The Bay Players of Duxbury are pleased to announce auditions for the classic, beloved musical THE FANTASTICKS, by Harvey Schmidt and Tom Jones!
Try To Remember a time when this romantic charmer wasn't enchanting audiences around the world. A boy and a girl are madly in love, but a misguided plot by their parents, designed to bring them together, manages to drive them apart. However, through their journey of self discovery, they learn an important lesson: without a hurt, the heart is hollow.
Auditions will be held at the First Parish Church, 842 Tremont Street, Duxbury, MA, on Wednesday, December 8th, from 7PM to 10PM, and Thursday, December 9th, from 7PM to 10PM. Parking and the entrance to the performance hall/audition room is found at the back of the building.
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Auditions are by appointment and will consist of a vocal audition and a reading from the script. Please email fantasticks.bayplayers@gmail.com with your name, the role(s) you wish to audition for, and your preferred audition night; we will assist with getting you scheduled with a time slot. If you have them available, please include a theatrical resume and headshot.
Auditioners should prepare 32 bars of a musical theatre song, in the style of the show (bring sheet music for our accompanist). Songs from the show are also accepted. In consideration of our pianist, please avoid difficult to sight read music (ex. Jason Robert Brown or Adam Guettel). While you should prepare a 32 bar cut of the song, please be familiar with the entire piece as our music director may like to see more from you.
Those specifically auditioning for only non-singing roles (Henry, Mortimer, and The Mute) should still prepare a short piece to perform (ex. can be as simple as Happy Birthday), as you may be singing in choral parts during a few moments in the show. However, auditions for these roles will rely more on script reading and some improvisational exercises.
If you have any other questions regarding auditions, please reach out to the production team at fantasticks.bayplayers@gmail.com.
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Rehearsals will be 3 times a week, based upon cast availability. All rehearsals and performances will take place at the First Parish Church, 842 Tremont Street, Duxbury, MA.
PERFORMANCE DATES:
Friday, February 18th, 8 PM
Saturday, February 19th, 8 PM
Sunday, February 20th, 3 PM
Friday, February 25th, 8 PM
Saturday, February 26th, 8 PM
Actors of all genders, ethnicities, and physical abilities are encouraged to audition.
While we are specifically seeking male-identifying actors for Matt and female-identifying actors for Luisa, we are opening casting of all other roles (including El Gallo) to performers of any gender identity and expression. Some will perform the role as the gender originally presented in script (ex. Henry and Mortimer), and others are more open and flexible (ex. El Gallo, Hucklebee and/or Bellomy, while traditionally played by male-identifying performers, can be cast and presented as female-identifying so long as the performers can sing the role; The Mute has no specific gender expression or vocal requirements).
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CHARACTER DESCRIPTIONS:
EL GALLO (30s - 50s) - As the narrator of the piece, El Gallo is the liaison between the audience and the action onstage. They are warm, cordial, and inviting to the audience, yet with darker moments. Their attitude toward the rest of the cast reveals a decidedly mysterious side. Above all, they are grand and must command attention.
LUISA (Female-identifying, 16 - 26) - She is in love with love, the idea of love, the idea of being in love and indeed everything remotely romantic. Her dreams are more fanciful than those of Matt. Because of her particular vision of romance, she deals with the world on a particularly naive level.
MATT (Male-identifying, 16 - 26) - He is deeply in love, particularly with the idea of being in love. He lacks experience in the world so, while not stupid, he is naive and perhaps even foolish at times. His image of a young man in love is one of a gallant protector, meaning that he approaches some decisions with a falsified bravery that is little more than bravado.
HUCKLEBEE and BELLOMY (40s - 60s) - Blustery and Boisterous. A true, vaudeville style duo. Strong comedic timing a must. Parents of Matt and Luisa. Always arguing and bickering, but secretly plotting together for the marriage of their children.
HENRY and MORTIMER (30s - 60s) - Foolish comic actors who move the action while not seeming to contribute anything of substance. As performers their day is long past. Henry can play grand characters and recite Shakespeare, but with very little success these days. May be asked to speak in an English accent. Mortimer’s specialty is dying on stage in the manner of great adventures and melodramas. May be asked to speak in a cockney accent. Henry and Mortimer function as a unit and rarely appear apart from each other. They are entirely theatrical and theirs is the world of the stage.
THE MUTE (Indeterminate Age) - The Mute serves many functions—setting props as characters need them, assisting El Gallo, and becoming the wall separating the families. While omnipresent the character must also have the ability to fade into the background. This is a functional character that sometimes interacts with the other characters.
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Director: Matthew Sherman
Music Director: Kelley DePasqua
Stage Manager: Tara Brennan
Producer: Ricki Bowser
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