OPEN CALL FOR ACTORS!
YOU CAN'T TAKE IT WITH YOU
by Moss Hart and George S. Kaufman
Directed by Jake Oliver
WHEN: Wednesday, September 5, & Thursday, September 6, 2018, 7-9:30 PM. Callbacks (if necessary) Friday September 7
WHERE: Duncan Smith Theatre, 36 Crawfords Corner Rd., Holmdel
Production Dates: October 26, 27, 28 November 2, 3, 4, 5, 9, 10, 11
Cast members must keep rehearsal scheduling conflicts to a minimum.
Needed are a range of performers, both female and male, all ages and ethnicities welcome. No pre-registration is required. Audition sides from the script will be provided at auditions.
All Roles Are Open.
Sweet-natured Alice Sycamore falls for banker's son Tony Kirby. But when she invites her snooty prospective in-laws to dinner to give their blessing to the marriage, Alice's peculiar extended family—including philosophical grandfather Martin Vanderhof, hapless fledgling ballerina sister Essie and fireworks enthusiast father, Paul—might be too eccentric for the staid Kirbys.
CHARACTER BREAKDOWNS
Penelope Sycamore: Female, 40s/50s
The daughter of Martin Vanderhof, mother of Essie and Alice, and wife of Paul, Penelope is the fluttery, gentle lady of the house. She decided to become a playwright when a typewriter was delivered to their house by mistake. She writes plays and paints as hobbies because it makes her happy, but is terrible at both. Penny is a loving mother and wife who is constantly concerned with the welfare of her family. Her main goal is to make sure everyone is happy, particularly her daughter Alice.
Essie: Female, Mid-late 20’s
The daughter of Penelope and Paul, granddaughter of Martin Vanderhof, and wife of Ed, Essie is a child-like pixie in toeshoes. She wants to be a dancer in the worst way--and, according to any unbiased observer, that is exactly what she is... a dancer in the WORST way. The eternal student, she takes lessons from Boris Kolenkhov and is constantly dancing across the living room.
Rheba: Female, N/A
The maid in the Vanderhof household, she probably understands this unusual family better than anyone.
Paul Sycamore: Male, 40s/50s
The husband of Penelope and loving father of Essie. Despite his age, Paul Sycamore has youthful air. His quiet charm and mild manner are distinctly engaging. However, under that unassuming exterior lies a man who lives for his fireworks--the ones he manufactures in the cellar with assistant Mr. De Pinna.
Mr. De Pinna: Male, 30s/40s
Years ago Mr. De Pinna was delivering ice to the Vanderhof home--and just decided to stay. Now the mad genius of pyrotechnics helps out Paul in the cellar. He also moonlights as a model in Mrs. Sycamore's paintings.
Ed: Male, 30s
The husband of Essie, Ed is an enigmatic, agreeable young man, who fits right in to this eccentric family. He is a xylophone player, and distributes Essie's candies. Ed is also an amateur printer who prints anything that sounds good to him. He prints up dinner menus for his family and little quotes that he places in the boxes of Essie's candy. He also likes to make masks.
Donald: Male, N/A
Rheba’s boyfriend, Donald spends a lot of comfortable time at the Vanderhof home and sometimes volunteers as their handyman and valet.
Martin Vanderhof: Male, 60s/70s
The patriarchal head of the family, Grandpa Martin Vanderhof is an eccentric happy old man who lives his life by the philosophy 'don't do anything that you're not going to enjoy doing'. He has never paid his income tax because he doesn't believe in it, as he feels that the government wouldn't know what to do with the money if he paid it. Once a very successful businessman, he left his job 35 years prior for no reason other than to just relax. He goes to circuses, commencements, throws darts, and collects stamps. He is a man who made his peace with the world long, long ago, and his whole attitude and manner are quietly persuasive of this.
Alice: Female, 18-25
The daughter of Penelope and Paul and sister of Essie, Alice is a lovely, fresh young girl. Because she is a secretary in a Wall Street office, she is in daily contact with the world and seems to have escaped the tinge of mild insanity that pervades the rest of the family; however, her familial devotion and love are readily apparent. In the course of the play she is engaged to marry Tony Kirby, her boss’s son.
Wilbur C. Henderson: Male, Any Age
An employee of the IRS. He comes to collect the tax money owed by Grandpa, and can't understand why the latter won't pay income tax
Tony Kirby: Male, 20-25
The boyfriend and later fiancé of Alice, Tony Kirby is a personable young man not long out of Yale and Cambridge. Although he fits all the physical requirements of a boss’s son, his face (and his spirit) has something of the idealist in it, invoking in him a certain fondness for the Vanderhofs’ quirkiness.
Boris Kolenkhov: Male, N/A
Essie’s blustery dance teacher, Boris Kolenkhov is a hearty, explosive, Russian ballet-master, who escaped to America shortly before the Russian Revolution. He is very concerned with world politics, and the deterioration of Russia. He is aware that Essie is untalented at dancing, but knows that she enjoys dancing so he keeps working with her.
Gay Wellington: Female, 30s-50s
An actress whom Penny meets on a bus and invites home to read one of her plays. Gay is an alcoholic, gets very drunk and passes out shortly after arriving at the Sycamore's home and has a VERY difficult time trying to get upstairs.
Anthony Kirby: Male, 40s/50s
Tony’s father and Alice’s boss in the Wall Street office, Mr. Kirby is a successful businessman who wants his son to follow in his footsteps. He is a member of the Harvard Society, the Union Club, the National Geographic Society, and the Racquet Club. He is a very proper man who secretly despises his job. His hobby is raising expensive orchids.
Miriam Kirby: Female, 40s/50s
Tony’s mother, Mrs. Kirby is of the same mind and temperament as her husband. She is an extremely prim and proper woman and is horrified by the goings-on in the Sycamore household. Her hobby is spiritualism.
G-Man 1 (The Man), G-Man 2 (Jim), G-Man 3 (Mac)
Various agents of any age who come to investigate Ed because of the communist quotes he prints up and places in Essie's candy boxes, such as "God is the State – the State is God."
The Grand Duchess Olga Katrina: Female, 30s-50s
She was one of the Grand Duchesses of Russia before the Revolution, another being her sister, the Grand Duchess Natasha. Since then she has been forced to flee to America where she has found work as a waitress in Childs Restaurant. The rest of her family has had a similar fate, such as her Uncle Sergei, the Grand Duke, who is now an elevator man.
Questions? info@holmdeltheatrecompany.org
