Bradford Little Theatre will hold auditions to cast three men and four women for its upcoming production of “In The Next Room” by Sarah Ruhl.
The show is a historic comedy about marriage, intimacy, sexuality and motherhood. Auditions will take place from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Sunday and from 6 to 9 p.m. March 20 at Togi’s Playhouse. Director Chelsea Place will have selected scenes from the script for cold readings but actors are encouraged to research the play before auditioning.
A Pulitzer Prize finalist, “In The Next Room (or The Vibrator Play)” is set in the 1880s at the dawn of electricity and is based on the historical fact that doctors used vibrators to treat “hysterical” women (and rarely men). The play centers on innocent and gentlemanly scientist Dr. Givings, his energetic and curious wife and their infant daughter.
When a new “hysterical” patient brings her own complicated marriage and sufferings to the Givings’ well-to-do Victorian home, the doctor and his wife must confront the fragility of their own marriage, while tending to emotional and physical shortcomings of motherhood, to discover the true depths of love and intimacy.
“This show is the perfect blend of thought-provoking history and suggestive comedy,” said Place. “It will be a wonderful challenge for the actors due to the required of timings between the two rooms and the emotions that they will have to genuinely portray.”
The cast of characters include:
• Dr. Givings: A man in his 40s, a specialist in gynecological and hysterical disorders. Scholarly, polite, refined, practical and rational man of sciences.
• Catherine Givings: Dr. Givings’ wife, a woman in her late 20s. Impulsive, energetic, insatiably curious, talkative, charming. Has a youthful innocence, romantic idealism and a desire for adventure.
• Sabrina Daldry: A patient of Dr. Givings, in her 30s. Somber, depressive, upper middle class Reserved, proper, elegant. Likes to obey rules. Awakens into a bright, lively woman upon treatment.
• Annie: Dr. Givings’ midwife assistant, a woman in her 30s. Stoic, serious, reliable, no-fuss. Learned, intelligent, with a passionate mind for the arts and sciences.
• Leo Irving: A patient of Dr. Givings, an Englishman in his 20s or 30s. Artistic, sensitive, deeply romantic. An impassioned, soulful free thinker.
• Elizabeth: An African-American woman in her 30s. A wet-nurse to Dr. and Catherine Givings’ baby. A grieving mother, sensual, self-possessed, full of common sense. Has the enviable quality of presence and effortless grace.
• Mr. Daldry: Sabrina Daldry’s husband, a man in his 40s or 50s. Sociable, confident, upper class. Generally good-humored but can be bullheaded. Sort of man who usually gets his way. Likes a good joke but can be lewd.
Ruhl’s laugh-out-loud, provocative and touching play was nominated for three Tony Awards, including Best Play. The show will be performed May 18-20 at Togi’s Playhouse and is produced by special arrangement with Samuel French Publishing Co.
Actors auditioning must be 18 or older.
For more information, contact Place at chelsea@bradfordlittletheatre.org or 598-9956. Additional information can be found at www.bradfordlittletheatre.org or the theater’s Facebook page.
