Auditions

Noises Off

NOISES OFF!

Auditions for April's comedy "Noises Off!" will be held on
Thursday, March 11 at 6pm
at the J.J. Ferrara Center.
Those auditioning must perform a comic monologue and will also be
asked to read from the script.  Be prepared to attempt a British accent!


 

SYNOPSIS:  NOISES OFF!

Act One

During the first act, we are an audience to this production of a play within a play. It is only hours before the opening of a British adult farce, Nothing On, and the touring company is hurriedly running through a final dress rehearsal before the first audience arrives. 

The Nothing On cast is loveable, but mainly inept; desperately trying to get the show on the road despite their fumbling with entrances and exits, missed cues, misspoken lines, and bothersome props, most notably several plates of sardines.  Trying to pull this all together into some semblance of a presentable show is the director, Lloyd Dallas, who is sitting in the darkened auditorium shouting out directions and trying to get everybody ready for opening.

Act Two

For this act the audience is sitting backstage; the entire set has been turned 180 degrees. We can hear the actors performing out front, but what we see is the back side of the scenery flats, the stage manager trying to keep the action flowing and everybody happy, and the various antics of the actors offstage between their exits and entrances.

The play has been on the road for one month now, and the backstage view reveals the weakening personal relationships among the cast that have led to offstage shenanigans and onstage bedlam. Most of the company is in a continual state of agitation, and this disorder is carrying over into the play, causing missed entrances, flubbed lines, and general hilarity.  Also, there appears to be no true resolution. The play simply falls into turmoil and disorder before the curtain is pulled.

Act Three

It is a month later again, and the tour is reaching an end. We, the audience, are out front again, watching a performance of Nothing On that has reached the point of complete and hilarious deterioration. The business of performing the show has become subordinate to the business of solving personal problems.

Scenery collapses, and props explode. Practical jokes have become common, and actors are now taking verbal, and sometimes physical, cracks at each other both backstage and on stage. Normal rules of logic and response don’t apply anymore.  The actors attempt to cover up a series of mishaps but only compound the problems and draw attention to the bungling performance.

Much of the comedy emerges from the subtle variations in each version as off-stage chaos affects on-stage performance, with a great deal of slapstick. The contrast between players' on-stage and off-stage personalities is also a source of comic dissonance. 

PLEASE BE PREPARED TO ATTEMPT A BRITISH DIALECT FOR THE AUDITION!

Characters of "Noises Off!"

  • Lloyd Dallas: The tempermental director of the play, Nothing On. One-third of a Lloyd–Poppy–Brooke love triangle.

  • Dotty Otley: A late-middle-aged actress. Forgetful. Dating Garry, though she attempts to make him jealous by meeting with Fred.

  • Garry Lejeune: A stuttering actor, easily fired up, repeatedly tries to attack Fred after believing that Dotty was cheating on him with Fred. Speech affectations disappear onstage but are ever-present offstage. Always is stuttering and completing sentences with, "you know..." Dating Dotty.

  • Frederick Fellows: An actor with a serious fear of violence and blood. Gets nosebleeds easily. Often questions the meaning of his lines and moves. Blames himself often for things going wrong.

  • Belinda Blair: Cheerful and sensible, a reliable actress. She may have feelings for Fred.

  • Poppy Norton-Taylor: Assistant Stage Manager. Emotional and over-sensitive, and jealous of Brooke, whom she understudies. Carrying Lloyd's child. One-third of a Lloyd-Poppy-Brooke love triangle.

  • Selsdon Mowbray: An elderly alcoholic man who hides his bottles onstage. If he is not in sight while rehearsing, the stage crew must find him before he passes out.

  • Timothy Allgood: Stage Manager. Understudies Selsdon and Freddy.

  • Brooke Ashton: A young, inexperienced actress from London. It is suggested she is a porn star. Pays no attention to other performers, neither in performance nor backstage. She rarely takes stage direction, and continues performing regardless of any other action onstage. Is always losing her contact lenses. One-third of a Lloyd–Poppy–Brooke love triangle.

Characters of "Nothing On"

  • Mrs. Clackett (Dotty): Housekeeper for the Brents' home in England. Hospitable, but slow.

  • Roger (Garry): Real estate agent that is attempting to rent Flavia and Phillip's home, but uses it for his own personal benefit.

  • Vicky (Brooke): Works for Inland Revenue and is trying to woo Roger.

  • Phillip Brent (Fred): Lives out of the country with his wife, Flavia, to avoid paying taxes. He enters the country knowing that if he is caught by Inland Revenue, he will lose most of the year's income.

  • Flavia Brent (Belinda): Phillip Brent's wife. Dependable, but not one for household duties.

  • Burglar (Selsdon): Old man in his seventies, breaking into the Brents' home.