MEMPHIS Equity Chorus Call Singers - Shubert Theatre Auditions

MEMPHIS – Equity Chorus Call / Singers who move well

Broadway / Production Contract; $1605/week minimum

Producer: Junkyard Dog Productions

Director: Christopher Ashley

Music & Lyrics: David Bryan

Book & Lyrics: Joe DiPietro

Choreographer: Sergio Trujillo

Music Supervisor: Chris Jahnke

Music Director: Kenny Seymour

General Manager: Alchemy Production Group

Casting: Telsey + Company

Equity Chorus Call / Singers who move well:

Tuesday, September 14, 2010 at Telsey + Company

10:30 AM – Equity female singers 315 West 43^rd Street, 10^th Floor

2 PM – Equity male singers New York, NY

Please prepare 16-bars of a pop/rock or R&B song. Bring sheet music; accompanist provided.

Bring picture and resume, stapled together.

MEMPHIS tells the fictional story of Huey Calhoun, one of the first white disc jockeys who dared to play rhythm & blues music for his white teenage listeners in the early 1950s.

Seeking:

Ensemble Singers:

Male and female singers – all ethnicities to play various ensemble characters (20s – 40s) and understudy principals. Must be excellent singers in different styles (R&B, pop/rock).

Ensemble members will understudy the following principal roles:

Huey:

Caucasian male, 20s-30s; tenor with a great feel for pop/rock/R&B styles; he is our frenzied, bombastic, motor-mouthed hero who talks his way into becoming a DJ at a local ‘white’ radio station. He ignores race barriers and eventually falls in love with Felicia, a talented black singer, which causes a whole new set of problems for Huey in segregated Memphis.

Felicia:

African-American female, 20s-30s; high R&B belt voice; Beautiful, wide-eyed, and a fiercely gifted singer, Felicia follows her heart and falls in love with Huey, despite knowing deep down that a relationship between a white man and a black woman in prejudiced Memphis is doomed.

Delray:

African-American male, 30s-40s; bari-tenor with a great pop/rock/R&B voice; Delray is Felicia’s older brother who owns the club on Beale Street where she sings. He is realistic, cautious, protective, and aware of the realities of the segregation that exists in Memphis and the world beyond.

Gladys:

Caucasian female, 40s – 60s; strong singer with alto-belt mix; excellent actor with comic skills; Huey’s stern, traditional blue-collar, southern mother; She has worked her entire life to be able to support herself and her son, who she loves but about whom she constantly worries.

Gator:

African-American male, 20s-30s; great R&B bari-tenor; Gator works as a bartender at Delray’s – he hasn’t spoken since age 5, when he saw his father killed. As the story progresses, Gator finds his voice again. Must be an excellent actor and singer; comic timing a plus.

Mr. Simmons:

Caucasian male, 40s-60s; Great actor who is comfortable with a small amount of singing; Mr. Simmons is the conservative owner of the radio station where Huey gets his start. The strong, southern, commanding business man becomes willing to take a chance on Huey when he realizes the audience Huey reaches and the money he can command.

Bobby:

African-American male, 30s-40s; great gospel voice. Bobby is the janitor at Mr. Simmons’s radio station. Full of personality and heart. Needs an actor who is comfortable with physicality as he has a dance break in his show-stopping number “Big Love.” Comic skills a plus.