Thank you to those that auditioned for The School For Scandal, by Richard Brinsley Sheridan, directed by Heather Sartin. A cast list will be posted soon.
 

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Clayton Community Theatre announces open auditions  for Noises Off, by Michael Frayn, directed by Tim Kelly.

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Auditions:

Saturday, August 23 from 10a.m.-6p.m. and Tuesday , August 26 from 5p.m.-9p.m.

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Callbacks if needed:

Thursday, August 28 at 7:00p.m.

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Performances:

January 29, 30, 31 & February 5, 6, 7 at 7:30p.m., and February 1 and 8 at 2:00p.m.

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We are excited to announce auditions for our upcoming production Noises Off, and invite performers of all backgrounds and experience levels to participate!

 

Please complete the following FORM to sign up for an audition. This is required, and no walk up auditions will be honored. 

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What to Prepare:

• Please prepare a brief comedic monologue for your audition. We encourage you to memorize your piece, but it is absolutely fine to have a copy in your hands if needed.

• Sample monologues are provided below. These are intentionally short, so you may wish to prepare more than one sample for your audition.

• You are not limited to the part you perform in your monologue—everyone will be considered for all suitable roles. There is no need to prepare a separate (or lengthy) monologue for each part you are interested in.

• Although it is acceptable to use one of the provided samples, we would prefer that you select a monologue from another production that best highlights your abilities.

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Additional Notes:

• Please choose material that highlights your comedic timing and personality.

 

We look forward to seeing your creativity and humor on stage. Break a leg!​

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The auditions will be held at the theatre: Washington University South Campus Theatre (the old CBC High School building), 6501 Clayton Rd, Clayton MO 63117. (Park in the lot to the west of the building off Clayton Road; enter at the glass doors.) 

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​Synopsis:

Experience the comedic anarchy of live theater with Noises Off, a play that pulls back the curtain on a hapless troupe attempting to stage the farce "Nothing On." Follow their journey from a catastrophic dress rehearsal to a chaotic touring production, where the lines between character and actor hilariously dissolve amidst a flurry of missed cues, romantic entanglements, and sheer theatrical mayhem. Tim Kelly, who directed our production of this romp in 2010 and directed one of our biggest recent successes, The Play That Goes Wrong, will again bring his expertise to the direction and set construction.

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Character Breakdown:

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All the characters are actors in a new comedy entitled “Nothing On”. In Act One we see them in their final dress rehearsal; in Act Two we see them backstage, one month later, during a performance on tour; in Act Three we see them attempting to perform the same play quite a while later after company relationships have soured. This is a highly physical farce, and the actors will need to be able to keep up with the fast-paced physical demands of this show, be quick-witted, and able to learn lines early and precisely. 

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Female Characters

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Dotty Otley (offstage character) / Mrs. Clackett (onstage character):

Offstage: Dotty is an aging, forgetful actress who has invested money into the   production of Nothing's On. She is romantically involved with Garry Lejeune, but their relationship is rocky, with frequent misunderstandings and jealousy. She's a seasoned actress, but her forgetfulness causes problems with her cues and props, especially the sardines. Her offstage relationship with Garry creates tension, particularly when jealousy flares.

Onstage: Plays Mrs. Clackett, the housekeeper of the Brent family's country home. Mrs.Clackett is a working-class, no-nonsense character who often answers the phone and handles the sardines (a recurring prop gag). She's not directly involved in any romantic subplots, but her actions set the stage for the chaotic misunderstandings that follow.

Relationships:

Offstage: Is romantically involved with Garry, who plays Roger. However, their relationship is unstable, and Garry becomes jealous and insecure, suspecting Dotty of being involved with other men. Their on-again, off-again relationship fuels a lot of the tension and misunderstanding during the backstage chaos.

Onstage: N/A

Accent:

Offstage: American

Onstage: Cockney British

 

Brooke Ashton (offstage character) / Vicki (onstage character)

Offstage: Brooke is a young, inexperienced, and somewhat air-headed actress. She is romantically involved with Lloyd Dallas, though she's largely oblivious to the romantic tensions around her. Brooke is not very engaged with the drama backstage, focusing more on her own acting (often poorly). She consistently loses her contact lenses, which causes her to stumble around blindly on stage. Brooke rarely deviates from her scripted lines, even when things go wrong, adding to the absurdity.

Onstage: Plays Vicki, a flirtatious and somewhat ditzy tax inspector who is having a fling with Roger Tramplemain. Vicki is caught up in the farcical situations, especially with Roger's attempts to hide her presence from other characters. Her role is primarily sexualized, often appearing in lingerie, and she's involved in the play's comedic misunderstandings.

Relationships:

Offstage: Brooke is romantically involved with Lloyd Dallas, the director. She is largely oblivious to the backstage drama and is focused on her performance, which contrasts with the deeper emotional investment that others (especially Poppy) have in Lloyd.

Onstage: Plays the role of Vicki who is having a flirtatious affair with Roger Tramplemain, played by Garry. Their onstage relationship is playful and sexual, adding to the comic confusion, especially when they try to hide their presence in the house from the other characters.

Accent:

Offstage: American

Onstage: Proper English

 

Belinda Blair (offstage character) / Flavia Brent (onstage character)

Offstage: Belinda is a cheerful and optimistic actress, often trying to keep peace among the cast. She has a maternal, supportive presence and is quick to gossip, but doesn't have any romantic entanglements herself. She is a steady performer, but gets caught up in the chaos of the production due to the conflicts and misunderstandings among her colleagues.

Onstage: Plays Flavia Brent, the upper-class wife of Phillip Brent. Flavia is a slightly dramatic character who believes she and her husband are returning to their home after avoiding tax collectors. She's often involved in slapstick moments, caught up in the confusion of mistaken identities and entrances.

Relationships:

Offstage: Flavia Brent is married to Phillip Brent. Her onstage relationship is part of the farcical misunderstandings that unfold, as she believes they are returning to their country home after hiding abroad for tax reasons.

Onstage: Belinda is a supportive, maternal figure to the rest of the cast but does not have any romantic involvement offstage. She often gossips about others' relationships and tries to mediate conflicts among the cast members.

Accent:

Offstage: American

Onstage: Proper English

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Poppy Norton-Taylor

Offstage: Poppy is the sensitive and emotional assistant stage manager. She's romantically involved with Lloyd Dallas, and later reveals that she's pregnant with his child, which causes additional backstage tension. Poppy is constantly on edge, trying to manage the backstage chaos while dealing with her feelings for Lloyd and the emotional strain of her pregnancy. She often bursts into tears when things go wrong.

Onstage: N/A She only works backstage as the ASM

Relationships:

Off stage: Poppy is romantically involved with Lloyd Dallas. Their relationship becomes more complicated when she reveals she is pregnant with his child. Poppy is deeply emotionally invested in Lloyd, and the pregnancy adds significant tension between them, especially as Lloyd is also involved with Brooke Ashton.

Onstage: NA

Accent:

Offstage: American

Onstage: NA

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Male Characters

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Lloyd Dallas

Offstage: Lloyd is the sarcastic, overworked director of Nothing's On. He's romantically involved with both Brooke Ashton and Poppy Norton-Taylor, leading to numerous personal conflicts. He often expresses frustration with the incompetence of the cast and the ongoing mishaps. His primary struggle is maintaining control over the production while juggling the romantic entanglements that create additional stress for him.

Onstage: NA

Relationships:

Offstage: Lloyd is romantically involved with Brooke, although their relationship seems more physical and less emotionally deep. Lloyd is also romantically involved with Poppy, who later reveals that she is pregnant with his child. This creates significant tension as Lloyd tries to juggle both relationships, while Poppy is emotionally invested in him.

Onstage: NA

Accent:

Offstage: American

Onstage: NA

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Frederick Fellows (offstage character) / Phillip Brent (onstage character) / Sheikh (onstage character)

Offstage: Frederick is a well-meaning but somewhat dim actor. He's prone to overthinking his character's motivations and suffers from nosebleeds when he experiences violence or stress. Frederick is recovering from a recent divorce, which adds to his general anxiety. Offstage, he's a bit clueless and nervous, often trying to avoid conflict. He frequently seeks reassurance from others about his acting choices.

Onstage: Plays Phillip Brent, a tax-evading homeowner who, along with his wife Flavia, has been hiding abroad to avoid paying taxes. Phillip is caught up in the farcical situations, including mistaken identities and comedic confusion over the presence of Roger, Vicki, and others in the house.

Relationships:

Offstage: Frederick doesn't have any romantic involvement backstage, though he is recovering from a recent divorce. His personal anxieties and overthinking of character motivations are more central to his role offstage.

Onstage: Phillip is married to Flavia Brent (played by Belinda Blair). Their onstage relationship is primarily focused on their retum to the house after trying to avoid tax collectors, but they are caught up in the comedic misunderstandings of the farce.

Accent:

Offstage: American

Onstage: Proper English/Middle-Eastern

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Selsdon Mowbray (offstage character) / Burglar (onstage character)

Offstage: Selsdon is an elderly, somewhat hard-of-hearing actor with a long career behind him. He's known for his drinking problem, which causes the rest of the cast and crew to constantly worry about him missing his cues or getting drunk during the performance. Despite his age and issues with memory, Selsdon is still capable of delivering his lines, though his unpredictability adds to the chaos.

Onstage: Plays The Burglar, a comical, elderly thief who breaks into the Brent house. Later in the play, it's revealed that the burglar is actually Phillip Brent's long-lost father. Selsdon's role as the burglar is primarily involved in slapstick, as he sneaks around the house amidst all the confusion.

Relationships:

Offstage: NA

Onstage: NA

Accent:

Offstage: English

Onstage: Cockney British

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Garry Lejeune (offstage character) / Roger Tramplemain (onstage character)

Offstage: Garry is insecure and frequently jealous, suspecting Dotty of having affairs with other men. Garry often gets tongue-tied, unable to finish his sentences, especially when he's upset.Garry's offstage jealousy leads to numerous confrontations, and his inability to express himself clearly adds to the comedy.

Onstage: Plays Roger Tramplemain, a smooth-talking real estate agent who is trying to secretly show the house to Vicki while pretending that no one is staying there. Roger is involved in the slapstick and farcical situations that dominate the play, often juggling misunderstandings and awkward entrances and exits.

Relationships:

Offstage: Garry is romantically involved with Dotty, though their relationship is tumultuous.Garry is intensely jealous and often suspects Dotty of being unfaithful. His insecurity and jealousy fuel many of the arguments backstage.

Onstage: Roger is having a fling with Vicki (played by Brooke Ashton). Their onstage relationship is flirtatious and filled with slapstick moments as Roger tries to hide Vicki's presence from the other characters in the house.

Accent:

Offstage: American

Onstage: Proper English

 

Timothy Allgood

Offstage: Timothy is the overworked stage manager, responsible for the technical aspects of the production. He's exhausted, trying to juggle numerous backstage responsibilities while dealing with the actors' personal dramas and the production's constant mishaps.

Onstage: N/A

Relationships:

Offstage: Tim has no romantic relationships in the play and is often caught in the middle of the cast's demands and the chaotic production. Dotty flirts with him in an attempt to make Garry jealous.

Onstage: NA

Accent:

Offstage: American

Onstage: NA

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SAMPLE AUDITION MONOLOGUES:

 

Mrs. Clackett (flustered). It’s no good you going on. I can’t open sardines and answer the phone. I’ve only got one pair of feet. Hello…. Yes, but there’s no one here, love…. No, Mr. Brent’s not here...He lives here, yes, but he don’t live here now because he lives in Spain… Mr. Philip Brent, that’s right…. The one who writes the plays, that’s him, only now he writes them in Spain… No, she’s in Spain, too, they’re all in Spain, there’s no one here… Am I in Spain? No, I’m not in Spain, dear. I look after the house for him, but I go home at one o’clock on Wednesday, only I’ve got a nice plate of sardines to put my feet up with, because it’s the royal what’s-it’s called on the telly -- the royal you know -- where’s the paper, then? And if it’s to do with letting the house then you’ll have to ring the house-agents, because they’re the agents for the house…. Squire, Squire, Hackham and who’s the other one…? No, they’re not in Spain, they’re next to the phone in the study. Squire, Squire, Hackham, and hold on, I’ll go and look. Always the same, isn’t it. Soon as you take the weight off your feet, down it all comes on your head.

 

Lloyd Dallas 01 (unhappy). Let me tell you something about my life. I have the Duke of Buckingham on the phone to me for an hour after rehearsal every evening complaining that the Duke of Gloucester is sucking boiled sweets through his speeches. The Duke of Clarence is off for the entire week doing a commercial for Madeira. Richard himself -- would you believe? Richard III? Has now gone down with a back problem. I keep getting messages from Brooke about how unhappy she is here, and now she’s got herself a doctor’s certificate for nervous exhaustion -- she’s going to walk! I have no time to find or rehearse another Vicki. I have just one afternoon, while Richard is fitted for a surgical corset, to cure Brooke of nervous exhaustion, with no medical aids except a little whisky -- you’ve got the whisky? -- a few flowers -- you’ve got the money for the flowers? -- and a certain faded charm. So I haven’t come to the theatre to hear about other people’s problems. I’ve come to be taken out of myself, and preferably not put back again.

 

Lloyd Dallas 02 (mad). Poppy! Bring the book! Is that the line, Poppy? “I don’t understand why the Sheikh looks like Philip?” Can we consult the author’s text, and make absolutely sure? (Finds the line.) “What’s that, Dad?” Right. That’s the line, Brooke, love. We all know you’ve worked in very classy places up in London where they let you make the play up as you go along, but we don’t want that kind of thing here, do we. Not when the author has provided us with such a considered and polished line of his own. Not at one o’clock in the morning. Not two lines away from the end of Act One. Not when we’re just about to get a tea break before we all drop dead of exhaustion. We merely want to hear the line. (Suddenly puts his mouth next to her ear and shouts) “What’s that, Dad?” (All patience and politeness again.) That’s all. Nothing else. I’m not being unreasonable, am I? (Vicki runs off stage) Exit? Does it say “exit”? Oh dear, now she’s going to wash her lenses away.

 

Garry Lejeune (Announcing to cast) Don't worry, everyone it's only the technical. (is corrected by the director) What, it's the dress rehearsal? So when was the technical? Well, I say... we're all thinking of it as the technical. (to other actors) Aren't we. And we have all those words, I mean..... Right! Here we are worrying about the words, and they are all coming up like oranges and lemons. Now listen Lloyd... I am not knocking the words, the words are fine, they’re better than fine. They’re, they’re, do you know what l mean? Right? I mean, OK, fine. No, but here we are, we're all thinking, my God, we open tomorrow, we've only had a fortnight to rehearse, we don't know where we are, but my God, here we are! But you know what I mean, we've got to play Weston-super-Mare all the rest of this week, then Yeovil, then God knows where, then God knows where else, and so on for God knows how long, and we're all of us feeling pretty much, you know ... Sorry, Lloyd. But sometimes you just have to come right out with it. You know? Lloyd, let me just say one thing. Since we've stopped. I've worked with a lot of directors, Lloyd. Some of them were geniuses. Some of them were bastards. But I've never met one who was so totally and absolutely ... I don't know ...

 

Frederick Fellowes (Confused and carrying a box). Sorry Lloyd, you know how stupid I am about moves. Sorry, Garry .... Sorry, Brooke .... It's just my usual dimness. (To LLOYD.) But why do I take the things off into the study? Wouldn't it be more natural if I left them on? I mean I thought it might be somehow more logical. Lloyd, I know it's a bit late in the day to go into all this ... but. Thank you, Lloyd. As long as we're not too pushed. But I've never understood why he carries an overnight bag and a box of groceries into the study to look at his mail. I know it has to be out of the way for the next scene, I see that, and Selsdon needs them in the study for his scene, I see that all right, I see all that. I just don’t know why I take them. (Gets a thought) Maybe if you could just give me a reason I could keep in my mind…Thank you Lloyd.

 

Tim Allgood (Over house mic). Act one beginners, please. Your calls, Miss Otley, Miss Ashton, Mr. Lejeune, Mr. Fellowes, Miss Blair. Act one beginners, please. (steps away from mic) And maybe Act One beginners is what we'll get. Oh I hope, Dotty'll pull herself together now we've called Beginners. Now she knows she's got to be on stage in five minutes. Will she? Won't she? I don’t know. We've only been on the road for a month! We've only got to Ashton-under-Lyne! What's it going to be like by the time we've got to Stockton-on-Tees? If only she'd speak! If only she'd unlock her dressing room door! (has a scary thought) But what if she won’t go on? Of course, she will, won’t she, I’m sure she will… but what if she doesn’t. she will, she will… but if she didn’t… I’d have five minutes to change. (looks at watch) Four Minutes! I'll have another go. Takes your mind off your own problems, anyway. (running to dressing rooms) Dotty!

 

Belinda Blair 01 (Trying to cheer everyone up during rehearsal). Oh, I love technicals! Everyone’s always so nice to everyone. Freddie, my precious, don’t you like a nice all-night technical? It’s lovely to see you cheering up and making jokes. This is such a lovely company to work with. It’s such a happy company. (after an incident) Oh, look at Freddie, the poor love! He’s just got a little nosebleed, my sweet. He’s got a thing about violence. It always makes his nose bleed. Freddie? He’s feeling a little faint, my love. He’s got this thing about… (she tries to demonstrate bleeding). Well, I won’t say the word. We all understand, my dear.

 

Belinda Blair 02 (desperately trying to salvage the show). I'll tell you what's happening. He's not in there, my precious - he's… in here, look, and so am l. Look, I know this is a great surprise for everyone. I mean, it's quite a shock for us, finding a man lying at the bottom of the stairs! (To PHILIP.) Isn't it, darling? But, but now we've all met we'll just have to ... Well, we'll just have to introduce ourselves! Won't we, darling? This is my husband. I'm afraid surprises go straight to his nose! (put a handkerchief on Philip’s nose and tilts his head back. Another actor enters) Oh, how delightful - another unexpected guest. So why don't you ... why don't you ... see what you can see in the garden? (She pushes VICKI out of the front door). And darling, you go off and get that bottle marked poison in the downstairs loo. That eats through anything. (pushes Phillip off stage) Yes, never mind, it's all right. We'll think of something. (The director comes on stage dressed as a burglar) Oh no…Hold on! We know this man! He's not a burglar! (pulling him center stage) He's our social worker! He's that nice man who comes in and tells us what to do! That’s right, what to do! So what do you say…..He's saying, he's saying - just get through it. Get through it for doors and sardines! Yes? He's saying 'All we want now is for this to end… I mean for a nice happy ending!'

 

Selsdon Mowbray (Opening the front window) No bars, no burglar alarms. They ought to be prosecuted for incitement. (He climbs in.) No, but sometimes it makes me want to sit down and weep. When I think I used to do banks! When I remember I used to do bullion vaults! What am I doing now? I’m breaking into paper bags! So what are they offering? (He peers at the television.) One microwave oven. (He unplugs it and puts it on the sofa.) What? Fifty quid? Hardly worth lifting it. (He inspects the paintings and ornaments.) Junk ... Junk ... If you insist. (He pockets some small item.) Where's his desk? No, they all say the same thing ...They all say the same thing 'It's hard to adjust to retirement.' No, I miss the violence. I miss having other human beings around to terrify ... It's nice to hear a bit of shouting and screaming around you. All this silence gets you down ... I'm going to end up talking to myself ... right, that's downstairs tidied up a bit. (He starts upstairs.) Just give the upstairs a quick going-over then.

 

Poppy Norton-Taylor (worried and out of breath from running around the theatre). Selsdon is missing, I can’t find him anywhere. You don’t think he’s been (mimes chugging a bottle) do you? But it’s the technical, he wouldn’t, would he? Not at a technical. It’s my fault, he shouldn't have been out of my sight! I was told, he must never be out of sight! But he's been as good as gold all the way through rehearsals. He's not in the dressing room, the lavatories, the scenery dock, the prop room or paint stores. Then the police called, they’ve found an old man. He was lying unconscious in a doorway just across the street. They say he’s very dirty and rather smelly, and I thought oh my God, because… because when you get close to Selsdon. What I mean is that if you stand anywhere near Selsdon you can’t help noticing this very distinctive…. (Suddenly she stops, and sniffs the air) … he is standing right behind me isn’t he.

 

Brooke Ashton (doing her lines as though someone gave her every little gesture). This is great. And this is all yours? It must have cost a bomb. If someone is coming at four o'clock we better hurry I've got to get those files to our Basingstoke office by four. We’ll only just manage to fit it in. This place is so big, look at all these doors, so which one is…. You know. Fantastic, we won’t bother to chill the champagne. We’ll just take it up with us. (opens door) This isn’t the bedroom, it’s a closet with all black sheets and things. (Moving on) in here, it’s another bathroom, you’re always trying to get me into bathrooms. In there… wait, I hear voices. But there’s no one here. You hear all sorts of funny things about these old houses. You don't think there's something creepy going on? I can feel goose-pimples all over I'm going to get into bed and put my head under the covers.

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Everyone who auditions will receive a complimentary ticket to any CCT production this season!