Auditions
ANNOUNCING AUDITIONS FOR THE 2023-2024 SEASON AT THE CONTEMPORARY THEATRE OF OHIO (formerly CATCO)
This is an open invitation from The Contemporary to submit for our 2023-2024 Season. The Contemporary is seeking Equity and non-Equity actors for our upcoming season.
The Contemporary’s vision is to become a nationally recognized, anti-racist contemporary theatre company, anchoring a thriving Columbus theatre ecosystem in an empathetic, equitable world. Our purpose is to harness the transformational power of theatre that engages with our current moment to inspire a community of empathy.
In-Person Auditions:
- Friday May 19 | 9 am – 12 pm & 1 – 6 pm
- Saturday, May 20 | 9 am – 12 pm & 1 – 6 pm
Sunday, May 21 | 9 am – 6 pm
DETAILS:
On Friday, Parking at the Riffe Center Parking Garage is NOT available. Parking is available on the street or in the Statehouse Underground Parking Garage (for a fee). On Saturday, public parking is available in the Riffe Center Parking Garage, accessible from Front Street.
Please ignore signage for the Riffe Center Parking Garage that says “closed” or “full,” including any reserved signs on individual parking spaces. The garage is open and free to everyone after 6:00 pm, and during the day on weekends. If the gate is down, push the call button and say you are with CATCO.
We will meet you at the G2 elevator to escort you to the 4th floor where auditions will be held.
Click here for additional information about parking at and near the Riffe Center.
Friday and Saturday are by appointment for AEA actors. AEA, EMC, and Non-Equity actors are also welcome to attend without an appointment. For more information, email casting@catco.org
Non-Equity Auditions are on Sunday at the Columbus Performing Arts Center (CPAC) – 549 Franklin Ave – in the Van Fleet Theatre.
Sunday’s auditions are by appointments only. First come first serve at this link.
Park in the open lot across the street from CPAC. There is a parking lot next to the building, please do not park here. Street parking is also available.
Enter CPAC through the front doors to enter the waiting area for auditions.
What to Prepare
Please be prepared to share a 1-2 minute contemporary monologue. If you don’t have a prepared monologue, you can read from one of the pieces here. You may also sing a brief cut from a selection of a musical theatre or a pop song if you wish. An accompanist will be provided on Saturday and from 1pm – 4pm on Sunday, please bring sheet music in a binder.
Instead of bringing a hardcopy headshot and resume, please share your information here.
Deadline: May 21st, 10pm EST.
If you cannot attend in person, videos can be submitted via private video link (YouTube, Vimeo, Dropbox, Google Drive). Please share a 1-2 minute contemporary monologue. If you don’t have a prepared monologue, you can read from one of the pieces here. If you wish, you may also sing a brief cut from a selection of musical theatre or a pop song. Please submit your info and video here. Please note The Contemporary is unable to provide housing to non-local actors, local actors only please.
Performances are Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings with Sunday matinees. The first two performances are preview performances with rehearsal continuing through opening night on Saturday.
AEA Contracts: Equity actors’ work is governed by the AEA SPT agreement. Please see the submission guidelines on the Equity website. Reach out to casting@catco.org with any questions.
Non-AEA Contracts: Non-Equity actors will be paid $10.10/hour with a guaranteed minimum of $265/week. Equity Membership Candidacy Points available.
Young Performers: Auditions for young performers (under 18) for roles in The Worries of Wesley will occur later in the summer. If you are interested in auditioning, please email casting@catco.org with the subject line: Wesley.
COMMITTMENT TO DIVERSITY:
The Contemporary is committed to diversity and inclusion in our casting practices. We strongly encourage actors of all gender identities, ethnicities, races, and ages, as well as actors with disabilities, to audition for any role.
Characters’ pronouns are listed for reference. We invite actors of all genders to submit for any roles they identify with. We will list race/ethnicity when specific to the characters and are otherwise seeking actors of all races and ethnicities. We will also list disability when specific to a character and are otherwise seeking actors with disabilities and well as without disabilities for all roles.
CASTING BREAKDOWN & SCHEDULES
POTUS Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive
Rehearsals: August 21 – Sept 23, 2023
Performances: Previews Sept 21 & 22; Opens Sept 23 – Closes October 8, 2023
POTUS Or, Behind Every Great Dumbass are Seven Women Trying to Keep Him Alive
By Selina Fillinger
Directed by Leda Hoffmann
Rehearsals: August 21 – Sept 23, 2023
Performances: Previews Sept 21 & 22; Opens Sept 23 – Closes October 8, 2023
CHARACTERS:
- Harriet (she/her) 40s-60s, any ethnicity. Chief of Staff.
- Driven, highly competent. Has lived her life in service of her career at the expense of any of her personal needs. Keeping everything and everyone together. Very strategic.
- Jean (she/her) 30s-50s, any ethnicity, Press Secretary.
- Can handle any pressroom and take care of any scandal. High-strung. Her uniform is her turtleneck. A single working mother. Has a weakness for her ex, the President’s sister.
- Stephanie (she/her) 20s-60s, any ethnicity, Presidential secretary.
- Brilliant, photographic memory speaks five languages, and is terrified of failure. Viciously protective of her job but with crippling insecurity, although she is determined to increase her confidence by listening to her woman-power playlist called BitchBeats. Spends most of the show drug-induced with a multitude of side effects.
- Dusty (she/her) 20s-30s, any ethnicity, The President’s secret lover.
- In love with the President and eighteen weeks pregnant. Naturally fluent in many skillsets from sex to dance to computer hacking. Captain of the dance team, a cheerleader at heart, brimming with positivity and a team player. Loves democracy!
- Bernadette (she/her) 30s-60s, white, The President’s sister.
- Brings strife and mayhem wherever she goes. Just got out of prison. Jean’s ex. Has a bag full of drugs. A chaotic, calculated, charismatic mess. Can “take care” of anything.
- Chris (she/her) 20s-40s, Black, a journalist.
- A great journalist, just had a baby, newly divorced. Sleep deprived. Trying to keep everything in balance. Trying to find places to pump at work. A classic White House press core member, trying to stay ahead of the 20-something white men writing tweets faster than she can write articles.
- Margaret (she/her) 40s-60s, Black, The First Lady.
- Graduated from Stanford then Harvard, has a law firm, wrote three books, and knows Taekwondo. Her daily work is determined by the ever-shifting needs of her five non-profits, two children and of course – the President. Takes no shit. Pressured to shift her public image to be more “earthy” despite being at odds with it.
Good Grief
Rehearsals: October 10 – Oct 29, 2023
Performances: Previews Nov 2 & 3; Opens Nov 4 – Closes Nov 19, 2023
GOOD GRIEF
By Ngozi Anyanwu
Directed by Shanelle Marie and Alan Tyson
Rehearsals: October 10 – Oct 29, 2023
Performances: Previews Nov 2 & 3; Opens Nov 4 – Closes Nov 19, 2023
CHARACTERS:
- Nkechi or N, also Artemis (she/her) 20s, Black/African descent
- Our heroine. She is a first-generation Nigerian girl/woman/goddess. She is city born but raised in the suburbs of Bucks County and is very much a product of that in the way she speaks. She is a pre-med dropout because in her heart she knows she has the lonely heart of an artist. A spunky force of nature.
- Matthew Jason George or MJG, also Orion (he/him) 20s, mixed race
- Our tragic hero. He’s a slacker, a thinker, and a dreamer. A James Dean of the millennium. He very well may also have the heart of an artist but will not live long enough to fully realize his potential. The bad boy who’s not all that bad. The kind of guy that your parents wanted you nowhere near.
- Bro, also Apollo (he/him) 20s-30s, Black/African descent
- N’s big brother, a wannabe hood philosopher, like N he is suburb raised but if you didn’t know any better, you’d think he was raised in a completely different household. Their hearts are the same but their approaches are different.
- Papa, also Zeus (he/him) 40s/50s/60s, Black/African descent
- N’s father, a pragmatic Nigerian/Igbo man. He moved to America to raise his kids here to become doctors, lawyers, and nurses. They have not done what he has said.
- Nene, also Leto (she/her) 40s/50s/60s, Black/African descent
- A psych student, a nurse, and N’s mother…in that order. She is also a Nigerian/Igbo woman. She desperately wants to understand her children.
- JD, also Eros (he/him) 20s, any ethnicity
- The boy from up the street, very realistic. The boy that every parent wants for their kids. He’s a little Zach Morris and a little Dawson. That great mix of being privileged and popular, but also a really good guy.
- MJ’s Mom, also Neptune (she/her) 40s/50s/60s, any ethnicity
- In mourning. She also plays A NEIGHBOR’S MOM that is the bearer of bad news.
The Worries of Wesley (Or: How I Learned to Stop Having Anxiety or Not Really, But I Am Trying)
Rehearsals: Jan 2 – Jan 26, 2023
Opening Night: Jan 27, 2023
The Worries of Wesley (Or: How I Learned to Stop Having Anxiety or Not Really, But I Am Trying)
By Jessica Moss
Directed by Alan Tyson
Rehearsals: Jan 2 – Jan 26, 2023
Opening Night: Jan 27, 2023
CHARACTERS:
- Wesley, any gender, age 9 -13 (ALREADY CAST)
- A great kid. Has anxiety.
- Cameron, any gender, age 9 – 13
- Loves to dance. Gets distracted when they get nervous.
- Parker, any gender, age 9 – 13
- Values friendship. Doesn’t want to be alone.
- Parent One – any gender, 30s/40s
- Protective of Wesley.
- Parent Two – any gender, 30s/40s
- Very connected to the big picture concerns of the world
The ensemble also plays Wesley’s Heart, Wesley’s Brain, Wesley’s Lungs, Teacher, and themselves.
Skeleton Crew
Rehearsals: Feb 6 – Feb 25, 2024
Performances: Previews Feb 29 & March 1; Opens March 2 – Closes March 17, 2024
SKELETON CREW
By Dominique Morisseau
Directed by Raymond O. Caldwell
Rehearsals: Feb 6 – Feb 25, 2024
Performances: Previews Feb 29 & March 1; Opens March 2 – Closes March 17, 2024
CHARACTERS:
- Faye (she/her) 50s/60s, Black
- Working-class woman. Tough and a lifetime of dirt beneath her nails. Somewhere, deep compassion.
- Dez (he/him) 20s/30s, Black
- Working-class young man. Young hustler, playful, street-savy, and flirtatious. Somewhere, deeply sensitive.
- Shanita (she/her) 20s/30s, Black
- Working-class young woman. Pretty but not ruled by it. Hard-working. By-the-books. Believes in the work she does. Also, pregnant. Somewhere, a beautiful dreamer.
- Reggie (he/him) 30s/40s, Black
- White-collar man. Studious. Dedicated. Compassionate. The Foreman. Somewhere, a fire brims.
Ride the Cyclone
Rehearsals: March 19 – Apr 14, 2024
Performances: Previews Apr 18 & 19; Opens April 20 – Closes May 5, 2024
RIDE THE CYCLONE
Directed by Leda Hoffmann
Rehearsals: March 19 – Apr 14, 2024
Performances: Previews Apr 18 & 19; Opens April 20 – Closes May 5, 2024
Note: We will be casting adult actors (18 & over) to play the teenager roles.
CHARACTERS:
- Karnak (he/him) any age, any ethnicity, non-singing role
- The narrator. A mechanical fortune-telling machine.
- Ocean O’Connell Rosenberg (she/her), late teens, any ethnicity – Belter, Alto/Soprano
- Ambitious, “the most successful girl in town”, high school president, straight A student.
- Mischa Bachinski (he/him), late teens, any ethnicity – Rapper/Folksinger, Baritone
- Ukranian, filled with rage and passion, “the angriest boy in town”. But also, a sincere romantic.
- Noel Gruber (he/him), late teens, any ethnicity – Smooth cabaret voice, Tenor
- Lover of French New Wave Cinema, dreams of being a femme fatale.
- Ricky Potts (he/him), late teens, any ethnicity – Rock voice, Baritone
- “The most imaginative boy in town” whose greatest wish is to make love in outer space.
- Constance Blackwood (she/her), late teens, any ethnicity – Rock voice, Alto
- “Nicest girl in town,” self-deprecating humor, townie.
- Jane Doe (she/her), late teens, any ethnicity – Classical/Operatic voice, Soprano
- Decapitated, identity-less, unsure of her past, moves like a marionette with broken strings.
