While the show is new for VLO, the VLO spirit remains unchanged. VLO veterans know what fun it all is! We also know how important it is to welcome new members to the company. To that end, this newsletter is being sent to over 2300 addresses including choirs, music departments, the media, past participants, and our audience. With word of mouth, leisure calendars, paid ads, and our new web page, we hope that everyone from Hartford to Brattleboro and Westfield to Worcester will know of this opportunity. We hope you will audition, especially if you have never done so before!
It is a wonderful show for VLO -- large choruses with lots to do. Lots of principal characters, including many important non-singing roles. Songs that everyone will recognize, including "Only a Rose," "Some Day," and the "Song of the Vagabonds". And because the show is new for all of us, it is an ideal time for "first-timers" to audition and join the VLO family.
Auditions will be held on Saturday, May 10, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., and Sunday, May 11, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Everyone auditions on a first-come--first-heard basis.
Those interested in principal roles and speaking parts are encouraged (but not required) to come on Saturday, to make it possible to hear people reading together. Chorus candidates are encouraged to audition on Sunday. All the roles are briefly described on the next page.
If call backs are necessary, they will be held on Monday, May 12 at 7:00 p.m. at First Congregational Church. Please note a change from previous practice: call backs will be held only if the audition team feels the need for more information. We are trying to minimize call backs this year and make our casting decisions from the initial auditions.
If you are interested in auditioning for a singing lead, please be prepared to sing a song which shows off your voice to good advantage - its range, projection, and quality. We suggest that you choose a song from The Vagabond King as mentioned in the character sketches below. Since all the singing leads also have substantial dialogue, you will be asked to sightread portions of the script from roles which are appropriate for your voice.
If you are interested in a speaking-only part, you will be asked only to read a portion of a scene.
If you are interested in joining the chorus, please bring something to sing which displays your range, projection and ability to sing on pitch. It needn't be long or elaborate.
To ease you into the audition process, we also offer an optional audition workshop for chorus and principals. Hear the plot and some of the music, receive helpful suggestions on how best to present yourself, what to expect at an audition, and much more. Bring a song to practice with an accompanist in a relaxed, non-threatening atmosphere. The date is Monday, April 28, at 7 p.m. The place is the music room of Amherst Regional High School.
To reach the High School from the center of Amherst, take Main Street east to Triangle Street, turn left at the traffic light (by Bruno's Pizza). Take the first right turn, alongside the playing fields, then take the first left into the school parking lot. We'll use the main entrance.
Because we depend on each other, we take our rehearsal policy very seriously. If you are asked to join the company, your obligation is to attend all your scheduled rehearsals (except for illness or emergency) and be ready to rehearse at the scheduled time. Everyone who auditions will be asked to agree to this policy in writing.
Costumes - We are famous for our costumes, which we construct at the high school during evening and weekend rehearsals.
Sets - Construction happens mostly on weekends; painting starts as soon as set pieces have been built--we supply pizza and subs!
Lighting - Hanging and focusing take place in a frenzy of activity in the final 2 weeks before opening.
Make-up, publicity, ushers, tickets, programs, props, banner painting, souvenirs . . . (you get the idea).
Join us for the whole fall or just a few hours.
Michael Greenebaum, Stage Director, has staged Iolanthe, Gondoliers, Princess Ida and H.M.S. Pinafore for VLO. He has also been Music Director for Mikado, Yeomen of the Guard, Ruddigore, Utopia, Patience, Sorcerer, H.M.S. Pinafore, Princess Ida and Orpheus in the Underworld with VLO and other companies. Musical Theater credits include Anything Goes, Oklahoma, Guys and Dolls, Two Gentlemen of Verona, and Kiss Me Kate.
David Kidwell, Music Director, is a composer, conductor, pianist, and violinist with a master's degree in composition from the Hartt School of Music. He serves as music director, teacher and keyboardist throughout the valley as well as being the assistant conductor of the Pioneer Valley Symphony. David has played in the VLO orchestra since 1991 and served as the VLO's principal accompanist. He moved to the podium to direct the music for Princess Ida in 1995 and Mikado in 1996. He is currently involved in a production of Evita with Westfield Theatre Group.
The Production Staff also includes Steve Morgan as Producer Emeritus, Al Hudson as Associate Producer, long-time team member Elaine Walker doing costumes, and Jacqueline Haney McDowell as Coordinating Producer.
The Chorus - Some women will switch from being, well, no better than they should be in the tavern scene to being members of the King's Court (and probably no better than they should be there, either). Some women will remain part of "the rabble" throughout the show. Some men will be pimps and thieves in scene one and courtiers in later scenes. A small group of men will become the King's Archers and have their own music and roles throughout the show.
Men's Singing Roles:
François Villon -- charismatic and complicated, magnificent
and melancholic, in the words of Swinburne, "sad, bad, glad
and mad". Think Robin Hood crossed with Ratso Rizzo. The
romantic lead, this long part also requires some physical agility
and willingness to learn swordplay. He is a high baritone with
a comfortable high F. Recommended audition song:
"Tomorrow" refrain.
Guy Tabarie -- Villon's right-hand man, loyal and ever true, but not always wise and addicted to dreadful jokes. A large, comic part with two major songs. He is a tenor and must have a soaring high A. Recommended audition song: "Drinking Song" refrain.
René de Montigny -- Of noble birth, he throws his lot in with Villon's gang. Happily turns traitor for a purse of gold. Opens the show with its first song. He can be a baritone or a tenor. Recommended audition song: "My Dear Old Mother".
Captain of the Scots Archers -- Gruff, sardonic. Sings the solo part in the Archer's Song and represents the king's notion of law and order on stage. He is a baritone. Recommended audition song: "Scots Archer Song".
Men's Speaking Roles:
Note: Many of these roles are on stage during large ensemble
numbers and many have a few solo lines in the bass/baritone
range.
King Louis XI -- Shrewd, cruel, calculating, superstitious and ineffective. Everybody says he is a disagreeable man, and he very well knows why. A major presence in the show.
Tristan l'Hermite -- The king's right-hand man and close confidante. In general, a nasty piece of work.
Thibaut d'Aussigny -- An even nastier piece of work. The villain who betrays his King to the Burgundians. Must engage in sword and dagger fights with Villon.
Oliver le Dain -- Master of the Bath at the King's court. Hopelessly in love with Lady Mary, this is mostly a comic role, although one tinged with poignancy.
Noel le Jolys -- Nobleman who loves Lady Katherine but takes what he can get. A dupe in the plot against the King.
Casin Cholet -- a member of Villon's gang.
The following smaller roles will be assigned to members of the
men's chorus when rehearsals begin:
Rogati -- a member of Villon's gang
Jehan le Loup -- yet another member of the gang
Astrologer -- brief role, he (or possibly she) has a scene with
the King, interpreting his dream.
Toison d'Or -- envoy from the Duke of Burgundy, he makes a
brief singing appearance in Act II.
Women's Singing Roles:
Katherine de Vaucelles -- Louis XI, Thibaut, Noel and Villon
are all mad about her. She is mad about her estates. She melts
just in time to save our hero from the noose. Along the way she
has the best tunes in the show. She must be a soprano capable
of singing a pianissimo high A. Recommended audition song:
"Some Day".
Huguette de Hamel -- She's called the Abbess, but her charges are not exactly nuns. Dressed in man's clothing, she is a gutsy, appealing and, eventually, heroic woman. She has fine songs and a little dancing, as well as a lot of acting. She can be a soprano or mezzo with a high G. Recommended audition song: "Love for Sale" refrain.
Lady Mary -- A sweet young thing who engages with Oliver and Tabarie in some comic repartee and sings a serenade with them. A mezzo or contralto with a high E. Recommended audition song: "Serenade" p. 134.
Women's Speaking Roles:
Margot -- the Innkeeper of the Fircone Tavern. She shares the
general worldview of the rabble who drink her wine, but she
manages to keep them under control -- mostly.
The following speaking role will be assigned to a member of
the chorus when rehearsals begin:
Jehanneton -- Flirts with Casin
You may wish to return to the VLO Home Page.
Send Questions/Comments to: info@vlo.org