Casting Call: 'The 39 Steps'

Kelsey Theater will be holding auditions for "The 39 Steps" from 7-10 p.m. on Oct. 27 and 28.

This two-time Tony and Drama Desk Award-winning treat is one part Monty Python, one part Hitchcock thriller and one part Ringling Brothers.  Patrick Barlow's comical adaptation of "The 39 Steps" is a fast-paced, often hilariously irreverent recreation of Alfred Hitchcock's classic mystery thriller film of 1935. Four actors portray some 150 roles. Our leading man, Richard Hannay, meets a mysterious woman at a London music hall. After witnessing her murder, he becomes entangled in solving the murder, proving his innocence, and breaking a spy ring that seems to be attached to the whole affair. All roles require good comic timing.

Auditionees will need to prepare a comic monologue and bring a headshot and a resumé. Accents that are required include working-class English, Scottish, posh London and German.

Richard Hannay (early 30s-early 40's)	The dashing, leading man of the show; charming, innocent, and charismatic. Must have great endurance,superb comic timing, and a commanding presence. An standard-British dialect is required as well as outstanding physical comedic skills.
Annabelle Schmidt/ Pamela/Margaret (25-35)	This is the only scripted female role in the show. The role calls for multiple dialects - the actor must play a paranoid German spy, a lower-class Scottish farmer's wife, and the upper class, British romantic lead of the show. All three dialects ARE required. Must have excellent comic timing and great versatility. Actor should be able to play the sensuality and high style of the Hitchcock/film noir variety.
Clown 1 and Clown 2 (20-40)	These roles call for exceptional physical and verbal comic ability. These actors play multiple characters, male and female, sometimes simultaneously. Must be highly athletic with great endurance and focus, and have a mastery of various English, German, and Scottish dialects, maybe with a few more thrown in. These are clowns in the European/English Music Hall/Vaudeville tradition of physical clowning. The roles demand physical strength, vocal and physical transformation and delineation, stamina, and tremendous character.

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'I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change' at Edison Valley Playhouse

Edison Valley Playhouse's production of "I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change" closes this weekend.

Off-Broadway's long-running hit musical, this hilarious revue pays tribute to those who have loved, lost and lived to try again. A musical joyride that explores dating, romance, marriage, lovers, husbands, wives, and in-laws, "I Love You, You're Perfect, Now Change" reveals our desire to connect with another person, no matter what age.

Directed by Scott Goldman, the play features Molly Frieri, Jesse Principale, Alex Kornberg, and Louis Vetter. The show's last performances will be at 8 p.m. Sept. 27 and 28.

To reserve tickets, go to http://edison-valley-playhouse-agent.ticketleap.com/ilyypnc/ or call (908)755-4654. Edison Valley Playhouse is located at 2196 Oak Tree Road, Edison.

'God of Carnage' at Villagers Theater

Villagers Theater's performance of "God of Carnage" is opening this Friday.

In this Broadway hit and 2009 Tony Award-winning Best Play, a playground altercation between two 11-year-old boys leads to a meeting of their parents to resolve the matter. The initially rational discussion rapidly dissolves into a free-for-all of insults, tantrums and tears. The humor may be dark, but a painfully bright light illuminates this tale of parenting gone wickedly astray.

The show opens on Sept. 20 and closes Oct. 6. Performances will be at 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and at 2 p.m. Sundays.

The cast features Oliver Leroux as Alan Raleigh, Regina Samson as Annette Raleigh, James Walsh as Michael Novak, and Teresa Mota as Veronica Novak.

Tickets cost $18 per adult and $16 per senior or student, and must be reserved. Group rates are available.

For more information, or to reserve tickets, go to villagerstheatre.com/god. Villagers Theater is located at 475 Demott Lane, Somerset.

Casting Calls: 'A Night in the Theatre' and 'The Actor's Nightmare'

M&M Productions at Kelsey Theater will be holding auditions for two one-act plays: "A Night in the Theatre," by Lawrence Casler; and "The Actor's Nightmare," by Christopher Durang. Auditions for both plays are from 1-5 p.m. November 2 and 3.

Auditions will be held behind the theater in the CM building at Mercer County Community College, 1200 Old Trenton Road, West Windsor. Auditionees will need to bring a head shot and a resumé.

"A Night at the Theatre": Margaret and Stanley Locker and their friends, Donna and Walter Pace, are at the theatre for their weekly dose of culture. This week's ordeal is Hamlet. The play consists of their incessant and hilarious chatter about themselves, their children, a dead friend and even occasionally Shakespeare's play. Secrets emerge and friendships unravel amid the audience’s laughter. You may recognize these rude playgoers as the obnoxious people who sometimes sit behind you.

Stanley (40s-50s)	His personality matches his clothes, obnoxious. Acts more knowledgeable than he really is.
Margaret (40s-50s)	Easily distracted, loud, bothersome to others. Doesn’t understand play.
Donna (40s-50s)	Is only there to be with her friends. Not interested in play. Wears “noisy” jewelry.
Walter (40s-50s)	The one who plans these evenings. Tries to explain the play to the others, to no avail.

"The Actor's Nightmare": Having casually wandered on-stage, George is informed that one of the actors, Eddie, has been in a car accident and he must immediately replace him. No one is sure of which play they’re doing, but George (costumed as Hamlet) seems to find himself in the middle of a scene from Private Lives, surrounded by such luminaries as Sarah Siddons, Dame Ellen Terry and Henry Irving. As he fumbles through one missed cue after another, the others shift to Hamlet, then a play by Samuel Beckett, and then a climactic scene from what might well be A Man For All Seasons - by which time the disconcerted George has lost all sense of contact with his fellow performers. Yet, in the closing moments of the play, he rises to the occasion and finally says the right lines, whereupon make-believe suddenly gives way to reality as the executioner's axe (meant for Sir Thomas More) instead sends poor George to oblivion - denying him a well-earned curtain call.

The characters in "The Actor's Nightmare" are George Spelvin, an accountant, age 25-30; Henry Irving, a grand actor, age 40s-50s; Meg, the stage manager, age early 20s-30s; Sarah, a grand actress, age 30s-40s; and Ellen, a not-so-grand actress, age mid-20s to 30s.

Performances for both shows will be at 8 p.m. Jan. 24 and 25, and at 2 p.m. Jan. 26.
To make an appointment, or if you have any questions, call (609)828-6567.

Actor Needed

Somerset Valley Players is seeking an African-American actress for the part of Steele in "A Piece of my Heart." The show will open on October 25.

Rehearsals begin September 16.

If interested, contact director Tina Lee at tlee327@aol.com.

Casting Call: 'A Chorus Line'

Villagers Theater is looking for people to play parts in "A Chorus Line."

Set during an audition for a Broadway show, young performers share their deepest hopes, fears and dreams as they compete for a chance of a lifetime. "A Chorus Line" is an enthralling and emotional metaphor for what drives each of us to pursue our dreams.

Bobby Mills (Age 25, Baritone)	Funny and witty. Very sharp tongued. Covers everything over with a joke, had a very hard childhood. From upstate New York.
Mike Costa (Age 24, Tenor)	Quite aggressive, determined, cocky, sure of himself, but likeable. Has worked with Zach before. Experienced and flirts with the girls. From New Jersey.

In addition to the above, several male "cut dancers" are also needed. Rehearsals for cut dancers will be minimal. If interested, contact pjschoreo@msn.com.

Casting Call: 'Opus'

Circle Players will hold auditions for “Opus,” an engrossing drama written by Michael Hollinger.

After firing one of their founding members due to his erratic behavior, a world-class string quartet takes a chance on a gifted but relatively inexperienced young woman. With only a few days to rehearse a grueling Beethoven masterpiece, the four struggle to prepare their highest-profile performance ever -- a televised ceremony at the White House. Their rehearsal room becomes a pressure-cooker as passions rise, personalities clash, and the players are forced to confront the ephemeral nature of their life’s work.

Auditions will be held 4-7 p.m. Sept. 15 and 7:30-9:30 p.m. Sept. 16. Callbacks will be at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 18. Audition sides will be provided.

Performances will be 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays Nov. 15- 30, with a matinee Sunday, Dec. 1.

Elliot (first violin)	Fastidious, controlling, single-minded, the self-anointed leader of the quartet. Not terribly imaginative; brittle rather than fragile. Music is his life. Dorian’s ex- lover.
Alan  (second violin)	Funny, charming, sexual, music is a job, not an obsession. Never misses a trick, always the one that the others look to for support.
Carl (cello)	Cancer survivor, jocular, even-tempered, except when disharmony reigns. Pragmatic, like his instrument, the base on which the group is built.
Dorian  (viola)	Unstable genius. Understands and feels the music, and has little patience for those who do not. Erratic and unpredictable, passionate and self- destructive, was fired from the group by his ex-lover Elliot.
Grace  (viola)	Brilliant mind, enormously talented, naturally confident but slightly intimidated by the older men. Pretty, sexy but not overwhelmingly so. Must play 10-15 years younger than the men.

The men must be of comparable age, somewhere between 35 and 50. Grace must be 10-15 years younger, so casting all roles depends on the mix.

For more information, email director Eric Walby at circleplayersnj@gmail.com. Circle Players is located at 416 Victoria Ave., Piscataway