A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM — Principal Actors Auditions
The Acting Company
A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM - NYC EPA
The Acting Company | New York, NY
Notice: Audition
AUDITION DATE
Friday, November 6, 2026
9:30 AM - 5:30 PM (E)
BREAK: 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM
CONTRACT
LOA
$832 weekly minimum (LOA ref. LORT) + $50/day per diem provided whenever company travels outside NYC area and housing does not provide a kitchen.
SEEKING
Equity actors for roles in A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM (see
BREAKDOWN
).PREPARATION
Please prepare 1 Shakespeare monologue in verse. Auditions may not exceed 3 minutes total. Please bring a copy of your headshot and resume stapled together.
LOCATION
Actors' Equity New York Audition Center
165 W 46th St
16th Fl
New York, NY 10036
PERSONNEL
Artistic Director: Devin Brain
Director: Devin Brain
By: William Shakespeare
A Modern Verse Translation by: Jeff Whitty
Adapted for the Stage by: Devin Brain
Casting Director: Katja Zarolinkski, CSA
OTHER DATES
See
BREAKDOWN
for production-specific dates.OTHER
EPA Procedures are in effect for this audition. An Equity Monitor will be provided.
Equity's
CONTRACT
s 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
A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM
Rehearsal (NYC): January 4 – January 24, 2027
Tech/Previews (NYC): January 25 – February 7, 2027
Opening (NYC): February 7, 2027
Tour Dates (
LOCATION
Varies. Confirmed out of town engagements below): February 8 – April 4, 2027OUT OF TOWN PERFORMANCE DATES (SUBJECT TO CHANGE)
February 9, 2027 – East Lansing, MI
February 20, 2027 – Manassas, VA
March 11 – 13, 2027 – Saratoga Springs, NY
April 2, 2027 – New London, CT
Dates currently available to NYC schools: February 11, 12, 22-26, March 1-5, 8, 29, 30, 31, April 1.
There is currently a TBD Unpaid Hiatus between February 22 & March 7, 2027.
ABOUT THIS PRODUCTION
This Production of A Midsummer Night's Dream celebrates the joy of clowning, the power of Shakespeare's language, and the deep relationship an ensemble can develop with an audience. Set in a theater as a show is being struck, Puck wanders in and, on a whim, bespells the Stage Crew working on the strike into performing their own version of A Midsummer Night's Dream. These modern clown versions of the Mechanicals throw themselves into the task, transforming into Lovers, Mechanicals, and Faeries. With each role they adopt, they step closer to freedom from their own preconceptions, as play lets their vulnerability become their strength.
NOTE: All tracks will require actors with very strong language and movement skills. Actors trained in Shakespeare, clowning, and movement are strongly encouraged to attend.
SEEKING
[CLOWN ONE: Puck]: Any gender. 20s - 40s. Any race or ethnicity. Doubles the following roles: [Puck] (a Trickster), [Egeus]: (a Lord and Father), [Philostrate]: (a Master of Revels), and others. Fearless, playful, mischievous… kind-hearted but with moments of capricious cruelty.
[CLOWN TWO: The Wardrobe Head]: She/her. Late 20s - early 40s. Any race or ethnicity. As the Wardrobe Head, plays [Starveling] (a Tailor), [Hippolyta] (a Queen – of Amazons), and [Titania] (a Queen – of Faeries). Quiet, reticent but inventive, and then bursting into powerful, sensual, and deadly (but loving).
[CLOWN THREE: The Stagehand]: He/him. Late 20s - early 40s. Any race or ethnicity. As the Stagehand, plays [Snug] (a Joiner), [Theseus] (a Duke – of Athens), and [Oberon] (a King – of Faeries). Moving from passive, stoic, and scared of their own strength to egomaniacal, callous, romantic, and generous.
[CLOWN FOUR: The Audio Tech]: He/him. Early 20s - early 30s. Any race or ethnicity. As the Audio Tech, plays [Francis Flute] (a Bellows-Mender), [Lysander] (a Lover), and [Moth] (a Faerie). Shy, quiet, deeply romantic, a well of feelings only barely contained / controlled, an emo-child.
[CLOWN FIVE: The Stage Electrician]: She/her. Early 20s - early 30s. As the Electrician, plays [Tom Snout] (a Tinker), [Hermia] (a Lover), and [Mustardseed] (a Faerie). Bold and vibrant to a fault, kind-hearted but sometimes masks it well. They ask for what they want and believe they deserve to get it.
[CLOWN SIX: The Stage Manager]: He/him. Early 20s - early 30s. As the Stage Manager, plays [Peter Quince] (a Carpenter), [Demetrius] (a Lover), and [Peaseblossom] (a Faerie). Organized, kind, exasperated – they are always chasing order and control, but never quite find it.
[CLOWN SEVEN: The Assistant Designer]: She/her. Early 20s - early 30s. As the Assistant Designer, plays [Nick Bottom] (a Weaver) and [Helena] (a Lover). A paradoxical combination of confidence and fear; they know their own worth but aren't sure that everyone else does.
