Auditions for Peninsula

Howick Little Theatre proudly announces auditions for Peninsula, a drama by Gary Henderson. To be directed by Terry Hooper.

Auditions: Sunday, July 15
This will be a workshop-style audition starting promptly at 11.00am at Howick Little Theatre.

Season: Saturday, 8th September to Saturday, 29th September, at 8.00pm with matinees on Sunday 9th and 16th September at 6.00pm

A triumph of this year’s NZ International Festival of the Arts, Peninsula is set in the 1960s and tells the story of 10-year-old Michael Hope who doesn’t always find life that easy. Michael’s time in the community of Duvauchelle is on some levels idyllic and on others baffling. He has a loving – if not always understanding – family, a jetty to fish off, mates to fish with, a sister to tease and keep out of his clubs, a new television and a new teacher who might just understand him. But, like the volcano that fashioned the peninsula’s imperfect beauty, there are underground rumblings in the adult world that encroach on Michael’s life and threaten to throw things into chaos.

Peninsula, which will be making its Auckland debut at HLT, will be a multi-media event and will require very physically fit people to play the roles.

A good understanding of physical theatre will be required and the use of mime will be a large part of the production. I am not limiting it too much in the age range but it should be between 20 to 50 years with an ability to play both a 10-year-old and a 30/4-year-old (and in one case a dog). All parts are doubled and the breakdown is as shown below.

Cast breakdown:
Lynette/Valerie: the know-it-all child in the classroom and Michael’s mother.
Ngaire/Sylvia: Michael’s young sister and a bored housewife with a wandering eye.
Michael/Bruce: The protagonist of the piece and the boorish husband of the bored housewife Sylvia.
Alex/Jack: Michael’s kindly dad and Michael’s bumptious best friend.
Mr MacIntosh/Pug: The children’s new teacher and Michael’s dog.

Auditions:
These will take the form of a workshop audition and it is important that potential cast have clearly read the play and are able to talk through character ideas and motivations. If it is your intention to audition, please be at the theatre at 11.00am. Perusal copies of the script are available from the theatre. Telephone 09 534-1406 and talk to the Office Manager about how to obtain a copy of the play to read.

About Terry Hooper:
Terry trained at the Rose Bruford School of Speech and Drama and went on to work as a professional actor in Europe. He was also a founder of The Minus One Theatre Company awarded Best New Company at the SADATA One-Act Play Festival.

This is Terry’s sixth production at HLT. He played Marc in the successful production of ART. He acted in and directed Mammals, and directed Sexy Laundry (which won 2010’s Best Production) and last year Backstage. For further details, contact the director on 09 533 6112 or email: hoopsadaisy@xtra.co.nz