Kingship Cycle Auditions

Kingship Cycle Audition Announcement

Adirondack Shakespeare Company will be holding auditions for the 2012-2013 Kingship Cycle on Sunday, April 1 and Monday, May 14 at CAP21 Studios (18 W 18th Street, NYC). Please email a headshot and resume to casting@adkshakes.org if you are interested in being seen.

The Kingship Cycle is a two-part project. The first half will take place in the fall of 2012 and includes productions of 1 Henry VI, 2 Henry VI, 3 Henry VI, and Richard III. We are seeking a company of 12 actors for this project. The second half will take place in the spring of 2013 and includes productions of Richard II, 1 Henry IV, 2 Henry IV, and Henry V, for which we are also seeking a company of 12 actors. These auditions will consist of readings from all eight plays. Auditions held on April 1will consist mostly of readings from Part 1 of the Cycle. Auditions held on May 14 will consist of readings from Part 2 of the Cycle.

Dates for this project are tentatively set for October 18 - November 17, 2012 for Kingship Part 1 (1 Henry VI, 2 Henry VI, 3 Henry VI, and Richard III) and for March 28 - April 27, 2013 for Kingship Part 2 (Richard II, 1 Henry IV, 2 Henry IV, and Henry V). Rehearsals and performances will take place on both the Queens and Manhattan campuses of St. John’s University.

Please note that for roles spanning multiple plays (Richard III, Prince Hal, Margaret, for example), one actor will be cast to play the same role across each of the plays in which this character appears. The idea of these productions is to create as clear a through-line as possible for the story, the characters, and the ultimate question of this project: What makes a (good/bad) king? The culmination of this project will be my doctoral dissertation in English Literature, which will focus on the text of the plays as literature, but also on elements of theatrical performance and original practice-influenced production.

We will be casting a company of 12 actors for each Kingship Part. This means there will be a cast of 12 actors for Kingship Part 1 (1, 2, 3 Henry VI and Richard III). Actors will also be considered for Kingship Part 2 (Richard II, 1 & 2 Henry IV, and Henry V). Each contract represents a commitment for the four shows within each Kingship Part. Casting in one Part does not guarantee casting in the other.

Auditions on Sunday, April 1 and Monday, May 14 will held in groups of 8-10. Each group session will last one hour and consist entirely of cold readings from the plays. If you have not auditioned for the company in the past, we will ask you to present a prepared monologue (1-2 minutes in length, classical verse ONLY).

This project differs from past Shakespeare IN THE RAW productions in that it will include several workshop rehearsals prior to the shortened, intensive rehearsal period (which is comprised of approximately 12 hours of rehearsal per production). These workshops will incorporate movement, text analysis, and discussions of political, social, and historical context for these plays. I anticipate a series of three to five workshops (one per week) in the weeks preceding the opening dates listed above. Read-throughs will also take place several weeks in advance of the rehearsal and performance dates listed above.

Our intensive rehearsal period will consist of a speak-through of the entire text of each play; small group scene work focusing almost entirely on text; working through any music and/or violence; and a final cue-to-cue of each play. The cue-to-cue is the last portion of rehearsal, in which we work entrances, exits, music, violence, and any tricky staging. There is no run-through of the show prior to performance. I’ll say that again -- the very first time we run through the play is in the first performance.

All company members must arrive for the first rehearsal on fully memorized and able to run through all of their assigned roles off-book.  Preparation is a crucial element to this process, so please consider your ability to dedicate ample time ahead of the performance weekend when determining your availability. With only 12 hours of rehearsal for each play, there is no time to dedicate to learning your lines.

Company members must have a high degree of comfort with the mechanics and musicality of verse-speaking.  

All roles are paid. Non-Equity contracts only.