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Director: Jack Dabdoub
Assistant Director: Rina Sklar
Troilus & Cressida begins in the late stages of the stagnant Trojan War, in which the nation-city of Troy is besieged by Greek armed forces intent on sacking the city and returning Helen to her husband Menelaus, brother to the Greek commander Agamemnon. Years previously, the Trojan prince Paris led a successful expedition to abduct Helen, renowned for her beauty and charisma, and the two live as lovers in Troy as war rages around them.
The play follows two primary plots: in Troy, Paris’ brother Troilus has asked Pandarus to facilitate an introduction to the older man’s niece Cressida. The romance that follows is complicated almost immediately after consummation, as Cressida is offered to the Greeks in exchange for an important captured Trojan warrior. The Greek camp is preoccupied with convincing Achilles, their greatest and most vain warrior, to return to battle. In this relative lull, the chivalrous and powerful Trojan prince Hector attempts to reignite the conflict by challenging any Greek to defend the honor of his lady in single combat.
This production will be set in a time period that corresponds in art, fashion, society, and technology with the end of WWI, approximately 1918. A good portion of the active fighters in this conflict will be biplane pilots; air battles will be conducted with model biplanes manipulated by actors.
This will be a LIVE, outdoor show, with in person rehearsals. All actors MUST BE FULLY VACCINATED and provide proof upon entering the audition.
Auditions will take place on Friday, June 24, from 6:00 to 10:00pm, and Saturday, June 25, from 12:00 to 5:00pm, with callbacks from 5:00 to 9:00pm in The Harbor Room, Building G, at Snug Harbor Cultural Center and Botanical Garden, 1000 Richmond Terrace, Staten Island, NY 10301.
If necessary, additional callbacks will be held Sunday, June 26 at 12:00pm
For an audition slot, please contact Jack Dabdoub at [email protected]. Please prepare an Elizabethan monologue preferably from the play, memorized or not. If you have a strong preference for a particular role, choose a monologue from that part. If we are familiar with your work, a monologue may not be necessary.
Performances will take place in Battery Weed, Fort Wadsworth on Staten Island on the following dates:
- Saturday, September 10 at 2:00pm
- Sunday, September 11 at 2:00pm
- Saturday, September 17 at 2:00pm
- Sunday, September 18 at 2:00pm
Tickets free to the public with reservation
All roles are open. A small stipend will be provided. Actors of all races are encouraged to audition for this project, as we are interested in having a diverse cast. Some roles will be open to actors of any gender. Any and all actors may be needed for ensemble duties, and it is our hope to keep everyone busy
CHARACTERS
TROJANS
Troilus: M, 16-30: Sincere, dangerous, great romantic imagination, inexperienced and insecure in love
Cressida: F, 18-40, Witty, situationally aware, quick on her feet, flirtatious
Pandarus: Any, 35+, Cressida’s uncle, schemer, social climber, very outgoing, arranges for Troilus to meet with Cressida, seems to care more for Troilus than Cressida
Hector: M, 25-45, Leader of the Trojan forces, has no peer on the battlefield other than Achilles, a great believer in chivalry, refuses to fight enemies when they are at a disadvantage
Paris: M, 25-45, Kidnapper and lover of Helen and wants to keep her at all costs, a minor combatant
Aeneas: Any, 20-60, Ambassador/messenger, full of rhetorical flourishes and excess, professionally friendly
Priam: M, 55+, Dignified patriarch of the Trojans has passed the reins of Troy to his sons
Helen: F, 20-50, Beauty or charisma so powerful nations go to war to possess her, kept veiled in Troy (in this production) for everyone’s safety, playful
Cassandra: F, 18-40, Sister to Hector, Troilus, and Paris, a seer who predicts the fall of Troy but is not believed. Seemingly possessed by visions at times.
Andromache: F, 25-50, Wife to Hector, has ominous premonition and tries to persuade him not to go to battle
Alexander/Alexandra: Any, 15 to 45, Friend or servant to Cressida
GREEKS
Ulysses: Any, 25-60, Highly intelligent, practical, observant, devious
Nestor: Any, 60+, the eldest Greek, respected for what they have lived through
Agamemnon: Any, 35-60, Leader of the Greeks, not feared, verbose
Menelaus: M, 35-60, Agammemnon’s brother, husband to Helen, not respected
Diomedes: M, 20-35, Suitor to Cressida in Greek camp, confident, determined, practical, clear-sighted
Achilles: M, 25-45, The greatest Greek warrior, proud and vain to a fault, spends most of the play refusing to fight
Patroclus: M, 20-40, Lover of Achilles, concerned about his role in Achilles’ reputation
Ajax: Any, 20-40: Lives in and resents the shadow of Achilles. Not intelligent or articulate, but fierce and loyal
Thersites: Any, 20-50, The fool, profoundly negative about the war and its combatants, insults everyone
Calchas: Any, 45+, parent to Cressida, left Troy to join the Greeks after a vision of Troy’s future
Ensemble: Trojan bastard, Myrmidons, servants, Greek and Trojan soldiers, Trojan townspeople, biplane manipulators
