Panto auditions

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Yes, that’s right. After two years without one, we will be bringing back the panto to the Community Hall this December.

The production will be Cinderella by the Gabriola’s favourite panto writer Robin Bailes, who has given director Miranda Holmes permission to adapt his script specifically for our island.

Auditions will be held at the Rollo Centre on Sunday, September 11 from 4pm to 6pm. (Please note: the auditions will be held after a rehearsal for our staged reading of The Realistic Joneses, so please do not enter the building until 4pm.)

We are seeking to cast eleven people in principal roles, as well as a minimum of four chorus members, two of whom will also play the small roles of Princess Gladys and (male) Princess Pauline.

Rehearsals will begin the following Sunday at 2pm and will be held every Tuesday and most Thursdays at 7pm and every Sunday until the performances at the Community Hall on December 1, 2, 3 and 4.

To protect the health of cast and crew members, everyone involved will be required to wear a mask for the auditions and for all rehearsals until the dress rehearsal.

The roles to be cast are as follows.

PRINCIPAL CAST

Cinderella – heroine

Prince Charming – hero

Buttons– Cinderella’s best friend

Baron Clarence Bankrupp – Cinderella’s absent-minded father

Baroness Cruella Scrounge – Cinderella’s evil stepmother

Cholera Scrounge – Stepsister (male role)

Rubella Scrounge – Stepsister (male role)

Dandini – the Prince’s advisor

Fairy Godmother – benevolent busybody

Page – the Prince’s page

Evie – a fairy

In addition…

We are looking for a minimum of four Chorus members, two of whom will also play the small roles of Princess Gladys and (male) Princess Pauline. Singing roles.

 

NOTES ON THE PRINCIPALS

Cinderella The feisty heroine. She has not had an easy life but she is a fighter. She is very protective of her father and her best friend Buttons. She is fast-talking and has a wicked sense of humour which gives her a sparky and confrontational relationship with Prince Charming.

Prince Charming Handsome and dashing and not wedded to the traditions of his kingdom, hence his search for a bride amongst the commoners of his land. He is very used to deference from those around him and is delighted to find someone who treats him as an equal. Singing role.

Buttons The classic pantomime character, is the audience’s link to the onstage action and is Cinderella’s best friend as well as having a fairly major crush on her, which she unfortunately does not reciprocate. Nevertheless he is hugely loyal and protective of his friend. He is active and bouncy with a boyish sense of humour.

Baron Clarence Bankrupp is Cinderella’s father. He loves her very much and knows that his marriage to the Baroness has not worked out well for her (or him), but he is also very absent-minded and a little weak-willed.

Baroness Cruella Scrounge is the typical evil stepmother. She has plenty of money, which she has no plans on sharing, and only married the Baron because she fancied a title. She dotes on her own daughters, but treats Cinderella like a slave. She would do anything to get her daughters married to the Prince. Singing role

Cholera is the first of the ugly stepsisters. Cholera is smart in a devious sort of way, she is also, mean-spirited, argumentative and cruel. She genuinely believes that she is a beautiful and desirable woman despite all evidence and experience to the contrary. The role is written to be played by a man dressed as a woman and is a singing part.

Rubella is the second ugly stepsister. Rubella is extremely dumb but no less nasty for that. Like her sister and her mother she treats Cinderella like a slave and is thoroughly horrible to her as well. Also like her sister she believes she is very beautiful and, most importantly, more beautiful than Cholera. The role is written to be played by a man dressed as a woman and is a singing part.

Dandini. The Prince’s chief advisor, a role he also performed for the aging King. Dandini is the guardian of tradition and court etiquette, he is appalled by the idea of the Prince marrying a commoner. Despite his straightlaced nature he also displays a dry sense of humour and he genuinely cares about the Prince.

Fairy Godmother. Relatively traditional Fairy Godmother, but more self-aware than most; it’s just a job after all. Singing role.

Page. The Prince’s page. A comic character who performs a variety of functions within the palace. Singing role

Evie. A fairy who is madly enamoured of Buttons.