick to believe evil rumors and hasty to despair and take revenge. Hero - The beautiful young daughter of Leonato and the cousin of Beatrice. Hero is lovely, gentle, and kind. She falls in love with Claudio when he falls for her, but when Don John slanders her and Claudio rashly takes revenge, she suffers terribly. Don Pedro - An important nobleman from Aragon, sometimes referred to as Prince. Don Pedro is a longtime friend of Leonato, Hero s father, and is also close to the soldiers who have been fighting under him the younger Benedick and the very young Claudio. Don Pedro is generous, courteous, intelligent, and loving to his friends, but he is also quick to believe evil of others and hasty to take revenge. He is the most politically and socially powerful character in the play. Leonato - A respected, well-to-do, elderly noble at whose home, in Messina, Italy, the action is set. Leonato is the father of Hero and the uncle of Beatrice. As governor of Messina, he is second in social power only to Don Pedro. Don John - The illegitimate brother of Don Pedro; sometimes called the Bastard. Don John is melancholy and sullen by nature, and he creates a dark scheme to ruin the happiness of Hero and Claudio. He is the villain of the play; his evil actions are motivated by his envy of his brother s social authority. Margaret - Hero s serving woman, who unwittingly helps Borachio and Don John deceive Claudio into thinking that Hero is unfaithful. Unlike Ursula, Hero s other lady-inwaiting, Margaret is lower class. Though she is honest, she does have some dealings with the villainous world of Don John: her lover is the mistrustful and easily bribed Borachio. Also unlike Ursula, Margaret loves to break decorum, especially with bawdy jokes and teases. Borachio - An associate of Don John. Borachio is the lover of Margaret, Hero s serving woman. He conspires with Don John to trick Claudio and Don Pedro into thinking that Hero is unfaithful to Claudio. His name means drunkard in Italian, which might serve as a subtle direction to the actor playing him. Conrad - One of Don John s more intimate associates, entirely devoted to Don John. Several recent productions have staged Conrad as Don John s potential male lover, possibly to intensify Don John s feelings of being a social outcast and therefore motivate his desire for revenge. Dogberry - The constable in charge of the Watch, or chief policeman, of Messina. Dogberry is very sincere and takes his job seriously, but he has a habit of using exactly the wrong word to convey his meaning. Dogberry is one of the few middling sort, or middle-class characters, in the play, though his desire to speak formally and elaborately like the noblemen becomes an occasion for parody. Verges - The deputy to Dogberry, chief policeman of Messina. Antonio - Leonato s elderly brother, and Hero and Beatrice s uncle. Balthasar - A waiting man in Leonato s household and a musician. Balthasar flirts with Margaret at the masked party and helps Leonato, Claudio, and Don Pedro trick Benedick into falling in love with Beatrice. Balthasar sings the song, Sigh no more, ladies, sigh no more about accepting men s infidelity as natural. Ursula - One of Hero s waiting women. In one of the Bard s most entertaining comedies, Young lovers Hero and Claudio are to be married in one week. To pass the time, they conspire with Don Pedro to set a "lover's trap" for Benedick, an arrogant confirmed bachelor, and Beatrice, his favorite sparring partner. Meanwhile, the evil Don Jon conspires to break up the wedding by accusing Hero of infidelity. In the end, though, it all turns out to be Much Ado About Nothing.
THE CRUCIBLE AUDITIONS AUGUST 20, 2011 10am Director: TBA The performances of Crucible are October 14-29 AUDITION NOTES: Please be prepared to read from the script. CHARACTERS: John Proctor - A local farmer who lives just outside town; Elizabeth Proctor s husband. A stern, harsh-tongued man, John hates hypocrisy. Nevertheless, he has a hidden sin his affair with Abigail Williams that proves his downfall. When the hysteria begins, he hesitates to expose Abigail as a fraud because he worries that his secret will be revealed and his good name ruined. Abigail Williams - Reverend Parris s niece. Abigail was once the servant for the Proctor household, but Elizabeth Proctor fired her after she discovered that Abigail was having an affair with her husband, John Proctor. Abigail is smart, wily, a good liar, and vindictive when crossed. Reverend John Hale - A young minister reputed to be an expert on witchcraft. Reverend Hale is called in to Salem to examine Parris s daughter Betty. Hale is a committed Christian and hater of witchcraft. His critical mind and intelligence save him from falling into blind fervor. His arrival sets the hysteria in motion, although he later regrets his actions and attempts to save the lives of those accused. Elizabeth Proctor - John Proctor s wife. Elizabeth fired Abigail when she discovered that her husband was having an affair with Abigail. Elizabeth is supremely virtuous, but often cold. Reverend Parris - The minister of Salem s church. Reverend Parris is a paranoid, power-hungry, yet oddly selfpitying figure. Many of the townsfolk, especially John Proctor, dislike him, and Parris is very concerned with building his position in the community. Rebecca Nurse - Francis Nurse s wife. Rebecca is a wise, sensible, and upright woman, held in tremendous regard by most of the Salem community. However, she falls victim to the hysteria when the Putnams accuse her of witchcraft and she refuses to confess. Francis Nurse - A wealthy, influential man in Salem. Nurse is well respected by most people in Salem, but is an enemy of Thomas Putnam and his wife. Judge Danforth - The deputy governor of Massachusetts and the presiding judge at the witch trials. Honest and scrupu-lous, at least in his own mind, Danforth is convinced that he is doing right in rooting out witchcraft. Giles Corey - An elderly but feisty farmer in Salem, famous for his tendency to file lawsuits. Giles s wife, Martha, is accused of witchcraft, and he himself is eventually held in contempt of court and pressed to death with large stones. Thomas Putnam - A wealthy, influential citizen of Salem, Putnam holds a grudge against Francis Nurse for preventing Putnam s brother-in-law from being elected to the office of minister. He uses the witch trials to increase his own wealth by accusing people of witchcraft and then buying up their land. Ann Putnam - Thomas Putnam s wife. Ann Putnam has given birth to eight children, but only Ruth Putnam survived. The other seven died before they were a day old, and Ann is convinced that they were murdered by supernatural means. Ruth Putnam - The Putnams lone surviving child out of eight. Like Betty Parris, Ruth falls into a strange stupor after Reverend Parris catches her and the other girls dancing in the woods at night. Tituba - Reverend Parris s black slave from Barbados. Tituba agrees to perform voodoo at Abigail s request. Mary Warren - The servant in Thomas Putman s household and a member of Abigail s group of girls. She is a timid girl, easily influenced by those around her, who tried unsuccessfully to expose the hoax and ultimately recanted her confession. Betty Parris - Reverend Parris s ten-year-old daughter. Betty falls into a strange stupor after Parris catches her and the other girls dancing in the forest with Tituba. Her illness and that of Ruth Putnam fuel the first rumors of witchcraft. Martha Corey - Giles Corey s third wife. Martha s reading habits lead to her arrest and conviction for witchcraft. Ezekiel Cheever - A man from Salem who acts as clerk of the court during the witch trials. He is upright and determined to do his duty for justice. Judge Hathorne - A judge who presides, along with Danforth, over the witch trials. Herrick - The marshal of Salem. Mercy Lewis - One of the girls in Abigail s group. The Crucible chronicles the Salem witch trials and the behavior that results from dark desires and hidden agendas. Young girls and a slave are caught playacting at casting spells. To avoid punishment, they falsely accuse neighbors of witchcraft. Fueled by fears, jealousy, secrets, lies, and greed, residents turn on each other - resulting in mass paranoia and death. A Tony award winning play that shouldn t be missed!