Information has been released about the Assassins auditions. The show plays 23-27 September at the Bridewell Theatre.

KEY DATES

Pre-audition workshop: evening of Thursday 1 May at The Boury Academy Studios near Vauxhall – sign up here
Deadline for self-tape auditions (all roles): midnight on Sunday 25 May
First round dance call for those auditioning for dancing chorus only: evening of Tuesday 10 June at Wheatsheaf Hall near Vauxhall – sign up here
Recalls (by invitation): daytimes of Sunday 15 June (balladeers and assassins) and Sunday 22 June (ensemble and dancing chorus) at St Gabriel’s Halls, Pimlico
Rehearsals: Tuesday and Thursday evenings and Saturday daytimes, 15 July onwards, mostly at Theatre Deli Leadenhall Studios

Do check out the audition notice even if you know the show well – our concept includes extra parts open to female-presenting actors, non-traditional casting with virtually all roles open to actors of all ethnicities and a chorus for strong dancers as well as the traditional ensemble.

FULL AUDITION NOTICE

ABOUT THE SHOW

Assassins, by Stephen Sondheim and John Weidman, lays bare the lives of nine individuals who assassinated or tried to assassinate the President of the United States, in a one-act historical "revusical" that explores the dark side of the American experience.

The show combines Sondheim’s signature blend of intelligently stunning lyrics and beautiful music with a panoramic story of our culture of celebrity and the violent means some will use to obtain it, embodied by America's four successful and five would-be presidential assassins. Bold, original, disturbing, and alarmingly funny, Assassins has never been more relevant in these turbulent political times.

Our version of Assassins takes us away from the traditional fairground setting and relocates us to an American political convention – AmeriCon. Political conventions are at their heart about being chosen and celebrated by the masses. They are opportunities for political and public figures to get up and pitch why you should choose them, to tell their story, to be the centre of attention for a primetime moment – essentially, why their way is right, and any other way is wrong. This is what our assassins crave, for people to understand and celebrate why they did what they did.

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR

We are looking for a cast of 22, broken down as follows:

2 x balladeers (the convention hosts) – the Balladeer role will be split between the two “hosts” and will also combine the Proprietor role. We are open to actors of all genders performing as the convention hosts.

9 x assassins

5 x ensemble - these actors will play the various smaller roles in scenes and perform the primary singing roles in the two ensemble numbers. These are non-dancing roles, though all roles will require moments of movement.

6 x dancing chorus - these performers are the dancing chorus of the convention. They accompany the balladeers/hosts and assassins in a variety of the ‘convention numbers’ and are primarily a dancing group, though they will sing at various points. Must be strong dancers.

DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION

Sedos is committed to diversity and inclusion. Our commitment is to build and sustain a membership that is reflective of the diverse communities within London. We actively encourage all performers to audition for the roles which they feel best suit their skills.

Across the entire cast there are opportunities for actors of all ages, ethnicities and genders to be cast, with the primary consideration in casting being the performers’ ability to sing and act in their assigned role.

We intend to pursue non-traditional casting, so all roles in Assassins are open to actors of all ethnicities, except  John Wilkes Booth, whose Confederate allegiance and opposition to the abolition of slavery were key factors in his assassination of Abraham Lincoln, so it would feel inappropriate and confusing for a non-white actor to play this role.

Playing age and gender presentation requirements for all roles are detailed in the breakdown in the audition notice.

With regard to the assassins, the characters’ lived experience was a contributing factor to their motive so we will be casting actors who present as the traditional gender presentation. Anyone can audition for any role, provided they are comfortable portraying that gender.

There are no strict gender presentation requirements for the balladeer/proprietor (but please see the role breakdown as to how we are intending to portraying those roles), the ensemble and dancing chorus, but we will be looking to create a balanced cast.  We are not intending to double the balladeer and Lee Harvey Oswald (see role breakdown in the notice).

We will not be transposing any vocal lines (other than potentially changing the octave).

FULL AUDITION NOTICE

MORE AUDITIONS

All our current London auditions and other events.