Auditions: Sweeney Todd

Reilly Arts Center in association with Insomniac Theatre Company, Inc. present:

AUDTIONS
SWEENEY TODD: THE DEMON BARBER OF FLEET STREET

Book by Hugh Wheeler
Music and Lyrics by Stephen Sondheim

Directed by Chad Taylor
Musical Direction by Matthew Wardell

In-Person Auditions are for actors in the Ocala/Gainesville area and others who wish to attend in-person. Time slots are on a first come/first serve basis. If we fill up on Monday/Tuesday times, we will add another day on Wednesday.

In-Person Audition Scheduling: https://auditionsmanager.com/registration.php?AU=ZksZeQ80

Online Submission Auditions are for those who are outside of the immediate area, but who would still like to audition. Serious submissions only, please. Also, if you are local, but cannot attend in-person auditions due to a scheduling conflict, please contact the director at [email protected] before submitting an online audition.

Online Video Submission: https://auditionsmanager.com/submission.php?AU=itLcR583

ALL ACTORS CHOSEN FOR CALLBACKS MUST ATTEND IN PERSON! Callbacks will be July 13th at 7 PM. For any other questions, please contact the director.

WHERE

The Reilly Arts Center
500 NE 9th St.
Ocala, FL 34470

ABOUT THE PLAY

One of the darkest musicals ever written, Sweeney Todd: A Musical Thriller is the unsettling tale of a Victorian-era barber who returns home to London after fifteen years of exile to take revenge on the corrupt judge who ruined his life. When revenge eludes him, Sweeney swears vengeance on the entire human race, murdering as many people as he can, while his business associate Mrs. Lovett bakes the bodies into meat pies and sells them to the unsuspecting public. Perhaps composer/lyricist Stephen Sondheim’s most perfect score, Sweeney Todd is lush, operatic, and full of soaring beauty, pitch-black comedy and stunning terror. It’s one of the signal achievements of the American musical theater of the last fifty years.

AUDITIONS INFORMATION

Please prepare 16-32 bars each of an uptempo song and a ballad from a theatrical production. We also ask that you have a backup of each song type in case we would like to hear more.

Be prepared for cold readings from the script if needed.

Rehearsals will begin in late-July.
Performances are September 8th – 10th.

THIS IS A PAID POSITION. Actors will receive a per diem for each scheduled rehearsal attended as well as a flat fee per performance.

CHARACTER DESCRIPTIONS

Sweeney Todd

A wrongfully imprisoned barber seeking to right the wrongs committed against him. He is Johanna’s father, singularly focused on taking bloody revenge. Our story’s tormented protagonist.

Range: F2 – Gb4 Bass/Baritone

Mrs. Lovett

An entrepreneurial and amoral meat pie shop owner. She falls in love with Todd and turns his desire for revenge into a profitable business venture.

Range: G3 – E5 Alto/Mezzo-Soprano

Anthony Hope

A naive and youthful sailor returning to London. He helps Todd return to London and unexpectedly falls in love with Johanna.

Range: Bb2 – F4 Tenor/High Baritone

Johanna

A spritely girl, full of innocence, constantly yearning for freedom. Todd’s long-lost daughter and Turpin’s ward.

Range: Bb3 – A5 Soprano

Tobias Ragg

A poor youngster apprenticed to Pirelli. He finds a surrogate family in Todd and Lovett.

Range: Bb2 – Ab4 Tenor/High Baritone

Judge Turpin

A lecherous public official who portrays himself as a sanctimonious authoritarian. He takes advantage of his position in the city and is responsible for imprisoning Todd.

Range: E2 – Gb4 Bass/Baritone

Beadle Bamford

A pompous public official. He is deeply loyal to the corrupt Turpin.

Range: D3 – D5 Tenor

Beggar Woman

A deranged and schizophrenic woman who harbors a dark, surprising secret.

Range: Ab3 – F5 Soprano/Mezzo-Soprano

Adolfo Pirelli

A flamboyant Italian rival barber; a charlatan with a secret past.

Range: B2 – C5 Tenor

Ensemble

Townspeople; Policemen; Lunatics. A Great Chorus is needed to fill the room with the harmonies and complex musicality of Stephen Sondheim