THE HELLO GIRLS - NYC EPA
Prospect Theater Company
AUDITION DATE
Mon, Jul 30, 2018
9:30 am - 5:30 pm (EDT)
Lunch 1 to 2
CONTRACT
LOA-NYC contract/salary approval pending
SEEKING
Equity actor/singer/musicians for various roles. see breakdown.
PREPARATION
Actors should come prepared to sing a brief musical theater selection from their repertoire, from the legit musical theater canon. Actors will be asked to provide information regarding their instrumental skills, but are not asked to bring their instrument(s) to the EPA. Bring picture and resume
LOCATION
Actors' Equity New York Audition Center
165 W 46th St
16th Fl
New York, NY 10036
PERSONNEL
Co-Bookwriter / Lyricist / Composer: Peter Mills
Director / Co-Bookwriter: Cara Reichel
Choreographer: Christine O’Grady
Music Director: Ben Moss
Producing Artistic Director / Casting Contact: Cara Reichel
Managing Director / Producer Contact: Melissa Huber
Present at EPA Audition: Cara Reichel & Peter Mills
OTHER DATES
Rehearsals will begin on or about Oct. 15, 2018, in a Manhattan studio location to be confirmed.
Performances will take place Nov. 13 – Dec. 22, 2018 at 59E59 Theaters, Theatre A. (59 East 59th Street, NYC).
OTHER
EPA Procedures are in effect for this audition.
An Equity monitor will be provided.
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.
BREAKDOWN
Synopsis:
This is the world premiere production of the original musical, The Hello Girls. Set primarily during 1917-18, the show is inspired by the true story of the first women to serve in the United States Army, who were bi-lingual (French / English) telephone operators during World War I.
When the U.S. entered WWI, General Pershing was frustrated by poor communications, and issued a recruiting call for American telephone operators who could speak French. From a pool of over 7,000 applicants, 450 women were selected and received training. Among American soldiers and officers, they quickly became known as the “Hello Girls,” and were regarded as a crucial part of the war effort. In the spring of 1918, a first group of women were deployed overseas, and from that group, a small detachment was sent on to the front — where they came under fire and served heroically. The squadron’s leader, Grace Banker, received the Distinguished Service Medal. When they returned home, the women were surprised to face a new battle when the Army refused to recognize them as soldiers. One of the women who led a sixty year long campaign for recognition. It was not until 1977 that these groundbreaking women were officially recognized by the U.S. military.
SEEKING:
Prospect is seeking to cast a diverse ensemble of actor-musicians with a high level of proficiency on one or more instruments including piano / accordion, strings (violin, cello, upright bass), wind instruments (flute, clarinet, etc.) or brass (trumpet, trombone), and percussion. We are not seeking guitar, mandolin, banjo or similar strummed instruments. While not everyone will be required to play all the time, we intend for all cast members to participate in the performance of the score of the show in some way.
French language skills are also a plus.
GRACE BANKER – Female, 25. From Passaic, New Jersey. The leader of the squadron that went to the front, she received the Distinguished Service Medal for her bravery under fire. Graduated from Barnard in 1915 and worked at AT&T as a telephone operator and supervisor before joining the army. Articulate and poised, with a core of steely strength that makes itself apparent as she grows into her role as leader.
SUZANNE “THE WILDCAT” PREVÔT — Female, 24. From New York City. Feisty, sardonic, tough talking. A close friend of Grace’s from AT&T. She was among the few who lived to be officially recognized by the Army. Very invested in the fight for women’s suffrage, and leads the women’s fight for recognition after the war.
LOUISE LE BRETON – Female, 18. From San Francisco. Fearless, flirty, headstrong and often insubordinate; she lies about her age to join the army. Born in France, she has family fighting with the French army.
HELEN HILL – Female, 22. From outside Boise, Idaho. A typical small town farm girl... from a family of 17 children with a mother who speaks French. Sweet, over-enthusiastic, wholesomely kooky and prone to nervous panic.
BERTHA HUNT – Female, 33. From San Francisco. Married to a Navy doctor who is also serving. Older, wiser, reliable – The Den Mother. Extremely knowledgeable about military matters.
CAPTAIN JOSEPH W. RISER – Male, 35. The Signal Corps commanding officer who recruits and trains the women, and journeys with them to the front. A career army man, a stickler for rules and order, he is skeptical of the women’s presence in the army, even as his own success relies on theirs. He develops a close working relationship with Grace, who challenges his world view and converts him to an advocate.
LIEUTENANT ERNEST WESSEN & OTHERS – Male, 20s-30s. Head of the American recruiting center for the Signal Corps.
PRIVATE BUCK MATTERSON & OTHERS – Male, 20s-30s. An enlisted man for the Signal Corps, who works closely with Lt. Riser.
PRIVATE ROBERT DEMPSEY & OTHERS – Male, 20s – 30s. A Signal Corps operator at the central Paris Telephone Exchange.
GENERAL JOHN PERSHING & OTHERS – Male, 40s-50s. Commander of the American Expeditionary Forces. Hard, relentless, inflexible, with a deep sense of honor and American individualism and identity.
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 audition.
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