Audition Notice: Seeking actors for 'Alabama Story'

Ghostlight Ensemble is casting for its fall production of Alabama Story by Kenneth Jones. Alabama Story is based on the true story in the 1950s about an Alabama state librarian facing an effort to ban a children’s book about a white bunny and a black bunny who get married. This is a timely and moving story that weaves together historical occurrences with fictional characters to drive home the real-world implications of censorship and book-banning that we still face today.

Character Type:
Ghostlight will be casting for the following roles and understudies. Please note that some understudies may cover more than one role. Casting for the following:

• Emily Wheelock Reed: 50ish, white female, State Librarian of Alabama, born in North Carolina, raised in Indiana

• Thomas Franklin: 28, white male reference librarian, Emily’s assistant, from Montgomery, Alabama

• Senator E.W. Higgins: 50ish+, white Alabama state senator

• Joshua Moore: 32, upwardly mobile middle class African American man who left Alabama years ago*

• Lilly Whitfield: 32, a white woman from small-town Alabama privilege*

• Garth Williams/Others: 50ish+. A white writer and illustrator from the East Coast. This role will act as narrator, as well as embodying multiple other roles including aged state representative Bobby Crone, segregationist columnist Henry Branch, radio announcer, and passersby.

*Please note that that characters Joshua and Lilly have one brief scripted kiss. An intimacy choreographer will be available to stage this scene.

Time Commitment:
Rehearsals will be 3-4 times/week on weeknight evenings and/or weekend days in September 2024. A table read and/or table work may be scheduled for a few dates in August. Final dates will be confirmed after review of cast conflicts.

Cast members and understudies MUST be available the following dates:

• Tech week: Sunday, September 22 in the afternoon and Monday, September 23 through Thursday, September 26 in the evenings.

• Performances: show will run Friday and Saturday evenings and Sunday afternoon matinees from Friday, September 27 through Sunday, October 20, 2024.

Please note that performances will be held at two site specific locations: After-Words Bookstore Event Space, 23 E. Illinois, Chicago, IL 60611, September 27-29 and October 4-6 (6 performances); and Haymarket House, 800 W. Buena, Chicago, IL 60613 October 11-13 and October 18-20 (6 performances).

Materials To Prepare:
Please submit your headshot and resume to Jean Mueller-Burr, Casting Director, at casting@ghostlightensemble.com. Please clearly indicate if you have any conflicts during indicated audition times on July 13 or callbacks on July 20. Sides will be provided.

Pay:
Main cast: $300 stipend for production. Understudies: $150 stipend + $25/show performed.

Audition Time & Location:
General: July 13: 1–4:30 p.m. at Merlo Branch, Chicago Public Library, 644 W Belmont Ave, Chicago, IL 60657. 

Callbacks: July 20: 1–4 p.m. Location will be provided as needed.

Contact:
Jean Mueller-Burr
Email: casting@ghostlightensemble.com

Casting Call: Actors needed for Make/Believe festival

Ghostlight is seeking actors for its summer Make/Believe young audiences production. The production takes place the last three Saturdays of July and will be held outdoors. Actors will be expected to be in at least two short plays.

Character Descriptions
While actors of all backgrounds are welcome to apply, we are particularly seeking Filipino-American and Black women, as well as non-binary actors of all races.

Time Commitment
Performances are scheduled for the last three Saturdays in July: July 16, 23 & 30 with performances beginning at 2:30 p.m. and call about an hour before. A tech rehearsal is scheduled for July 12 from 6 to 9 p.m. Most actors will not have to be there the entire time. Performances and tech will be outside at the NorthCenter Town Square ( 4100 N. Damen Ave., Chicago).

Rehearsals will be scheduled around actor and director availability. We've asked directors to consider holding their early rehearsals virtually and to do in person rehearsals outside and masked. The average rehearsal load for this short play festival is usually 3 to 4 rehearsals.

Compensation
Actors will be paid a $100 stipend (total). The performances are free, so there are no formal comps.

How to Submit
Please email a resume and headshot to maria@ghostlightensemble.com. If we are familiar with your work, there will be no audition process. Others may be asked to do a private Zoom audition. Material will be provided and scheduled around your availability.

More info on the festival and shows can be found here.

Auditions Announced for Live Movie Reading Series

Ghostlight Ensemble announces auditions for the second quarter of its Live Movie Reading Series. Please state which movie reading you wish to audition for in your submission. Actors may be considered for multiple readings.

The Live Movie Reading Series is a low-key and fun, staged reading of some of our favorite movies. These readings are fundraisers for local nonprofits. Past recipients have included Common Pantry, Girl Forward and New Leash on Life, among others.

There is no pay for any of these readings.

Character Descriptions
Seeking a strong ethnically diverse cast of all genders, ages, shapes and sizes that is representative of the city in which we live.

We're looking for actors who love these movies, love having fun and who can also read. Those are literally the only requirements. Please note that we prefer a greater diversity in our casts for these movies than the original directors did and that the genders of our actors do not always match those of the actors in the films.

Time Commitment
In general, the live movie reading series involves an initial gathering to watch the movie that is being performed and two rehearsals. There is no tech. All performances take place at 7:30 p.m. on Mondays at Carbon Arc Bar and Board (located at the Davis movie theater in the North Center neighborhood of Chicago).

Performance dates and movies are as follows:

• April 27, 2020: Drop Dead Gorgeous

• May 18, 2020: Legally Blonde

• June 29, 2020: The Big Lebowski (Please note, the role of Walter has been cast.)

Materials To Prepare
Actors are asked to prepare a comedic monologue from their favorite movie, no longer than 1 minute. These monologues do not need to be memorized (as the performances are read and not memorized), but must be acted and staged to the best of your ability.

The audition date is March 21 from 1:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the Mayfair branch of the Chicago Public Library.

Please submit your headshot and resume to Jean at casting@ghostlightensemble.com, and she will be in touch. Please indicate any time restrictions you have for the audition period in your email.

Auditions Announced for Much Ado About Nothing

We are now accepting submissions to audition for Ghostlight Ensemble’s upcoming immersive production of Much Ado About Nothing to be performed in an Albany Park home, where audience members may move amongst the action as all the drama and comedy unfolds around them. The production will be directed by Producing Director Holly Robison.

Audition Dates:
Auditions: Wednesday January 15 and and Thursday, January 16, 2020: 6:30-9:30 p.m.

Callbacks: Saturday, January 18, 2020: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Chicago’s north side.

Location will be provided when audition slot is assigned.

What to Prepare:
Sides will be forwarded with audition slot.

Tech/Performance Dates:
Performance Dates will be Friday and Saturn evenings and Sunday matinees, April 24 to May 17, 2020, with a possible extension. Tech will be April 18–23, 2020. Rehearsals will begin early-mid March on weekday evenings and weekend days. Rehearsals will be scheduled according to cast availability.

Stipend:
Small stipend.

Character Description:
Looking to cast all roles, ages ranging from early 20s to 70s. Seeking a strong ethnically diverse cast of all genders, ages, shapes and sizes. Some roles may be double cast and/or considered for gender fluid casting. Please see character breakdown below.

• BEATRICE, pleasant spirited lady

• HERO, Beatrice’s younger cousin

• LEONATO, Governor of Messina – Hero’s father and Beatrice’s uncle

• MARGARET, waiting gentlewoman to Hero

• URSULA, waiting gentlewoman to Hero

• BENEDICK, a gentleman from Padua

• DON PEDRO, Prince of Aragon

• CLAUDIO, a young lord from Florence

• BALTHASAR, servant/singer

• DON JOHN, Don Pedro’s brother

• BORACHIO, Don John’s comrade

• CONRADE, Don John’s comrade

• DOGBERRY, Master Constable in Messina

• VERGES, Dogberry’s deputy

• GEORGE SEACOAL, leader of the Watch

• FIRST WATCHMAN

• SECOND WATCHMAN

• FRIAR FRANCIS

• MESSENGER(s)

Please submit your headshot and resume to Jean at casting@ghostlightensemble.com, and she will be in touch with sides and an audition appointment if we’d like to see you. Please indicate any time restrictions you have for the audition period in your email.

Plays announced for Make/Believe festival in February

Ghostlight has announced the scripts that will be performed as part of the Make/Believe, a short play festival for young audiences, scheduled for February 22 and 23, 2020, at Laugh Out Loud Theater in the North Center neighborhood of Chicago. 

The plays, geared towards children 12 and under, all have one unifying feature – strong female characters.

Selected scripts are:

• Asherella by Lori Taylor

• Ava's First Escape Room by Kim Z. Dale

• Epic Tales From the Land of Melanin originally devised by Guadalís Del Carmen, Mariana Green, Brandi Lee, Maya Mackrandilal, Enid Muñoz, Alyssa Vera Ramos, Deanalís Resto, Ana Velazquez and Teresa Zoríc with FEMelanin

• Little Red Reboot by Sonya Sobieski

• The Queen of Cocoa Puffs and the Cap'n Crunch King by Corey Pajka

• Scaredy Friends by Carolyn Minor

• Snow White, Who Is Also Called Becky, No Rebecca...and the Frog Prince by Jack Helbig and Margaret Helbig

• Stinky Bird by Seth Freeman

Auditions for Make/Believe take place in January. Find out more here.

Auditions Announced for Live Movie Reading Series and Make/Believe short play festival

Ghostlight Ensemble announces joint auditions for the first quarter of its Live Movie Reading Series and for its young audiences play festival, Make/Believe. Actors may audition for one of both of the programs. Please state which program you wish to audition for in your submission. Actors may be considered for multiple short plays and multiple movies.

The Live Movie Reading Series is a low-key and fun, staged reading of some of our favorite movies. These readings are fundraisers for local nonprofits. Past recipients have included Common Pantry, Girl Forward and New Leash on Life, among others.

Make/Believe is part of our Nightlight young audiences series and is a curated festival of short plays by playwrights from around the country. The plays, geared towards children 12 and under, all have one unifying feature – strong female characters.

There is no pay for any of these shows.

Character Descriptions
Seeking a strong ethnically diverse cast of all genders, ages, shapes and sizes that is representative of the city in which we live.

For the Live Movie Reading series, we're looking for actors who love these movies and who can also read. Those are literally the only requirements. Please note that we prefer a greater diversity in our casts for these movies than the original directors did and that the genders of our actors do not always match those of the actors in the films.

For Make/Believe, actors with previous experience working with children will receive preference in scheduling. All actors must have a love of good stories, a sense of fun and an imagination to rival any 5-year-old. Most of the pieces in this festival involve some level of interaction with the audience, so actors must be comfortable interacting with children and their guardians.

Time Commitment
Live Movie Reading Series:
In general, the live movie reading series involves an initial gathering to watch the movie that is being performed and two rehearsals. There is no tech. All performances take place at 7:30 p.m. on Mondays at Carbon Arc Bar and Board (located at the Davis movie theater in the North Center neighborhood of Chicago).

Performance dates and movies are as follows:

• January 27, 2020: 10 Things I Hate About You

• February 17, 2020: Charlie's Angels (2000 version)

• March 23, 2020: Back To The Future

Make/Believe Festival:
Directors will set rehearsal dates and times around actor availability. These are 15-minute (or less) pieces and should require a minimal number of rehearsals.

Tech is scheduled from noon to 5 p.m. on Saturday, February 15, 2020. Specific time slots will be scheduled for each piece and actors are not expected to be there all day.

Performance times are:

• Saturday, February 22, 2020

• Sunday, February 23, 2020

All pieces will be performed both days. Performances start at 2 p.m. and will be held at Laugh Out Loud Theater in the North Center neighborhood of Chicago.

Materials To Prepare
Actors auditioning for the Live Movie Reading series are asked to prepare a monologue from their favorite movie, no longer than 1 minute. These monologues do not need to be memorized (as the performances are read and not memorized), but must be acted and staged to the best of your ability.

Actors auditioning for Make/Believe will be given sides to read. Please note that you will be in consideration for all the scripts in the festival, even if you are only reading sides for one particular piece.

The audition date is January 11, 2020, from 10:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in the Lakeview neighborhood of Chicago.

Please submit your headshot and resume to Jean at casting@ghostlightensemble.com, and she will be in touch with sides and an audition appointment. Please indicate any time restrictions you have for the audition period in your email.

Auditions announced for a staged reading of The Thirteenth Chair

Ghostlight Ensemble is seeking actors for a staged reading of Bayard Veiller's The Thirteenth Chair. The staged reading is part of the company's development process and those involved in the reading will receive first consideration in casting for the full production.

The Thirteenth Chair is a play written in 1916 set during a phony seance at the home of the wealthy Crosby family. But the phony seance turns out to be the scene of a very real murder. All the doors and windows are locked and the murder weapon can't be found. How will the murderer be uncovered?

The full script can be found here.

Character Descriptions
Seeking a strong, ethnically diverse cast of all genders, ages, shapes and sizes for about 14 roles (with some double casting).

Details
Auditions will be held from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. on Saturday, September 7 in Lakeview.

The staged reading will take place at 7:30 p.m. on October 18 & 19 and 2:30 p.m. on October 20 at Vagabond School of the Arts.

Rehearsals will be scheduled around actor availability. There is no pay.

Material To Prepare
Auditions will consist of cold readings from the script. There will be no callbacks.

Please email a resume and headshot to Jean at casting@ghostlightensemble.com.

Auditions Announced for 'The Selfish Giant'

Ghostlight Ensemble announces auditions for our summer show The Selfish Giant, written by Maria Burnham, directed by Maria Burnham and Miona Lee and based on Oscar Wilde’s short story of the same name.

The Selfish Giant is part of our Nightlight young audiences series and illustrates the perils of isolation and the negative consequences of selfishness, but it also teaches us that it is never to late for redemption and for love.

Character Descriptions:
Seeking a strong, ethnically diverse cast of all genders, ages, shapes and sizes, who love a good story and who have an imagination to rival any 5-year-old. Additionally, actors with strong movement backgrounds are encouraged to audition. This production will use a chorus of actors to embody not just the human characters in the story, but the mythical ones, as well as inanimate objects. This is NOT a dance piece. It is physical theater that relies almost completely on the ensemble of actors telling the story with their bodies and voices.

Material To Prepare:
Please submit your headshot and resume to Jean, and she will be in touch with sides and an audition appointment. Dress for movement and bring your sense of play.

Performance Dates:
Saturdays at 1 p.m. & Sundays at 11 a.m., June 7 to June 30 at Otherworld Theatre, 3914 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60613.

Auditions:
6-11 p.m. on Wednesday, March 13

***Please indicate your availability during this window in your email.***

Callbacks:
9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday, March 16

You MUST be available for callbacks. If you are not available for callbacks, do not submit to this audition. However, you do not need to be available for this entire time.

Auditions and call backs will be held at Otherworld Theatre.

Rehearsals will be scheduled around cast availability taking place 3 to 4 times a week during weeknights and weekends. However, as this is an ensemble production utilizing the entire chorus to tell the story, all actors will be called for all rehearsals. If you have extremely limited availability during April and May, we kindly ask that you do not submit.

To submit:
Send your headshot and resume to Jean at casting@ghostlightensemble.com.

Auditions announced for Picasso At The Lapin Agile

Ghostlight Ensemble announces auditions for our fall show Picasso at the Lapin Agile by Steve Martin, directed by Holly Robison.

The play imagines a meeting between Albert Einstein and Pablo Picasso just before the renowned scientist transformed physics with his theory of relativity and the celebrated painter sets the art world afire with cubism.

Characters Descriptions:
We are seeking a strong, ethnically diverse cast of all genders. We are casting for all roles, with ages ranging from early 20s to early 70s.

Please see character breakdown below.  Some roles will be double cast. Please note: For the characters of Sagot and A Visitor, male-identifying, female-identifying and gender non-conforming actors will be considered. 

• Freddy: owner and bartender of Lapin Agile
• Gaston: an older man
• Germaine: waitress at Lapin Agile
• Albert Einstein
• Suzanne: young woman who has fling with Picasso
• Sagot: Picasso’s art dealer
• Pablo Picasso
• Charles Dabernow Schmendiman: a young man with some interesting ideas
• The Countess: woman involved with Einstein
• A female admirer of Schmendiman
• A Visitor: mysterious man bearing a strong resemblance to Elvis

Material To Prepare:
Please submit your headshot and resume and if selected we will be in touch with sides and an audition appointment.

Time Commitment
Rehearsals will likely begin the week of September 10, with three to four rehearsals a week on weekday evenings or weekend days. Tech is scheduled for October 15-18 in the evening. 

Performance Dates:
Friday and Saturday evenings and Sunday matinees, October 19 through November 4, 2018
With one industry evening performance on Monday, October 22, 2018
at Otherworld Theatre, 3914 N. Clark Street in Chicago.

Auditions:
6:30-9:30 p.m. Monday, July 23
6:30-9:30 p.m. Tuesday, July 24

You must be available for callbacks on Thursday, July 26, which will be held 6:30-9:30 p.m.

There is no pay for this production.

For consideration, please send your headshot and resume to Jean at casting@ghostlightensemble.com.

Auditions Announced for 'The Princess Without Pots'

Ghostlight Ensemble announces auditions for our summer show The Princess Without Pots, written and directed by Maria Burnham.

The Princess Without Pots is geared toward young audiences and shows us a world in which fighting like a girl is something everyone aspires to do.

Characters Descriptions:
Seeking a strong ethnically diverse cast of all genders, ages, shapes and sizes, who love a good story and who have an imagination to rival any 5-year-old.

Material To Prepare:
Please submit your headshot and resume to Jean, and she will be in touch with sides and an audition appointment. Bring your sense of play.

Performance Dates:
Saturdays at 11 a.m. & Sundays at 1:30 p.m., June 9 to July 1 in the North Center neighborhood of Chicago.

Auditions:
7-10 p.m. on Tuesday, March 27
7-10 p.m. on Wednesday, March 28

Please indicate your preferred date and time in your email.

You must be available for callbacks on Thursday, March 29, which will be held between 6:30 to 10 p.m. You do not need to be available for this entire time.

Auditions and call backs will be held at Theatre Momentum's Pendulum Space (1803 W Byron St, Chicago).

Send your headshot and resume to Jean at casting@ghostlightensemble.com.

Overwhelming response to An Ideal Husband auditions

Thanks to everyone who submitted to our auditions for An Ideal Husband. We received hundreds of resumes and headshots. While we wish we could see you all, we have a limited number of spaces, which at this time have all been filled along with our waitlist.

If you received an audition slot, but cannot attend, please let us know as soon as possible — not just for our sake, but out of professional courtesy to your fellow performers who did not receive an audition because of you. Responding quickly allows us to give others the opportunity. Even if you find out the day before your audition that you cannot attend, there are often actors who are available to take that slot with short notice. Likewise, keep this in mind when you consider not showing up to auditions without letting us know in advance. We do understand that unavoidable situations arise at the last minute, but in this day of smart phones and mobile telephones, it is easy to let people know why you won't be attending. Email cancellations to casting@ghostlightensemble.com or call our offices at (773) 377-5342.

We'll hope you'll keep an eye out for our next round of auditions to be held in the spring of 2018 for our summer show, Princess Without Pots.

Ghostlight announces auditions for Oscar Wilde's "An Ideal Husband"

Ghostlight Ensemble will hold auditions for its spring production of An Ideal Husband, Oscar Wilde's comedic masterpiece of blackmail and political corruption, in November.

Auditon Dates: Monday, November 13 & Thursday, November 16, from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m., with callbacks on Sunday, November 19, from 2:30 p.m. to 6 p.m.

Types/Restrictions: Seeking 11 actors of any ethnicity: 5 male-identifying actors ranging from mid 20s - 60s & 6 female-identifying actors ranging from early 20s - 60s

Audition Location: DePaul Theatre School (2350 N Racine Ave, Chicago, IL 60614)

Pay: Small stipend for all performers

Time Commitment: Rehearsals will begin in late January/early February.

Tech: Monday, April 2 - 5, 2018

Performance Dates: 3 performances/week - Friday evening, Saturday matinee & evening, April 6 - 28, 2018 & Monday, April 9, 2018, at Berger Park North Mansion (Gunder House).

Material to prepare: To request an audition appointment, please email H/R to casting@ghostlightensemble.com. Please note any conflicts with audition dates in your initial request. If assigned an audition appointment, a short side will be emailed to you to prepare.

Ghostlight holding auditions for Nutcracker Nightmare

Ghostlight Ensemble will hold auditions for its production of Nutcracker Nightmare, part of our ongoing Gingerbread Grindhouse holiday horror series on, Tuesday, October 24 and Wednesday 25 from 8:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. at Theater Momentum (1803 W Byron St #216, Chicago, IL 60613) .

Nutcracker Nightmare is a holiday tale of children, the toys they love and the toys that try to kill everyone they love. It's the perfect holiday entertainment.

Time Commitment:
Performance Dates: Friday, December 8; Saturday, December 9; Friday December 15 and Satuday, December 16 at 10:30 p.m. at the Greenhouse Theatre Center.

Material To Prepare:
Please prepare a 1-2 minute comic or serio-comic monologue and don't take yourself too seriously. Submit H/R to Jean at casting(at)ghostlightensemble.com, and she will be in touch to schedule an audition appointment.

Note: This a Non-Union, unpaid production.

Casting Notice: Child Actor Needed for Spring Production

Ghostlight Ensemble is seeking an actor for the role of The Boy for its production of Six Characters in Search of an Author. This is an unpaid, non-speaking role.

About the role:
We are accepting submission from children ages 9 to 13, regardless of experience, to join our diverse cast.

About Six Characters:
In Luigi Pirandello’s classic metatheatrical play about the relationship between authors, characters, actors, directors and audience, six characters come looking for life and find the theatre world acutely unable to make them real. Ghostlight Ensemble's production examines the institutional racism found in modern theatre and leaves the audience wondering if they were watching a show, or were they, in fact, the show.

Material To Prepare:
Please submit your headshot and resume to Jean and she will arrange an audition.

Rehearsals:
Rehearsal dates for this role are March 25, March 31 and April 2-5 (tech week).

Performance Dates:
A preview performance is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 6. The production runs Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30 p.m. & Sundays at 3 p.m. from April 7 to May 7; and 7:30 p.m. on Monday, April 17. There will be no performance on Sunday, April 16.  

Performance Location:
Voice of the City studio in Logan Square (3429 W Diversey Ave, Chicago 60647)

Contact:
Send your headshot and resume to Jean at casting@ghostlightensemble.com.