Audition Notice
Treasure Island The Panto 2023
Acting Auditions: Sunday 10th September, 11am
Dancing Auditions: Sunday 17th September, 11am
Performances: Friday 15th – Saturday 23rd December
Directed by Steven Catterall & Shaun McManus
Written by Robert Walsh
Choreographed by Libby Burke
Produced by Ian Robinson
This year’s pantomime is a swashbuckling tale following Jim Hawkins and a motley crew on their adventure to find hidden treasure. The audition will be in two parts one will be the reading from various sections of the script depending on which character(s) you try for. The second part will be a singing audition. This will be a song of your choice that you provide a backing track for, you don’t need to be the greatest singer but the willingness to try is very important.
We would like to encourage everyone to attend if you have ever wanted to get on stage and we have an open evening on the 3rd September 7.30pm with the bar open to meet the directors and discuss the show both on stage and backstage.
Dates of the show – 15/12/2023- 23/12/23 including matinees and Sunday 17/12/2023
Ages for all the main cast are 16 plus.
Any questions please contact Steven Catterall joolsyboy@gmail.com
The Crew
Jim Hawkins: (M/F) Principal Boy but also a ‘buttons’ type character. A ‘jack the lad’ type who is keen to go on adventures, explore and become a proper pirate! Requires good comic timing and the ability to build a good rapport / interact with the audience. Ideally a decent singer.
Long John Silver: (M/F) The Villain! A scheming, charismatic pirate who is more charming than deadly, but has the reputation of a killer! Needs to be a proper wind-up merchant with the audience but also scary! Good singer ideally but as long as they can hold a tune
Short Jane Silver: (F) Principal Girl and Long John’s daughter. Not the typical princess character. She’s a bit bonkers! Loves to dress up as anything other than a pirate, much to the annoyance of her father. Needs good comic timing. Strong singer required
Captain Andrea Smollett: (M) The Dame and the best sea captain in the land (or at least one of them). If there was a ‘lead’ then it is properly Smollett as they have the bulk of the dialogue when on stage. Comic timing, improvisation and the ability to interact with and build a rapport with the audience is absolutely essential. The ability to sing or at least hold a tune is required.
Dave (A.K.A Polly) (M) A man-sized Parrot who is the secret mastermind behind all of Long John’s plans! Appears useless and grumpy but is actually a cruel, evil genius! Does sing but as long as you can hold some sort of tune.
Billy Bones: (M/F) The proper stereotypical pirate in the Comedy Duo. When you think of a pirate you’d see in cartoons / tv shows, that’s what Billy Bones is! Good comic timing required.
Bobby Knuckles: (M/F) The dim one of the Comedy Duo who likes to scrap (not because they are mean, just for the laugh). They identify as a pirate as they go on adventures with Billy Bones, but they aren’t ‘pirate like’ at all, more like a Labrador who is just happy to be outside. Good comic timing required.
Squire Trelawney: (M/F) The richest man in town…and also the widest as they get fatter throughout the show. Has one maybe two functioning brain cells. Likes to tell everyone that they own a ship but they can’t really follow a conversation and communicates mainly in grunts. Good comic timing required, has a song with the Dame, but doesn’t need to be a ‘singer’.
Ben Gunn: (M/F) Only in act 2, but keeps appearing….loves cheese. A completely off the wall character who also plays multiple roles in short but impactful comic camos. Needs great comic timing and a strong character actor to pull off the off-beat humour of the character. Needs to be a passable karaoke singer (make of that what you will)
Dancers
Calling all dancers!
If you are aged 6 or above and want to be one this year’s pantomime dancers in Treasure Island, then you have come to the right place. Formal dance training is preferred but not required and this year our dancers will also be acting in the chorus with some speaking roles available.
The auditions will be taking place on Sunday 17th September at Chorley Theatre, if you are unable to attend this date but still wish to be considered please still get in touch.
On the day:
You will not need to prepare anything in advance, a short routine will be taught to each group, they will then have time to practise before performing the routine in front of the audition panel. We will also be asking dancers who are interested in speaking roles to read a short piece from the script, this does not need to be memorised, copies will be given on the day.
There will be two age groups for this years pantomime and the audition day will be split into two:
Juniors (Ages 6 – 10): 11:00am – 1:00pm
Seniors (Ages 11 – 16): 1:30pm – 3:30pm
Please make sure you arrive 15 minutes prior to your group time to complete paperwork and to ensure we can start as scheduled.
A parent or guardian MUST attend with the child and remain on the premises for the duration of the time the child is needed (including those aged 16).
Before auditioning please ensure you are available for all the performance dates as well as Monday/Wednesday/Friday evenings and all day Sundays for rehearsals. If you are not available for all dates, you may not be considered.
A full rehearsal schedule will be sent out to parents/guardians of successful candidates.
Please ensure you wear appropriate dance wear including jazz shoes/trainers.
Please bring your own drinks as this will not be provided.
If you have any questions regarding the auditions please feel free to contact Libby as below:
Libby Burke
Tel: 07774 834 537
Email: libby.b96@hotmail.com
