Auditions

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Handbagged

By Moira Buffini
Directed by Mary Coffey

Auditions: Saturday 4 & Sunday 5 May
Callbacks: Monday 6 May
Rehearsals: Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays
Performances: 10-20 July 2024

Handbags at the ready! Two of the most powerful women in the world meet behind closed doors once a week for eleven years.

Handbagged is an imagining of the relationship between Queen Elizabeth II and her Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher during their weekly audiences. It is a sharply funny political satire told in a Meta theatrical style. There are two Queens and two Thatchers, younger and older versions. They comment throughout the play on major events of the time such as the loss of the empire, the meaning of society, the miners’ strike, the Falklands war, the IRA bombings and apartheid, to mention just a few. Their older and younger selves regularly contradict each other's recollections of conversations, and at various times try to rush through aspects of their shared history that they would rather not revisit. Helping to recreate events are two male actors playing multiple supporting characters, sometimes halting proceedings to provide context for the audience, often against the wishes of the main characters.

Characters

Roles

Women

4 AMAZING roles for women.  This is an opportunity to get under the skin of two instantly recognizable, strong, female icons.  What a delicious challenge for an actress. (If I wasn’t directing I would be auditioning myself!!) I am looking for four fabulous actresses.  You don’t need to physically resemble these historical figures. What I will be looking for is a really strong stage presence and actresses who can embody the bearing and presence of these women. 

Q: An older Queen Elizabeth II (70s, but happy to audition anyone from 50s up)

T: An older Margaret Thatcher (70s, but happy to audition anyone from 50s up)

Liz: A younger Queen Elizabeth II (50s but happy to audition anyone from 40s up)

Mags: A younger Margaret Thatcher (50s but happy to audition anyone from 40s up)

Men

Two roles for men that have their own equally delicious challenges.  Each actor will be required to portray eight (or 9) historical characters, each needing a distinctly different physicality and accent and often with just a change of spectacles or a pocket handkerchief to assist.  I am looking for actors with great energy, physicality and versatility. A facility with accents would also be great.  Any age.

Actor 1 plays the following characters:

  • A Palace Footman

  • Kenneth Kaunda (President of Zambia)

  • Nancy Reagan (First Lady of The U.S.)

  • Enoch Powell (British Conservative MP)

  • Neil Kinnock (Leader of the Labour Party)

  • Michael Shea (The Queen's Press Secretary)

  • Kenneth Clarke (Conservative MP)

  • A Protestor

Actor 2 plays the following characters: 

  • Denis Thatcher (Margaret Thatcher's husband)

  • Peter Carrington (Conservative MP)

  • Gerry Adams (Sinn Fein Leader)

  • Ronald Reagan (President of the U.S.A)

  • Michael Heseltine (Conservative MP)

  • Arthur Scargill (President of National Union of Mineworkers)

  • Rupert Murdoch (Media magnate)

  • Geoffrey Howe (Conservative MP)

  • Prince Philip (Husband of Queen Elizabeth)

Audition details

Auditions are at Toi Poneke on Saturday 4th and Sunday 5th May 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Callbacks Monday 6th May

Auditions will be 45 minutes long and in groups of 6-8 people. 

There will be separate auditions for the male roles and the female roles.  Both sets of auditions will involve some workshopping.  The auditions for the male roles will lean more heavily towards exploring versatility with voice and physicality and the auditions for the female roles will involve some work around status and power with more of an emphasis on delivery of audition pieces.

Book an audition

Book an audition by emailing auditions@stagecraft.co.nz