Constellations by Nick Payne
Directed by Ollie Graveson
Production Assistant – Becs Strike
Key Dates
Information Evening: Saturday 4th May 7:30-8.30pm.
Auditions: Saturday 11th May 7:30pm start.
Show Dates: Wednesday 18th -21st September 2024. (Get Out on the 22nd).
If you are interested in auditioning, please get in touch with one of us! Scripts available from Becs Strike (becslindleys@gmail.com) or Ollie Graveson (olliegraveson@googlemail.com).
Synopsis
What if our Universe is not the only one?
Marianne, a physicist, and Roland, a beekeeper, meet at a party. They hit it off, and go for a drink. Or perhaps they don’t. They go home together, or maybe they go their separate ways. Perhaps they’re entangled in other commitments, or maybe they’re destined to break each other’s hearts.
Prepare to be entranced by this spellbinding exploration of love’s infinite potential, where every moment is a constellation of choices, and every outcome shines with the brilliance of the stars. In “Constellations,” the universe is vast, and the possibilities are endless—where one relationship spans the cosmos, illuminating the boundless horizons of hope, heartbreak, and the beauty of the unknown.
Characters:
The play is quite vague about the ages of both characters, and I am open to casting actors who can look anywhere from 30-65. There is one scene which involves domestic violence. Several kisses throughout the play. It goes without saying that the parts involve a lot of line learning, but should be very rewarding for actors.
Marianne (Female) – Marianne is a theoretical physicist, fascinated by multiverse theories. She is passionate and driven and a fiercely intelligent scientist. Friendly and quick-witted, Marianne is fact driven and doesn’t open up easily.
Roland (Male) – Roland is a charming, laid-back beekeeper, with a good sense of humour. He is consistent and more emotionally open than Marianne. He is kind, understanding and caring. He is often able to bring out Marianne’s romantic side.
Information Evening: 7:30-8:30pm.
We will give a summary of our vision for the production and answer any questions, we are hoping to keep this evening short! We will not be reading the whole play through, but we may read a few scenes, so everyone can get a sense of the style of the play. The extremely repetitive nature of this dialogue is slightly unusual, so it may be helpful to read a bit of it out loud.
Audition Evening: 7:30pm start.
The auditions will be held in the bar (can be accessed by the back entrance of the Theatre). The audition process will involve you acting out the sections of the script below. We will probably get people to swap partners, to look at who works well together, so you may read the same scene multiple times. There is no need to learn the lines in advance but do familiarise yourself with the text.
Audition Extracts:
Marianne and Roland from page 11 ‘Marianne and Roland are a little drunk’ to page 15 ‘Floor’s fine. Honestly’.
Marianne and Roland from page 17 ‘All right?’ to page 25 ’You had a message from him while you were in the shower’.
Marianne and Roland from page 49 ‘I think I’d like to go abroad’ to page 56 ‘I have to make a choice. Control’. The context for this scene is that Marianne is suffering from a very aggressive form of Brain Cancer, which has affected her speech.
Rehearsals – We will be rehearsing on Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays from July 22nd from 7-9:30pm. It goes without saying that you would be needed for every rehearsal! We will also have copies of the rehearsal schedule at the info evening/auditions.
Any questions, feel free to get in touch with one of us. Thank you!
Ollie