Summer @ Live Arts now includes two full scale productions of Broadway Musicals! Nice Work If You Can Get It (ages 14-20) and Seussical Jr. (ages 8-14) Auditions for both shows take place April 16 th and 17 th Below is the audition information for Nice Work If You Can Get It followed by Seussical Jr. LIVE ARTS AUDITION INFORMATION Live Arts Teen Theater Company Presents: NICE WORK IF YOU CAN GET IT Music, George Gershwin Lyrics, Ira Gershwin Book, Joe DiPietro Directed by TBA Musical Direction by Kristen Baltes Choreography by Heather Powell In THE GIBSON THEATER Audition Dates: April 16th and 17th Rehearsals Start: June 1st Performance Dates: July 15th through 31st Eligibility: This production is a Live Arts Teen Theater Company production. To be eligible, auditioners must be ages 14-20 at the time of the audition. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PLAY Nice Work If You Can Get It is a new musical comedy by Tony Award Winning author Joe DiPietro (Memphis, All Shook Up). The script marries the screwball comedies of the 1920 s and 1930 s the ones featuring bootleggers and playboys and chorus girls with the classic tunes of George and Ira Gershwin. Set in the 1920s, Nice Work If You Can Get It is the story of charming and wealthy playboy Jimmy Winter, who meets rough female bootlegger Billie Bendix the weekend of his wedding. Jimmy, who has been married three (or is it four?) times before, is preparing to marry Eileen Evergreen, a selfobsessed modern dancer. Thinking Jimmy and Eileen will be out of town, Billie and her gang hide cases of alcohol in the basement of Jimmy s Long Island mansion. But when Jimmy, his wife-to-be and her prohibitionist family show up at the mansion for the wedding, Billie and her cohort pose as servants, causing hijinks galore.
PRINCIPAL CAST BREAKDOWN MEN JIMMY WINTER: Baritone/tenor A wealthy and handsome playboy about to be married. Strong singing and comedic skills needed. COOKIE MCGEE: Baritone A fast-talking, wise-cracking bootlegger. Strong comedic skills needed. DUKE MAHONEY: Baritone Cookie s sidekick. Not the brightest guy around. A lovable buffoon who falls in love with Jennie Muldoon. SENATOR MAX EVERGREEN: Eileen s father. A humorless career politician. Firm and overbearing. CHIEF BERRY: Baritone Chief of the Long Island Police Department. Comedic acting/singing role. WOMEN BILLIE BENDIX: Mezzo-Soprano A tough, clever, feisty and street-wise young woman. Strong singing and comedic skills needed. EILEEN EVERGREEN: Mezzo-Soprano Lush and lovely, she is the self-proclaimed finest interpreter of modern dance in the world. Strong singing and comedic skills needed. ESTONIA DULWORTH, THE DUCHESS OF WOODFORD: Mezzo-soprano An upper-class, bejeweled dowager, A battle-axe of a woman. Strong singing and comedic skills needed. JEANNIE MULDOON: Alto A lovely, sexy, chorus girl from Brooklyn who falls in love with Duke. Strong singing and dancing skills needed. MILLICENT WINTER: Jimmy s mother. She is Auntie Mame ; full of life with absolutely no pretenses even though she is unbelievably rich. Brassy and blunt. SUPPORTING CAST BREAKDOWN THE CHORUS: The Chorus will consist of 10 to 20 singer/dancers. Some non-singing Chorus roles may be available. Some Chorus roles require strong dancers. VITAL INFO
PERFORMANCES July 15 - July 31, 2016, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 7:30pm; and Sundays at 2pm. LOCATION Performances take place in the Live Arts Gibson Theater (Downstage) at 123 East Water Street; the corner of 2nd SE and Water off the Downtown Mall. REHEARSALS This production will have a faced-paced, accelerated rehearsal process. Rehearsals take place during evenings and weekends Saturdays through Thursdays beginning June 1st. With only six weeks of rehearsal, the number of rehearsal hours per week will be greater than other Live Arts productions. Expect rehearsals to last four hours per weeknight and up to six hours per day on weekends, however you may not be called every day. AUDITIONS AUDITION DATES: April 16th and 17 th Please email education@livearts.org to schedule an audition. You must attend both the Dance and Singing auditions. If you are a strong singer/dancer, great, you can show off your skills. If you consider yourself only a dancer or only a singer, no problem; some non-singing or non-dancing roles may be available, but the directing team will want to see you both dance and sing, whatever your abilities. Dance Auditions 10:00am-12:00pm. Singing Auditions 12:30pm-6:00pm. If you cannot attend, please contact us at education@livearts.org as we may be able to schedule a different time. Call-backs will be scheduled for Saturday, April 23rd from 2:30-7:00pm. WHAT WILL YOU DO AT THE AUDITION? DANCE! SING! Please prepare 30 seconds of a song showcasing your abilities. Bring music for your accompanist in a three-ring binder, WELL MARKED WITH WHERE TO START AND STOP. If you don t feel qualified to bring sheet music, you can sing a simple song such as Happy Birthday. Please remember to sign up for a singing audition time slot. SCRIPTS & SIDES You may contact education@livearts.org to receive an electronic copy of the script for your perusal. There will be no reading at the initial auditions, but if you are called back for a principal role, you will be given (a) specific song(s) or scene(s) to prepare. CONFLICTS? At auditions, you will be asked to write down your schedule and any known conflicts for the rehearsal period. Because this production will rehearse in a condensed, six-week
timeframe, major conflicts will not be allowed. Please consult with your parents (if applicable) and bring your calendars! TO RESERVE YOUR AUDITION TIME email education@livearts.org. WHICH CHARACTERS? Along with your time preference for your audition, please indicate which character(s) you d prefer to audition for, and whether you re willing to be considered for other roles, including chorus. All ethnicities encouraged to audition! It would be most fun and truthful to have a mixed-ethnicity cast. MISSION OF LIVE ARTS For 25 years, Live Arts mission has been Forging Theater and Community. As Live Arts is a community theater, actors are not paid to perform. QUESTIONS? You can email education@livearts.org and also call the Live Arts Office at 434-977-4177 and ask for Mike if you have burning questions regarding auditions. LIVE ARTS MUSICAL THEATER PRODUCTION CAMP AUDITION INFORMATION Live Arts Youth Theater Company Presents: SEUSSICAL Jr. Music by Stephen Flaherty Lyrics by Lynn Ahrens Book by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty In THE GIBSON THEATER Audition Dates: April 16 & 17 Camp Begins: July 18 Rehearsals/Camp: July 18 - August 5 th, Monday - Friday Performance Dates: August 5 th and 6 th (4 Performances) Camp Tuition: $695 (need-based financial aid available, contact education@livearts.org for information) BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE PLAY This fantastical family musical is based on the books of Dr. Seuss, including favorites like Horton Hears a Who!, Horton Hatches the Egg, and Miss Gertrude McFuzz.
Horton hears a noise coming from a speck of dust on a clover and commits himself to protecting it and the Whos who live on it;; Jojo, a misfit Who who doesn t Think normal Thinks, struggles to find his place in the tiny Who society;; Gertrude McFuzz tries to catch the attention of her love - the kind and compassionate Horton. Through mishaps and adventures, these unique characters finally find what they seek - their places in their world. PRINCIPAL CAST BREAKDOWN The Cat in the Hat: Either Male or Female The essence of mischief, fun, and imagination. The Cat stirs things up, causes trouble, but always sets things right again, helping Jojo to discover the power of his own imagination as they create the story for the show together. Horton the Elephant: Male A gentle giant. Think of him as a big-hearted blue-collar guy who is steadfast, responsible and always tries to do the right thing for his friends. He is imaginative and receptive to the world around him. He is very unselfconscious. Horton's view of the world never changes - he believes in its goodness. By the end of the show, without even realizing it, he is ready to become a parent. The Boy/JoJo: Male A "Thinker", a smart child with a wild imagination. He can be played as being a little bit awkward, a little bit of a loner, or simply a rambunctious kid whose Thinks get him into constant trouble. By the end of the show, he learns what it means to be a responsible member of his world, using the power and possibilities of his own Thinks. Gertrude McFuzz: Female Very self-conscious and aware that her one-feather tail isn't perfect. Gertrude changes during the show from a neurotic, nervous and shy bird into one with the power to protect and care for a baby elephant bird and commit herself to Horton. In other words, she stops worrying about her looks and grows up. Mayzie LaBird: Female Self-centered, selfish, and vain. Mayzie will never admit to her own flaws. She manipulates anyone she can into doing what she wants. But Mayzie isn't all bad. In giving up her egg to Horton once and for all, she has a moment of generosity-she realizes she isn't the kind of person who would be a good parent, and she does the best thing she can for the egg. Sour Kangaroo: Female Sour Kangaroo isn't really sour at all. She's just got a lot of attitude. She's loud, brassy, and a lot of fun. The Wickersham Brothers: Male They are not bad guys! They're simply a lot like kids who tease, play pranks, and get a kick out of making mischief, although often at others' expense. They enjoy hanging around with one another, making music together on the street corner, and playing off one another. Mr. and Mrs. Mayor: Male, Female
Whos who are parents trying hard to raise a difficult child in a difficult world. They may get aggravated with Jojo, but they love him dearly and try to do the right thing, even if it turns out to be a mistake. SUPPORTING CAST BREAKDOWN General Genghis Khan Schmitz, The Young Kangaroo, The Bird Girls, The Grinch, Yertle the Turtle, Vlad Vladikoff, The Hunters, The Whos, The Jungle Creatures, Circus Performers, Fish All ethnicities encouraged to audition! It would be most fun and truthful to have a mixed-ethnicity cast. VITAL INFO PERFORMANCES August 5 - August 6, 2016, Friday at 5pm and 7:30pm and Saturday at 10am and 12pm LOCATION Performances take place in the Live Arts Gibson Theater at 123 East Water Street; the corner of 2nd SE and Water off the Downtown Mall. REHEARSALS July 18 - August 5 th, Monday Friday, 9am - 4pm AUDITIONS AUDITION DATES: April 16th and 17th Please email education@livearts.org to schedule an audition. No experience necessary. You must attend both the Dance and Singing auditions. If you are a strong singer/dancer, great, you can show off your skills. If you are less skilled in one area, no problem, the directing team will want to see you both dance and sing, whatever your abilities. Singing Auditions 12:00-2:00, 3:00pm-6:00pm. Dance Auditions 2:00pm-3:00pm. If you cannot attend, please contact us at education@livearts.org as we may be able to schedule a different time. WHAT WILL YOU DO AT THE AUDITION? DANCE! SING! Please prepare 30 seconds of a song showcasing your abilities. Bring music for your accompanist in a three-ring binder, WELL MARKED WITH WHERE TO START AND STOP. If you don t feel qualified to bring sheet music, you may sing a musical theatre song a cappella or a simple song such as Happy Birthday. Please remember to sign up for a singing audition time slot. SCRIPTS & SIDES
You may contact education@livearts.org to receive an electronic copy of the script for your perusal. CONFLICTS? Pease plan to attend all days of camp. Parents should talk to Live Arts Education Director Mike about any conflicts. TO RESERVE YOUR AUDITION TIME email education@livearts.org. WHICH CHARACTERS? Along with your time preference for your audition, please indicate which character(s) you d prefer to audition for, and whether you re willing to be considered for other roles, including chorus. Note: Final Casting will be announced the first days of camp. All ethnicities encouraged to audition! It would be most fun and truthful to have a mixed-ethnicity cast. MISSION OF LIVE ARTS For 25 years, Live Arts mission has been Forging Theater and Community. As Live Arts is a community theater, actors are not paid to perform. QUESTIONS? You can email education@livearts.org or call the Live Arts Office at 434-977-4177 and ask for Mike if you have burning questions regarding auditions.