CASTING CALL: GHOST CITY - THE PLAY. ONE ACT PLAY IN THREE ACTS - 40 minutes

PAY: $150.00 FLAT FEE
Travel + rehearsal and performance stipend paid upon completion of the run.
Catered meals provided during tech weekend and show days.
2 performances scheduled.
December 5, 2026 evening, and December 6, 2026 matinee.
(Theatre parking is provided for free during tech day and performance day)

Headline: CASTING CALL: Ghost City (Indie Theatre Project / 1-Act Neo-Noir)
Production Type: Short Play Showcase (40-Minute Runtime)
Production Location: Santa Monica / Westside Los Angeles
Key Dates: Rehearsals begin late-October. Performs Dec 5 & 6, 2026.
Compensation: Under LA 99-Seat / Short Play Tier

Project Logline:
The Ghost City is a fast-paced, 40-minute psychological neo-noir tracking a washed-up 1950s journalist chasing a career-reviving scoop. When an undercover agent hands him a 1950s crime ledger paired with a modern USB drive, he is thrust into a reality where the city's syndicates never stopped looting—they just updated the software. Driven by a cynical, cinematic precursor narrator, the play explores institutional theft, time-fractured secrets, and a city running on code.

Seeking All Roles:
• HARRY STONE (Lead, Masculine-presenting, 40s-50s): A classic hard-boiled journalist. Physically exhausted, world-weary, heavy-lidded. A man with nothing left to lose. Low, gravelly rasp. Holds intense psychological presence.
• ELENA / THE AGENT (Lead, Feminine-presenting, 30s-40s): Fast, clinical, precise. Carries an aura of high-stakes danger. Balances sharp emotional armor with a deep, lingering history with Harry.
• ARIS (Supporting, Open Gender, 50s-70s): Subterranean archivist. Sharp, observant, deeply cynical. Unbothered by late hours or danger. Excellent micro-expression acting and deadpan comedic timing.
• THE NARRATOR (Voice-Over Only, Open Gender): A dry, detached, omniscient presence. Pre-recorded or live off-stage. Requires an immaculate sense of dramatic rhythm and a deep, commanding vocal texture. Please watch The Killing (1956) for vocal reference.

To Apply:
Please submit headshot, resume, and link to your reel to with the subject line: [ROLE] Submission – Ghost City. Auditions will be held by invitation the week of October 12th.

THE HOOK:
What if the corporate conspiracies of mid-century cinema didn't end with the closing credits? What if they just digitized? 
Ghost City bridges classic 1950s cinematic grime with the chilling infinity of the early digital era.