Auditions for University of Washington's Staged Reading of Savage Conversations

University Of Washington

About the project and the company

The University of Washington English and Drama departments are welcoming Choctaw writer and playwright, LeAnne Howe, to campus for a visit and wish to present her most new play in verse: Savage Conversations as a staged reading on January 22nd or 23rd. LeAnne Howe will be in attendance as will many students and community members invited for this event open to the public.

Savage Conversations Description:

“May 1875: Mary Todd Lincoln is addicted to opiates and tried in a Chicago court on charges of insanity. Entered into evidence is Ms. Lincoln’s claim that every night a “Savage Indian” enters her bedroom and slashes her face and scalp. She is swiftly committed to Bellevue Place Sanitarium. Her hauntings may be a reminder that in 1862, President Lincoln ordered the hanging of thirty-eight Dakota in the largest mass execution in United States history. No one has ever linked the two events — until now. Savage Conversations is a daring account of a former First Lady and the ghosts that tormented her for the contradictions and crimes on which this nation is founded.”

Auditions will take place on December 17th from 3-8PM and on a rolling basis from there until roles are cast. All roles are open for casting. Prepare a monologue and bring a headshot and resume. Open to all experience levels. There is a stipend of $200 for all performers. Please e-mail with any further questions.

Location of Audition

The University of Washington. Room 208 in Hutchison Hall.

Audition requirements

Please come in with a dramatic contemporary monologue.

Character breakdown / Project needs

Mary Todd Lincoln

Mean, Funny, Dynamic, Edgy, addicted to opiates, Aged 56 "Wife of slain Abraham Lincoln. She wears a wrinkled dress with Tad Lincoln's pistol hidden in the pocket. At night she refuses to remove the tattered nightdress and undergarments that she's worn for months. Her hair is disheveled."

Male Indigenous Performer

Role must be played by an Indigenous Actor. Role title contains slang, feel free to ask for more information. Mary Todd Lincoln's tormentor of her past and President Lincoln's past misdeeds. Young, a warrior, a leader, a reminder of the past. "One of the thirty-eight Dakota men hanged the day after Christmas, 1862, in Mankato, Minnesota. He sits in a chair in a dark corner of her room. His hair is dark brown and shoulder length. He wears a black vigilante town coat, the one he was hanged in. The coat droops open because the hangman's wife cut off the buttons to sew onto her new frock."

The Rope

Strong, Young, Full of Life for something the represents death. An observer. "Both a man and the image of a hangman's noose used in the largest mass execution in United State's history. The Rope eavesdrops on Mary and "Savage Indian's" conversations. He sometimes twirls around the room like a dancer."

Additional information

Preferred method of submission

Audition/Interview dates

December 17th, 2019

Pay type

Stipend

Audition location

Seattle WA

Pay type

$200 $200

Callbacks or second audition/interview?

None

Submission instructions

Please send a resume and headshot and availability during the audition times.

Union Requirements

Open to All

Equity Contract

None