Orinda Starlight Village Players

ORSVP 2024 SEASON AUDITIONS ANNOUNCED

The Orinda Starlight Village Players (OrSVP) 2024 season returns this summer with a new fabulous lineup. The community theater’s productions start with Agatha Christie's murder mystery Spiders Web in June, followed by William Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing in July, and concludes with Malcolm Cowler's adaptation of Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu in September.

General Auditions will be Sunday, January 14th at 1 p.m. at the Orinda Community Center (28 Orinda Way), in the Kinder Gym.

Please arrive on time. We will be reading from the scripts. Fill out the Audition form beforehand and bring it with you along with your resume and headshot if you have one. We will also have a Calendar Conflict Form for each play on hand to fill out (please bring your calendar).

Audition Form

We here at OrSVP highly encourage all actors regardless of race/ethnicity/caste, disability, body type, age, orientation, or gender identity to come and audition. We are an open and inclusive group dedicated to the craft and looking to grow our little community theater.

In addition to actors, OrSVP is always on the lookout for those interested in working behind the scenes. Anyone interested in learning about theater production such as stage managers, prop makers, set painters, stagehands, sound and light operators, and/or box office staffing/management is encouraged to come during any of the audition calls. No experience is necessary.

This is a community theater in the truest meaning of the word - participants help with set building and painting, costuming, props, etc. Everyone pitches in to make these shows a great experience for our audiences.

Performances take place in the gorgeous old stone Orinda Community Center Park Amphitheater nestled in and among a redwood grove and under the stars!

Rehearsals for each show are generally Monday-Thursday evenings from 7:00-9:30 pm. And will be held in the Orinda Community Center or at the Orinda Community Center Park Amphitheater.

Show Information:

First Show
Agatha Christie’s Spiders Web
Director: Jill Gelster (jill@orsvp.org)

Clarissa, wife of a diplomat, is adept at spinning tales of adventure, but when a murder takes place in her drawing room she finds live drama much harder to cope with. Desperate to dispose of the body before her husband arrives with an important politician, she enlists the help of her guests. Hilarity ensues when they are interrupted by the arrival of wry detective Inspector Lord.

With this conscious parody of the detective thriller, Christie delivers a unique blend of suspense and humor. There is tension and laughter in equal parts in an intricate plot of murder, police, drug addicts, invisible ink, hidden doorways and secret drawers.

Characters:

Sir Rowland Delahaye
Hugo Birch
Jeremy Warrender
Clarissa Hailsham-Brown
Mildred Peake
Elgrin
Oliver Costello
Henry Horsham-Brown
Inspector Lord
Constable Jones

Rehearsals staring mid-April.
Tech Week: May 28-30
Performances: May 31, June 1, 7, 8, 14,15, 21, 22, 23, 27, 28, 29.

Second Show
William Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing
Directors: Patrick Atkinson (patkinson201741@gmail.com) and Venee Call-Ferrer veneelotus@gmail.com

The troops are back from war and love is in the air. Everyone is ready to have a good time. Too bad the prince's brother loves nothing more than to cause trouble. Can Benedick and Beatrice stop their war of wit long enough to fall in love? Find out in one of Shakespeare’s most spirited comedies about love, deception, and misunderstandings.

Rehearsals start in May. With a few special Shakespeare workshops in March or April depending on the actor's needs and availability.
Tech week: July 14-18
Performances: July 19, 20, 26, 27, August 2, 3, 4, 8, 9, 10

Notes from the Directors:
We are open to actors new to Shakespeare and will provide special workshops to prepare them.
We are also casting some of the traditionally male presenting roles with female and non-binary actors.
We strongly encourage members of the BIPOC and LGBQIA+ communities to apply!

Characters:

Benedick - male presenting/comic relief, Self-centered, snarky, a love interest of Beatrice
Claudio - male presenting/ingenu, loyal, upstanding, hopelessly in love w/Hero, then feels betrayed
Don Pedro - Any gender/leader, dashing, commanding, generous, sibling of Jon
Don Jon - Any gender/scheming, misanthropic, physical, jealous and sibling of Pedro
Leonato - Any gender/kind, quintessential host, traditional
Margret- Female presenting/Lady in waiting, nieve, duped into a tryst to frame hero
Ursula- Femail presenting/Lady in waiting, fun-loving, dedicated to Hero
Borachio/Conrade- Any gender/ manipulative, drunkard, in love with and dedicated to Don Jon
Dogberry- Any gender/comic relief, not all there, probably talks to himself
Verges - Any gender/possibly a figment of Dogberry’s imagination, comic relief
Antonio -male presenting/kind cohost, warm, and party animal, Heroes uncle
Balthasar - Any gender/a waiting man in the house of Leonardo, loves Ursula
Sextant and Friar - (Sage wise person) Any gender

We also are looking for people to play ensemble characters. Partygoers, troops, musicians, and singers. Some of these could also be understudies and/or help with set changes.
Note: Hero and Beatrice have been cast.

Crew:
We are also looking for a Stage Manager, Costume and Props Assistant, Light Designer, and someone to assist the Director.

Third Show
Malcolm Cowler's adaptation of Carmilla by Sheridan Le Fanu
Director: Malcolm Cowler (malcolm.cowler@me.com)

Malcolm Cowler’s stage adaption of J. Sheridan Le Fanu’s Carmilla closely follows the original story of Laura, a young woman living with her father in a remote mansion. Laura's life takes a mysterious turn when a carriage accident brings a stranger named Carmilla to their doorstep. Carmilla, a beautiful and enigmatic young woman, becomes a close friend to Laura. However, as their relationship deepens, Laura experiences unsettling and frightening events. Strange occurrences, such as mysterious illnesses and unsettling dreams, surround Carmilla. The novella is renowned for its Gothic atmosphere, exploration of forbidden desires, and early contributions to vampire literature (it was written 20 years before Bram Stoker’s Dracula)

Character:

Young Laura
Carmilla
Martha
Madame Perrodon
Major Fletcher
Laura
Matska
Doctor Young
Wanderer
Dr. Hesselius
General Spielsdorf
Bertha
Woman in Black
Dr. Warren

Rehearsals starting July.
Tech Week: September 2-5
Performances: September 6, 7, 13, 14, 20, 21, 22, 26, 27, 28

For further information and to let us know you are coming please email us at info@orsvp.org. Thank you. We look forward to seeing you at an audition.