Producing Org TBD
CONTRACT
Off Broadway acting in one show: $580 weekly minimum + health/pension If acting in both shows: $870 weekly minimum + health/pension
SEEKING
Equity actors for roles in CHEKHOV + TURGENEV (see breakdown).
Chekhov + Turgenev features two separate plays in rep. Each play will be presented ~14 times over the 4-week limited run. Some actors will be cast in both plays, some will be cast in only one.
INSTRUCTIONS
SEE PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS IN BREAKDOWN. Please submit at https://form.jotform.com/220536184516151 . If you encounter any technical difficulties, you may submit via e-mail to submissions@michaelcassara.net – but please only use that if you are unable to use the form or have any questions/encounter any errors. Deadline: 6 PM (US/Eastern) on Thursday, March 10th, 2022.
Deadline: Thu, Mar 10, 2022
PERSONNEL
Producer: Blueprint
Casting Director: Michael Cassara, CSA (viewing auditions)
ABOUT LOVE Playwright/Director for both shows: Will Pomerantz (viewing auditions)
ABOUT LOVE
Music: Nancy Harrow
Inspired by “First Love” by Ivan Turgenev
Based on an idea by Nancy Harrow
THREE SISTERS
Adapted by Will Pomerantz based on Chekhov’s Play
OTHER DATES
Callbacks will be held (via video and/or in person) in mid-March
First Rehearsal: on/about 4/12
First Preview: 5/10
Closes: 6/5
OTHER
Venue: The Sheen Center
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 submit.
BREAKDOWN
PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS:
Please prepare a brief classical monologue (not Shakespeare), 1-2 minutes in length.
If you are a singer, feel free to also include singing footage or prepare a brief song in a traditional musical theatre/jazz/standard vein. Singing is only required for performers in About Love, not Three Sisters.
Existing footage (reels, etc.) are fine, but we do ask for them to be as current as possible. Please don't submit anything over a year old.
Equity Required Accompaniment Tracks: In the event that a performer does not have access to audition accompaniment tracks of their own, we have provided audition accompaniment cuts of Irving Berlin's Always, now in the public domain, which you are welcome to use as a general singing audition. Per Equity rules, it has been provided in 4 separate keys (Soprano/Alto/Tenor/Bass) and tracks/sheet music can be obtained from: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/1a4ff2936tn2wcf/AAALsljpkIdBCzETdyi6ulVna?dl=0 . – please do NOT feel obligated to use these tracks, they are here solely to satisfy Equity's requirement that tracks be provided – we are most interested in hearing you perform whatever suits YOU best. You are welcome to use any material of your choosing, but we do strongly prefer that you sing with accompaniment or an accompaniment track. Additionally, feel free to submit supplementary footage (reels, etc.) that you think may be of use.
ABOUT LOVE
VOCAL/SINGING REQUIREMENTS: For all roles in About Love, actors should sing, at least on a basic level - but vocal strength is a major plus. It is definitely a play with songs, but we are seeking strong/versatile actors above all else.
SEEKING:
[PETER] male, any ethnicity, 18+ to play late teens; sensitive and earnest, intelligent, and not without a sense of humor; comes from a well-to-do family; completely infatuated with Zina. (MUST sing well, though not necessarily in a musical theatre style.)
[TRACK 3] male, any ethnicity, multiple roles: LUSHIN, VONIFATY, DMITRI: LUSHIN – 30s/40s; Lushin is a doctor; he has a keen sense of irony regarding life, as well as a bit of ruefulness at times; has a Chekhovian warmth and wisdom; in love with Zina. VONIFATY – a cranky manservant who works for the family of the Princess and Zina; doesn’t get paid much and delivers accordingly. DMITRI – a youngish servant within Peter’s household; good-natured, artistic, and gets along with Peter.
[TRACK 4] female, any ethnicity, multiple roles: THE PRINCESS, COUNT MALEVSKY, MASHA: THE PRINCESS – 40s/50s; married into money and a title; has lost pretty much everything but the title; never really had the manners and breeding of nobility, which became more obvious after her husband’s death; a bit scattered and nostalgic for the ways things were; has a lot of pressure on her due to the debts left by her husband; has let herself go a bit. MALEVSKY – low-level nobility; a schemer always on the make, always interested in money; ready to charm whomever he needs to, to get what he wants; in love with Zina, or at least is very interested in sleeping with her. MASHA – a simple and sincere washerwoman employed by Peter’s family; knows a scandal when she sees one.
The following roles are currently CAST: offers have been made and accepted. Please submit only as a potential future/emergency replacement:
[ZINA] female, any ethnicity, early to mid-20s; charismatic and complex; she comes from fallen nobility, but she makes up for her lack of means through her innate magnetism and intelligence; under her vibrancy and seemingly limitless self-confidence lies a vulnerable young woman. (MUST sing well, though not necessarily in a musical theatre style.) [THIS ROLE IS CAST.]
[TRACK 1] male, any ethnicity, multiple roles: FATHER, CAPTAIN MARKOV, HOTEL MANAGER: FATHER – Late 30s/40s; dashing, private; an almost romantic figure, if a bit cold; rules the household; he is idolized by Peter. CAPTAIN MARKOV – a military man; formal, even a bit stiff; not a lot of humor; believes he can conquer anything, if he puts his mind to it. In love with Zina. HOTEL MANAGER -- a decent man, with a sense of decorum; runs a fancy hotel in Moscow. [THIS ROLE IS CAST.]
[TRACK 2] female, any ethnicity, multiple roles: MOTHER, MAIDONOV, MAN WITH HORSES: MOTHER – 40s/50s; from a well-to-do family; cultured; her marriage with Peter’s father has cooled somewhat; protective of Peter; aware of social niceties and obligations; has a bit of a temper. MAIDONOV – a narcissistic poet and hanger-on; larger than life and dramatic; in love with Zina. MAN WITH HORSES – a working-class horseman who works at a stable in a tough part of Moscow. [THIS ROLE IS CAST.]
THREE SISTERS
SEEKING:
[IRINA] 20s, female, any ethnicity. Irina is the youngest of the sisters. She is idealistic, passionate, and has an innocence about her. She is charming and entertaining and enjoys being the center of attention.
[OLGA] late 20s/30s, female, any ethnicity. The oldest of the sisters and also the most responsible. Good-hearted and hardworking, she is a bit of a surrogate mother to the household. Intelligent and strong, but also sensitive. Can’t bear ugliness or cruelty.
[VERSHININ] 40s, male, any ethnicity. A military officer, but also a philosopher who thinks a lot about life and what it all means. Has a great capacity for joy but is trapped in a difficult marriage. He likes to talk, both about philosophy, society, and his bad marriage.
[CHEBUTYKIN] 50s/60s, male, any ethnicity. A flawed but lovable man, he is like an uncle to the sisters, and is a partner in crime with their brother; doesn’t do well with liquor and sometimes falls off the wagon. Used to be a doctor, but now mostly just reads the newspaper.
[KULYGIN] 40s/50s, male, any ethnicity. A high school Latin teacher, Kulygin has a narrow view of life; his main concern is keeping his job and not alienating the head of the school. Not a bad person, but not someone you’d want to be trapped talking to at a dinner party. Married to Masha.
[ANDREI] 30s, male, any ethnicity. The older brother of the three sisters, Andrei is an intellectual, with many varied interests within the arts and humanities. Hoped to become a professor but has had to settle for being a petty bureaucrat. Married to Natasha, he makes some bad decisions as a result of his resentments.
[SOLYONY] 20s-30s, male, any ethnicity. A loner who can come off as aloof or brusque. He is actually quite shy and insecure, and his rudeness is a cover for his vulnerability, in love with Irina.
The following roles are currently CAST: offers have been made and accepted. Please submit only as a potential future/emergency replacement:
[MASHA] 20s-30s, female, any ethnicity. The middle sister, Masha is a talented musician with an artistic sensibility who finds little in the provincial town or her marriage to feed her soul. She has a sardonic sense of humor and a great capacity for love and passion. [THIS ROLE IS CAST.]
[ANFISA] 70s, female, any ethnicity. The family nanny for decades. Kind and also hard of hearing. [THIS ROLE IS CAST.]
[BARON TUSENBACH] 30s, male, any ethnicity. A reluctant soldier from a privileged background, the Baron likes to philosophize and think about the state of the world. In love with Irina. [THIS ROLE IS CAST.]
[NATASHA] 20s-30s, female, any ethnicity. From a provincial family, Natasha is ambitious and grasping under her naive and unsophisticated exterior. [THIS ROLE IS CAST.]
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 submit.
Videos
