The Wiz Open Audition

Oct 26 2015 | By More

FCT to stage The Wiz, Easter 2016

Forth Children Theatre has announced that next Easter’s production will be The Wiz, the 1974 urban musical based on The Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

The company will be holding open auditions on Sunday December 13, 10am-6pm. Auditionees must be aged between 10 and 18 at the beginning of the week the show is staged: Weds 6 – Sat 9 April 2016.

The Wiz Auditions 1Featuring such numbers as Ease on Down the Road, The Wiz premiered in 1974. Opening on Broadway in January 1975 it won seven Tony awards including Best Musical and Best Original Score for Charlie Smalls. Writer William F. Brown was nominated for best book.

The Wiz puts a modern spin on the original L Frank Baum story and includes all the original characters. Dorothy dances and sings her way from Kansas to Oz with the help of the Scarecrow, Tin Man and the cowardly Lion.

A loose adaptation of the musical, using Smalls’ music but none of Brown’s book, was released as a movie in 1978 staring Michael Jackson as Scarecrow, Richard Pryor as the Wiz and (controversially because she muscled her way into the role), Diana Ross as Dorothy.

The FCT production will be directed by Phoebe Dowens in her directorial debut for the company. Her day job is a zookeeper at Edinburgh Zoo.

Dowens says: “This is a very upbeat musical which requires boys and girls aged between 10 and 18 with lots of passion and talent for singing, acting and dancing. The show needs a strong chorus to carry the powerful score as well as individuals to portray a wide range of big principal roles.”

The Wiz Auditions 2Auditions will take place at the Trinity Academicals Rugby Club in Craighall Gardens, Sunday 13 December, 10am-6pm. Auditionees should arrive ready to start at 10am, they can leave once they are free, but should be prepared to stay right through to 6pm if required.

Auditionees do not need to prepare any pieces for the day. The morning will be spent in workshops, learning some of the material from the show. In the afternoon, groups will audition the pieces learned in the morning to a small number of people from the directing team.

Once cast, rehearsals will take place on Friday nights and Sunday afternoons, with the first rehearsal on Friday 8 January 2016. Principals will also be required for additional weeknight rehearsals from time to time. The show will run Wednesday 6 – Saturday 9 April, with a Matinee on the Saturday.

Listing and further information

Audition for Forth Children’s Theatre production of The Wiz
Trinity Academicals RFC, 30 Craighall Gardens, EH6 4RH
Sunday 13 December 2015: 10am-6pm.

Further details on the FCT Website: https://forthchildrenstheatre.wordpress.com/
Email pdowens91@hotmail.co.uk for more information.

Purchase the original cast recording on Amazon.

Also available the film soundtrack, DVD and sheet music:

ENDS

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