Auditions 12th Feb – Pygmalion ’73
1973. Liza Doolittle, a working-class girl from the East End is a pirate radio DJ for (tbc) Radio, run out of a railway arch in Covent Garden. She has big ambitions – she wants to have her own radio show, like Annie Nightingale, on Radio 1. But she knows that to do that she needs to learn to hide her native east end accent. So when she bumps into Henry Higgins, a Radio 3 presenter it is too good a chance to miss, especially as he seems to be eager to support her learning and ambition. What she doesn’t know is that for him, she is, initially at least, merely the subject of a bet between himself and his old friend Pickering.
I am aiming to cut the play down to a straight-through running time of around 80 minutes, and planning to do it on the floor either in the round or if that is not possible, on three sides.I want to set the whole play apart from the prologue in a radio studio at the BBC/Higgins’ office.
I’m also looking for a production team of course, so if you’d like to be involved; please get in touch. Please fill out the following form to let me know that you are interested:
https://forms.gle/fQvRwfrrmmFpWDr47
Director: Mary Musker
Characters
The big three roles
Liza: F 20-something. Needs a convincing east-end accent
Higgins: Any age (stated as 40 in original script) but older and more experienced than Liza. Probably M but I’m open to pitches from female actors. Higgins is boorish and argumentative but ultimately has a good heart
Pickering: Male, a perfect gentleman.
Smaller roles
Doolittle: Liza’s father, an east-end dustman; an enormously larger-than-life character. Only appears in a couple of scenes but makes a huge impact.
Mrs Higgins Higgin’s mother. Does not approve of the bet
Pearce: Higgins P.A. Any age M/F
Freddy: A likeable young man; not the brightest spark in the box
Clara: Mrs E-H’s daughter, she has perceived advantages that Liza doesn’t i.e. wealth
Mrs Eynsford Hill: Freddy and Clara’s mother
Dates etc
Audition date: Sunday 12 February at 16:00 in the back room of Kings Langley Community Centre
Show dates: Thur 14 – Sat 16 September
Rehearsals: Depends on cast availability over the summer. We will have a total of 8 weeks of Mondays and Thursday evenings beginning late June, plus a few weekend rehearsals. Higgins will be needed for all rehearsals and Liza and Pickering for most. The rest of the cast will not be needed at all rehearsals until late August.
Contact: marymusker@outlook.com