Tag Archives: Mariemont Players

Show Title: BROADWAY BOUND by Neil Simon

Director: Jerry Wiesenhahn

Synopsis: Part three of Neil Simon’s acclaimed semi-autobiographical trilogy finds Eugene Jerome and his older brother Stanley trying to break into the world of show business as professional comedy writers while coping with family tensions, parental pressures, and maybe even…love? When their material is broadcast on the radio for the first time, some things about the family portrayed in the sketch seem very familiar…

Audition: Sunday, July 14th and Monday, July 15th both 7:00pm – 9:00pm by appointment on the half hour. Please reserve your time via this link: https://www.signupgenius.com/go/4090D44AFAB2FA2FE3-broadway

Audition Requirements: Bring headshot and resume. Auditions will consist of cold readings from the script.

Rehearsal times: Rehearsals will begin on Tuesday, October 1st from 7-9:30pm and will occur every Sunday, Monday, Wednesday and Thursday (unless there are cast conflicts) until tech week.

Production Dates: Friday, November 8th-8pm, Saturday, November 9th-8pm, Sunday, November 10th-2pm, Thursday, November 14th, 8pm, Friday, November 15th, 8pm, Saturday, November 16th, 8pm, Sunday, November 17th, 2pm and 7pm, Thursday, November 21st, 8pm, Friday, November 22nd, 8pm, Saturday, November 23rd, 3pm and 8pm, Sunday, November 24th 2pm

Description of Characters:

Eugene Morris Jerome – The play’s narrator and the focal character of the Eugene trilogy. Carefree, witty to a fault, and quick to joke, he is 23 years old and working in the stock room of a music company before his brother and writing partner, Stanley, helps them both to break into the world of showbiz. While he maintains his affable and seemingly care-free nature, Eugene cares deeply about everyone in his family, especially for his parents. Neil Simon wrote Eugene as his own self, the playwright’s semi-autobiographical analogue in the work.

Stanley Jerome – Eugene’s older brother. At 28 years old, he is neurotic, high-strung, and constantly obsessing and worrying over the details. He brokers the first opportunity for he and his brother to show their material to NBC Studios and co-writes the sketch with his brother; the two constantly bicker and play as they attempt to write their first big comedy sketch.

Ben Epstein (mide-late 70s/early 80s) – Father of Kate, grandfather to Stanley and Eugene. A born socialist and ardent follower of Trotsky, he lives with his daughter and her family in Brighton Beach. Stan and Eugene find Grandpa, in his age, to be one of their greatest goldmines for accidental comedy. He cares deeply for his daughters and their families, but due to his upbringing and beliefs is not an affectionate man.

Kate Jerome (early-mid 50s) – A strong woman through and through, Eugene and Stanley’s mother has done her best to take care of her father, Ben, while raising her boys and keeping a wary eye on her husband. She values family, and familial experiences – such as the simple act of sitting down and eating together as a family. She knows her boys are grown men, but will never not see them as her babies.

Jack Jerome (mid-late 50s)– The father to Eugene and Stanley, he’s a tough nut for certain. Having worked as a clothier for many years, making ladies raincoats, he’s become a bit numb to the monotony of life. Like Ben, he is not an affectionate man, masked by his exhaustion and his own self-provided frustrations.

Blanche Morton (early 50s) – Kate’s (now) well-to-do sister. She has remarried, and her second husband built himself up to afford a home on Park Avenue and the finer things in life. Ben is at odds with Blanche when she comes to visit – he can only focus on Blanche’s giving in to capitalist society.

IS HE DEAD? by Mark Twain/adapted by David Ives
Directed by Michele Mascari

Performance Dates Sept. 13 to 29, 2019
Walton Creek Theater

AUDITIONS TIME/LOCATION
7 to 10 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday, April 30 and May 2
Green Room/Lobby at the Walton Creek Theater
4101 Walton Creek Rd, Cincinnati, OH 45227

“IS HE DEAD?” SYNOPSIS
The focuses on a fictional version of the great French painter, Jean-François Millet, as an impoverished artist in Barbizon, France. With the help of his colleagues, he stages his own death in order to increase the value of his paintings and afterwards dresses as a woman to keep his secret safe. Combining elements of burlesque, farce, and social satire, the comedy relies on such devices as cross-dressing, mistaken identities, and romantic deceptions to tell its story, which raises questions about fame, greed, and the value of art.

CAST OF CHARACTERS (7 men, 4 women)

• Jean-François Millet/Widow Daisy Tillou – Male, 30ish (strong, good, creative)
• Bastien Andre, art dealer and moneylender – Male, 30-40 (greedy)
• Marie Leroux, Millet’s girlfriend – Female 25-30 (sweet, innocent, in love)
• Papa Louis Leroux, Marie’s father – Male, mid 60s (protective, not well)
• Cecile Leroux, Marie’s sister – Female, 25-30 (savvy young woman)
• Hans von Bismarck (“Dutchy”), Millet’s friend – Male, 30ish (German)
• Phelim O’Shaughnessy, Millet’s friend – Male, 30ish (Irish)
• Agamemnon Buckner (“Chicago”), Millet’s friend – Male, 40s (American) These three characters are Jean-Francois’s best friends and cohorts in life and helpers in making sales.
• Madame Caron, Millet’s landlady – Female (plays elderly, but not decrepit)
• Madame Bathilde, Millet’s landlady – Female (plays elderly, but not decrepit) These two ladies are dearest friends and companions. They are lovely in demeanor and personalities.
• Unnamed male in several small comic roles – Male, 20s to 40s (scene-stealer)

AUDITION REQUIREMENTS

• No monologue required
• Provide your theater resume/headshot
• Personal introduction to audition panel – tell us a bit about yourself
• Tell a joke (no knock-knock jokes please)
• Cold readings from the script; will include reading opposite other auditionees
• No dialect necessary except for those auditioning for Dutchy, who should try a German accent, and those auditioning for Phelim, who should attempt an Irish dialect.
• Be prepared for group improvisations.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

• For more background, actors may should visit any or all of the following sites to get more of a sense of the show:
  https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520248335/is-he-dead
  https://www.playscripts.com/play/1365
  https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25854712-is-he-dead