Tribune Staff Reports
Jackson County Community Theatre will conduct auditions for the final show of its 2018-19 season, “Half and Half,” at 7 p.m. Monday and Tuesday at Royal Off-the-Square Theatre, 121 W. Walnut St., Brownstown.
Production dates are April 26 and 27 and May 3 and 4.
In the show, author James Sherman explores marriages past and present in two related acts.
In the first act, set at breakfast on the first Earth Day in 1970, the bread-winner husband, Stewart, reads the newspaper as his homemaker wife, Susan, dutifully fries the eggs. Their daughter, Lucy, readies herself for a school day in typical teen fashion; however, we notice a subtle but growing undercurrent of activism in the two females.
In the second act, a generation later, again at breakfast, a career-driven wife, Lucy, now an attorney, reads the paper, and her stay-at-home husband, Jeremy, prepares a frittata. The same three actors portray the age-appropriate roles in each act, creating an interesting parallel between the two generations, making for a very poignant comedy about marriage in our changing times.
With a unique comic insight, the show looks at how husbands and wives accept and reject their roles and how their roles might just be cycling back.
Three characters are to be cast: A woman 30s to 40s, a man 30s to 40s and a girl about 17. The woman plays Susan in Act 1 and the grown-up Lucy in Act 2. The man plays Stewart in Act 1 and Jeremy in Act 2. The teenager plays Lucy in Act 1 and Katie in Act 2. Telephone conversations between the adult Lucy and her mother, Susan, knit the two acts together.
Though the cast size is small, JCCT encourages all interested actors appropriate-age ranges to come to auditions. Having a good number of people trying out enables the director to assemble the best possible combination of players for the show.
In addition, the show will need several backup crew members since the set, hairstyles and costumes have to move forward by 25 years between acts. Technical crew will be needed for sound and lights. Experience is not needed for actors or crew. Training will be provided.
Joel McGill is directing. No preparation for auditions is necessary, except to bring a list of any dates that would conflict with rehearsals, which will probably be Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays, but will be flexible and to be sure of availability on all of the show dates.
Anyone who has questions or wishes to read the script can contact the director at [email protected] or 812-358-5228.
For insurance reasons, all involved in a show are required to be members of JCCT. Those not currently members will have an opportunity to join for as little as $5 at the first rehearsal.
The JCCT season is sponsored by grants from National Endowment for the Arts, Indiana Arts Commission, Columbus Area Arts Council and Seymour Oktoberfest committee.
“Half and Half” will close JCCT’s 49th season. The 50th season will begin in June and July with a summer youth arts workshop and production, followed by the first mainstage show of the season in September.
JCCT is currently conducting a fund drive to support improvements, including new seats, to Royal Off-the-Square Theatre. For information about the fund drive and Jackson County Community Theatre, visit jcct.org.