Classic Stage Company
AUDITION DATES
Fri, Oct 11, 2019
9:30 am - 5:30 pm (EDT)
Lunch 1 to 2
Wed, Oct 16, 2019
9:30 am - 5:30 pm (EDT)
Lunch 1 to 2
CONTRACT
Off Broadway Cat 5; $772.00/week
SEEKING
Classic Stage Company is seeking Equity actors for nine roles. See Breakdown. Equity actors of all ethnicities, gender identities, ages, and abilities are encouraged to attend. All actors should have excellent language skills – be able to speak at the speed of thought – as well as great emotional depth and comic timing. Almost all characters have accents.
PREPARATION
Classical or contemporary monologue that is no longer than 2 minutes. Bring picture and resume
LOCATION
Actors' Equity New York Audition Center
165 W 46th St
16th Fl
New York, NY 10036
PERSONNEL
Playwright, Kate Hamill
Director, Sarna Lapine
Producer, Classic Stage Company
A representative from CSC or the assistant to the director is expected to attend the auditions.
This production will run in repertory with FRANKENSTEIN, by Tristan Bernays.
Production Stage Manager position is filled for this production.
OTHER DATES
First Rehearsal: Tuesday, December 10, 2019
First Preview: Tuesday, January 14, 2020
Opening: Sunday, February 16, 2020
Closing: Sunday, March 8, 2020
OTHER
EPA Procedures are in effect for 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
DOCTOR VAN HELSING / and roles as cast:
40s+. American. A female vampire hunter. She takes no crap from anybody. She wears dusty beaten clothing and a big cowboy hat. She has one, long nasty old scar all up and down the side of her face – from an encounter she’d rather not talk about. She’s been through it. She’s a bit of a know-it-all; okay, she’s a lot of a know-it-all. She’s prickly. She’s strong. She’s brilliant. She’s no lady. She’s on the hunt. She is badass– and 19th century men do not, as a rule, appreciate it.
MINA HARKER / and roles as cast:
20s-30s. Female. Very smart. Caring. Loyal. Wants to do the right thing. Was raised to be a Lady, and is thus suppressing an inner fire that emerges throughout the progression of the play. Great emotional depth, good sense of humor. Must face her darkest fears – comes out stronger at the end of it. Secretly an adventurer, and fighter. Is called to be more than she once was. RP accent.
LUCY WESTENRA / and roles as cast:
20s-30s. Female. Bright, funny, vivacious, playful, and mischievous. Feels trapped by expectations and torn about her lot in life. About to be married, and deeply conscious of how that puts her under a 19th century man’s control. Reflexively flirtatious. Believes she must pretend to be less than she is.. Yearns for freedom. Falls desperately ill after being bitten by Dracula… and then becomes a completely different being - an animalistic, vampire demon – a naturally manipulative predator. Lucy’s vampire self is deeply unpredictable and frightening. Vivacious to vicious in the blink of an eye. RP accent.
MARILLA / and roles as cast:
20s-30s. A vampire. Female. More animal than human. Was lured into vampirehood by Dracula, who then proceeded to exploit her. Enjoys being a predator. Finds pleasure in consuming others. Resents her objectification. Manipulative; vicious; probably sociopathic. Capable of moving very fast– blink, and oh God, she’s right behind you. Sister-wife to DRUSILLA. Actor must be able to do a Romanian accent as well as RP / lower class British. Doubles with MERCHANT – a merchant looking to make a sale.
DRUSILLA / and roles as cast:
20s-30s. A vampire. Female. More animal than human. Was lured into vampirehood by Dracula, who then proceeded to exploit her. Enjoys being a predator. Finds pleasure in consuming others. Resents her objectification. Manipulative; vicious; probably sociopathic. Capable of moving very fast – blink, and oh God, she’s right behind you. Sister-wife to MARILLA. Actor must be able to do a Romanian accent as well as lower class British and Irish. Doubles with MAID – an underpaid, resentful servant – and MILLER – a casually brutal asylum attendant.
RENFIELD / and roles as cast
(role is cast, but possible replacements/understudies): Any age. Female. A madwoman. Worships Dracula. Believes that if she can earn his approval, she will be free. Not a bad soul, really, but capable of extreme brutality or duplicity in service of her religious zealotry. Must be capable of speaking very dense text, very fast. RP accent.
DRACULA / and roles as cast:
late 30s – late 50s. Male. A physically imposing man. He is…. extremely confident. Strong. Funny. Charming. Sexy. You’d like him, reader - no, really, you would. He makes people lose their heads. Manipulative. Commanding. Capable of being very, very frightening. Unpredictable. Physically strong. Incredible with language. Unimaginably powerful. Brilliant. Casually takes pleasure in cruelty. An equal-opportunity sexual sadist. A toxic predator; a wolf in the fold; a very old and clever parasite, capable of adapting and surviving. Actor must be able to do both a Romanian and RP accent, as well as transforming himself physically to play a DOCTOR – a good man, if a bit obtuse - and a MESSENGER.
JONATHAN HARKER / and roles as cast:
20s-40s. Male. A nice man. A truly decent man. A lawyer; a man of letters; a slight man; a slightly fussy man. If being unkind, one could say he’s delicate. He’s very, very British. Cares about people. Is maybe a little rule-bound. Loves his wife, Mina, deeply. Is bitten by Dracula, and then loses his mind – becoming an easily-confused, raving shambles. After recovering from sickness, he slowly gives in to Dracula’s darkness – becoming an abusive, toxic man. Once he’s under Dracula’s influence, we can’t always tell if he’s telling the truth. Can quickly switch from likeable to extremely volatile. RP accent.
DOCTOR GEORGE SEWARD / and roles as cast:
30s – 40s. Male. The head physician of a lunatic asylum. A good man, but starts out the play as a product of his era – has some trouble listening to women. Believes only in the evidence of his own eyes. Tends to mansplain. Deeply in love with his fiancé Lucy Westenra, of whom he is overprotective. Has a very contentious relationship with Van Helsing. Doesn’t like to not feel in control. Chivalrous. Thinks of himself as a modern man; a man of science. Over the course of the play, he learns to accept female leadership and question his assumptions. A brave man. Likeable. RP accent.
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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