Audition Dates:
March 15: 10am – 1pm
March 16: 7pm – 10pm

Auditions will be held in the Carriage House at the Vanderbilt Museum and Planetarium located in Centerport, NY.

Actors should prepare a 1-2 minute monologue and provide a headshot and resume.

Video submissions are also encouraged. Please send your audition video to info@carriagehouseplayers.org before March 16th. If submitting a video, please include headshot, resume, and what shows you are interested/available for.

FULL CHARACTER BREAKDOWN

Medea by Euripides:

• All principal roles for Medea have been cast. We are still seeking actors to fill several smaller character roles, including two small children (to play boys, 8 – 12 years of age).  These characters have featured moments and play an integral part in bringing the larger story to vivid life. Please indicate your interest in getting involved in this production. 

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A Midsummer Night’s Dream Character Breakdown:

Puck (Robin Goodfellow)

• Fairy, Servant to Oberon
• Description: Mischievous, playful, and cunning. Puck delights in causing confusion and chaos but ultimately seeks to resolve the issues between the lovers.
• Stage Age Range: Any
• Notes: A dynamic, energetic role. Must be able to deliver humor and whimsy with a hint of menace and charm. A key comic figure with high energy.

Hermia

• Lover of Lysander
• Description: Independent, bold, and passionate. Hermia is in love with Lysander but is caught in a struggle against her father’s wishes to marry Demetrius.
• Stage Age Range: 20-30
• Notes: Strong-willed and emotionally expressive. Must have chemistry with both Lysander and Helena.

Helena

• Lover of Demetrius
• Description: Heartbroken and insecure, Helena desperately pursues Demetrius, despite his indifference toward her.
• Stage Age Range: 20-30
• Notes: Vulnerable yet determined. Needs to express a sense of unrequited love and comic desperation.

Lysander

• Lover of Hermia
• Description: Handsome, charming, and deeply in love with Hermia. Willing to defy convention to be with her, even if it means fleeing Athens.
• Stage Age Range: 20-30
• Notes: Must display wit, charm, and the capacity for both romantic sincerity and humorous confusion, especially when affected by the magic of the forest.

Demetrius

• Suitor of Hermia
• Description: Initially arrogant and dismissive of Helena, Demetrius falls in love with her after being magically enchanted.
• Stage Age Range: 20-30
• Notes: Needs to transition between being an unsympathetic, disinterested suitor to someone who is suddenly captivated by Helena, all with humor and charm.

Oberon

• King of the Fairies
• Description: Powerful, manipulative, and somewhat jealous. Oberon has a desire for control over the fairy realm and seeks to resolve his conflict with Titania.
• Stage Age Range: 35 and older
• Notes: A commanding presence, able to switch between comic and dramatic moments. Must have authority and show depth in his feelings for Titania. Doubled with Theseus.

Theseus

• The Duke of Athens
• Description: Noble, rational, and authoritative. Theseus is a leader who rules Athens with confidence and fairness but is also caught in the joys and complexities of love.
• Stage Age Range: 35 and older
• Notes: Strong stage presence, commanding voice. A role that requires a balance of authority and vulnerability in dealing with his upcoming marriage to Hippolyta. Doubled with Oberon.

Bottom

• Weaver, one of the Athenian tradesmen
• Description: Overconfident, lovable, and completely unaware of his own absurdity. Bottom is transformed into a donkey by Puck and becomes the object of Titania’s affection.
• Stage Age Range: Any
• Notes: Strong comedic timing and physicality are required. The role demands a larger-than-life presence and a sense of absurdity.

Egeus

• Athenian Nobleman
• Description: A proud and determined father who wishes to force his daughter, Hermia, to marry Demetrius, despite her love for Lysander.
• Stage Age Range: 45-60
• Notes: Serious, authoritarian, but with a clear love for his daughter. Needs to portray a sense of stubbornness and concern.

Quince

• Carpenter, Director of the Mechanicals’ Play
• Description: Well-meaning but often bumbling, Quince is tasked with directing a group of amateur actors in a play for the Duke and Duchess’s wedding.
• Stage Age Range: Any
• Notes: Comedic role, must have good timing and ‘patience’ with the other tradesmen.

Flute, Snout, Starveling, Snug

• Members of the Mechanicals
• Description: A group of tradesmen who are putting on a play within the play. Each has a unique personality, but all are equally committed to their craft despite their lack of experience.
• Stage Age Range: Any
• Notes: Comic roles, require good timing and the ability to play up the ridiculousness of amateur theater. Roles include Flute (a bellows-mender), Snout (a tinker), Starveling (a tailor), and Snug (a joiner).

Philostrate

• Theseus’s Master of the Revels
• Description: Responsible for organizing the entertainment for the duke’s marriage celebration.
• Stage Age Range: Any

Peaseblossom, Cobweb, Moth, and Mustardseed

• Titania’s Fairy Court
• Description: The fairies ordered by Titania to attend to Bottom after she falls in love with him.
• Stage Age Range: Any

Please note that some of the above listed roles will be combined. 

The role of Titania/Hippolyta has been cast and is closed.

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Othello Character Breakdown:

Othello
Age: 30-55
Description: Both a noble and valiant general of the Venetian army, and a black man in Venetian high society. He is deeply in love with Desdemona. Othello is dignified, passionate, and deeply trusting, but also vulnerable to manipulation. His tragic flaw is his jealousy, which ultimately leads to his downfall.

Desdemona
Age: 18-30
Description: A young Venetian noblewoman and Othello’s devoted wife. She is kind, intelligent, and independent, yet naive to the dangers around her. Desdemona is unwavering in her love for Othello and is a tragic victim of Iago’s scheming.

Iago
Age: 30-50
Description: Othello’s ensign (standard-bearer) and the play’s villain. A master manipulator who hides his malicious intent behind a facade of honesty. Iago’s intelligence, cunning, and sociopathic tendencies make him a chilling antagonist.
THIS ROLE IS CAST AND IS CLOSED.

Cassio
Age: 25-40
Description: Othello’s loyal and gallant lieutenant. Cassio is a well-spoken, honorable soldier, but his youth and inexperience make him vulnerable to Iago’s schemes. He values reputation highly and is devastated when he loses Othello’s favor.

Emilia
Age: 30-50
Description: Iago’s wife and Desdemona’s lady-in-waiting. A sharp-witted and cynical woman, Emilia is fiercely loyal to Desdemona, but initially unaware of her husband’s true nature. Her defiance in the final act provides one of the play’s most powerful moments.

Roderigo
Age: 25-45
Description: A wealthy Venetian gentleman hopelessly in love with Desdemona. Foolish and easily manipulated by Iago, he provides much of the play’s comic relief but ultimately meets a tragic end.

Bianca
Age: 20-35
Description: A courtesan in love with Cassio. Though often dismissed as a minor character, Bianca adds depth to the play’s exploration of jealousy and fidelity. She is fiercely devoted to Cassio but is humiliated and dismissed by him, highlighting the play’s themes of love and betrayal.

Duke of Venice
Age: 40-75
Description: The ruler of Venice, the Duke is a composed and authoritative figure who respects Othello and appoints him to lead the military expedition to Cyprus. His role establishes Othello’s credibility at the beginning of the play.

Brabantio
Age: 50-75
Description: Desdemona’s father, a Venetian senator. A proud and influential man, Brabantio is devastated and outraged when he learns of Desdemona’s secret marriage to Othello. He accuses Othello of witchcraft, unable to believe that his daughter would choose Othello willingly.

Montano
Age: 30-60
Description: The governor of Cyprus before Othello’s arrival. Montano is a respected leader and a man of honor. He is wounded in a brawl involving Cassio and is later involved in the resolution of the play’s tragic events.

Lodovico
Age: 30-60
Description: A Venetian nobleman and cousin to Desdemona, Lodovico arrives in Cyprus toward the end of the play and serves as a voice of reason and moral authority. He witnesses Othello’s violent outburst against Desdemona and ultimately delivers justice in the final moments of the play.

Gratiano
Age: 40-70
Description: Another Venetian nobleman, Desdemona’s uncle. Gratiano is present for the tragic conclusion of the play, witnessing the deaths of Desdemona and Emilia and ensuring that order is restored.

First Gentleman
Age: 20-60
A Venetian soldier in Cyprus, involved in discussions about the military and the storm.

Second Gentleman
Age: 20-60
Another Venetian soldier, reinforcing the military setting.

Sailor
Age: Any
Delivers news about the Turkish fleet, a minor but key role in setting the stakes.

Herald
Age: Any
Announces Othello’s celebrations in Cyprus, serving as a transition between scenes.

Officer
Age: Any
A Venetian officer, part of the governing forces in Cyprus.

Messenger
Age: Any
Brings updates from Venice, reinforcing the political intrigue.

Please note that some of the above listed roles will be combined. 

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Coriolanus Character Breakdown:

Coriolanus (aka Caius Marcius)

• Age: 25-45
• Description: Powerful Roman general whose honor and pride lead to his downfall. He is brave and ferocious in battle but unable to navigate the complexities of public, political life.

Volumnia (aka Veturia)

• Age: 45-70
• Description: Mother of Corilanus. A noblewoman who exerts great power from the sidelines. She raised him to be a powerful warrior against everyone but herself.

Tullus Aufidius

•  Age: 25-45
• Description: A ferocious general and leader of the Volscian army as they march against Rome. Meets Coriolanus in single combat and is unable to defeat him, which infuriates him. Later in the play, he allies with Coriolanus against Rome, but turns against him in the end. 

Menenius Agrippa

• Age: 25-45
• Description: Nobleman and close friend to Coriolanus. He has a sharp wit which he often uses to stay out of trouble.

Junius Brutus

• Age: 20-50
• Description: One of the tribunes of Rome (and yes, he is the ancestor of THAT other Brutus). Clever and easily able to manipulate others, he does not trust Coriolanus and works diligently to keep him out of power. 

Sicinius Velutus

• Age: 20-50
• Description: One of the tribunes of Rome and Brutus’ ally. Shares the distrust of Coriolanus and is also a clever politician.

Cominius

• Age: 30-60
• Description: Former consul of Rome, now a general and friend to Coriolanus. One of the leaders of the army that marches against the Volscians.

Titus Lartius

• Age: 40-70
• Description: Older Roman patrician, who leads the army along with Coriolanus and Cominius. 

Virgilia

• Age: 25-45
• Description: Noblewoman and wife to Coriolanus. Helps to dissuade her husband from invading Rome. 

Valeria

• Age: 25-45
• Description: Noblewoman and close friend of Virgilia and Volumnia.

Young Marcius

• Age: 14-18
• Description: Young son of Coriolanus and Virgilia

Adrian

• Age: 18 and up
• Description: A Volscian spy

Nicanor

• Age: 18 and up
• Description: A Roman Traitor

The production is also looking to cast an ensemble of Servants, Citizens, and Soldiers who will have crucial featured moments of dialogue and action, almost functioning as a “Greek Chorus” of sorts. Some of the roles listed above may be combined into these ensemble tracks. 

Please note this production of Coriolanus will take place in a modern, militaristic setting. Therefore, while the play’s traditional gender roles and pronouns are listed in the character descriptions, they do not have to be adhered to. Performers of all races, genders, creeds, and identities are encouraged to audition for any of the above listed roles that interest them. 

No performance conflicts or tech week conflicts will be accepted. More than 3 unplanned rehearsal conflicts will result in potential dismissal from the production. 

Please note the Carriage House Players do not provide transportation or housing.  Performers will be provided a stipend for performances. 

*We do not believe in discrimination based on race, creed, color, gender, national origin, veteran status, sexual orientation, age, or disability. ALL performers are encouraged to audition and will be given full consideration. *