AUDITIONS: Blue Stockings
Audition Notice-Blue Stockings
by Jessica Swale
Playing Dates: 3rd – 11th April 2020
Director – Aisling Tigwell
Audition Notice:
Sunday 27th October 2019 3pm at The Stables Theatre
Set over the academic year of 1896 to 1897, ‘Blue Stockings’ takes place in and around Girton College Cambridge. Girton, was the first college to admit women in 1869. However, whilst their male counterparts could graduate the women cannot. The women face the stigma of being called a ‘Blue Stocking’ an unnatural educated woman and not one that any man would want to marry. ‘Blue Stockings’ follows four young women and their teachers as they fight for their right to graduate alongside their male counterparts. They face prejudice, the class divide and the pressure to conform to society’s expectations of women.
There will be a read through in December before rehearsals start in full in January. I would encourage people of any racial or ethnic background to audition for these roles. If you have any questions about the auditions or cannot make the audition date, please contact the director, Aisling Tigwell, on aislingtigwell@hotmail.co.uk
The Girton Students
Tess Moffat – playing age 20- 30 Audition pages: 42-44, 46-48, 49-53, 102-103
Tess is the central character of the play. The audience see the action of the play through her eyes. She is conflicted between wanting to study science and also the desire to have children and get married. She is also not afraid to stand up for what she believes in. For example, she questions Dr Maudsley’s views around hysteria in women.
Celia Wilibond – playing age- 20-30 Audition pages: 46-48, 102-103
Is the most conventional of the four Girton Girls in terms of what the Victorian stereotype of what a woman should be. Celia is not a risk taker and much more likely to follow the rules of the society set for her. Celia has fought hard to keep her place at Girton and will not allow anyone to distract her from her studies.
Carolyn Addison – playing age 20 -30 Audition pages: 46-48, 73-75
Is the most eccentric and bohemian of the Girton students. She is well travelled and frequently mentions her travels when talking to the others. She is relatively carefree and is much more willing to break and bend society’s rules. She is most affluent of the four Girton girls.
Maeve Sullivan – playing age 20-30 Audition pages: 46-48 and 60-62
She keeps herself to herself and is probably the most naturally intelligent of all the Girton students. She does not come from an affluent background and is at Girton as she has a generous benefactor. When tragedy strikes Maeve her family background is revealed and provides an emotional end to the first half of the play. It would be nice to see a regional dialect for Maeve.
The Male Students
Ralph Mayhew – playing age 20-30 Audition pages: 49-53, 95-99
A second year student at Trinity College, Ralph is a romantic and a scientist who falls in love with Tess. He does have sympathy towards women studying at Cambridge but ultimately he bows to pressure from his father in deciding who to marry.
Will Bennett – playing age 20-30 Audition pages: 42-44, 95-99
Tess’s friend from childhood, he feels very protective of her. He is initially not very supportive of the women’s cause but by the end of the play is one of the few men who support a woman’s right to a degree. He eventually confesses his love for Tess. He is a second year at King’s which makes him more of an outsider to the other male students and is treated as such.
Lloyd- playing age 20-30 Audition pages: 86-89, 95-99
A second year student at Trinity, he is the most vocal of the male students in his opposition to women gaining the right to graduate and is cruellest to the girls. He is scared of the changes that might be coming and that he might be undermined by the female students.
Holmes- playing age 20-30 Audition pages: 22, 86-89, 95-99
Another second year student at Trinity, he comes from a very privileged background. He expresses some similar views to Lloyd but is maybe not quite as fearful and cruel.
Edwards – playing age 20-30 Audition pages: 22 86—89, 95-99
He is a little bit more welcoming to Will and shows glimpses of being more sympathetic to the women but he is shut down by Lloyd and Holmes.
The Staff
Elizabeth Welsh – playing age 40+ Audition pages: 58-62, 67 and 113
One of only two characters in the play who actually existed, Elizabeth Welsh was mistress of Girton college. Mrs Welsh is an interesting character who is committed to the fight to allow the women to graduate and thus views the suffragettes as a distraction and discourages the girls from attending any suffragette meetings.
Mr Banks – playing age 40+ Audition pages: 69-72
The most sympathetic of all the male characters to the women’s fight to graduate. He ultimately pays the price with the establishment for choosing to educate the Girton women.
Miss Blake – playing age 35+ Audition pages: 58-62
One of the teachers at Girton, she has committed her life to the pursuit of education and has remained unmarried. She is sympathetic to the suffrage movement and is ultimately made to choose between Girton and fighting for the vote.
Minnie– Any age 16+ Audition pages: 47-48
The Maid of Girton College she looks after all of the Girton Students.
Roles which will have a Double
Dr Maudsley/ Professor Anderson – playing age 50+ Audition pages: 14 and 69-72
Dr Maudlesy is the other character in the play based on a person who actually existed. He was a leading psychiatrist of his time. He comes to Trinity to deliver a lecture and clashes with Tess over hysteria in women. Professor Anderson is the a Cambridge Professor who recommends Mr Banks for Tenure.
Miss Bott/ Mrs Lindlay – playing age 45+ Audition pages: 73-75 and 86-89
Miss Bott is the girl’s chaperone she may at first seem like she is a stickler for the rules but there is more to her than that. Mrs Lindlay runs the haberdashery shop.
Professor Collins/ Mr Peck – playing age 40+ Audition pages: 69-72 and page 81
Professor Collins is one of the professors who interviews Mrs Banks to get the job at Trinity. Mr Peck is the groundskeeper at Girton. Has some funny moments with Carolyn.
Professor Radleigh/ librarian and the waiter. – playing age 40+ Audition pages: 69-72
A professor who interviews Mr Banks about the full time position at Trinity.
Billy Sullivan – Audition Pages: 58-59
Maeve’s brother who comes to visit Girton following a family tragedy. This role will be played by one of the actors playing Lloyd, Holmes or Edwards.
AUDITIONS: PRESSURE
PRESSURE
by David Haig
Production Dates 7th to 15th February 2019
Director Carol Hunt
Assistant Director Christopher Cook
Audition Notice: Sunday 13th October 6pm
It’s June 2nd 1944. The clock is ticking down. In 72 hours, 350,000 troops are to cross the Channel in operation Overlord. The fate of the 350,000, the future of Britain, Europe and the United States rests on one single weather forecast.
David Haig’s story is about the unsung heroes. Packed in its tightening isobars are the personal battles and pressures of responsibility that weigh heavily on those who must make the decisions. Two meteorologists with different forecasts. One General whose decision is about to change the course of history.
Dr James Stagg – Chief meteorologist for the Allied Forces
A Scotsman, mid 40’s, dour, brusque and initially not easy to warm to but his integrity and tenacity will capture the audience as the play progresses. Scottish accent. Audition pages 20 to 23 plus 45 to 47.
Colonel Irving Krick – Chief meteorologist for the United States Armed Forces
Late 30’s. Confident, smart, charismatic. The first celebrity weatherman. American accent. Audition pages 20 to 23 plus 59 to 61.
Flight-Lieutenant Andrew Carter – from the Met Office.
Young enthusiast and immediately likeable perhaps a little effeminate. Excited to be working with the well-respected Stagg. Efficient. On the ball. Audition pages 7 and 8 plus 83 to 85.
Lieutenant Kay Summersby – Eisenhower’s chauffer and unofficial aide and confidante.
Late 30’s. Attractive, vivacious, loyal and capable. Her close relationship with Eisenhower becomes apparent as the story unfolds. Possibly a slight Anglo-Irish accent. Audition pages 70 to 75.
General Dwight D. Eisenhower (Ike) – Allied Supreme Commander with sole responsibility for the D-Day landings.
Mid 50’s. A heavy smoker. He walks with an occasional limp from a knee injury. He has a more relaxed ‘American’ style than his British contemporaries but he is nobody’s fool. Fair, respected. A married man who must deal with his feelings for Kay. American accent. Audition pages 45 to 47, 72 to 75 plus 96 and 97.
The following roles are doubled:
Lieutenant Battersby/Captain Johns
Age 30s. Keen, efficient. Audition pages 87 to 89 (Battersby). Pages 106 and 107 (Capt. Johns).
Commander Franklin/General ‘Tooey’ Spaatz
Mid 50’s. Spaatz is sceptical of Stagg’s forecast and inclined to trust Krick who he has worked with before. He displays nervous energy. Believes D-Day should go ahead as planned. American accent. Audition page 33 to 37 plus 79 (Spaatz). Pages 87 to 89 (Franklin).
Electrician/Admiral Bertram Ramsay (Bertie)
Early 60’s. Electrician. Stolid, chatty. A wonderful cameo role. Audition pages 27 to 29. Bertie. Level, realistic. Voice of reason. Audition pages 33 to 37 plus 79.
Air Chief Marshall Sir Trafford Leigh-Mallory
Early 50’s. Serious, considering. Dignified. Audition pages 33 to 37 plus 79.
Naval Meteorologist
Young. Smart. Keen. Audition pages 8 and 9.
If you would like more information on the play in general or any of the roles please call:
Carol Hunt 01797 260898
‘Season’s Greetings’
by Alan Ayckbourn.
Auditions: Sunday 29th April 2018, 3pm.
Playing Dates: 30th November – 8th December 2018.
Director: Adrian Bowd.
“Brilliantly combines cynicism and humor.” – Sunday Express.
“Superbly crafted.” – Sunday Telegraph.
Characters
Bernard
a feeble-spirited doctor, with strong views on non-violence and obsessed with a dismal puppet show for the children;
Phyllis
Bernard’s lush of a wife, whom Bernard struggles to support;
Neville
Phyllis’s brother. always busy fiddling with anything mechanical out in his shed;
Belinda
Endures a stale marriage to Neville, resorting to flapping about the house and constantly dressing the Christmas tree.
Eddie
A lacklustre and lazy man who tried to strike out on his own but failed, sucks up to his friend Neville for work;
Pattie
Eddie’s pregnant wife, largely ignored, and can only nag at him and wish she were not having another child;
Rachel
Belinda’s emotionally fuddled sister;
Clive
A writer, in a non-starter of a relationship with Rachel
Harvey
Neville and Phyllis’s uncle, a cantankerous man who boasts about “thirty years experience” as a security officer, bemoans the collapse of society whilst himself gorging on TV violence, much to Bernard’s annoyance.
Scripts will be available to hire from the Box Office.
‘Let The Right One In’
Based on the novel and film by John Ajvide Lindqvist
Adapted for the stage by Jack Thorne
Directed by Matt Turpin
Playing 20 – 28 October 2017
Auditions Sunday 14 May at 3:30 pm
“I’m not that. I live on blood. But I am not …that …can I come in?”
THE PLAY
Oskar is a lonely bullied teenage boy living with his mother on a housing estate at the edge of town. Eli, a girl who has just moved in next door. She doesn’t go to school and never leaves the flat by day. Sensing in each other a kindred spirit, the two quickly become devoted friends. What Oskar doesn’t know however, is that Eli has been a teenager for a very long time… As their friendship deepens, a series of sinister killings shock the neighborhood.
Jack Thorne’s adaptation of Let the Right One In is based on the novel by John Ajvide Lindqvist (Låt den rätte komma in, 2004) and the subsequent Swedish-language film version). A 2010 British-American remake of the film entitled ‘Let Me In’ followed, with both films and achieving cult status and equal critical acclaim.
Let the Right One In is a truly rare piece of theatre, an enchanting, brutal vampire myth and a coming-of-age love story.
THE DIRECTOR
This will be my fourth time as a director following on from previous Stables Theatre productions ‘Silly Cow’ (2014) and ‘Sylvia’ (2016), and ‘The Birds’ (2015) for George Lassos the Moon Theatre. Directing ‘Let the Right One In’ promises to be my biggest challenge yet but one that I have been extremely excited about since first putting the idea forward back in 2015. I have a passion for pre/post-apocalyptic and the darker side of theatre and am delighted that the Stables have entrusted me with the stewardship of what I believe to be their first gothic horror vampire love story.
AUDITIONS AND REHEARSALS
The play will be set in a non-specific location in Scandinavia, however I do not require anyone to use an accent at the audition. Any accents will be discussed, coached and introduced during the rehearsal process.
I would like to encourage as many people to audition as possible, including newcomers to the Stables, frequent and less frequent performers alike. When casting, I will be looking to find a group that are dedicated and hard-working that work as part of a team more than necessarily the most experienced of actors. For the younger cast members, I will aim to optimise the summer holidays for possible daytime rehearsals and physical workshops subject to cast availability.
THE CHARACTERS
Unless specified with M or F, I will consider any gender for the roles. Audition pieces in brackets. Further ‘doubling’ for the smaller roles may be an option. Playing ages are a guide only, however I will only be able to consider actors aged 16 or above for any of the named parts.
Eli (F) Can seem somewhat cold and distant, but her relationship with Oskar exposes a warmer side of her personality. I am ideally looking for an actor between the age of 16-18 who is extremely agile and hard working. This is a wonderful part quite unlike any other but requires a strong actor with a dance/gym background due to the physical aspects of the part (Act 2 Sc 3 & Act 1 Sc 6)
Oskar (M 16-18) A lonely, bullied young boy. His troubled home life and struggles with school render him quiet and vulnerable. However, his relationship with Eli draws out a soft, playful, and also resilient aspect of his character. We watch Oscar blossom into who he is capable of being when free from the control of those who torment him (Act 2 Sc 3 & Act 1 Sc 6)
Halmberg (25-45) Police chief investigating the murders which are a little more than he/she ever expected to have to deal with in this sleepy town. (Act 1 Sc 7)
Oskar’s Mum (F 35+) Only has Oskar in her life but struggles look after him or herself and still has anger and resentment towards his father which she struggles to hide. (Act 1 Sc 5 & Act 2 Sc 5)
Hakan (40-50) Appears to be Eli’s guardian or parent but this is not the case. Hakan loves Eli very deeply, and consequently kills people for blood to feed her, so is condemed to a half-life and desolate existence. Physically strong actor (m/f) required. (Pg 28/29 & Act 1 Sc 13)
Avila (30+) PE teacher. Recognises Oskar’s troubles, but finds it difficult to help him (Pg 42-43 & 77)
Jonny (M 16-19) School bully, takes pleasure in making Oskar’s life miserable. (Act 1 Sc 8)
Micke (M 16-19) Jonny’s sidekick, sympathises with Oskar but too weak to stand up to Jonny. (Act 1 Sc 8)
Kurt (20+) Shopkeeper, the first to sense Oskars pain and tries to reach out to him three short scenes (Act 1 Sc 3, Act 2 Sc 12)
Oskar’s Dad & Jocke (M 35+) Estranged from Oskar and his mum, finds it difficult to relate to his son. Doubles with Jocke. A passer by who tries to help Eli but gets fatally attacked. Strong physical actor required. (Act 2 Sc 6)
Nils & Stefan (any age) Hospital receptionist doubled with train guard. Two short scenes (Act 2 Sc 1)
Janne & Torkel (M any age) Partner of Oskar’s Dad, one short scene doubled with Torkel who is fatally attacked in one scene. Strong physical actor required. (Act 2 Sc 6)
Jimmy (M 20) Bully. Brother to Jonny. Leads attack on Oskar. (Act 2 Sc 1)
Oskar’s peers/extras: (16-18) A group of 4-5 others who will be in numerous scenes and helping backstage. A small core group who’s actual age can be a little younger than the playing age. Good opportunity for stage experience and teamwork/performance elements!
