The Cayman Drama Society is set to hold auditions this week for its upcoming production of the classic fairy tale story ‘Cinderella’, scheduled to open for local audiences at Prospect Playhouse in November.
Directed locally by Juliet Fenn and produced by Mike Bishop, the play is about a kind-hearted girl, Cinderella, who lives with her wicked stepmother and two vain stepsisters. Forced to do all the chores, she dreams of a better life. With the help of her fairy godmother, she magically attends the royal ball, where she captures the heart of Prince Charming. But she must flee at midnight, leaving behind a glass slipper. The prince goes in search throughout the kingdom to find the mysterious girl.
“We chose Cinderella because it is a beautiful and familiar story for audiences with gorgeous costumes, music, and laughter,” Bishop said.
The search is now on to find passionate performers to bring this story to life and would-be stars are invited to try out to play one of the iconic characters at auditions being held on Friday, 27 June at 7pm at the Prospect Playhouse.
“We’re approaching this like it is a West End or Broadway musical, so we’re looking for an energized cast and crew that can bring the show to life, with music, singing, laugher that we hope will blow the roof off,” Bishop said.
“As well as auditions for actors, we have other roles to fill, such as sound engineer, lighting, costumes and props, backstage hands and more. Anyone that may feel too shy to be on stage can get very much involved.”
Rehearsals will begin in August with the show opening on 28 Nov.
Being part of a large production, Bishop noted, “It does take a lot of commitment and remember that all of the actors and production team are volunteers and have day jobs. It takes many hours in the evenings and weekends to perfect a show like this, but it is a lot of fun, and people make life-long friends when they participate.”
Bishop confirmed CDS will bring the genre of pantomime to local audiences for the first time for the production.
“For those unfamiliar with ‘pantomime’, first, it is not miming! Anything but. It is a popular genre in the UK and Europe and involves lots of audience participation, where some characters talk to the children and their parents. Often the audience is encouraged to cheer the heroes and boo the baddies,” he said.
Nine performance dates are scheduled for the Cinderella production from 28-30 Nov., 5-7 Dec. and 12-14 Dec.
“We’re looking forward to discovering new talent in our Cayman community as well as recruiting familiar faces to the production team. We’re excited to delight our audiences with this special Christmastime show and hope that pantomime can become a family favourite for them alongside all other Christmas shows,” Bishop added.
For more on the auditions and the play, check out the CDS website or email [email protected].