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Auditions


The Winter's Tale


Saturday 17 March 2012 1:30 pm
Bruce Brown directs William Shakespeare's 'The Winter's Tale'

“A magical and life affirming play exploring of the cycles of human life, the destructive capacity of jealousy and the struggle for understanding, forgiveness and reconciliation.”

Synopsis
Leontes, King of Sicily, imagines that his wife, Hermione, is committing adultery with their guest, Polixenes, King of Bohemia. After making an unsuccessful attempt to have Polixenes killed, Leontes throws Hermione into prison, where she gives birth to a daughter. Believing the child to have been fathered by Polixenes, Leontes orders that it be abandoned in the wilds. However, the child, named Perdita, is found by a shepherd, who decides to bring her up as his own. A pronouncement from the oracle at Delphi, confirming Hermione’s innocence and warning Leontes that he is in danger of dying without an heir, is followed by news of the death of Leontes’s young son, Mamillius. At this, Hermione collapses in shock, and word is later brought that she too has died. Smitten with remorse, Leontes becomes a recluse. Sixteen years later, Perdita, now a young woman, falls in love with Prince Florizel, the son of Polixenes. When Polixenes forbids his son to marry a mere shepherd girl, the lovers elope to Sicily, where Leontes’s long years of grief are brought to an end by the revelation of Perdita’s true identity – and by another even more miraculous reunion.

The late plays
Although the First Folio (1623) places The Winter’s Tale as the last play in the Comedy section, it is now more commonly grouped as one of four ‘late’ plays, along with Pericles, Cymbeline and The Tempest, so-called because they were written towards the end of Shakespeare’s life. They are also referred to as Romances. There are certain key themes running through these plays: the separation and reunion of family members, supernatural elements, jealousy, fate and apparent coincidences of plot, man and nature, to name just a few. Although the late plays are resolved ‘happily’, they lack in their closure the confident celebratory air of the Comedies.

Pandosto
The main source for The Winter’s Tale is Robert Greene’s prose romance Pandosto, a hugely popular story published in 1588 and reprinted many times in Shakespeare’s life. Although Shakespeare sticks quite closely to his source, and at various points practically duplicates word for word, there are a few key changes. For instance, he switches the countries, so that King Pandosto of Bohemia in Greene’s version becomes King Leontes of Sicilia. But by far the largest departure is in the endings. Greene leaves Bellaria (Hermione’s counterpart) dead. Pandosto (Leontes) commits suicide as he cannot bear to think of what he has done – including lusting after his own daughter. Shakespeare on the other hand, brings Hermione back to life in the statue scene and there is an attempt at reconciliation. Whereas the moral of Greene’s version would seem to be that time will tell and justice will be done, The Winter’s Tale suggests that time may heal.

Contact details
Bruce Brown
email: nzkiwinz@hotmail.com
telephone: 027 530 5813
script pdf for download: http://internetshakespeare.uvic.ca/Theater/sip/artifact/25724/

Rehearsals
Commence Tuesday 3 April 2012
Tuesdays and Thursdays each week from 7.30pm
Sundays at 12.30pm

Season
Thursday 7 to Saturday 16 June 2012

Documentary
The audition and rehearsal process of The Winter's Tale will be filmed by a television production company with the view to the material becoming part of a documentary series. Everyone auditioning will be required to sign a release form allowing use of the material.

Cast Required
The cast requirements listed below are a general outline. Ages specified are guidelines only and are flexible.


Leontesmale 30-40 The King of Sicilia, and the childhood friend of the Bohemian King Polixenes. He is gripped by jealous fantasies, which convince him that Polixenes has been having an affair with his wife, Hermione. His jealousy leads to the destruction of his family.
Hermionefemale 30-40 The virtuous and beautiful Queen of Sicilia. Falsely accused of infidelity by her husband, Leontes.
Polixenesmale 30-40 The King of Bohemia, and Leontes's boyhood friend. He is falsely accused of having an affair with Leontes's wife, and barely escapes Sicilia with his life. Later in life, he sees his only son fall in love with a lowly Shepherd's daughter…who is, in fact, a Sicilian princess.
Paulinafemale 30-40 A noblewoman of Sicily, she is fierce in her defence of Hermione's virtue, and unrelenting in her condemnation of Leontes after Hermione's death.
Autolycus / Antigonus male 30-50 A roguish peddler, vagabond, and pickpocket; assists in Perdita and Florizel's escape / Paulina's husband, and also a loyal defender of Hermione.
Cleomenesmale 20-40 A lord of Sicilia, sent to Delphi to ask the Oracle about Hermione's guilt.
Dionfemale 20-40 A Sicilian lady, she accompanies Cleomenes to Delphi.
Camillomale 30-40 An honest Sicilian nobleman, he refuses to follow Leontes's order to poison Polixenes, deciding instead to flee Sicily and enter the Bohemian King's service.
Shepherdmale 40-50 An old and honorable shepherd, he finds Perdita as a baby and raises her as his own daughter.
Perditafemale 16-25 The daughter of Leontes and Hermione. Because her father believes her to be illegitimate, she is abandoned as a baby on the coast of Bohemia, and brought up by a Shepherd. Unaware of her royal lineage, she falls in love with the Bohemian Prince Florizel.
Florizelmale 16-25 Polixenes's only son and heir; he falls in love with Perdita, unaware of her royal ancestry, and defies his father by eloping with her.
Clownmale 20-30 The Shepherd's buffoonish son, and Perdita's adopted brother.
Emilia / Dorcasfemale 20-25 One of Hermione's ladies-in-waiting / Bohemian Shepherdess.
Mamilliusmale 16-25 The young prince of Sicilia, Leontes and Hermione's son.
Mopsafemale 16-25 Bohemian Shepherdess.
Jailer / Bearmale 20-40 Jailer of imprisoned Hermione. / A Bear


Nude With Violin


Saturday 9 June 2012 1:30 pm
Sébastienmale Sorodin's servant and companion, with a career of immorality and criminality. Best connections to the underworld, fluent in fourteen languages. Participates with greatest pleasure in his master's effort to embarrass family and art-dealer Friedland for having cashed in on creative talent.
Marie-Célestefemale Middle-aged woman, housemaid. She seems rather unimportant in Sorodin's house, but together with Sébastien she keeps things going.
Clinton Preminger, jr.male Another stereotype: a young American journalist writing a biography of Paul Sorodin for Life magazine. Both ambitious and interested in art but also very superficial, naïve, exuberant and vastly insensitive to other people's feelings.
Isobel Sorodinfemale The painter's widow. Slightly distraught elderly lady with strong religious principles. Enormous capacity for irrelevant memories. Separated from Sorodin in 1925, she has still received a great percentage of his profits over the years.
Jane Sorodinfemale The painter's daughter, definitely more like him than her brother. Has got a style of her own and a good sense of humour. She has a realistic view of what is going on and is able to deal with the most awkward situations.
Colin Sorodinmale A man of law and order, at a loss if not in charge, laughs at his own jokes, sure of his beloved wife's support, never duped by the art world. Husband of Pamela.
Pamelafemale Wife of Colin. Is a product of traditional English education. Good looks and good manners make her a perfect match for her husband, whom she supports and admires.
Jacob Friedlandmale An elderly art-dealer and admirer of Sorodin's work. He discovered Sorodin in 1927. From then on he helped and encouraged the painter and also took care of his estranged wife and children. Convinced that Sorodin was a genius and a great painter.
Anya Pavlikovfemale A Russian princess of a vulgar and determined nature, former lover of Sorodin's. Temperamental and clever, she takes advantage of the painter's death.
Cherry-May Watertonmale A blowsy, cheerful, middle-aged bitch - so pardon her French. She's vulgar, exaggerated, about too much of everything. In love.
Fabricemale Moi, je suis un vrai belhomme et un bon nageur, c'est pour ça que Cherry-May m'aime tellement, je pense. (Mal)heureusement je parle pas Anglais. Oh, well.
Obadiah Lewellynmale Weird Jamaican circular painter, saviour of souls, singer of spirituals, the only Eleventh Hour Immersionist ever to come to Europe.
Georgemale Photographer beyond caring. No understanding of art but with a professional approach.
Stotesburymale No one cares for my wonderful paintings, not even my father who is a bastard.


Travels With My Aunt


Saturday 25 August 2012 1:30 pm
No characters are listed for this production.


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