25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee Auditions
AUDITION INFORMATION
Sunday, July 27 @ 6PM
Monday, July 28 @ 6PM
Callbacks, if needed, will take place in the evening on Tuesday, July 29.
Performers should plan to arrive at the start of the audition time. Please contact casting@thegrandoperahouse.com if you cannot be there at the top of the audition time.
Actors will be notified if they are needed for callbacks. If you are not called back, it does not mean you are not being considered for a role.
Location:
Auditions will be held at The Grand’s Rehearsal space in the Arcade Building, 880 Locust St., Suites 222 and 228. Please enter through the Locust Street entrance. When you enter, take the stairs on the right to the second floor. The rooms are right at the top of the stairs.
AUDITION REQUIREMENTS:
- Fill out the digital audition form HERE prior to your arrival to save time at auditions. Those auditioning should be prepared to list all conflicts or potential conflicts that overlap with a production’s rehearsal and performance schedule.
- Prepare a 1 min cut (approximately 32 bars) of a musical theater song in the style of the show. Please bring sheet music in the correct key as an accompanist will be provided.
- Actors may be asked to read from a selection of short sides.
Alternate Audition and Video Submissions:
Actors unable to attend auditions may submit an audition video to casting@thegrandoperahouse.com. Video submissions should contain 32 bars of a musical theater song in the style of the show showcasing range. Adding a dance section to your audition tape is optional. Video submissions must be received no later than 6pm Monday, July 28.
GENERAL PRODUCTION INFORMATION:
Director
NICK HALDER
Choreographer
MEGAN SCHUMACHER
This production is open to adult actors, ages 18 and above.
Performances
September 12, 13, 19 and 20 @ 7:30PM
September 14 and 21 @ 2:00PM
Full company rehearsals will begin tentatively August 11
Dress/Technical and Brush-up Rehearsals are September 13 -16 and 18
Availability for dress/technical rehearsals and all performances is mandatory
Detailed Rehearsal schedules will be made available upon the completion of casting.
CASTING INFORMATION:
The creative team seeks a diverse company of adult actors, ages 18-above. Actors of all ethnicities will be equally considered for all roles and actors of color are encouraged to audition. All roles are open.
Chip Tolentino (tenor, male-identified, any ethnicity) – An athletic, social, boy scout and champion of the Twenty-Fourth Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, he returns to defend his title, but he finds puberty hitting at an inopportune moment.
Leaf Coneybear (tenor, male-identified, any ethnicity) – The second runner-up in his district, Leaf gets into the competition on a lark and finds everything about the bee incredibly amusing. He is home-schooled and comes from a large family of former hippies. He has severe Attention Deficit Disorder and spells words correctly while in a trance.
Logainne Schwartzandgrubeniere (mezzo-soprano, female-identified, any ethnicity) – Logainne is the youngest and most politically aware speller, often making comments about current political figures. She is driven by internal and external pressure, but above all by a desire to win to make her two fathers proud. She is somewhat of a neat freak, speaks with a lisp, and will be back next year.
Marcy Park (mezzo-soprano, female-identified, any ethnicity) – The ultimate over-achiever, Marcy has never been given another option. She comes from a family where excellence is expected and so simply produced. A parochial school student, she assumes God, too, expects perfection. She sees herself as a mass of problems but she keeps them to herself. Having moved often because of her parents’ work, she knows she can beat the local competition. Her many talents include piano, dance, martial arts, baton twirling, and/or whatever special gifts you can find in your casting pool.
Olive Ostrovsky (mezzo-soprano, female-identified, any ethnicity) – A young newcomer to competitive spelling. Her mother is in an ashram in India, and her father is working late, as usual, but he is trying to come sometime during the bee. Having found comfort in its words and vastness, Olive made friends with her dictionary at a very young age, helping her to make it to the competition. She starts enormously shy, and shyly blossoms.
William Barfee (tenor, male-identified, any ethnicity) – A Putnam County Spelling Bee finalist last year, he was eliminated because of an allergic reaction to peanuts and is back for vindication. His famous “Magic Foot” method of spelling has boosted him to spelling glory, even though he only has one working nostril and a touchy, bullying personality. He develops a crush on Olive.
Rona Lisa Peretti (mezzo-soprano, female-identified, any ethnicity) – The number-one realtor in Putnam County, a former Putnam County Spelling Bee Champion herself, and the returning moderator. She is a sweet woman who loves children, but she can be very stern when it comes to dealing with Vice Principal Panch and his feelings for her. Her interest in the competition is unflagging and drives it forward.
Douglas Panch (non-singing, male-identified, any ethnicity) – The Vice Principal. Frustrated with his life, he finds the drive of the young spellers alien to him. After five years’ absence from the Bee, Panch returns as judge. There was an “incident” at the Twentieth Annual Bee, but he claims to be in “a better place” now, thanks to a high-fiber diet and Jungian analysis. He is infatuated with Rona Lisa Peretti, but she does not return his affections.
Mitch Mahoney (tenor, male-identified, any ethnicity) – The Official Comfort Counselor. An ex-convict, Mitch is performing his community service with the Bee, and hands out juice boxes to losing students. He has no idea how to offer comfort, but does find himself wishing he could find a way to make the kids feel better.