Auditions:
Alice - The Musical

 

Writers: James Leisy, Carl Eberhard and Jack Lambert

Director: Mary Collie-Holmes

Musical director: Megan Davies

Auditions: 6 and 7 April

Rehearsals start: 5 May

Season: 18 to 27 July

This 90-minute episodic musical romp is composed of many of the key episodes in Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass. It’s mainly told through song, accompanied by a small instrumental group, and interspersed with snippets of Lewis Carroll-esque dialogue and nonsense behaviour by the various characters Alice meets.

It starts with Alice, who has come with her mother to see a play, noticing a big White Rabbit hurrying through the auditorium. She follows it into a selection hall where technology determines who gets the key to enter the topsy-turvy world of Wonderland. She’s rejected, along with several small animals, but encouraged to find the key anyway through her encounters with the Caterpillar and Tweedledum and Tweedledee.

Finally finding her way in, she wanders through the Wonderland garden, meeting in turn the Duchess and Cook; Cheshire Cat; Mad Hatter, March Hare and Dormouse; Mock Turtle and Griffin.

Then everybody gathers for the shambolic and chaotic Queen’s croquet game, which is interrupted by the news that someone has stolen the tarts! The chaos continues during the subsequent “trial”, which Alice, as the final witness, wraps up with a song before returning to the real world.

Rehearsals and performance dates

Before registering to audition, please check that you are available on the following dates/days.

Rehearsals start on Sunday 5 May. You need to be able to rehearse on the following days/times:

Dancers and child actors: Sundays from 2 to 5 pm and Wednesdays 6:30 to 8:30 pm.

Actor-singers: Sundays from 2 to 5 pm, Wednesdays and Thursdays 7:30 to 9:30 pm.

From the week beginning Sunday 30 June, everybody will need to be available on Tuesday evenings (from 7:30 pm) as well as Sundays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays.

Dress rehearsals: all called at 6 pm on Monday 15 and Wednesday 17 July.

Performances: six evenings - 18, 19, 20, and 25, 26, 27 July; three afternoons – 20, 21, and 27 July

Audition details

Venue: Cochran Hall, 106 Cashmere Avenue, Khandallah

Dates: Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 April

Times:

ADULT/TEEN ACTOR-SINGERS will be auditioned in groups of four, every half-hour with slots available from 10 am to 5 pm on Saturday and 2 pm to 6pm on Sunday.

CHILD ACTORS will be auditioned as one group on Sunday at 10 am

CHILD DANCERS will be auditioned as one group on Sunday at 11:30 am

Preparation:

ADULT/TEEN ACTOR-SINGERS:

  • Bring your own backing track (on a device that can be linked to our amplifier via Bluetooth) to a SHORT song you have learnt which shows off your singing range and characterisation skills

  • Become familiar with the dialogue segments that you’ll be sent when you register for an audition time.

CHILD ACTORS: become familiar with the short dialogue segment that you’ll be sent when you register.

CHILD DANCERS: no preparation required – you’ll be taught a simple routine at the audition.

To register for an audition

Send an email to katmembership@gmail.com with the following information:

  • Your name

  • Your age (if 14 or under)

  • Your contact phone number (and name of contact if parent/guardian of child auditionee)

ACTOR-SINGERS: The part/s you are most interested in

AGES 8 TO 13: whether you are auditioning for a child actor or dancer role (or both)

For more information

Ring or text Mary on 022 083 5499.

The performers

This production calls for:

  •  16 to 18 teen/adult actor-singers

  •  six child actors (aged 8 to 10)

  •  10 child dancers (aged 9 to 13).

Roles

 

  • A young girl, performed by someone aged mid-teens to mid-twenties. Is almost always on stage, speaks in every scene, sings two solos and takes part in three duets.

    Because this is such a pivotal role that we’d have to cancel a performance if she got sick, we’re looking for two performers who will alternate during the season. Both will perform in every show, either as Alice or in the chorus.

  • At least 15 people, ideally a mix of ages (lower limit 14, no upper limit) and of female and male voices, who will sing in the chorus throughout

    (sometimes on stage, sometimes off stage) except when they each play a named character. The chorus backs the solo singers in seven of the 10 songs plus the finale, mostly in unison and occasionally in two or three parts. The chorus and most characters will have at least some choreographed moves, and a couple will need to execute some simple dance moves in a particular style (see character descriptions).

    Nine characters have songs of their “own”:

    WHITE RABBIT - general factotum (one solo, moves athletically)

    CATERPILLAR - guru (one solo and its reprise, does a soft-shoe “dance” routine)

    TWEEDLEDUM AND TWEEDLEDEE - a fun-loving pair (one duet and its reprise, cavort in a ring dance)

    DUCHESS - loveable, unpolitically truthful malapropist (one solo and its reprise)

    MAD HATTER, MARCH HARE and DORMOUSE - zanies (one trio round and its reprise)

    MOCK TURTLE - a kindly friend (one duet with Alice)

    Three characters each have a solo for just one verse of one song:

    QUEEN

    COOK

    KING

    Five characters have no solos – some of them could be played by non-singers.

    CHESHIRE CAT

    GRIFFIN - Mock Turtle’s sidekick

    Bit-parts:

    ACE OF SPADES

    MOTHER

  • An ensemble of six youngsters, aged approximately 8 to 10, playing the REJECTED ANIMALS (a Duck, Parrot, Dodo, Crab, Eaglet, and Mouse) in a scene in Act 1, either a FOOTMAN or an agile CROQUET BALL in a scene in Act 2, and the JURY at the end of the play.

  • A troupe of 10 to 12, aged approximately 9 to 13 whose main role is the PLAYING CARD “SOLDIERS” at the Queen’s croquet game, with two or three other appearances throughout the show. Dance experience is an advantage but not essential so long as you can move well.