The Alliance Theatre (Atlanta) Open Call for GHOST BROTHERS OF DARKLAND COUNTY
Creative Team
- Music and Lyrics: John Mellencamp
- Book: Stephen King
- Music Direction: T Bone Burnett
- Music Consultant: Andy York
- Director: Susan V. Booth
- Atlanta Casting: Jody Feldman
- New York Casting: Laura Stanczyk
Workshop Dates December 1-16, 2011
Production Dates
- First Rehearsal: February 28, 2012
- Opening: April 11, 2012
- Closing: May 13, 2012
Open Audition Information
- Date: Tuesday, July 19th 2011
- Place: Rich Theatre, Woodruff Arts Center, 1280 Peachtree Street NE, Atlanta
- Time: 9:00 am, Sign in
What to Bring: Two headshot and resumes (stapled together). If you do not have a headshot, please bring a recent photograph with a comprehensive list of performance experience.
*What to Prepare: One song that fits the criteria below to be played by a guitar accompanist. Please bring sheet music for the provided guitar accompanist. Auditioners are welcome to accompany themselves with a guitar as well but must be willing to sing with someone else accompanying. A verse and chorus should be enough – get to the heart/meat of the song. A verse and chorus should be enough – get to the heart/meat of the song.
Callbacks will be the following day, Wednesday, July 20. You will get an email or call the evening of the 19th if we need to see you the next day. At that time you will get instructions as to what to prepare.
Final Callbacks will be Thursday, July 21.
*THE MUSICAL STYLE OF THE PIECE IS FOLK-COUNTRY BLUES, IN THE STYLE OF THE CARTER FAMILY, JOHNNY CASH. FRONT PORCH, NOT SLICK. IT IS NOT MODERN COUNTRY (TOBY KEITH, BRAD PAISLEY, ETC.) OR TRADITIONAL/CONTEMPORARY MUSICAL THEATRE. THE “ROCK” IN THIS PIECE IS NOT THE ROCK OF ROCK OF AGES BUT THE ROCK OF HOWLIN’ WOLF, BOB DYLAN AND JOHN MELLENCAMP. OTHER APPROPRIATE VOCAL REFERENCES WOULD BE SHERYL CROW, ROSEANNE CASH AND KRIS KRISTOFFERSON.
PLEASE note that it is imperative that the songs you prepare for this audition fit the above musical style. Additionally, pay attention to the age and character types of the breakdown below.
Character Breakdown
- JOE MCCANDLESS: 50’s. Caucasian. A haunted man with two grown sons who are bound to repeat the tragedy of Joe’s youth. A strong father, a sympathetic man but scarred by the events of his youth and the destruction of his dreams and heroes.
- MONIQUE MCCANDLESS: 50’s. Caucasian. Maternal, warm but also capable of ferocity when protecting her children or her husband. Works hard to keep her temper in check. A real woman - she does have a favorite son, the wilder one which might tell us something about her youth.
- FRANK MCCANDLESS: 22. Caucasian. Their younger son. The intellect, the good son, on the right side of the tracks. Works hard and is actually getting places. Not as charismatic or attractive as his elder brother who until now has been the star. At heart, a good young man who loves his brother and his parents but is tormented by rivalry and the fear he will never be as loved as much as his less talented but more appealing brother.
- DRAKE MCCANDLESS: 24. Caucasian. The older brother. His mother’s favorite. Handsome, wild, artistic and vulnerable. A singer/songwriter. Emotional. Does not have the intellect or ultimately the ability to succeed the way his brother does. Easily hurt and manipulated but a man’s man. Playing the guitar would be a plus.
- ANNA WICKLOW: 22. Caucasian. Attractive, sexual, manipulative and cheap. Playing the brothers off each other to try to get the most out of each of them. Understands instinctively she only has one card to play and plays it to the hilt. Clever but not smart.
- THE SHAPE: Any age. Male. The dark side of all of us. Mischievous, destructive, inventive. Clever and smart. Sees all the cracks in our plaster and climbs inside. Must have joy and imagination in his deviousness. Must possess impishness, eccentricity, charisma and the ability to capture an audience’s imagination.
- DAN COKER: 60’s. African American. A Ghost. The Witness, the caretaker, the manager. Has warmth and authority but occasionally out of patience with his unruly wards. Sentenced to an eternity with the past as present.
- YOUNG JOE: 10-12 years old. Caucasian. A child. An innocent. Adores his older brothers, follows them whenever and wherever. Incapable of understanding the tragedy that unfolds before him. Unspoiled. Not a show biz kid. A natural with a pure unchanged boy’s voice.
- ANDY: 21. Caucasian. Joe’s oldest brother. A Ghost. The charismatic one. Has all the wildness of Drake McCandless but also has a generation of regret and reflection. This doesn’t mellow his intrinsic nature though and still fights to defend his territory.
- JACK : 18. Caucasian. Andy’s younger brother. A Ghost. Youth and impulse caught eternally in a loop. Wild and sweet. The destructive impulse not so present any more but still capable of making a lot of noise.
- JENNA: 19. Caucasian. Beautiful. A Ghost. Still in love with both boys but feels the sting of their tragedy as well as the one coming much more than either of them or the living McCandless’. Desperate to rewrite or unwrite history but is ultimately as trapped as any of them.
- MALE AND FEMALE ENSEMBLE: 20’s to 40’s. Singers who can move well. Voices with texture.
If you have any questions please contact Casting Assistant Margo Moskowitz at
margo.moskowitz@woodruffcenter.org or 404-733-4674.
