Summer Auditions: How I Became A Pirate, Rock of Ages, and Digging Up Dessa!

HOW I BECAME A PIRATE 

Young Jeremy Jacob is digging in the sand when Captain Braid Beard and his mates appear and all of a sudden he is recruited to help find the perfect spot for their buried treasure! Along the way, Jeremy learns all about what it takes to become a pirate (Manners? Not so much), and the pirates learn about what it’s like to be a typical kid! As they adventure together they face surprises like storms, emotional discoveries, and of course, buried treasure! A story of adventure and finding one’s own heart – a path that can’t be found on any treasure map!

Rehearsals/Important Dates – 

Rehearsals for HOW I BECAME A PIRATE start on April 1st, and will be on Mondays, Tuesdays, & Thursdays, during the hours of 6:30 p.m – 10 p.m, with two added Saturdays.

Saturday 9 to 5 – May 24th
Q2Q – May 29th (Act 1), May 31st (Act 2) 9 a.m – 5 p.m Rehearsal.
Tech – June 1st, 2nd, 3rd

DIGGING UP DESSA

Dessa is a modern girl who is surrounded by mysteries ranging from dinosaur bones to her own personal memories. When 19th-century English paleontologist Mary Anning shows up mysteriously, Dessa learns from her skills and immediately sets to work digging them up! Dessa learns that Mary Anning’s name has been lost to history because of her gender and lack of formal education, and sets out to get her friend the credit she deserves, and on her way, fights for the past, present, and future!

Rehearsals/Important Dates –

Rehearsals for DIGGING UP DESSA start on May 6th, and will be on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, & Thursdays, during the hours of 6:30 p.m – 10 p.m, with two added weekend rehearsals.

ROCK OF AGES

It’s the end of the 1980s in Hollywood and the party has been Nothin’ But A Good Time – Aqua Net, Lycra, lace and liquor are all around at one of the last legendary rock venues on the Sunset Strip. In the middle of all the madness of rockstars, glamour girls and groupies is Drew – current toilet cleaner, aspiring rockstar – who has been Waiting for a Girl Like You – and that girl is Sherri – a small-town girl fresh off the bus from Kansas – two kids who are looking for Nothin’ But A Good Time. Throw in mega-star Stacee Jaxx (who may or may not be Wanted Dead Or Alive), and German developers who have come to town with plans to turn the Sunset Strip of legend into a strip mall and these young lovers and rockers may be facing The Final Countdown. Can these dreamers save the strip – and themselves before it’s too late?

Rehearsals/Important Dates –

Rehearsals for ROCK OF AGES will begin on April 22nd, and be on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays during the hours of 6:30 p.m – 10 p.m.

PREPARATION

Woodstock Arts is deeply committed to building an inviting and inclusive arts community that celebrates individuality and diversity and treats everyone with fairness and respect. We invite artists of all genders, races, ages, sizes, and sexual orientations, as well as artists with disabilities to participate. We want to represent diverse communities in our organization and welcome you here.

Woodstock Arts is taking measures to ensure your safety and well-being. We want to make this experience as comfortable, safe, and fun as possible for everyone involved.

Auditions will be in-person on Sunday, March 16th and Monday March 17th within the time frame(s) of 5:00 p.m – 10 p.m.

On Monday, the first hour 6 p.m – 7 p.m will be reserved for student actors (17 and under).

Video audition submissions will be accepted until Monday, March 17th at 8:00 p.m. Auditions received after this time may not be considered.  You can send your Video Submission to zach@woodstockarts.org. Please Slate before your video audition. (NOTE: you will still need to fill out the online audition form along with a video submission.) 

In-person callbacks  for the shows will take place on the following days –

HOW I BECAME A PIRATE – Thursday, March 20th, 6 p.m – 10 p.m range

DIGGING UP DESSA – Monday, March 24th, 6 p.m – 10 p.m range

ROCK OF AGES – Saturday, March 22nd, within the time-span of from 11 a.m – 5 p.m

Information about callbacks will be emailed separately.

For your audition please prepare- A short monologue (30 seconds to a minute) and a 16 – 32 bar cut of a song of your choosing. If auditioning for the non-singing roles in DIGGING UP DESSA, no song is required.

There will be no accompaniment for this audition, so please send a track to zach@woodstockarts.org prior to your audition to be played in the room for you. 

CASTING BREAKDOWNS- All roles are open ethnicity unless otherwise stated.

HOW I BECAME A PIRATE Character Breakdown – we are able to cast a company of 9 adult actors (including understudies). The role of Jeremy can be auditioned for by those 12 and above.

• JEREMY JACOB – a boy of about 10 (can be played by a student or an adult)
• BRAID BEARD – the Pirate Captain – a pirate of girth with a “braided beard” on their chin
• SWILL THE PIRATE – slight build with wire-rim eyeglasses – philosophical – intellectual – who gets blamed for everything that goes wrong
• SHARKTOOTH THE PIRATE – foreboding – scowling grin – wears a patch on eye – but yet – they’re a “sensitive  guy”
• PIRATE PIERRE – talks with a French accent – the ship’s cook – enjoys fine French cuisine
• MAX THE PIRATE – they wear a stuffed Parrot on their shoulder – “he’s only a stuffed, plush Parrot but we don’t have the heart to tell ‘em ‘ees not real”
• PIRATE SEYMOUR BRAUNSCHWAGGER – A typical Pirate First Mate
• PIRATE SCURVY DOG – A typical Pirate Second Mate – with a tendency to “bark”

DIGGING UP DESSA Character Breakdown – we are able to cast a company of 4 adult actors (including understudies). The roles of Dessa and Nilo can be auditioned for by actors 12 and above.

• DESSA – 12, (played by a student or an adult) an adventurer, hunter of fossils, a realist.
• ESTHER-  Dessa’s mother, a writer of songs, an idealist, sings and plays ukulele.
• NILO – 13, (played by a student or an adult) a popular, privileged boy with the potential to be more.
• MARY ANNING –  The 19th Century British paleontologist as imagined by a 12-year old girl. Part bag-lady, part Mary Poppins, a pragmatist.

ROCK OF AGES Character Breakdown – we are able to cast a company of 17 adult actors (including understudies).

• DREW: Male Identifying, 20s. A good-guy rocker with boyish charm and vulnerability. Drew works as a bar back at the legendary Bourbon Room hoping and waiting for his dreams to come true. He finds an instant attraction to Sherrie, the new arrival from the Midwest, who encourages him to go after his dreams.
• SHERRIE: Female Identifying, 20s. A fresh faced, innocent Midwestern girl stepping right off the bus into a new world to pursue her dreams of stardom in LA. She finds an instant attraction to Drew but gets mixed up with the wrong crowd and finds herself working in an erotic dance club.
• LONNY: Male Identifying, late 20s – 40s. The narrator of the musical; charming, mischievous, welcoming, vibrant personality. Acts toxically masculine but actually has a heart of gold.
• DENNIS DUPREE: Male Identifying, 30s – 40s. Laid back and easy-going, Dennis runs the famous Bourbon Room club on the Sunset Strip. Fatherly figure. Torn about whether he should sell the club.
• STACEE JAXX: Male Identifying, 20s – 40s. A sexy rock star. He is at the top of his game and just left his very successful metal rock band to venture out on his own. Self-important, confident, and intriguing in all the wrong ways, he is the ultimate bad boy. His life is a merry-go-round of sex, drugs, and rock-n-roll.
• JUSTICE: Female Identifying, 30s – 50s. She has a commanding presence and an easy sensuality about her. Once a performer, she now operates a strip club where Sherrie winds up working. Takes on the maternal role for the girls that work for her.
• HERTZ KLINEMANN: Male Identifying, 40s – 60s.A middle-aged German gentleman. Uptight, cold, intimidating businessman trying to buy up the Strip to develop it. German accent.
• FRANZ KLINEMANN: Male Identifying, 20s -30s. Hertz’s foppish son. Works for his father but not by choice. Pressured and intimidated by his father. Shy, gentle with a big heart. German accent.
• REGINA: Female Identifying, 20s – 30s. A fun, hippie type, earthy girl who fights against the attempted takeover of The Strip.
• MAYOR/JA’KEITH/ENSEMBLE: Male Identifying, 20s – 40s A strong character actor with good comedic timing to play numerous roles.
• JOEY PRIMO/ENSEMBLE: Male Identifying, 20s – 40s A young male with the rocker sensibility. Strong rock tenor and strong dance/movement ability. The actor playing this role will be required to understudy both Stacey Jaxx/Father & Franz Tracks.
• ENSEMBLE – dancers, waitresses, rockers, and more!