SHORT SHAKESPEARE! ROMEO AND JULIET - CHICAGO EPA
CHICAGO SHAKESPEARE THEATER
Chicago Shakespeare
800 E Grand Ave
Chicago, IL 60611-5436
Thu, Apr 20, 2023
9:00 AM to 5:00 PM (CDT)
Break: 12:30-1:30pm
TYA
$574 weekly minimum
Equity actors for roles in SHORT SHAKESPEARE! ROMEO AND JULIET (see breakdown).
SHORT SHAKESPEARE! ROMEO AND JULIET, a 75-minute adaptation followed by a 15-minute talkback that runs Monday - Friday during daytime hours for school students at CST, and for the public at 11 am on Saturdays. There is no tour to schools planned at this time.
Chicago Shakespeare Theater is deeply committed to welcoming artists, audience members, and staff of broadly diverse and intersectional identities, including (but not limited to) race, ethnicity, ability, faith/belief tradition, sexual orientation, gender expression, gender identity, age, socio-economic background, and nationality. Acknowledging the entrenched structural inequities around race in the American theater, we are especially focused on addressing equity and inclusion for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) individuals within our IDEA efforts.
Please prepare one classical piece (verse preferred). American accents. You are not required to a select piece from ROMEO AND JULIET. Optional video submissions: If auditioning on tape, please describe any stage combat experience you may have and if you are certified in any categories. Please send tapes by 11:59 pm on Thursday, April 20 to:
https://forms.gle/apZmPkYv8DK
Director: Mikael Burke (expected to attend)
Casting Director: Bob Mason
Casting Associate: Alexis Taylor
Contract begins: 01/23/2024
Previews: 02/15/2024
Opens: 02/17/2024
Closes: 03/16/2024
OTHER
https://www.chicagoshakes.com/
Limited term: No
MRE: Yes with Equity restrictions
An Equity monitor will be provided.
EPA Procedures are in effect for audition.
Equity’s contracts prohibit discrimination. Equity is committed to diversity and encourages all its employers to engage in a policy of equal employment opportunity designed to promote a positive model of inclusion. As such, Equity encourages performers of all ethnicities, gender identities, and ages, as well as performers with disabilities, to attend every audition.
Always bring your Equity Membership card to auditions.
Equity encourages everyone participating in the auditions to wear a two-ply cloth face mask, surgical mask, singer’s mask or respirator (N95, KN95 or KF94). Single-ply face masks, gaiters and bandanas are not recommended. Singer’s masks can be found at www.broadwayreliefproject.com/singersmask.
Equity encourages members to prepare for their audition prior to arriving at the audition venue, to the extent that they can (e.g., get dressed, hair/make-up, etc.) to avoid crowding in bathrooms and dressing rooms.
Holding/Audition room information:
The audition room can accommodate no more than 8 individuals at a time.
The holding room can accommodate no more than 10 individuals at a time.
PLEASE NOTE: All roles will be understudied.
DIRECTOR'S NOTE: I included character gender here, but excited to consider actors of any gender expression/identity for all roles so long as they're comfortable performing the character's prescribed gender/age. Similarly with age, I care more about whether the actor can play the age described than if they're actually the right age. Open to all ethnicities and races for all roles.
ROMEO - teens/20s, male; Only son of Lord and Lady Montague. A lover, not a fighter. A hopeless romantic with a sensitive soul. Plagued with deep feeling, but naive to the world. Dives fully and passionately into every new experience and does nothing halfway. Emotional. Obsessive. Impulsive. A boy with a thundering heart.
JULIET - teens/20s, female; Only daughter of Lord and Lady Capulet. The perfect “good girl” daughter, desperate for her own life. Stricken with impatient desire, but naive to the world. She wants what she wants and she wants it now and is willing to abandon everything to get it. Tactical. Unafraid. Rash. A girl with a screaming spirit.
MERCUTIO/As Cast - 20s/30s, male or gender non-conforming. The Prince’s kinsman and best friend to Romeo. Both a lover and a fighter. Sex positive, queer af, intimidatingly self-assured. Witty and charming, brings the party wherever he goes, and will fight for his right to party when and how he pleases. Wild. Exuberant. Volatile. Makes his own rules.
TYBALT/As Cast - 20s/30s, male; Cousin to Juliet and nephew of Lord and Lady Capulet. A fighter, not a lover. King of the playground. Hot-headed defender of Capulet pride and honor, who demands them for himself. A bully. Always looking for a fight, always expecting one. Bold. Brash. Infallible. Follows no rules.
FRIAR LAURENCE/As Cast - 60s+, male; The town friar. Romeo’s confidante and mentor. Honest and caring, insightful and sage, desires healing above all. Wants to repair the world, and will bend and break the rules in order to do so. A voice of reason in an unreasonable world, always seeking solutions. Believes in the power of love. The father Romeo lacks.
NURSE/As Cast - 60s+, female; The family nurse. Juliet’s confidante and carer. Bawdy and playful, worldly and wise, desires happiness above all. Wants what’s best for Juliet and is willing to run through fire for her. Outspoken in a world that wants her silence, always seeking contentment. Believes in the power of the heart. The mother Juliet never had.
LORD CAPULET/As Cast - 40s/50s, male; Head of the Capulet household. Juliet’s Father and Tybalt’s uncle. The king of his own castle, who knows what’s best for everyone and acts accordingly. Fiercely protective and possessive of his house and name. Loves his family with a watchful eye and an iron fist. Like a domineering general, he demands complete submission and absolute respect. Hates Montagues.
LADY CAPULET/As Cast - 30s/40s, female; Wife of Capulet and Juliet’s mother. A trophy wife. Obsessed with keeping up appearances to please and appease the men in her life. Loves her daughter with a cool detachment and an icy grip. Like a show dog trainer, she has exceedingly high expectations and rewards obedience. Hates Montagues.
BENVOLIO/As Cast - 20s, male; Romeo’s cousin and friend. A peacekeeper and helper. Benevolent. Down to earth. Loyal to Romeo and the Montagues, but not afraid to defy them for the sake of peace. A rule-abider.
MONTAGE/As Cast - 40s/50s, male. Head of the House of Montague. Romeo’s father. A man of action. Fights his own battles and refuses to stand back and let others fight for him. Does whatever needs to be done for his family. A fighter who’s raised a soft boy, he loves his son, but is confounded by him and keeps his distance. Hates Capulets.
PRINCE/As Cast - 40s-50s, male; Highest word in the land. Fighting to maintain order above all else in a community refusing to abide his rule. Tired. Angry. Frustrated. A leader forced to be an enforcer. Threatens, polices, and punishes his subjects into submission because finding peaceful resolution has failed.
PARIS/As Cast - 30s, male; Nobleman of Verona, kin to the Prince and Mercutio. A perfect gentleman. Kind. Gracious. Thoughtful. Forthright. Respectable. Easy to love. The man you write home about. Almost too good to be true. In love with Juliet.
BALTHASAR/As Cast - teens/20s, male; Romeo’s servant and young friend. Aids and helps Romeo however he can. Willing to fight for the Montagues, but protective of Romeo above all else.
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