The CM Performing Arts Center will be holding open Auditions for their upcoming production of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast on Monday September 27th and Tuesday September 28th at 7PM. Please prepare 16 bars of music either from, or in the style of the show. Dress comfortably to dance in case you are asked to stick around for a Dance Audition.
All gender identities and expressions, racial and ethnic backgrounds, and physical and cognitive abilities are encouraged to audition. The CM Performing Arts Center is committed to equity, diversity and inclusion in the casting and encourages actors of diverse backgrounds and underrepresented groups to audition. If you can not attend either of the Audition dates, please send a video submission to [email protected] by Sunday, September 26th.
Health & Safety Protocols:
For the safety of all performers, staff, and our CM community, all performers and staff must be either fully vaccinated for COVID-19 or present proof of a negative COVID-19 rapid antigen test or COVID-19 molecular PCR test on a weekly basis. Unvaccinated performers and staff must wear masks or approved face coverings at all rehearsals and performances. Individuals will be considered fully vaccinated 14 days after their second dose of the Pfizer/BioTech or Moderna COVID-19 Vaccine or 14 days after their single dose of the Johnson & Johnson/Janssen COVID-19 Vaccine.
About the Show:
The classic story tells of Belle, a young woman in a provincial town, and the Beast, who is really a young prince trapped under the spell of an enchantress. If the Beast can learn to love and be loved, the curse will end and he will be transformed into his former self. But time is running out. If the Beast does not learn his lesson soon, he and his household will be doomed for all eternity.
Audition Dates: Monday, September 27 & Tuesday, September 28 7PM
Performance Dates:
Saturday, November 20 7:30PM
Sunday, November 21 2:00PM
Saturday, November 27 7:30PM
Sunday, November 28 2:00PM
Wednesday, December 1 2:00PM
Friday, December 3 7:30PM
Saturday, December 4 7:30PM
Sunday, December 5 2:00PM
Friday, December 10 7:30PM
Saturday, December 11 7:30PM
Sunday, December 12 2:00PM
Wednesday, December 15 7:30PM
Friday, December 17 7:30PM
Saturday, December 18 7:30PM
Sunday, December 19 2:00PM
ALL ROLES OPEN
Character Descriptions:
BEAST/PRINCE (A2-Ab4) – A Prince transformed into a terrifying beast for his lack of compassion; hot-tempered and commanding, but with a warm, loving heart buried far beneath his gruff exterior.
BELLE (E3-F5) – A vibrant, intelligent young beauty who wants much more in life than living in a small town. She is perceived to be quite odd.
MAURICE (Bb2-E4) – Belle’s loving, eccentric inventor father.
GASTON (B2-G4) – The story’s antagonist. The vain, egotistical, narcissistic, ultra-masculine villain determined to marry Belle.
LEFOU (B2-Bb4) – Gaston’s bumbling sidekick.
LUMIÉRE (F#2-G4) – A suave, French, debonair enchanted candelabra. The maître d’ of the castle.
COGSWORTH (A2-E4) – A tightly wound, enchanted stuffy mantle clock and head of the Beast’s castle.
MRS. POTTS (F#3-E5) – A warm-hearted, maternal enchanted teapot. The head of the castle’s kitchen.
BABETTE (D4-C6) – A saucy, flirtatious featherduster who seeks Lumière’s affections. The maid of the castle.
MADAME DE LA GRANDE BOUCHE (C#4-E5) – A former opera diva turned into a wardrobe
CHIP (D4-D5) – A young teacup; Mrs. Potts’ son (Seeking a young actor/actress between the ages of 7 – 11)
MONSIEUR D’ARQUE – The creepy, scheming proprietor of the local insane asylum, the Maison des Lunes.
SILLY GIRLS – Three girls who fawn over Gaston
ENSEMBLE – Enchanted Objects, Townspeople, Tavern Patrons, Mob.
Production Staff:
Director: Natalie Novacek
Natalie Novacek is a freelance director who lives on Wahpekute land in Minneapolis, MN. Her intimate productions have garnered critical acclaim for their precise balance of humor and heart. Her interpretive work thrives in contemporary American texts as well as firmly established texts in the theatrical canon.
In 2014, she began development on a design-driven adaptation of Moby-Dick; or, The Whale titled Book of Ishmael. She is currently working on a creative editing of Shakespeare’s War of the Roses tetralogy (Henry VI, parts 1-3 and Richard III) that focuses on the journey of Queen Margaret. Margaret was developed in part by a 2017 Drama League Rough Draft Residency.
Natalie was a 2005 Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival National Selection Team Directing Fellow in Washington D.C. and a 2016-2017 Directing Fellow at Asolo Rep in Sarasota, FL. She is an alum of the Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab and the SDCF Observership Program. Natalie is a former teaching fellow for the University of Texas at Austin. She has directed for many academic institutions, both at the high school and university level.
Natalie received her M.F.A. in Directing from the University of Texas at Austin and her B.A. in Theatre Arts from Minnesota State University Moorhead. Natalie is a proud Associate Member of the Stage Director and Choreographers Society.
Choreographer: Kevin Burns
Kevin Burns is a L.I. based director, choreographer, and performer. Most recently, he choreographed We Will Rock You, and directed Disney’s The Little Mermaid at CMPAC, the first main stage production to return to Long Island Theatre after the COVID-19 pandemic. Other favorite credits include Disney’s Beauty And The Beast, The Rocky Horror Show, and A Christmas Story. He has worked with companies across the island as an actor, dancer, and educator. He is the choreographer of the annual spring musical at St. John the Baptist DHS. Part of Kevin’s theatrical mission is to help shape the talents of young artists, and to assist in creating a kinder, more inclusive world for all people through the arts. @k3vinburns
Music Director: Matthew W. Surico
Matthew W. Surico has been the Resident Music Director for 7 years. Favorite credits include All Shook Up, Mamma Mia, Beauty and the Beast, Dreamgirls, Les Miserables, On the Town, Aida, West Side Story and South Pacific. He is also an accomplished composer-lyricist having penned music and lyrics for Sue Ology and the (Possibly) Haunted House (NYCTF Off-Broadway 2015), My Christmas Elf and Assumptions, for which he also co-wrote the book. He is the winner of the 2017 Luminary Award for Best Original Score for the short film Imagine-Barry. Matthew also wrote the orchestrations and was the Music Supervisor for the 2020 Regional Premiere of The Wildness, which was one of the first shows to happen during the pandemic.
