Audition: Misery

Misery

by William Goldman
based on the novel by Stephen King

Directed by Katie Wickert

Run: Performances will be October 21-30, Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30 pm and Sundays at 2:00 pm

Open Call: 6:00 – 8:00 pm Friday, August 26, and 11:00 am – 1:00 pm Sunday, August 28

Callbacks (If needed – Invite Only): Call-backs, if needed, will be 6:00 pm Tuesday, August 30

Location: Meadville Community Theatre (400 N. Main Street, Meadville, PA). Please enter through the front door and wait in the lobby to your left.

Rehearsals: A read-through is scheduled for Thursday, September 1, with rehearsals beginning shortly after, based on the schedules of those cast.

Audition details: Auditioners will be asked to read a short passage from the script, which will be provided for you at your audition. All roles are PHYSICALLY DEMANDING, and stunts will be required of each actor. Both the roles of Paul and Annie will require large amounts of memorization, intense acting, and heavy physical activity. Additionally, the show does contain scenes of violence, cursing, blood, and depictions of assault & traumatic injuries.

Show synopsis: Misery follows successful romance novelist Paul Sheldon, who is rescued from a car crash by his “number one fan,” Annie Wilkes, and wakes up captive in her secluded home. While Paul is convalescing, Annie reads his latest book and becomes enraged when she discovers the author has killed off her favorite character, Misery Chastain. Annie forces Paul to write a new Misery novel, and he quickly realizes Annie has no intention of letting him go anywhere. The irate Annie has Paul writing as if his life depends on it, and it does.

Casting the following roles:

Annie (F) – mid-30’s-late 50’s: Former nurse who is portrayed as a psychopath with a number of unnamed mental health disorders. Annie’s personality is characterized by violent mood swings, alternating between sweet and charming to ruthlessly vicious.

Paul (M) – mid 30’s – early 40’s: Paul Sheldon is a famous author. A bachelor with multiple failed marriages. He is the author of the Misery Chastain novel series, which take place in Victorian-era England. Paul believes that these novels are little more than “dime-store romances” and in the latest installment Misery’s Child, Misery has died giving birth to her first child, an act that Paul believes will free him from the character and allow him to pursue other writing ideas. Paul becomes totally immobile and in great pain after a car crash. Intelligent and charming, but completely dependent on Annie.

Buster (M) – mid-20s and up: Buster is the beloved town sheriff. Easy-going, likable, cheerful, folksy, and a never-met-a-stranger type. But don’t let his laid-back demeanor fool you, Buster is a very competent lawman with a keen intuition.

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