Monthly Archives: March 2017

General Auditions – Adults (Ages 18+)
Dayton, Ohio auditions for Plays and Musicals will be held Saturday, April 29 and Sunday, April 30.

• Saturday, April 29 (11:00 am – 4:00 pm) – Musicals or Musicals and Plays (Accompanist provided)
• Sunday, April 30 (11:00 am – 4:00 pm) – Plays only

Appointment calls are now being accepted. (Monday – Friday, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm EST)
Phone: Colin Simpson, Company Manager at 937-461-3823 ext. 3116 No emails, please.

General auditions for children: Will be held at a later date to be determined. Please check back for further updates.

Auditions are open to Non-Equity and Equity actors (unless otherwise noted), with Non-Equity actors having the opportunity to join the Equity Membership Candidacy Program.

Adults will be auditioning for:

• The American premiere of Legendale with music by Andrea Daly, book and lyrics by Jeff Bienstock, story by Bienstock and Daly
• A Christmas Story by Philip Grecian, based upon the motion picture A Christmas Story, written by Jean Shepherd, Leigh Brown and Bob Clark, and In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash by Jean Shepherd
• Sex with Strangers by Laura Eason
• Brighton Beach Memoirs by Neil Simon
• The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) [revised] by Adam Long, Daniel Singer and Jess Winfield

See audition procedures and character breakdowns below.

Unable to attend our Dayton general auditions?
If you cannot attend our Dayton General Auditions and wish to be considered, submit your updated resume and headshot to colin@humanracetheatre.org with a letter explaining the show(s) and role(s) of interest to you (please be specific).

New York City- and Chicago-based actors
Auditions are by agent submission or invitation on a show-by-show basis. If you wish to be considered, please e-mail your headshot, resume and what show(s)/character(s) you are interested in (please be specific) to colin@humanracetheatre.org.

The Human Race Theatre Company is a professional theatre that works under a Small Professional Theatre Contract (SPT 6) and performs primarily in the Loft Theatre, a 212-seat thrust stage. Kevin Moore, President & Artistic Director. Tara Lail, Associate Artistic Director.

Rehearsals are primarily Monday – Friday evenings, and daytime on weekends.

Procedures for Auditions

Plays only: Come prepared with 2 one-minute contrasting monologues in the style of the show(s) or from the show(s) you are interested in OR 1 two-minute monologue tailored toward the specific show you are interested in.

Musicals only: Come prepared with 1 song of up to 32 bars of music in the style of the show(s) or from the show you are interested in. Be prepared with a 2nd song in the event the producer asks to see more. Bring your sheet music. An accompanist will be provided. No a cappella singing or recorded music.

Both: Come prepared with 1 one-minute monologue and 1 song (up to 32 bars) in the style of the show(s) or from the show you are interested in. Bring your sheet music. An accompanist will be provided. No a cappella singing or recorded music.

You will be auditioning for Kevin Moore and Tara Lail.

2017-2018 Season Dates

Legendale (musical)
1st rehearsal: August 7, 2017
Production: September 7 – October 1, 2017

The House
1st rehearsal: October 9, 2017
Production: November 2 – November 19, 2017

A Christmas Story
1st rehearsal: November 13, 2017
Production: December 12 – December 17, 2017
(performs at the 1,100-seat Victoria Theatre)

Sex with Strangers
1st rehearsal: January 8, 2018
Production: February 1 – February 18, 2018

Brighton Beach Memoirs
1st rehearsal: March 11, 2018
Production: April 5 – April 22, 2018

The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) [revised]
1st rehearsal: May 7, 2018
Production: May 31 – June 23, 2018

Musical Theatre Workshops (musical)
Dates: To be announced

New Play Workshops
Dates: To be announced

Character Breakdowns

Legendale
ACTOR 1
ANDY KANIFF – Male, late 20s; tenor. A tech-savvy introvert. Witty but socially awkward. Legendale’s protagonist. Ab2-A4 (Note: Low Ab2 is conversational.)

ACTOR 2
ZELAYNA (THE COW-MAIDEN) – Female; alto with high belt. A smart, spunky avatar with limitless energy and unwavering confidence in her abilities. G3-Eb5

ACTOR 3
BETH – Female, early 20s; alto or soprano. A graphic artist-turned-temp worker in Andy’s office. Ab3-Db5
DOCTOR GAMER – An adult gamer featured in the opening number.

ACTOR 4
PAUL JANSEN – Male, 40s; baritone. The creator of Legendale who is adored by fans worldwide. A bit of a showman. Ab2-G4
THE ALCHEMIST – A fearsome, mysterious avatar in Legendale.
MAILMAN GAMER – An adult gamer featured in the opening number.

ACTOR 5
STEVE – Male, 30s; tenor. Andy and Beth’s boss; an aging ex-jock. E3-F-sharp4 (A4 falsetto)
TARRAGON (THE WILD WARRIOR) – A mostly mute, muscle-bound avatar.
COP GAMER – An adult gamer featured in the opening number.
BLOGGER – A journalist for the gaming blog Cutting Edge.

ACTOR 6
NEWBIE – Male; tenor with high tessitura. An immature adolescent; one of the Message Board Gamers. Eb3-Bb4
ENGINEER – A lowly JansenGames employee.

ACTOR 7
FANBOY – Male; tenor. A teenaged skateboarder; one of the Message Board Gamers. E3-A4
PHOTOGRAPHER – A journalist for the gaming blog Cutting Edge.

ACTOR 8
SIR SARCASM – Male; tenor with low tessitura. A post-collegiate know-it-all; one of the Message Board Gamers. B2-G-sharp4
CEO – Chief Executive Officer of JansenGames

The House
Roles for this production have been cast.

A Christmas Story
Adult Roles
RALPH – Male. Age 30-50. Narrator, also plays a cowboy, deliveryman and Xmas tree lot owner and the grown up version of Ralphie; Jean Shepard’s voice, wry and satirical with affection for the time and the story he tells.

THE OLD MAN – Male. Age 30-50. Ralphie’s father, 1930s family man; his may be a small world, but it is his just the same; obsessed with contests and the Bumpus hounds next door. Actor also performs the voice of Santa.

MOTHER – Female. Age 30-45. Ralphie’s mother, is a patient parent with firm convictions – in particular, that her son should not own an air rifle. It takes a lot to ruffle her feathers, but the provocative leg lamp seems to do the trick.

MISS SHIELDS – Female. Age 30-50. A teacher who’s a real stickler when it comes to punctuation, actor also plays the Wicked Witch of the West.

Child Roles (to be cast at a late date to be announced)
RALPHIE – Male. Age 10-13. Preferably under 5’0” tall, a regular boy, appealing, but not necessarily a handsome boy, can have some extra weight on him, strong presence, honest actor, not “show-bizzy,” experienced on stage and a great strong speaking voice.

RANDY – Male. Age 9-11. Ralphie’s brother. Plays about seven or eight, must be smaller than Ralphie, cute and funny little boy, funny in the sense that he is awkward and off-beat, must be physically comfortable onstage and have a lot of strong concentration, but, like Ralphie, not “show-bizzy.”

SCUT FARKUS – Male. Age 12-14. The Bully. Taller than the other kids. Also plays “Black Bart.”

FLICK – Male. Age 10-13. Ralphie’s friend and class mate. Must be funny. Flick gets his tongue stuck to a lamp post. Also plays “Desperado One.”

SCHWARTZ – Male. Age 10-13. Ralphie’s friend and class mate. Also plays “Desperado Two.”

ESTHER JANE ALBERRY – Female. Age 10-13. A classmate, who seems to have a particular interest in Ralphie.

HELEN WEATHERS – Female. Age 10-13. A classmate, something of a child prodigy.

Sex with Strangers
Note: Varying degrees of nudity will be required for both actors.
ETHAN – Male. Age 20-29. An attractive, impetuously brash twenty-something blogger who literally and figuratively bursts into Olivia’s life one snowy evening. Comfortable in his skin; sexy, sexual and charmingly self-effacing just when you want to write him off as hopelessly arrogant; has found instant notoriety and success by blogging about his exploits having sex with strangers, but harbors deeper ambitions and values than perhaps meets the eye.

OLIVIA – Female. Age 30-40. A bookish but not uptight schoolteacher/writer living in rural Michigan; attractive, confidant enough, but not a voracious socializer/dater. An old-school lover of books and serious literature, not up on the latest blogging trends, Olivia achieved limited literary success with one novel and despite having always dreamed of writing full time is finding herself reticent to pick the pen back up in a serious way.

Brighton Beach Memoirs
EUGENE MORRIS JEROME – Male. Age 15-17 (playing age). A normal 15-year-old boy who has recently discovered girls in a big way; he is obsessed with the female anatomy, which he’s never seen, and his other love of baseball; he wants to be a baseball player, but if that does not work out, he’ll settle for being a writer – he keeps a detailed journal of his family’s eccentricities. Eugene is concerned for his family, especially his overworked father, but complains about their demands on him; the play revolves around his memoirs, which are those of the young Neil Simon.

STANLEY JEROME – Male. Age 17-21 (playing age). The older brother of Eugene; due to financial reasons, must work a factory job, which he hates; he tries to temper Eugene’s passions while attempting to please his parents, but he struggles with feelings of being trapped.

JACK JEROME – Male. Age 45-55. Father of the Jerome family, who feels the pressure of supporting an extended family by working two jobs; in addition, all family members turn to him for advice and answers; he is patient, but very weary.

KATE JEROME – Female. Age 45-55. The very strong mother who attempts to hold the family together and solve the hurts and problems of all of them; she is opinionated and very verbal, but also very loving.

AUNT BLANCHE – Female. Age 40-50. Kate’s younger sister, recently widowed, very indecisive and dependent; she wants to have a life for herself and her daughters, but she does not know how or where to begin; she feels as though she has been buried with her husband.

NORA – Female. Age 16-20. Daughter of Blanche, cousin to the Jerome boys; she is a very beautiful and ambitious 16-year-old girl with dreams of Broadway; often resentful of her younger sister who is pampered due to heart flutters; in addition, she is angry at her father for dying and leaving her with a weak mother.

LAURIE – Female. Age 13-15. Blanche’s youngest daughter. Studious, yet quietly mischievous, who is all ears around adult situations. She appears innocent, but she really has a grasp on what the others around her are “up to.”

The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) [revised]
ACTOR 1 – The troupe leader; high-energy, quick-thinking, previous Shakespeare and improv experience preferred but not mandatory; creative, spontaneous, can handle some classical text, up for very immature jokes, and can pull off high-energy physical comedy. Plays Romeo, Caesar, Richard II, King Lear, Richard III, Horatio, Polonius, Laertes, Sampson, Prince, Nurse, Friar Laurence, Rapist, Witch.

ACTOR 2 – This role has been cast.

ACTOR 3 – The comedic relief; high-energy, quick-thinking, previous Shakespeare and improv experience preferred but not mandatory; creative, spontaneous, can handle some classical text, are up for very immature jokes, and can pull off high-energy physical comedy. Plays Juliet, Lavinia, Ophelia, Cleopatra, Gertrude, Benvolio, Othello, Macduff, Soothsayer, Henry VI, Bernado, Ghost, Claudius.