Audition Opportunities
Working with Talespinner:
The rehearsal process lasts roughly five to seven weeks depending on the type and run length of the production. Rehearsals are scheduled four times a week, typically three on the weekday and one the weekend. They last between four and five hours. There are roughly three to five performances for three weeks. Some school matinee ability on Friday mornings is preferred but not required. Compensation is $400 dollars for principle cast and $300 for understudy roles.
Current Auditions:
TCT Audition Notice
Talespinner Children’s Theatre is holding auditions for actors ages 18 and up for the first half of our season which includes:
Stellaluna: October 14th through 22nd, 2023
Desvelado: November 11th through 19th, 2023
A Light in the Night: December 2nd through 10th, 2023
Talespinner is seeking a diverse group of performers for these shows, which includes roles for BIPOC global majority, Indigenous, Latinx, Asian, Pacific Islander, and/or any Person of Color, as well as those who are Jewish. Additionally, while description of roles may fall on the gender binary, performers of any gender identity may audition for any role. Actors of varying body types and abilities are encouraged to audition.
Each rehearsal process lasts roughly five to seven weeks depending on the type and run length of the production. Rehearsals are scheduled four times a week, typically three on weekdays and one on the weekend. Rehearsals last between four and five hours. Stellaluna and Light in the Night each have 6 performances, Desvelado has 10. Compensation is $400 dollars for those who are cast. Understudies will be selected for each show, for which compensation will be $300.
To audition please submit a video before 5:00 pm on August 1st that includes you retelling your favorite children’s story (under 5 minutes) and playing with an object outside of the object’s original state/purposes. Videos, resumes and headshots can be sent to rtwardzik@talespinnercle.org.
Below you’ll find information about each production. Auditioners are highly encouraged to read through each play and character description so they can have the best sense of the play. Scripts selections are also available to be borrowed, please email admin@talespinnercle.org for more details. With your audition materials, please indicate what production(s) you prefer and which ones you are unavailable for.
Stellaluna (Oct 14-22)
Directed by Becca Martin
Puppet Direction by Carrie Williams
Music Direction and Choreography by Heather Utsler-Smith
Rehearsals begin on August 26th
This play includes puppetry, dance and singing
Baby bat Stellaluna’s life is flitting along right on schedule–until an owl attacks her mother one night, knocking the bewildered batlet out of her mother’s loving grasp. The tiny bat is lucky enough to land in a nest of baby birds, but her whole world has just turned upside down. Literally. Stellaluna’s adoptive bird mom accepts her into her nest, but only on the condition that Stellaluna will act like a bird, not a bat. Soon Stellaluna has learned to behave like a good bird should–she quits hanging by her feet and starts eating bugs. But when she finally has an opportunity to show her bird siblings what life as a bat is like, all of them are confounded. Anyone who has ever been asked to be someone they’re not will understand the conflicts–and possibilities–Stellaluna faces.
Roles:
Actor 1: Musician, Flap. Must be able to play an instrument of your choice.
Actor 2: Stellaluna
Actor 3: Mother Bat, Flitter
Actor 4: Owl, Mother Bird, Flap in dance sequence, Bat Family Member. Character tap dances, beginners are welcome.
Actor 5: Pip, Bat Family Member
Rehearsals will be held at TCT (78th Street Studios) and Performances will be at Pilgrim UCC
This show is roughly 50 minutes long. Tech Week begins on October 7th, 2023. Performances will be Saturdays at 1pm and 4pm, Sundays at 3pm, October 14-22.
Desvelado (Nov 11-19)
Rehearsals begin on September 25th, 2023
This play is bilingual (English and Spanish)
A play for children ages 0-5
Winner of the AATE Distinguished Play Award
A young child named Little One is having trouble sleeping. Little One’s family has moved to a new neighborhood, and he is nervous about attending a new school. With the help of la luna, a.k.a. Harvest, Música and the audience, Little One learns that everything will be alright and that new friends and experiences are a good thing. The show is designed to create a truly interactive experience for young audiences.
Harvest will engage and improvise with the audience. This play included movement and music. All roles are written to be played by any gender.
Roles:
Harvest: Also known as the moon, or la luna. Harvest enjoys their purest form in the fall, embracing the evening with loving arms. Harvest watches over the world, sharing their luminescence with the galaxy and protecting all living souls.
Little One: A precocious and inquisitive 5-year-old child who looks at the world with the widest of eyes. The child dreams big dreams and thinks deep thoughts; yes, even at that young age. The child revels in the present, all the while, with an eye toward what the future holds, in particular, what tomorrow holds.
Música: An abstract being not defined by the physical. It is the harmony and the melody that paints the picture of a story full of imagination. It carries the magic of the journey on its shoulders.
Rehearsals will be held at TCT (78th Street Studio) and Performances will be at a location TBA.
This show is roughly 25 minutes long. Tech Week begins on November 4th, 2023. Performances will be Saturdays at 10 am, 11:30 am and 3pm, Sundays at 10 am and 11:30 am, November 11-19.
A Light in the Night (Dec 2nd-10th)
Directed by Margi Zitelli
A World Premiere by Les and Elana Hunter
Rehearsals begin on October 16, 2023
Liora is scared on the first night of Chanukah. (There is something unjust in her life). She doesn’t think the holiday is that important, and would rather do something else. There is a storm and the lights have gone out. We hear wind and branches crashing outside. Parents are away (perhaps stuck in the storm?) and Gabe, her older brother, is comforting her by telling her the story of Chanukah and Judah Macabee. We see the story acted out, hiding, fighting, finding oil, etc. Through the story, she learns to face her fears and to be brave (like the Maccabees). We see the lights dimming until the whole theater is pretty dark, with just the glow shining through, carrying hope. The oil lasts. It is a miracle. We rejoice. Back in modern day the electricity is still out but mom and dad have made it home safely. Liora lights the first candle of the menorah with the shamash. They celebrate — the play focuses on being brave and standing up for what is right.
Actor 1: Liora, a Jewish girl of around 9 or 10 years. While courageous, spunky, and outgoing, she is deathly afraid of the dark. She doesn’t value Chanukah and would rather celebrate Christmas like her friends. One Hanukkah night, while her parents are away, the lights go out in a storm.
Actor 2: Gabe, her older brother of around 12 or 13.
Actor 3: Anthony (Antiochus)/Dad and other male characters
Actor 4: Shammes/Mom, maybe a Bubbe and other female characters
Rehearsals will be held at TCT (78th Street Studio) and Performances will be at the Mandel Jewish Community Center (JCC).
This show is roughly 60 minutes long. Tech Week begins on November 25th, 2023. Performances will be Saturdays at 1pm and 4pm, Sundays at 3pm, December 2nd through 10th.