The Tower Players will hold casting auditions for principal roles for its upcoming production of Shakespeare’s “Twelfth Night” on April 22 and 23.
Auditions will take place in the Quilhot Black Box. Interested students can sign up for a 45-minute time slot on the call board outside the black box.
“The calendar year next year is very restrictive,” said Professor of Theatre George Angell in an email. “This would normally be a big year for a Shakespeare, or another big classic play, but all of our rehearsal periods are too short to fit one in. … The solution we are trying is to cast as many principal players now as we are able.”
Students are asked to familiarize themselves with the script beforehand, and to arrive at the audition a few minutes early to fill out paperwork. Actors cast now will learn their lines over the summer and have an intensive rehearsal schedule in the fall.
Angell said that he hopes to cast Viola, Olivia, Maria, Feste, Sebastian, Duke Orsino, Malvolio, Sir Toby, Sir Andrew, and Antonio before the end of the semester. Feste and Antonio could potentially be cast as women.
The play will likely be set in the Caribbean during the age of pirates.
“Twelfth Night is a crowd-pleasing favorite of Shakespearians everywhere, and we have not mounted a production in more than 30 years,”Angell said in an email.
The theatre department’s three directors—Angell, Professor of Theatre James Brandon, and Production Manager James Beyer—who typically take turns directing one of the school year’s three theater productions.
“We try to do Shakespeare in the theatre department once every other year,” Brandon said. “Last year we did “Much Ado About Nothing,” so we haven’t done Shakespeare for a little while now. We tend to pick shows that would interest an audience and interest the students who audition.”
The remaining minor roles will be cast next fall. “Twelfth Night” will be performed during fall semester Parents Weekend, from October 9 to October 11.
