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Seeking
Equity actors, men and women.
seeking actors who are skilled in creating multiple characters, and can communicate both a contemporary and period sensibility.
see breakdown
Preparation
Please prepare a two minute contemporary monologue.
Bring picture and resume, stapled together.
Other Dates
1st Rehearsal: 4/29/14
1st Performance: 5/16/14
Closing: 5/25/14
Venue: The Public Theater, Public Studio, Shiva Theater
Personnel
Written by Mary Kathryn Nagle
Directed by Kate Whoriskey
Casting Directors: Jordan Thaler, Heidi Griffiths
· EPA Rules are in effect.
· A monitor will be provided.
Performers of all ethnic and racial background are encouraged to attend.
Always bring your Equity Membership Card to auditions.
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Breakdown
MANAHATTA tells the parallel stories of Jane, a Native woman from Oklahoma who travels to Manhattan to work on Wall Street on the brink of the financial crisis, and the displacement of the Lenape Indians from their home on the island of Manahatta in the 1600’s. Shifting between the present and the past, MANAHATTA explores how the concepts of indigenous identity, ownership, and capitalism have shaped American society and created the country we know today.
Each present-day role in MANAHATTA will double with a character from the 1600’s. As a result, we are seeking actors who are skilled in creating multiple characters, and can communicate both a contemporary and period sensibility.
SEEKING:
ROBERT/TAMANEND:
50s – 60s. Male. Native American. To play ROBERT: A Delaware Lenape elder. Jane and Debra's father. Proud, stubborn, set in his ways. He still holds fast to his history and tradition, and is hesitant to try new things, explaining that “Indians don’t.” He would never stoop to asking for help or charity from anyone—not even his family. A gifted storyteller, he loves to tell the stories that have been passed down by his ancestors. Loves his daughters, and is frustrated that his age and his inability to adapt to the increasingly unfamiliar world around him prevent him from being able to take care of them. This role will double with TAMANEND: A Lenape elder, living in Manahatta in the 1600’s. Wise, even tempered, humble. He desires to live in peace with the settlers, and to share with them the abundant resources that his people enjoy. The leader of a people who live communally, valuing relationships over property, he has no understanding of the settlers’ ideas of ownership and commerce. When it becomes clear that the settlers are threatening not only his community’s way of life, but the lives of his people, it is up to him to make difficult decisions in order to keep his family and his community safe.
SOLDIER/SE-KET-TU-MAY-QUA:
20s – 30s. Male. Native American. To play SE-KET-TU-MAY-QUA: A Lenape warrior—and a warrior in every sense of the word. Loyal, selfless, brave. He draws criticism from the community for continuing to trade with the White settlers, and for adopting some of their ways. While his behavior is perceived as assimilation by those in his community, in truth, he is learning the settlers’ game in order to help his people survive. He is complicit in the “sale” of Manahatta to the settlers, and the guilt he feels as a result of his inadvertent participation motivates him to protect his community as a way to atone for his past wrongs. This role will also double with SOLDIER: A young soldier in the present day. A citizen of the Delaware Tribe in Bartlesville, returning from a tour of duty in Iraq and visiting Manhattan for the first time
PETER MINUIT/PETER STUYVESANT/DICK:
50s – 60s. Male. Caucasian. To play PETER MINUIT: The Director of the Dutch colony of New Netherland who purchased the island of Manahatta for goods valued at 60 Dutch gilders ($670 USD today). Powerful, brusque, possessing a shrewd mind for business. Bombastic. Possesses the inherent arrogance of a trader—he knows what he wants and if anything stands in his way, he simply destroys it. Also plays PETER STUYVESANT: The last Director-General of New Netherland. Pioneered the expansion of New Amsterdam beyond Manahatta, erected a protective wall along Wall Street, and drove the Native Americans off the island by force. Frank, authoritative, unsentimental. Like his predecessor, he possesses great business acumen, but unlike Minuit, there is nothing showy about him. Rather, he prefers to assert his absolute power by having his commands enforced swiftly and efficiently. Also plays DICK: Present day CEO of a powerful Wall Street investment bank and Jane’s boss. Successful and powerful. Acutely aware of his own power, but also conscious of being an older man trying to compete in a young man’s game. Willing to do whatever it takes to stay ahead of the competition.
ASSISTANT/JOE:
Late 30s – 40s. Male. Caucasian. To play ASSISTANT: Assistant to both Peter Minuet and Peter Stuyvesant. Ambitious, eager, loyal to the Company. At the outset, he is happy to do whatever the Company demands of him, but as the methods become more brutal, he begins to question how far he is willing to go. This role will also double with JOE: the CFO of Wall Street investment bank where Jane works, and Jane’s mentor. Frank, direct, to the point. A true business man, he’s ruthlessly efficient, but is also able to recognize talent and help it flourish. Hard-working, dedicated, willing to sacrifice anything for the good of the firm.
JONAS MICHAELIUS/HOMELESS MAN:
40s – 50s. Male. Caucasian. To play JONAS MICHAELIUS: A clergyman, sent by the Dutch East India Company to start a church in the New World. Humble, kind, and devout. A bit of a zealot. An outsider in the world of capitalism. Appalled by Minuet’s practices in Manahatta, he fears that the Company has lost its way in its relentless pursuit of profit, and missed an opportunity to unite colonists and Native Americans and build a spiritual foundation in the New World. This role will double with HOMELESS MAN: A homeless man living in downtown Manhattan. Exists in his own world.
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The following roles have been CAST.
Actors will be considered for future replacement only:
JANE/LE-LE-WA-YOU:
Role CAST. 20s. Female. Native American. To play JANE: A modern day Lenape woman, citizen of the Delaware Nation in Anadarko, who leaves her home in Oklahoma to work on Wall Street. Bright, independent, brave. Fiercely intelligent. Extremely gifted in math, she thinks in numbers, which allows her to excel in the fast-paced world of trading. A workaholic, she has a tendency to get swept up in her work at the expense of her personal and family life. This role will double with LE-LE-WA-YOU: A young Lenape woman living in Manahatta in the 1600’s. Adventurous, independent, outspoken. Full of energy. She doesn’t pay very much attention to rules, or what people tell her she can’t do or can’t have. Extremely connected to her home, her family and her way of life.
DEBRA/TOOSH-KI-PA-KWIS-I:
Role CAST. Late 20s – early 30s. Female. Native American. To play DEBRA: Lenape, citizen of the Delaware Nation in Anadarko. Jane’s older sister. Has moved in with Robert after their mother’s death and is trying to start a program at the local school to keep the ancestral language alive. Sensible, practical, loyal. A realist with both feet on the ground, she wants a lot of things for her family and for herself, but doesn’t waste time dreaming. Loves her sister, but feels like they’re living in increasingly different worlds. Doubles as TOOSH-KI-PA-KWIS-I: A Lenape woman living in Manahatta in the 1600’s. Le-le-wa-you’s older sister. Sensible, down to earth, protective. She sees and recognizes the threat the settlers pose, and is aware of the danger that her family and her community is facing.
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