58th Season Audition Dates 
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 Riot: Asbury Park

Thank you to everyone who auditioned!
 I would like to see Mina Smith and Misty Musser again tonight at 5:30 pm for a short call back reading. Please email michael@mhtplay.org to confirm you can be there. 
I will post a cast list on Friday. 

>> November 1 & 2 - Unpacking Mother

The World Premiere of the AACT NewPlayFest Winner, Unpacking Mother by Karen Schaeffer. 
Directed by Kathy Pingel

Audition Information:
November 1 & 2 via Zoom, by appointment

Performance Dates: February 10 - 13 & 17 - 20, 2022
Charactes:

• Cassie
• Kathryn

About the Show:
Sisters, Cassie and Kathryn, have had little communication since Kathryn left for college. Upon their mother’s death, Kathryn, long absent, returns home to help Cassie, the primary caregiver, sort through their mother’s hoarded possessions. As they unpack boxes, they encounter their younger selves and unearth truths about their mother’s illness and father’s secrets. Unpacking allows each sister to exorcise the demons that shaped their adult lives so they can meet on the other side, open to a new relationship. 

>> November 15 & 16 - You're My Man

The World Premiere of You're My Man by Ross Carter
Directed by Michael Cochran

Audition Information:
November 15 & 16 at 6:30 PM in the Market House Theatre

Performance Dates: January 13 - 16 & 20 - 23, 2022
Characters: 

• Milton “Buster” Manley – Country singer, 30 to 40
• Lance Buck – Country singer, 30 to 40
• R J “Squirrel” Bellamy – Agent for Buck & Buster, female, 50s
• Axel Hatchett – Country singer, 20s to 40
• Audrey Hart Akins – Aspiring country singer, 20s to 30s
• Louise McElroy – Radio station manager, 30 to 40
• Helen Schwartz – Buster’s mother
• Charlie Bumpus – Small town entrepreneur, 50s to 70s

About the Show: 
Buck and Buster, a classic country music duo on the eve of finally getting recognized by the Country Music Association Awards, find themselves in a situation after they help a young female singer trying to record her first song, You’re My Man. Of course they were only in the studio showing her how the song should be sung. Who would guess that the girl's jealous ex-boyfriend would get hold of the recording and use it for his own nefarious purposes setting off a storm of controversy and comedy in the country music industry? 

>> January 10 & 11 - Pippi Longstocking

Pippi Longstocking by by Thomas W. Olson, based on the book by Astrid Lindgren, Music by Roberta Carlson

Audition Information: January 10 & 11 at 5:30 PM

Performance Dates: March 10 - 13, 2022
Characters:

• Teacher
• Annika
• Tommy
• Pippi
• Mrs. Settergren
• Mrs. Prysselius
• Thunder
• Bloom
• Carnival Manager
• Strongman
• Klang
• Larsoon
• Captain Longstocking
• Angel Mama
• Mrs. Granberg
• School children and townspeople

About the Show:
On the outskirts of town stands a ramshackle house. It may not seem like much ’til you peek through the railings…then, there’s a horse on the porch, a monkey in the kitchen and a freckle faced, red-pigtailed, whirlwind of a girl in mismatched stockings presiding over all! This is the domain of — ready? — Pippilotta Delicatessa Windowshade Mackrelmint Ephraim’s Daughter Longstocking.

>> February 7 & 8 - Gods of Comedy

The Gods of Comedy by Ken Ludwig
Directed by April Cochran

Audition Information: February 7 & 8 at 6:30 PM in the MHT Studio Theatre

Performance Dates: April 21 - 24 & 28 - May 1, 2022
Characters:

• Aristiede/Alekse/Ares – Greek street vendor and God Male 30's-60's
• Daphne – Female American teacher in 20's-30's
• Dean Trickett – Female 40's-60's Dean of the College
• Ralph –  Male American teacher in his 30's-40's stereo typed professor.
• Zoe/Brooklyn – Female Movie star 20'-40's
• Dionysus – Male 30's-50's Greek God
• Thalia – Female 20's-40's Greek Goddess

About the Show:
Daphne and Ralph are young professors who teach classical Greek at the college.  They have just made a discovery that’s sure to turn them into academic superstars.  But something goes disatrously wrong, and Daphne cris out in a panic, “Save me, gods of ancient Greece!”… and the gods actually appear!  However they turn out to be the screwball gods of ancient comedy.  A comic romp that will leave audiences rolling in the aisles with laughter.

>> February 21 & 22 - Bright Star

Bright Star by Steve Martin and Edie Brickell
Directed by Michael Cochran

Audition Information: February 21 & 22 at 6:30 PM

Performance Dates: May 26 - 29, June 2 - 5 & 9 - 12, 2022
Characters:

• Alice Murphy – plays both 16-17 and 36-37. Alice at age 36-37 is an editor of a southern literary magazine; intelligent, attractive, professional – but with an air of melancholy. Young Alice at age 16-17 is rebellious, high-spirited, adventurous – looking to break out of small-town life and experience the world. She must be very strong singer and comfortable in folk and bluegrass styles.
• Billy Cane – a young soldier returning home from WWII; an aspiring young writer; fresh, open, optimistic, charming, and a little naïve.
• Daddy Cane – Billy’s father. A widower. Spry, good looking. Kind hearted, if a bit lonely.
• Margo Crawford – a small-town bookstore owner; a childhood friend of Billy’s who now harbors romantic feelings towards him; a natural beauty with a keen intellect.
• Max – a customer at Margo’s bookstore, at first, he has a crush on Margo, but later becomes Edna’s beau.
• Florence – an employee at Margo’s bookstore and a childhood friend of both Billy and Margo.
• Edna – an employee at Margo’s bookstore.
• Daryl Ames – An assistant at a literary magazine. Funny, with a dry and officious sense of humor. Insecure, and perhaps a bit socially awkward, but endearing and innately likeable.
• Lucy Grant – A junior editor at a literary magazine. An ambitious, professional young “modern” career woman of the 1940’s. Strong, forthright and provocative with a sharp sense of humor.
• Mama Murphy – Alice’s mother. A caretaker to her family and her rural community. A warm, loving, sensible woman. Hardworking, with great inner strength and compassion.
• Daddy Murphy – Alice’s father; an authoritative and a stern disciplinarian; devoutly religious, hard-working, a poor but proud farmer.
• Mayor Josiah Dobbs – the Mayor of Zebulon; a political and financial powerbroker – distinguished, an imposing and controlling presence; has a genuine interest in protecting his son’s future and his family name, but in doing so, is ultimately pushed to a point of extreme and irrevocable cruelty.
• Jimmy Ray Dobbs – plays both age 18-20 and 38-40. Jimmy Ray in his early 20s in flashbacks is Mayor Dobbs’ son and young Alice’s beau; handsome, boyishly charming, well-built and intelligent; from a family of wealth and power and is being groomed by his father for a similar future in the family business; an independent thinker who is not afraid to stand up to his father for what he believes in; he has a sense of personal responsibility and morality as well as a deep reserve of passion and emotion. The same actor will also play an adult Jimmy Ray at age 38-40.
• Stanford – Loyal assistant to Mayor Josiah Dobbs
• Dr. Norquist – The local family doctor in Zebulon
• Government Clerk – A clerk at the Office of Records in Raleigh
• Well-Dressed Woman – A woman (38-40) living in Raleigh.

About the Show:

Inspired by a true story and featuring the Tony®-nominated score by Steve Martin and Edie Brickell, Broadway’s BRIGHT STAR tells a sweeping tale of love and redemption set against the rich backdrop of the American South in the 1920s and ’40s. When literary editor Alice Murphy meets a young soldier just home from World War II, he awakens her longing for the child she once lost. Haunted by their unique connection, Alice sets out on a journey to understand her past—and what she finds has the power to transform both of their lives. With beautiful melodies and powerfully moving characters, the story unfolds as a rich tapestry of deep emotion. An uplifting theatrical journey that holds you tightly in its grasp, BRIGHT STAR is as refreshingly genuine as it is daringly hopeful.

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General Audition Information

Auditions dates for plays and the casting information is posted on this page. Learn all you can about the play so you are familiar with it when you come to auditions. Fill out an audition form making sure to list all your conflicts (days you cannot be at rehearsal).   Generally the director will hold open auditions (that means that everyone in the community is welcome to audition).  Some directors audition privately by appointment which allows them to work with a very small group at a time instead of a large group. Auditions ususally are held Monday and Tuesday evenings. If there is a large group of people auditioning the director will schedule a “call back”. This is a smaller group of people that the director hasn’t decided on, but wants to take another look at before casting the show. Generally the cast list is posted on a Friday of the auditions week and rehearsals start promptly the following Monday. MHT provides the costumes for the performers if we are doing a show with specialized costumes.  We ask the performers to provide their own clothes as costumes if the show is set in present day. Actors have to provide their own shoes -generally black or brown dress shoes for the males and character shoes or dark shoes for females.

It is helpful for auditionees to check out a perusal script 1-2 weeks ahead of time to become familiar with the play. At the auditions the director will assign parts at random and have auditionees stand onstage and read these scenes looking for a sense of character, expression, diction, vocal projection and general acting ability. They might also be asked to participate in some simple theatre games or improvisations. 

If you are auditioning for a musical you should check to see if there are specific songs you will need to sing from the show to audition (this does not apply to the Family Series). If you are unable to attend the scheduled audition date please contact the theatre to see if there is an alternate audition time when other auditionees will be present. Alternate audition times are not guaranteed. We make a concerted effort not to have “private” auditions for roles outside of the audition dates.

Perusal scripts for all shows may be checked out for three days with a $10 Family Series script refundable deposit and a $10 -$25 Adult script refundable deposit. Casting for roles are based on a variety of factors in addition to sense of character, expression, diction, vocal projection and general acting abilitiy. Casting can be also determined by the heights and ages of performers when compared with others who have auditioned. MHT believes strongly in color blind casting and seeks to cast new people as often as possible. All roles are available at auditions. Preference is also given to actors who will accept any role! Should an actor be unable to perform every effort will be made to recast the role from those actors already cast in the show.