Chester Theatre Group

The Chester Theatre Group will be holding auditions for its Summer production of MUSICAL CHAIRS, with Book by Barry Berg, Ken Donnelly and Tom Savage, and Music and Lyrics by Tom Savage. This production is to have both direction and musical direction by Clifford Parish of Bernardsville. MUSICAL CHAIRS is based on an original story concept by Larry J. Pontillo.

Auditions will be at the Black River Playhouse located on the corners of Grove Street and Maple Avenue in Chester, NJ on Saturday May 1st at 1:00 pm and on Wednesday, May 5th at 7:00 pm. Auditioners are asked to bring music in their key, an accompanist will be provided. Readings will be from the script.

Performances dates are to be determined.  Previously published dates may not be the actual dates.

ABOUT THE STORY

Joe Preston has not had a hit in years, and is hoping his new play will revive his career. He is at the mercy of an audience consisting of two typical “matinee ladies”, a married couple who fight all the time, an anxious young man waiting for his date, an illiterate rock singer trying to impress his date with some culture, a successful business man and his culture vulture wife and three critics–one of whom hates Preston’s work and another who begged his editor not to assign him to his show because Sam, his lover who recently jilted him, is in the cast. Also unexpectedly in the audience is Joe’s beautiful ex-wife who left NY Theater to become a TV Star. This bright show is about these audience members watching opening night of a new play and the drama and comedy aren’t only happening on the stage. Each audience member has a story and the audiences at MUSICAL CHAIRS get to hear them all. The NY POST said “it is clever, it is funny, and it is original.” And VARIETY called it, “a lively, entertaining musical.” The Sam French catalog states, “MUSICAL CHAIRS has marvelous music, hysterical comedy and at least 6 showstoppers which make this a surefire winner!”

CAST BREAKDOWN

With the exception of Sallie and Stage Manager – all are featured roles

• Maddie – Producer – 40+ – mezzo/belt
• Joe Preston – playwright – 35-50 – baritone
• Valerie Brooks – Joe’s ex-wife/tv star – 35-45 – mezzo/belt
• Roberta – matinee Lady #1 – 50+ – mezzo/belt
• Millie – matinee Lady #2 – 50+ – mezzo/belt
• Lillian – culture vulture wife – 40-60 – belt
• Harold – successful businessman – 40-60 – baritone
• Gary – concerned husband – 30-45 – tenor
• Janet – distracted wife – 30-45 – mezzo
• Brad – rock singer with big ego and small intellect– 20s – rock tenor
• Miranda – quirky insecure girl on first date with Brad – 20s – comedic mezzo
• Brown Suit – curmudgeonly old school theater critic -30+ – baritone – dancer
• Blue Suit – positive theater critic – 30+ – tenor – dancer
• Tuxedo –critic who had a personal relationship with actor in show – 30+ – bari/tenor – dancer
• Boyfriend – young guy waiting for new girlfriend to meet him at theater – 20s – baritone
• Sallie – new girlfriend who is late to show – 20s – non-singing role
• Stage Manager – non-singing role – male or female any age

For any questions regarding auditions, please contact the director at ChpMM@aol.com .

We’re holding auditions for our upcoming production of TRIUMPH OF LOVE based on the play by Marivaux with book by James Magruder, music by Jeffrey Stock and lyrics by Susan Birkenhead.  The show will be directed by Jeffrey Fiorello with musical direction by Tom Rodgers and will be produced by Penny Hoadley and Jeff Jackson.

Auditions will be held at the theater on Sunday, 2/7/2010 at 2:00 p.m. and on Tuesday, 2/9/2010 at 7:00 p.m.  The theater is located at the corners of Grove Street and Maple Avenue in Chester, New Jersey.

Performances of the show are scheduled for 4/30, 5/1, 5/7, 5/8, 5/14, 5/15, 5/16 (matinee), 5/21, 5/22 and close with a matinee on Sunday, 5/23.

Needed are 4 male and 3 female musical comedy performers. Please come with a resume and a musical theatre song (with sheet music in correct key). An accompanist will be provided.

About the Show:

Love can make a woman do strange things.  Like lie about her past.  Or give up her career for the man she loves.  Or throw off her princessly raiment and disguise herself as a young man in order to infiltrate the guarded “men-only” palace compound of an exiled prince she’s admired from afar, who is secretly plotting to murder her and usurp her throne.  Such is the state of things in this hilarious, tongue-in-cheek, anachronistic adaptation of the classic Marivaux comedy, “Triumph of Love.” 

Cast Breakdown:

• Agis – (age range 20 – 35) a student of reason, a young innocent who has been raised to reclaim his rightful throne, but discovers that his true desire is to find love.  Tenor (ability to sing and sustain a High A).
• Hesione – (age range 40 – 60) Agis’ Aunt. A stern philosopher who wants her nephew to take down the current ruler of Sparta to reclaim the throne that is rightfully his.  A Betty Buckley type.  Mezzo / Strong Belt (up to a high D).
• Harlequin – (age range 25 – 40) the Valet.  Servant to Hesione.  Tenor with strong comedic abilities.
• Dimas – (age range 25 – 45) the Gardner.  Servant to Hesione.  Baritone with strong comedic abilities.
• Hermocrates – (age range 40 – 60) Agis’s Uncle.  A philosopher.  The brother to Hesione, a powerful, forbidding intellectual tyrant.  Feared by those around him.  Baritone.
• Princess Leonide – (age range 20 – 35).  A beautiful young woman, and ruler of Sparta.  A driven woman who will do almost anything to find true love, and hopes to find that in Agis.  Disguises herself as a man for part of the musical.  A strong comedic actress, with the ability to portray the many different characters that Leonide uses to deceive those around her.  High Mezzo – Belt (up to a high D).
• Corrine – (age range 25 – 40).  Princess Leonide’s maid servant.  A little rough around the edges, but would do anything to help Princess Leonide reach her goal.  Strong comedic actress.  Mezzo with a VERY high Belt (up to an E) and the ability to sing the D above high C.

If you have any further questions about the play please contact the director via email at fiorelloje@yahoo.com

The Chester Theatre Group of the Black River Playhouse will be holding auditions for Shirley Valentine, by Willy Russell, the author of Educating Rita and Blood Brothers.  The show will be directed by Cindy Alexander and will be presented weekends in March 2010. Shirley Valentine is a full-length one-woman comedy.

Auditions will be held on Sunday, 10/25/09 at 6:00 PM and Tuesday, 10/27/09 at 7:00 PM. Auditions will be held at the theatre which is located at the corner of Maple and Grove Streets in Chester, NJ. 

UPDATE: Auditioners are asked to familiarize themselves with these two excerpts: “Shirley Valentine – Side One“ and “Shirley Valentine – Side Two.”

Audition Requirements

One Actress to play 40-50 year-old working-class English mother of two grown children.

Actresses auditioning for the role must be adept at comedy, working class English accent (preferably Liverpudlian) and memorization. Readings will be from the script. 

About the Piece

Inside Mrs. Joe Bradshaw is the former Shirley Valentine longing to get out. Her self- confidence badly shattered by school, marriage and life, she is reduced to talking to the kitchen wall whilst preparing her husband’s evening meal – to be on the table as he opens the front door every night.  As she sips a glass of wine, she dreams of drinking in a country where the grape is grown.  Her feminist friend offers her a holiday in Greece and, with great trepidation and a lot of forward planning; Shirley seizes the opportunity.  In Greece she encounters a totally different lifestyle, breaking out of the mold cast for her by society. 

For more information, contact Cindy Alexander (908) 713-6207

Save the date!

Auditions for Adam Bock’s play “The Receptionist”, directed by Jeff Knapp, will be held on Sunday, October 11 and Tuesday, October 13 and 7:30 PM at the Black River Playhouse.

The Receptionist is a dark comedy about office life… and it might be about torture.  Or not…

To let Samuel French summarize:  “At the start of a typical day in the Northeast Office, Beverly deals effortlessly with ringing phones and her colleague’s romantic troubles. But the appearance of a charming rep from the Central Office disrupts the friendly routine. And as the true nature of the company’s business becomes apparent, The Receptionist raises disquieting, provocative questions about the consequences of complicity with evil.”

Character Breakdown:

Beverly Wilkins (late 40s-50s), the receptionist:

Lorraine Taylor (late 20s, mid-40s), A co-worker. Single.

Edward Raymond. (Early 50s) Their boss. A young grandfather.

Martin Dart (Mid-30s), Married, with a child

The audition will consist mostly of script readings.

Actresses auditioning for the role of the receptionist, should have a one-sided telephone call prepared.  Portray the OTHER person’s story using only your side of the conversation.  There’s a lot of that sort of thing in the play that may be difficult to convey in a cold reading, so being able to sell your ability to listen and react will be key.  You’ll also be asked to read from the script.

Due to popular demand, here are pages from the script that show Beverly’s one-sided conversation.  Feel free to familiarlize yourself with this instead of preparing your own: The Receptionist – Beverly Side

The show opens November 21 2009 and runs into December.

“A deceptively complex work that intends to reinvent the concept of the office comedy, The Receptionist plays with the idea of who knows how much and how good a thing that ultimately is.” – Tom Avila, Metro Weekly

“The genially mundane goings-on in this blandly average workplace are throw into macabre relief when … a single, jarring line of dialogue sets the calm surface of the play rippling with creepy currents.” – Charles Isherwood, New York Times

Second night of auditions are happening tomorrow!

Details here: http://www.chestertheatregroup.org/2009/06/auditions-the-hound-of-the-baskervilles/