conspire :: auditions

nimbus holds open auditions for all of its productions. Auditions are by appointment only, take approximately ten minutes, and consist of cold reading selections from the script for that production. There will be a variety of script samples for selection, and actors will be given time to prepare the material. All readings will be heard privately by the director and one or two members of the production team.

Please bring a resume and headshot to auditions. We also take digital photographs of actors at auditions. Actors who are cast in a production should expect to hear back from nimbus within a week of auditions or call-backs. Call-backs are held for most productions. nimbus casting decisions are color blind, unless script needs stringently dictate otherwise. We encourage actors of all backgrounds to audition.

Auditions are publicized on mnplaylist.org, and through our auditions email list. Actors interested in nimbus are strongly encouraged to sign up for this email list. Please note that we no longer use the Star-Tribune 550's.

AEA Members: We regret that we are unable at this time to work with members of the Actors Equity Association. However, our organization is growing, and we hope that this will change someday soon. Please keep an eye on our audition notices- we will make sure to keep the community informed when this does change.

Stipends: nimbus pays a small stipend for all roles. Ultimately, we seek to do work that is exciting and fulfilling to artists, in an environment that lets each artist explore, grow, and collaborate. We greatly respect the time, energy, and commitment that goes in to honing ones art and craft, and are dedicated to growing compensation amounts whenever possible.

Appointments: Appointments may now be scheduled online. At the bottom of this page is a form that may be used to schedule a time to read. You may still make an appointment over the telephone by calling 612-548-1379. Please note that all auditions are by appointment only.

Upcoming Auditions

Auditions for the 2012-2013 Season

In the coming year, nimbus will be producing four exciting plays, two of which will be new, company-created work. We are looking for collaborators and co-conspirators to join us in their creation. On July 29-31, we will be holding open auditions for all four productions. Actors may try out for one or more shows based on their interests and availability in the coming season, and get a chance to meet the directors and ask questions. This is not a giant, cattle-call, 'next' audition, but an opportunity to meet with the company and forge connections. Callbacks for the season's first two shows will be held immediately, with the two spring shows having callbacks later in the fall. All actors will be notified of callback intentions immediately, regardless of show. We will not be holding additional open auditions.

Our 2012-2013 season will consist of the following shows:

Audition Appointments: To make an appointment, click on one of the links below to find a time that works for you.

You may also schedule an appointment by calling 612-548-1379.

October 6 - 28: Happy Birthday, Wanda June by Kurt Vonnegut

A retelling of the Ulysses homecoming written by the giant of literature, Kurt Vonnegut. Written with precision and wit, the play is a dark satire of America's search for purpose after WWII. Set in modern America (the play was written in 1970), the play surrounds the return of Harold Ryan, a famous war hero who has been presumed dead after disapearing for 10 years in Africa. He returns home to find a pre-adolescent son who idolizes him despite never having known him and a wife torn between two suitors for her hand in marraige.

Happy Birthday, Wanda June will be directed by nimbus co-Artistic Director Josh Cragun.

Important Dates:

  • Monday August 20 – Rehearsals begin
  • Monday October 2 – First Tech Rehearsal
  • Saturday October 6 – Opening Night
  • Monday October 15 – Pay-what-you-can performance
  • Sunday October 28 – Closing night, strike

Rehearsals are Monday through Friday evenings
Performances are Thursday at 7:30pm, Friday and Saturday at 8pm and Sunday at 3pm.

Or view the entire Online Production Schedule.

Character Breakdown:

Penelope Ryan (F, 30's)
The second wife of Harold Ryan, married young, left with child for ten years.
Paul Ryan (M, 12)
The son of Harold and Penelope. Adolescent, he hates his mother's boyfriends.
Harold Ryan (M, 50's)
A war hero, hunter, and andventurer. Has killed hundreds of men.
Colonel Looseleaf Harper (M, 50-90)
Harold Ryan's sidekick. Also, the pilot who dropped the first nuclear bomb.
Herb Shuttle (M, 30's)
A suitor to Penelope. A very successful vaccuum salesman.
Dr. Norbert Woodly (M, 30's)
A suitor to Penelope and psychologist.

 

December 1 - 16, 2012: The Cripple of Inishmaan

By Martin McDonagh, directed by Kari Hammer

Set on a remote island off the west coast of Ireland in 1934, THE CRIPPLE OF INISHMAAN is a strange comic tale in the great tradition of Irish storytelling. As word arrives on Inishmaan that the Hollywood director Robert Flaherty is coming to the neighboring island of Inishmore to film MAN OF ARAN, the one person who wants to be in the film more than anybody is young Cripple Billy, if only to break away from the bitter tedium of his daily life.

Important Dates:

Rehearsals will begin in mid-October. Performances are December 1 - 16.

 

Character Breakdown:

 

  • Billy Claven, a crippled orphan
  • Kate Osbourne, Billy's adoptive aunt who has been known to talk to stones
  • Eileen Osbourne, Billy's other adoptive aunt and Kate's sister
  • Johnnypateenmike, the town gossip
  • Helen McCormick, a tough girl Billy has had a crush on for some time
  • Bartley McCormick, Helen's brother
  • Babbybobby Bennett, a boatman whose wife died of tuberculosis
  • Doctor McSharry, the town doctor
  • Mammy O'Dougal, Johnny's alcoholic 90 year-old mother

 

 

March 16 - April 7, 2013: Bohemian Flats

An original workshopped production directed by Liz Neerland

Bohemian Flats will tell the story of the small community that once stood on the west bank of the Mississippi river, near the Washington Ave. bridge. Originally settled in the 1880’s, this neighborhood was home to generations of Swedish, Norwegian, Irish, Polish, Czech, and Slovak immigrants until Minneapolis city officials demolished it in the 1940’s.

The show will be crafted using sources including The Bohemian Flats, a book about the community that was produced by the WPA’s Writers’ Program, other materials from the MN Historical Society, and personal letters from the director’s ancestors, who arrived from Norway in the 1890s and lived on the west bank.

As the show has not been written, and much of it will be developed in rehearsals with the director and cast, exact roles are not known yet. The show will likely include a cast of 6 – 9, men and women of varying ages. Further callbacks will be held closer to the start of rehearsals.

Important Dates:

Callbacks for Bohemian Flats will happen sometime in November, 2012.

Bohemian Flats will run for four weeks in Spring 2013.

Rehearsals will begin mid-January, 2013. Rehearsals are generally Monday – Thursday evenings, 7 – 10pm. The two weeks of rehearsal will be spent developing the script, with a one- to two-week break for final writing before resuming rehearsals in February.

March 16, 2013 – Opening night

April 7, 2013 – Closing performance

 

May 4 - 26, 2013: Tesla! 

An original workshopped production directed by Josh Cragun

Tesla! will bring to stage the incredible life of NicolaTesla, the inventor, physicist, engineer, and futurist who brought the world electrical transmission, radio, and wireless communication as well as proving the existance of electrons. A man who came from a village in Serbia to become one of the most famous scientists the world has known, he was vistied by visions, lived alone, and is generally considered to be the prototype for the modern 'mad scientist' image. He had a photographic memory, spoke eight languages, and claimed to never sleep for more than two hours at a time. 

The show will be crafted from historical material, including Tesla's own writings, in conjunction with the director and a 'text team' who will conduct research for the show. Actors will be an integral part of the rehearsal process, and help shape the characters and the story. 

This will be an ensemble production, with most actors playing multiple roles, many based on historical figures such as Thomas Edison and Mark Twain. Actors will be chosen in order to have a complete and balanced ensemble more than their fit for a specific role.

Important Dates:

Callbacks for Tesla! will happen sometime in November, 2012.

Tesla! will run for four weeks in May 2013.

Rehearsals will begin mid-February, 2013. Rehearsals are generally Monday – Thursday evenings, 7 – 10pm. The first three weeks of rehearsal will be spent developing the script, with a break for final writing before resuming rehearsals in April.

May 4, 2013 – Opening night

May 26, 2013 – Closing performance