AUDITIONS: Thursday, September 7, 5:00 p.m. - 8:00 p.m.
Callbacks: Saturday, September 9, 1:00 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.
AGES: 12 - 18 years, non-college
Presented in conjunction with the WKU Department of Theatre and Dance.
Richard III
Audition Information
How far would you go for power? In Shakespeare’s classic study of ambition, Richard lies, kills, cheats and schemes his way to the throne, but will he be able to hold it or will those he’s wronged find ways to bring him down?
Roles (all roles may be cross-gender cast)
Richard, Duke of Gloucester (later Richard III) – the youngest brother of the King Edward IV who plots to steal the throne
Edward IV – Richard’s oldest brother whom he helped place on the throne of England
Queen Margaret – wife of the former king Henry VI and Richard’s sworn enemy
Henry VI – the former king of England, deposed by Edward IV and killed by Richard
Prince Edward of Lancaster – son of Margaret and Henry VI and heir to the throne, killed by Richard at the Battle of Tewksbury
Lady Anne – widow of Prince Edward of Lancaster, later wife and queen of Richard
George, Duke of Clarence – Richard’s older brother and one of his first victims
Queen Elizabeth – Edward IV’s wife
Lord Rivers – Queen Elizabeth’s brother
Marquess of Dorset – Queen Elizabeth’s eldest son from her first marriage to John Grey
Lord Grey – Queen Elizabeth’s youngest son from her first marriage
Duke of Buckingham – one of Richard’s strongest allies
Brakenbury – a jailer at the Tower and one of Richard’s strongest allies
Lord Hastings – one of Edward IV’s leading advisors and an enemy of Richard’s
Catesby – one of Richard’s henchmen and advisors
Murderers – hired by Richard to kill his brother Clarence
Lord Stanley – one of Edward IV’s advisors and second husband of Margaret Beaufort, Richmond’s mother
Duchess of York – mother of Edward IV, Clarence and Richard
Prince Edward of York – son of Edward IV and Queen Elizabeth and heir to the throne
Richard, Duke of York – Prince Edward’s younger brother
Ratcliff – one of Richard’s henchmen and advisors
James Tyrrel – murderer hired to kill Prince Edward and Prince Richard in the Tower
Archbishop of York – bishop loyal to Edward IV
Henry Tudor, Earl of Richmond (later Henry VII) – a royal relative who launched the rebellion that overthrew Richard and began the Tudor dynasty
Bishop of Ely – initially loyal to Richard, but flees to join Richmond
Sir Christopher – officer loyal to Richmond
Blunt – officer loyal to Richmond
The Lord Mayor of London, Cardinals, Priests, a Scrivener, Messengers, Soldiers and Citizens
Initial auditions will be 5:00-8:00 PM on Thurs, Sept. 7 with callbacks (and additional initial auditions if needed) from 1:00-4:00 PM on Sat., Sept. 9. You will be able to leave as soon as you complete your initial audition on the 7th, but if you are called back, please plan to stay the entire time on the 9th. Auditions will take place at PTK’s Studio Space at 511 Fairview Court, Bowling Green, KY. The Studio is located between Chestnut and State Streets just across from Circus Square park. Auditions are open to all non-college students between the ages of 12 and 18. You will be asked to read the attached male or female audition piece and are encouraged to practice it ahead of time, although it does not need to be memorized. You will also do some movement work, so please wear comfortable clothes and shoes.
The first rehearsal/parent’s meeting will be Saturday, Sept. 23. In general, rehearsals will be in the evenings on weeknights between 6:00 and 9:00 PM, with at least one rehearsal on weekends, but exact days and times may vary depending on cast and crew conflicts. You will receive a complete rehearsal schedule prior to the first rehearsal. Performances will be Nov. 9-12 with a school day show the morning of Thurs., Nov. 9 at 10a. There is an activity fee of $50 to participate in the project which includes a show t-shirt, but full scholarships are available to anyone who needs one. If you have any questions or would like to audition but are unable to be there during the scheduled times, please contact Carol Jordan, the director, at carolherinjordan@gmail.com.
Male Audition Piece
(Richard has just convinced Lady Anne to marry him despite the fact that he killed her first husband, Prince Edward of Lancaster, and her father-in-law, Henry VI, and despite the fact that he proposed to her while she was taking Henry VI’s corpse to the church for burial.)
Richard: Was ever woman in this humour woo'd?
Was ever woman in this humour won?
I'll have her; but I will not keep her long.
What? I that killed her husband and his father,
To take her in her heart’s extremest hate,
With curses in her mouth, tears in her eyes,
The bleeding witness of my hatred by,
And I, no friends to back my suit withal
But the plain devil and dissembling looks?
And yet to win her? All the world to nothing!
Ha!
Female Audition Piece
(In this scene, Queen Elizabeth had just learned that Richard has killed her young sons. Margaret, the former queen who was deposed by Elizabeth’s husband, Edward and whose own son was also killed by Richard, bids her farewell.)
Queen Margaret: Farewell, York's wife, and queen of sad mischance:
These English woes will make me smile in France.
Queen Elizabeth: O thou well skill'd in curses, stay awhile,
And teach me how to curse mine enemies!
Queen Margaret: Forbear to sleep the nights, and fast the days;
Compare dead happiness with living woe;
Think that thy babes were fairer than they were,
And he that slew them fouler than he is:
Bettering thy loss makes the bad causer worse:
Revolving this will teach thee how to curse.