What: Open auditions for the classic comedy, Brighton Beach Memoirs, by Neil Simon. Directed at Pentacle Theatre by Jo Dodge.
When: 1 p.m.–5 p.m., Saturday, Oct 21.
Where: Pentacle Theatre, 324 52nd Avenue NW, off Highway 22 about 6 miles west of downtown Salem.
Casting call: Seeking an ensemble of actors able to play three male-presenting and four female-presenting roles.
Things to know:
- Lobby doors open at 12:30 p.m. Open auditions for all roles begin promptly at 1 p.m. Please plan to stay through 5 p.m.
- Plan to arrive early to fill out an audition form. We encourage you to download this fillable audition form and complete it in advance. Please write clearly, especially your contact information. Headshots and resumes are not required, but always appreciated.
- Bring your calendar and provide a complete list of your conflicts from Oct. 21, 2023 – Feb. 4, 2024. If you have a conflict on the audition date, please contact the director, below.
- All actors will audition by reading selected scenes from the script.
- Pentacle Theatre affirms, promotes and celebrates the participation of all, without regard to race, color, sex, ability, affectional or sexual orientation, gender identity, ethnicity, national origin, age, religion or socioeconomic status.
Callbacks: Sunday, Oct. 22, if needed.
Rehearsals:
- Rehearsals are generally, 6:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., Mondays through Thursdays, at the Pentacle Theatre rehearsal studio, 197 Liberty St. S. in downtown Salem.
- The director will set weekend rehearsals and work sessions as needed. Please keep this in mind when providing your list of conflicts.
- Rehearsals will be scheduled to make the best use of everyone’s time, especially for actors in school. Only actors needed for scheduled scenes will be required at rehearsals and we’ll release actors as early as possible. As we get closer to opening night, we’ll need everyone at rehearsals so we can run the whole show.
- Cast members may be required to make special appearances for marketing purposes in the weeks before the show opens.
- If you have questions about rehearsals, please contact the director.
Show dates: Friday, Jan. 12 – Saturday, Feb. 4.
The story: Brighton Beach Memoirs is part one of Neil Simon’s autobiographical trilogy — a portrait of the writer as a young teen in 1937, living with his family in a crowded, lower-middle-class Brooklyn home. Eugene Jerome, standing in for the author, is the narrator and central character. Dreaming of baseball and girls, Eugene copes with the mundane existence of his family life in Brooklyn, his formidable mother, his overworked father and his worldly older brother, Stanley. Throw into the mix his widowed Aunt Blanche and her two young (but rapidly aging) daughters and you have a recipe for hilarity, served up Simon-style. Source: Concord Theatrical
The characters: Casting an ensemble of seven adult actors of all ages and abilities able to play the following roles:
- Eugene Morris Jerome, almost 15.
- Stanley Jerome, 18½ — Eugene’s older brother.
- Blanche Morton, 38 — Eugene’s widowed aunt.
- Nora Morton, 16½ — Eugene’s older cousin.
- Laurie Morton, 13 — Eugene’s younger cousin, who has heart problems.
- Jack Jerome, 40 – 55 — Eugene’s father.
- Kate Jerome, about 40 — Eugene’s mother, a strong Jewish matriarch.
Suitability: Brighton Beach Memoirs is suitable for general audiences. Actors and parents of actors under age 18 are encouraged to read the script in advance. Copies are available on loan from the Pentacle Theatre office by calling 503-485-4300.
Information: If you have questions or a conflict on the audition date, please contact director Jo Dodge at (503) 371-8118 or email mamadrama16@comcast.net.
