UPDATED 1/4/22: All live auditions will now be held via Zoom. You will need to book your audition time at the following link: https://calendly.com/lisa-ponder/15min?month=2022-01 Sides will be provided by Friday, January 7, 2022 at 9 PM.
South City Theatre is holding auditions for the provocative and powerful drama, THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK on Saturday, January 8, and Sunday, January 9, 2022, from 2:00-4:00 PM via Zoom.
SCT Director Lisa Ponder is looking to cast (5) women, and (5) men. Please familiarize yourself with the plot. The auditions will consist of cold readings from the script. Bring a theatre resume and headshot, if possible. Arrive early to fill out an Audition Sheet.
The Diary of Anne Frank delves into the inspirational true telling through the eyes of Annaliese “Anne” Frank, a vibrant, unwavering young teen, who with seven of her immediate family and friends, struggle to survive capture by the Nazis during World War II. For two obscure years, Anne maintains a diary of the group’s daily, claustrophobic existence in a small, concealed storage attic above her father, Otto Frank’s old business.
COVID- 19 PROTOCOLS: Auditionees should be properly masked and distanced at all times during the auditions. Temp checks will be a part of both the audition process and rehearsals. Anyone cast will be expected to be properly masked at all times during rehearsals. Covid-19 vaccines are STRONGLY recommended and PREFERRED.
VIDEO AUDITION SUBMISSIONS: Video auditions will be accepted through January 4, 2022. Auditionees should prepare and submit a 2 -3 minute monologue of their own choosing that is NOT from the script. Please include your name and the role you are interested in as part of your introduction.
Video submissions and questions should be sent to lisa.ponder@southcitytheatre.com.
SHOW DATES will be April 21-23, 2022, and April 28-30, 2022, at 7:30 PM and April 24, 2022, and May 1, 2022, at 2:00 PM.
CHARACTER DESCRIPTIONS (OPEN ROLES)
Director’s Note: Please look for the humanity in these characters as you prepare. Even though the situation is dire they are still people who love, laugh, and argue just like we do.
MARGOT FRANK 15-year-old sister of Anne, ages to 17, pretty, quiet, obedient, demure, frail, friendly, very intelligent, overwhelmed by the trials of hiding, very close to her mother and father. Like Anne, she longed for a friend in whom she could confide. She played the role of peacemaker when Anne overstepped. She was a good girl and was admired by all.
EDITH FRANK A lovely woman, wife and mother, mid-40s, from a wealthy German family, reticent, loving, moral, concerned, gracious, cultured, devoted to tradition, devastated by her relationship with Anne, barely able to cope with the demands of everyday life in hiding and isolation, tries very hard to accommodate the lower middle-class van Daan family whose uncouth and argumentative ways are an irritant to her and causes her to finally erupt into a seething rage.
MRS. VAN DAAN Mid 40s, loud, egotistical, talky, often crude, suspicious, bossy, moody, self-important, overbearing, critical of others, flirtatious, manipulative, sometimes depressed, enjoys a good laugh or story, more accepting of her introverted son, delusional about her younger self’s popularity and looks, feel s if she is the Queen Bee in the group, chafes under her husband’s control, tries to run the household. A big stirrer-upper! Yet she is amazingly acceptable.
MR VAN DAAN Mid-40s to 50s, dour, selfish, complaining, ungrateful, superficial, quarrelsome, dictatorial, highly critical of his son Peter, easily irritated, is rather withdrawn from the other occupants of the Annex. His transgression causes the great blow-up in the Annex.
PETER VAN DAAN 17-year-old boy, ages to 19, withdrawn, unsure, awkward, immature, shy, sometimes amusing, attached to his cat, tries to stay out of everyone’s way, hates his mother and father’s constant quarrels, ages from the introverted teenager to the more mature 19-year-old who enjoys the company of the girls and who begins to be interested in all the other occupants of the Annex.
Mr. KRALER 35-45, Dutch, helps Miep with the responsibilities of feeding and hiding the occupants of the Annex, is an employee of Mr. Frank’s company, a trusted colleague and friend. He is sympathetic to their plight, does what he can for them, and runs the company in Mr. Frank’s name, an honest and good man.
PRE-CAST ROLES
This show was originally slated to run in April 2022 but was postponed due to Covid-19. The following roles are pre-cast with actors from the 2020 production.
ANNE FRANK (Campbell Pate) – ROLE IS CAST – 13-year-old girl, ages to 15, warm, witty, intelligent, charming, self-aware, sensitive, often impatient, sometimes a know-it-all, open, determined, easily hurt, spirited, hopeful, fun-loving, desperate, with all the longings, expectations, and attitudes that adolescence brings. Though hiding and living in constant fear and isolation, she never gave up. She had a fraught relationship with her mother, adored her father, and lovingly envied her sister. A note for the younger actresses who will audition: You should be comfortable with undressing down to a slip (you would still be fully covered) and with kissing the actor who plays Peter Van Daan.
OTTO FRANK (Michael Wilbanks) – ROLE IS CAST – Father of Anne and Margot and head of the group living in his Annex, middle 40s to early 50s, upper middle-class background, a wise man, fair, loyal, attentive, patient, intelligent, soft, level-headed, optimistic, genuinely liked people, decision-maker, teacher, beloved by his workers who protected him and his family as well as the other tenants of the Annex throughout the war. He was especially susceptible to Anne’s charms. He was devoted to his wife, Edith, and comforted her whenever she was depressed about their living conditions, the attitudes of the van Daans/Dussel, or her relationship with Anne.
DUSSEL (Jim Billings) ROLE IS CAST – Mid-40s-50, dentist, stodgy, old-fashioned, disciplined, hypercritical, selfish, horrified at Anne’s behavior, genuinely does not like people, picky, unhappy with everything, a man who has not come to terms with his situation, whiny, a perfectionist, ungrateful, and easily angered.
MIEP (Savannah Grace) ROLE IS CAST – 25-40, Austrian refugee living in the Netherlands, employed by Mr. Frank, entrusted by Otto Frank with provisioning the occupants of the Annex and hiding them from the outside world, she collected fake ration cards, purchased all their foodstuffs, visited the library on their behalf, and generally tried to keep their spirits up. She was courageous, empathetic, compassionate, and friendly.