Auditions for MARY POPPINS at TheaterWorks announced for June 23-25

One of the most popular Disney movies of all time is capturing hearts in a whole new way: as a practically perfect musical! Based on the books by P.L. Travers and the classic Walt Disney film, Disney and Cameron Mackintosh's Mary Poppins delighted Broadway audiences for over 2,500 performances and received nominations for nine Olivier and seven Tony Awards, including Best Musical.

The jack-of-all trades, Bert, introduces us to England in 1910 and the troubled Banks family. Young Jane and Michael have sent many a nanny packing before Mary Poppins arrives on their doorstep. Using a combination of magic and common sense, she must teach the family members how to value each other again. Mary Poppins takes the children on many magical and memorable adventures, but Jane and Michael aren't the only ones upon whom she has a profound effect. Even grown-ups can learn a lesson or two from the nanny who advises that "Anything can happen if you let it."

Auditions

Friday June 23, 6:00PM-10:00PM

Saturday June 24, 5:00PM-9:00PM

Sunday June 25, 10:00AM-2:00PM

TheaterWorks- 10580 N 83rd Drive Phoenix, AZ 85345

Actors ages 16-Adult.

Youth Performers: (Jane & Michael) 8-14 years old. We are only considering performers 8-14 for Jane & Michael Banks. No other roles are available for performers under 16. 

All actors cast who are 18+ will receive a stipend.

Performances September 1-17, 2023

Director: Chris Hamby

Choreography Team: Paul Pedersen

Music Direction: Ken Goodenberger

Stage Manager: Courtney Stevens

16 bars of a song from a Disney musical. Accompanist will NOT be provided. Please bring electronic accompaniment on a personal device. Electronic amplification will be available. 

Callbacks will be held on:

Saturday July 15, 6:00PM-10:00PM

Sunday July 16, 5:00PM-9:00PM

(All callbacks materials will provided in advance.)

As a theater for, of, and in our community, Theater Works strives to practice inclusive casting. Inclusive casting for us means casting actors of color, actors with disabilities, trans and gender non-conforming actors, and other members of historically and currently marginalized communities. We invite actors of all races, ethnicities, body types, gender identities, and physical abilities to audition. Unless a role is specified by the playwright, we will keep character auditions open to all. However, we will make sure to never take opportunities away from underrepresented communities in established roles. When scheduling auditions, we offer accessibility accommodations and, if needed, more information on the process or role. As a community theater, Theater Works recognizes that the community is diverse and dynamic and aims to create art in a safe space for all.

Theater Works is working to create space to stop, listen and be receptive to the voices of the communities we serve. We acknowledge there have been and will be missteps along the way. We strive to learn, make changes, and do better to create a safe space for all artists to thrive. We encourage all of you to audition for us.

CLICK HERE for more information, and to sign up for an audition time

 

West Valley Stages’s 2023 Summer Camps

 

 

CLICK HERE for more information

Save 25% off tickets for 9 TO 5 at Mesa Encore Theatre

9 to 5 is performing at the Mesa Arts Center in the Nesbitt/Elliott Playhouse until June 4th, 2023. 

Use code 5to9 for 25% off all tickets

Tickets are available HERE

Auditions for THE 25TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE at Ghostlight Theatre announced for June 3

Sign up now for an audition time for Ghostlight's opening show of next season -

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee!

When: Saturday June 3rd from 12pm-3pm

What: Please prepare 32 bars of a song from a musical. If your song is dramatic, you have the option to also perform a comedic monologue in addition to the song. Please provide your own track that will work with a Bluetooth speaker. We will not be providing an accompanist.

Rehearsals will start at the end of July. Performances are Sept 7th - 17th.

Unable to make it to auditions in person? Please email your video audition to Gabe Escudero at gabrielabe23@hotmail.com by Sunday, June 4th.

CLICK HERE for more information and to sign up for an audition time

Review Highlights: HANDS ON A HARDBODY - Spotlight Youth Theatre

Adam Kurbat, Lyda Armistead, Owen Donsker, Zoey Waller, and Lauren Youngstedt
Photo by Robert Waller

 

highlights from local critics reviews - (click link at bottom of each review to read complete review)

Click here for more information on this production that runs through June 4

"Based on the 1997 documentary of the same name, the musical Hands on a Hardbody focuses on people who are just trying to get by and achieve their version of the American dream. Here, their dream includes winning a truck, the "hardbody" of the title, in a contest. While the show has an interesting premise, its score is just serviceable and the book a bit choppy. However, it does have interesting characters and themes that anyone can relate to. Spotlight Youth Theatre's production features a gifted cast of teens and sharp direction, along with an intimacy achieved from the small venue that makes you feel connected to the plight of the characters....Director Renee Koher does an excellent job in making sure the show focuses on the individual characters and not the life-sized truck that's center stage and that the cast all deliver performances that are three-dimensional and realistic. For a show where, for the most part, the cast are all standing around a truck, Stephen Hohendorf's choreography is organic to the characters and grows out of the action...may not be a perfect musical but it does focus on people you don't usually see in a show and finds a way to connect their life experiences with our own. It also has an ending that is uplifting and hopeful. With a talented cast and solid direction, Spotlight Youth Theatre's production is entertaining and even quite moving in places."  - Gil Benbrook, TalkinBroadway.com (click here to read the complete review)

Your first look at BEN BUTLER at Don Bluth Front Row Theatre

CLICK HERE for more information on this production, which runs through July 8

photos by Stephanie Cartwright

Your first look at 9 TO 5 at Mesa Encore Theatre

CLICK HERE for more information on this production, which runs through June 4

photos by Jennifer Giralo

Review Highlights: BYE BYE BIRDIE - Hale Centre Theatre

Michala Montaño and the Cast
photo by Nick Woodward-Shaw

 

highlights from local critics reviews - (click link at bottom of each review to read complete review)

Click here for more information on this production that runs through July 1

"The classic musical comedy Bye Bye Birdie is a charming, fun and lively show that focuses on late 1950s America and the fascination with rock music that was sweeping the country at that time. Hale Centre Theatre's production is vibrant and a lively crowd pleaser, with fun choreography and actors who have keen comical abilities and rich singing voices....The Hale cast is wonderful. As Albert, Tyler Brignone exhibits an abundance of charm yet also a fun and frantic side whenever his mother is around. He also has good comic chops and a nice singing voice that delivers a winning rendition of the show's most famous song, "Put On a Happy Face." ...Michala Montaño is excellent as Rosie. Her sharp acting skills let us sees Rosie's determination ...Montaño's singing voice soars on Rosie's numerous songs, including an excellent "Spanish Rose," and her performance is simply exceptional throughout....a nostalgic and fun romp back to the simpler times of America in the late 1950s while also poking fun at parents, teenagers, and their rock and roll obsession with performers like Elvis Presley. Hale Centre Theatre's production has a fantastic cast, sharp comic moments, winning musical numbers, and a whole lot of heart."  - Gil Benbrook, TalkinBroadway.com (click here to read the complete review)

" colorful, high-energy production...both Hale Centre Theatre and Cambrian James have the formula right, nicely illustrated almost immediately in this production when the entire teenage population of Sweet Apple is on the phone, blocking all incoming calls from the rest of the country. ...during 'The Telephone Hour,' James has the young cast pull their phone booths on wheels around the stage, choreographed with a precision that not only stops everyone from bumping into each other but succeeds in allowing all four sides of the house to see what's going on throughout the crowd-pleasing scene without missing any of the action.  'Put On A Happy Face' became the standout, popular hit of the show. In Hale's production, Tyler Brignone's Albert grabs the piece with both hands...Brignone turns the scene into one of the most pleasant and thoroughly engaging sequences of the production.  Though there's an absence of backdrops and theatre flats for this theatre-in-the-round presentation, Hale's technical production values remain high...But it's Albert's girlfriend, Michala Montaño's Rosie you'll remember the most. From her opening song, 'An English Teacher,' sung with the kind of theatrically trained, lower register clarity that makes you immediately sit up and pay attention, beyond a doubt, this production of BYE BYE BIRDIE is Montaño's show."  - David Appleford, Broadway World (click here to read the complete review)

Theatre Artists Studio announces lineup of plays for their NEW SUMMER SHORTS

Original, Offbeat, even Outré!

For 17 years, our NEW SUMMER SHORTS festival has been, hands-down, our theater-goers favorite experience of each season.

Each new season, we do our very best to select the cream of the crop from the short plays submitted by our Studio playwrights.

And, this year, what a bountiful crop we have to offer you!

Your favorite Studio playwrights are well represented:  Tim Ashby, Al Benneian,  Michael Fleck,  Debra Rich Gettleman, Ben Rojek, Micki Shelton and Kirt Shineman. 

As ever, this year's plays are surprising, never dull and always provocative . . .

 CLICK HERE for more information, and to purchase tickets

CYT Phoenix announces Elise Palma as their new Artistic Director

CYT Phoenix is pleased to announce the addition of Elise Palma to the staff as Artistic Director beginning June 2023.  Current Artistic Director, Stephanie Carpenter, is retiring from the position after six years in the role.

"CYT Phoenix is a beautifully unique community.  The combination of performing arts excellence and our values and culture require leadership beyond being passionate about theater.  Elise is indeed passionate about all aspects of theater, but even more so about the kids and their families who participate at CYT.  We're very excited about the upcoming season and beyond with the staff we have in place." - Outgoing Artistic Director, Stephanie Carpenter

Palma has been a fixture at CYT for the last two years as a MainStage Director and Teaching Artist.  She has been all over the country spreading her love of the arts. She’s been ariZoni Award-nominated for her performance, directing and designs across the Valley. After getting her MFA in Acting from the University of Florida, she started building theatre programs at schools in NYC and working Off Broadway. Here in the Valley she’s been using directing as a tool to pour into the next generation of artists. In addition to CYT Phoenix, she’s worked at Phoenix Theater, Blackbox, Desert Stages, Spotlight, and Southwest Shakespeare as a director, actress, teaching artist and wig designer. 

CYT Phoenix began in the Valley in 2005 and is part of the larger network of CYT Branches across the nation which began in San Diego over 40 years ago.  The yearly calendar consists of three ten-week sessions that involve after-school classes in performing arts with the opportunity to audition and perform in a Broadway-style MainStage show or work behind the scenes. Additionally, CYT offers a Summer session consisting of camps, workshops, and classes.  - www.cytphoenix.org

Your first look at BYE BYE BIRDIE at Hale Centre Theatre

CLICK HERE for more information on this production, which runs through July 1

photos by Nick Woodward-Shaw

Your first look at THE GREAT AMERICAN TRAILER PARK MUSICAL at Fountain Hills Theater

CLICK HERE for more information on this production, which runs through June 4

photos by Patty Torrilhon