Audition Notice

Team of Heroes: Behind Closed Doors

Produced by Annex Theatre
Directed by Jaime Roberts
Written by Alexander Harris

Annex Theatre announces auditions for “Team of Heroes: Behind Closed Doors” to be performed in Spring 2012. “Team of Heroes: Behind Closed Doors” is a prequel to the story that began with “Alecto: Issue #1″ at Annex Theatre in Winter 2010. Following the beloved Team of Heroes, this play explores how Madame Mayhem gains her super powers and reveals more of the deeply conflicted and mysterious beginnings of the Team of Heroes and who exactly may be running it. As the team battles their new foe Chaos Theory, we learn more about who the heroes are, where they came from and learn that the lines between good and evil are not always what they seem…

“Team of Heroes: Behind Closed Doors” is a new play written by Alexander Harris and directed by Jaime Roberts. It opens on April 27th and runs through May 26th, 2012 with performances on Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings with one Monday night industry performance. This show will require a slightly longer commitment to accommodate fight rehearsals and will begin in mid-January 2012. This will be a physically demanding show and requires actors to prepare for rigorous physical and fight training.

The following roles are open for casting:

Females:

• Miss Dixie – a member of the Team of Heroes, she is equal parts charming Southern Belle and ferocious sexy bulldog. Her super power is that she is a voodoo puppet master.
• Black Swallow – the mother of Madame Mayhem. She patrols the streets as vigilante Black Swallow. She fights crime without the aid of a super power but uses all of her feminine wiles to best her foes.
• Melody Knox – the manager of the Team of Heroes. Melody keeps the team on task and poised for the best media exposure. Her true motivation may not be what it seems.

Males:

• Ace Johnson – once the leader of the Team of Heroes in the 1980s. He is all strength and all man. He is the team’s predecessor of The Cap’n.
• Mikhael/Black Russian – once a petty thief and now a marketing director for the Team of Heroes. His role in the history of the Team of Heroes may be a surprising one.
• Vladimir/White Russian – also once a petty thief, he is partners with Mikhael/Black Russian. Both men have complicated and integral roles in the history of the Team of Heroes.

Each actor will also be cast in multiple smaller roles. Please note the roles of Madame Mayhem, Chaos Theory, The Cap’n and Shock Wave have already been cast.

• General auditions will be held on Saturday November 5th from 1pm to 5pm at Annex Theatre.
• Callbacks are on Sunday November 6th from 2:30pm to 5:30pm at Annex Theatre.
• Additional callbacks may be scheduled for Wednesday November 9th from 7pm to 10pm at Annex Theatre.

For general auditions, please prepare two short contrasting monologues not to exceed 3 minutes. You may schedule an audition time by emailing the Production Manager Kristina Volkman at: kristina_volkman(at)hotmail.com.

Cocktails at the Centre of the Earth
Produced by Annex Theatre
Written & Directed by Simon Astor

Annex Theatre announces auditions for their January 2012 show, the world premiere of Cocktails at the Centre of the Earth.

About the show:

In a world where mummies are torn from their tombs to be used as fuel, thrill to the adventures of the idle rich on the look-out for increasingly dangerous kicks.

Jetpacks! Talking foxes! Disguises! Perversions!

Can Lansing and Helena, two street urchins with a dangerous secret, storm the exclusive gates of the Albion Club? Will pneumatic tubes lift them to the soaring heights of the exotic Cygnus Lounge? Will a plastic surgery-addicted fox survive to swim with seahorse servants in a dome beneath the sea? Will scarab-bearing terrorists sink the Colonel’s steam ship?

Specific Male Needs
Male 18 – 25 Fresh-faced, earnest romantic up and comer-type.
Male 45 – 60 Aged wit, charming, slight, compelling, Quentin Cripsy
Male 35 – 50 Wealthy, war profiteer-type, used to having his way when awake.
General Male Needs
Various males 18 – 40 seeking all types for various dignified comedic roles
Specific Female Needs
Female 18 – 25 Desperate romantic lead, honest, endearing, stylish but with rough edges
Female 45 – 60 A fairy godmother of science Machinery-loving inventor-type, comfortable in a dress or lab coat
Female 21 – 35 Adventuring pilot, Amelia Earharty
General Female Needs
Various Females 18 -40 of all types for various dignified comedic roles

Auditions will be October 15th & 16th, from 1PM-4PM at AFTRA Seattle, 123 Boylston Ave East Suite A.

Auditioners will be called in for an hour, and should be prepared with a (one minute or less) section from their favorite science-fiction or adventure novel to be read aloud and expect a cold reading from sides to be provided at the audition. Some roles, but not all, require singing ability. If you would like to be considered for a singing role, please be prepared to sing a short (under a minute) selection a cappella.

To set up an audition time, you may contact the production manager at grant.knutson (at) annextheatre.org

Since opening its doors at its original home on 4th Avenue in 1988, Annex Theatre has produced hundreds of new plays and performances—always seeking work that explores what makes the medium of theater different from television, movies, or the internet. We consider ourselves part of the research and development wing of American theater, producing the work that has the greatest risk, giving new and emerging artists the opportunity to succeed—or fail spectacularly in the rawest yet most supportive forum we can provide.

Now at 11th & E Pike St. in Capitol Hill, Annex Theatreʼs 25th season is no different, featuring four Mainstage productions, two Late Night productions, and two Off Night productions.

JANUARY

Mainstage:
Cocktails at the Centre of the Earth**
Written & directed by Simon Astor
Music direction by Meg van Huygen

Late Night:
The Thrilling Adventures of the Famous Lewis & Clark
Written by Nick Poling & Alex DeRoest
Directed by Collin Schreiber

APRIL

Mainstage:
Team of Heroes: Behind Closed Doors*
Written by Alex Harris
Directed by Jaime Roberts

Off Night:
Sideshow*
Created & choreographed by Jenna Bean Veatch

JULY

Mainstage:
Kittens In A Cage*
Written by Kelleen Conway Blanchard
Directed by Bret Fetzer

Off Night:
El Ultimo Coconut
Written & performed by Gerald Alejandro Ford

OCTOBER

Mainstage:
A Mouse Who Knows Me*
Book & lyrics by Scotto Moore
Music by Robertson Witmer
Directed by Kristina Sutherland

Late Night:
Audrey & Nelson*
Written & directed by Bret Fetzer
Music by Bob Koerner

*world premiere
**NW premiere

On September 4th, 1986, Annex Theatre was registered with the State of Washington as a non-profit arts organization. On September 4th, 2011, Annex Theatre turned 25.

That is 25 years of art, 25 years of madness, 25 years of passion. We have seen so many amazing talents pass across our stage, some of whom have gone on to national and international fame, some local, and some simply gone on with their lives, spreading their talent and goodness among friends and colleagues. Fortunately, among those talented people, there have been some talented photographers, so our long history of strictly ephemeral art receives some documentation and becomes, in a way, a bit less ephemeral.

I am proud to count myself among those with photographic talents who have helped document Annex through the years. I consider myself very lucky indeed to have access to high quality digital cameras, so that I can take hundreds of photos per night (I typically shoot 600-1200 photos in one evening of Spin the Bottle, our monthly cabaret) without spending the commensurate hundreds of dollars on film and processing. Fortunately, our historical photos more than make up in quality what they may lack in quantity.

Through the efforts of our board member and long-time Annex contributor Laurie Utterback, and Meaghan Darling, our amazing Production Director (who has also been the Production Manager on every show in the last year, as well as raising a family, holding down a job, and contributing her fabric-crafting genius when needed), we have a selection of Annex’s photographic history prepared for you. They collected, they scanned, they organized, and the result is this amazing collection of historical Annex photos.

First seen as a slideshow at our Silver Anniversary Gala on September 17th, we have also placed all the images into a gallery for your perusal. With so many pictures, the slideshow was necessarily somewhat quick — even at only 7 seconds per picture, the entire show clocks in at almost half an hour long. We wanted to give you the opportunity to relive Annex’s past at a more leisurely pace. Thus, we are proud to present:

Annex Theatre’s 25th Anniversary Slideshow

Annex Theatre seeks performers for our fall production of:

c.1993 (you never step in the same river twice).

Directed by Bret Fetzer.

Rehearsals will begin with two weekend developmental workshops in August:

Saturday 8/13 and Sunday 8/14 from 10:30AM-6:30PM both days

AND

Saturday 8/27 – Sunday 8/28 from 10:30AM-6:30PM both days

Regular rehearsals will begin on Tuesday, September 6 and will be held on Monday thru
Thursday nights and one weekend day.

Performances will be October 20th thru November 19th on Thur-Fri-Sat. with one industry
night performance on Monday, November 7th.

c.1993 will be an ensemble-generated, non-linear performance that tosses the social, political,
and cultural debris of 1993 (ranging from Bill Clinton’s inaugural address to the World Wrestling
Federation to a profile of Courtney Love in ‘Vanity Fair’) into a blender and comes up with a
wild-ass spectacle/examination of gender and celebrity.

Roles: c.1993 seeks performers of all kinds — actors, singers, dancers, performers who resist
categorization — with the understanding that everyone involved will most likely sing and move
in ways that could be called dance. You do not need to be a skilled singer or dancer to be
considered, but you must be willing to engage in these actions. The cast will consist of anywhere
from 12 to 25 performers; any or all could be male or female.

Audition Information:

WHEN: Saturday, July 9, 12-4 PM

Callbacks will be on Thursday, July 14, between 6:30-10 pm (callbacks will be in 40 minute
segments; no one will be required for more than a single segment).

WHERE: Seattle Children’s Theatre (specific location will be emailed with confirmation)

WHAT: please prepare a 30-90 second performance that best demonstrates your skills and
talents.

HOW: To schedule an audition slot, please contact lauren.peirce@annextheatre.org

Annex Theatre will honor any Intiman tickets for their cancelled 2011 season. Please note that you do not have to limit your options based on the date that you were supposed to attend an Intiman production.

To reserve tickets in advance, please email our Audience Services Manager, Maggie Ferguson-Wagstaffe (fergie(at)annextheatre.org) indicating which performance you’d like to attend and she will add you to our will-call list. Please bring your Intiman proof-of-purchase to Annex when you come to the show. For day-of tickets, please arrive 30 minutes prior to the performance and present your Intiman tickets at our box office to redeem your tickets.

If you are an “Intiman E-Subscriber” and do not have paper tickets, please bring your detailed receipt for proof-of-purchase.

**This offer will be available through November, 2011. Please note that seating is subject to availability and may not be available for every performance. Intiman tickets may not be redeemed for cash or used for purchase of any kind.**

For more information please contact:
Maggie Ferguson-Wagstaffe (Audience Services Manager): fergie(at)annextheatre.org
Stephen McCandless (Managing Director): stephen.mccandless(at)annextheatre.org

April 14, 2011 – Seattle. Pamala Mijatov was recently named Artistic Director of Annex Theatre Company, officially succeeding former Artistic Director Bret Fetzer on August 9, 2010*. Remarked Fetzer, “Pamala Mijatov has been a crucial member of the Annex Company for more than a decade, not only creating art but also working in the trenches: taking out the garbage, sewing costumes, and arguing about season selection. Her intelligence and creativity have already been shaping Annex’s future as an Artistic Associate; becoming Artistic Director is the natural next step for her and for Annex. I am delighted to be placing the theater in her capable hands and look forward to working with her on the upcoming shows I’m directing.” (Fetzer served two tenures as Annexʼs Artistic Director: 2001-2004 and 2007-2010. He will continue to create new work at Annex: directing the final episode of Penguins, Annexʼs long-running late-night serial, in August; overseeing the Fall 2011 ensemble-generated production c.1993; and curating Spin the Bottle, Annexʼs monthly late-night variety show.)

Pamala Mijatov, a 1999 graduate of Cornish College of the Arts, has been an Annex company and staff member since 2001. She made her Annex debut in Pearl, the final mainstage production at the companyʼs original 4th Avenue location. Other Annex acting credits include Stage Door, Hothouse 2001 & 2004, Passport, Keep the Light On, and The Moon Is A Dead World. During her first decade with the company, Mijatov has worked as an actor, director, designer, stage manager, and dialect coach on over 30 productions and special events, including world and Northwest premieres by local and nationally-recognized playwrights including Anne Washburn, Dan Dietz, Paul Mullin, Elizabeth Heffron, Mike Daisey, Rachel Atkins, Scotto Moore, Bret Fetzer, and Juliet Waller Pruzan. From mid-2008 until her August, 2010 appointment as Artistic Director, she served as an Artistic Associate, focusing on company cultivation, staff involvement, and artist advocacy.

Mijatov said, “Annex Theatre has been a vital part of Seattleʼs theater community for well over two decades, producing a staggering number of raw, daring, and audacious productions – the vast majority of which were world premieres. It is an amazing laboratory for new art and new artists, nurturing the careers of generations of new theatrical voices, including my own; I came to Annex as an actor and, like many in our company, have since enjoyed tremendous opportunities to work in almost every other aspect of play development and production alongside some of the most exciting artists in Seattle. Iʼm thrilled and proud to be a part of Annexʼs past, present, and future.” Mijatov intends to return to Annexʼs roots and offer greater support to developing playwrights and directors via progress showings, longer development timelines, and increased dramaturgical resources. “Now that Annex has settled into our new home and codified our rigorous production model, we can turn more of our energy back where it belongs: shepherding new works of art from initial conception through final production, and deepening our pool of talented collaborators.”

On behalf of Annex Theatreʼs Board of Directors, Board Member and Company Historian Ed Hawkins stated, “We were thrilled to unanimously endorse Pamalaʼs appointment to the Artistic Director position. She joined the Annex company when we were still downtown. She remained fiercely loyal to Annex during its challenging ʻdiasporaʼ years (2001-2007). And she played a significant role in securing, improving, and branding the always-bustling new space on Capitol Hill. Pamala not only understands our history, she has experienced much of it personally. That experience, coupled with her clear communication skills, level-headed ability to build consensus, and measured yet palpable artistic passion, makes her uniquely equipped to oversee Annexʼs continuing company-driven artistic evolution while remaining true to its roots as Seattleʼs home for ʻbig cheap theatreʼ and bold, new work.”

ABOUT ANNEX THEATRE

Annex Theatre is a democratic collective of theatre artists dedicated to creating bold new work in an environment of improbability, resourcefulness and risk.

In addition to new plays by living playwrights, Annex produces radical reinterpretations of classic scripts, ensemble-generated non-linear spectacles, and dynamic solo performances, as well as our monthly late-night variety show Spin the Bottle, now in its 14th year. All productions are chosen by the Annex company as a whole, through a process of proposals, interviews, readings, frenzied argument, and, ultimately, consensus. Annex Theatre now resides at the corner of 11th Ave and E Pike St. in the heart of Capitol Hill. After early stirrings on Bainbridge Island, Annex Theatre began its Seattle incarnation in 1988 at a former dance studio on 4th Avenue in downtown Seattle. Since then the theater has produced hundreds of world and Northwest premieres, including new plays by Stranger Genius Award winners Chris Jeffries and Paul Mullin; dozens of other local playwrights, including Elizabeth Heffron, Jeff Resta, Kelleen Conway Blanchard, Scotto Moore, Keri Healey, Scot Augustson, John Kaufmann, and Heidi Heimarck; and nationally recognized playwrights such as Erik Ehn, Naomi Iizuka, Glen Berger, Anne Washburn, Jeffrey M. Jones, and Nicky Silver.

Former Annex company members (aka “Annex alumni”) can be found throughout the Seattle arts community, including Allison Narver**, freelance director and former Artistic Director of the Empty Space; Weir Harman, Executive Director of Town Hall; Andrea Allen**, Education Director of Seattle Repertory Theatre; Ed Hawkins, Advertising Manager for Seattle Opera; Josef Krebs, Development Director for ACT Theatre; and Gillian Jorgensen**, Seattle Children’s Theatre Teaching Artist; as well as in the local and national film industry—such as directors SJ Chiro**, Garrett Bennett, and Mike Shapiro, and actors Jillian Armenante and Paul Giamatti. We believe that Annexʼs distinctive collective working model (which cultivates a combination of initiative, diligence, and the ability to play well with others) is responsible for this remarkable track record of producing leaders in the arts.

*Note: Mijatov was officially named Artistic Director at a special Annex company meeting on August 9, 2010. Please excuse our delay in drafting this press release and announcing the happy event. We were busy making art.
**indicates former Annex Theatre Artistic Director.