A New Musical Comedy 
Book and Lyrics by Sonya Hayden 
Music by Matthew Lowy  

September 19-21 / Pasant Theatre
Faculty Lead: Adam Yankowy 

 IMPORTANT DATES:  

• 1st Rehearsal: Sept. 2 
• Tech Rehearsals Begin: Sept. 14 
• Performances: Sept. 19-21 

WHAT IS NEW MUSICAL LABORATORY (NML)? 

New Musical Laboratory (NML) is a program to support the creative process of NEW musicals in development – while providing students the opportunity to work directly with professionals and leaders in the Broadway industry – meeting learning objectives in the classroom and through the production. This program supports the creative process of the Broadway industry, one of our core business areas as a performing arts center.  

SHOW SYNOPSIS: 

“Taking Off! ” is a 90-minute musical comedy set aboard a turbulent 1967 Panamorama Airlines flight, where an ambitious female mechanic, Amelia Darehart, trades her toolbox for a stewardess uniform—only to discover the role isn’t as glamorous as it seems. Between spilled drinks, a diamond heist gone wrong, and a dream ballet filled with terrible dancers, Amelia navigates love, ambition, and the absurd rules placed on women of the era. With high-flying hijinks and heart, Taking Off! explores the push and pull between freedom and societal expectations—all at 35,000 feet.”  

AUDITION GUIDELINES: 

For the initial audition, students are asked to read the script (available in the theatre office), determine which role you’d like to audition for, and prepare a 32 bar (1 min) cut of a musical theatre comedy song. Physical choices should be large and bold. You will submit your first round video by Saturday, April 19th. You will use a backing track.  

CASTING INFORMATION: 

We are casting a total number of 12-20 people. Understudies and Swings will be drawn from that cast. Auditions are open to all students at MSU, whether undergraduate or graduate, regardless of major. All BFA/MFA Acting majors must audition. If you do not consider yourself a singer and are uncertain of what to prepare, please sing “Happy Birthday” as a comedy song. Physical choices should be large and bold. 

CALLBACK GUIDELINES: 

For the callback auditions, students will be sent sides from the show to prepare. Callbacks will be held Monday, April 21 from 5:30-10:30 PM.  

CONTENT INFORMATION: 

INTIMACY – Information will be sent out soon! 

CHARACTER BREAKDOWN:  

• AMELIA – An optimistic aircraft mechanic-turned-stewardess. Female Identifying, 20s. 
• JEAN-CHRISTOPHE – A tenacious Frenchman determined to retrieve his family’s diamond heirloom (currently residing in Mindy’s engagement ring). Male Identifying, 20s. 
• MAY – The frazzled head stewardess, a stickler for the rules. Female Identifying, 30s. 
• JUNE – A cheerful, mischievous stewardess. Female Identifying, 20s. 
• JULIE – An earnest, trusting stewardess. Female Identifying, 20s. 
• ALPHONSE – Jean-Christophe’s wide-eyed companion and distant cousin. Male Identifying, 20s. 
• MINDY – An entitled passenger, engaged to Craig. Never misses a chance to show off her enormous diamond engagement ring. Female Identifying, 20s. 
• CRAIG – A wealthy, indolent passenger engaged to Mindy. Male Identifying, 30s. 
• TRUDY – A wise-cracking, unhappily married socialite on vacation from her life. Female Identifying, 50s. 
• DOCTOR – A mysterious doctor, married to Chef. Male Identifying, 20s-40s. 
• CHEF (& BABY) – An enigmatic chef with a swaddled baby. Female Identifying, 20s-40s. 
• PILOT – A self-assured pilot. Male Identifying, 40s-50s. 
• ÉMILE – Jean-Christophe and Alphonse’s great-great-great-grandfather. Male Identifying, 50s. 
• ENSEMBLE – to play Ancestors and other passengers. 

The Seagull by Anton Chekov 
Stupid Fucking Bird by Aaron Posner  

Performed in Repertory
October 3-12 / Arena Theatre
Director: Rob Roznowski 

IMPORTANT DATES: 

• First rehearsal for The Seagull: Saturday August 23 10:00am-5:00pm (with lunch break) 
• First rehearsal for SFB: Sunday August 24 10:00am-5:00pm (with lunch break) 
• Classes Begin: August 25 
  Tech Rehearsals Begin: September 26 
• Performances: October 3-12 

DESCRIPTION: 

The Seagull by Anton Chekov
Stupid Fucking Bird by Aaron Posner 

Performed in Repertory – meaning one show one night, the other show the next. Weekends both shows will play.  Two different casts. 

These two plays are about love unrequited and a life unfulfilled. The plays examine art and how it impacts the artist and the audience. They share many of the same characters but one is a modern adaptation of the Chekhov classic. 

CONTENT INFORMATION:  

• There is suicide contained in both shows. There is an undercurrent of mental health concerns in both shows. There is parental abandonment and abuse discussed in both shows.  We will partner with the Jed Foundation on this project and have mental health professionals as part of the production team. 
• Intimacy:  SFB There is kissing between Con and Nina, there is sequence where Nina disrobes and changes onstage—not full nudity but most likely bra and slip or what actor is comfortable with, discussion of Nina’s breasts with no touching but very suggestive with Doyle. And sequence where Nina disrobes for Trigorin will not require nudity. Long passionate kissing between Emma/Arkadina and Trigorin in both shows. 

AUDITION REQUIREMENTS: 

For the initial auditions, please choose from one of the following monologues for the role that most interests you: 

Sorin: I am going to give Constantine an idea for a story. It shall be called “The Man Who Wished.” When I was young, I wished to become an author; I failed. I wished to be an orator; I speak abominably, [Exciting himself] with my eternal “and all, and all,” dragging each sentence on and on until I sometimes break out into a sweat all over. I wished to marry, and I didn’t; I wished to live in the city, and here I am ending my days in the country. 

Masha: You see that doesn’t exist. Hopeless love is only found in novels. It is a trifle; all one has to do is to keep a tight rein on oneself, and keep one’s head clear. Love must be plucked out the moment it springs up in the heart. My husband has been promised a school in another district, and when we have once left this place I shall forget it all. I shall tear my passion out by the roots. 

Treplev: Nina, I have cursed you, and hated you, and torn up your photograph, and yet I have known every minute of my life that my heart and soul were yours for ever. To cease from loving you is beyond my power. I have suffered continually from the time I lost you and began to write, and my life has been almost unendurable. My youth was suddenly plucked from me then, and I seem now to have lived in this world for ninety years. I have called out to you, I have kissed the ground you walked on, wherever I looked I have seen your face before my eyes, and the smile that had illumined for me the best years of my life. 

Nina: It is all right. I shall feel better after this. I have not cried for two years. I went into the garden last night to see if our old theatre were still standing. I see it is. I wept there for the first time in two years, and my heart grew lighter, and my soul saw more clearly again. See, I am not crying now. [She takes his hand in hers] So you are an author now, and I am an actress. We have both been sucked into the whirlpool. My life used to be as happy as a child’s; I used to wake singing in the morning; I loved you and dreamt of fame, and what is the reality? To-morrow morning early I must start for Eltz by train in a third-class carriage, with a lot of peasants, and at Eltz the educated trades-people will pursue me with compliments. It is a rough life. 

Arkadina: Let them come! I am not ashamed of my love. [She kisses his hands] My jewel! My despair! You want to do a foolish thing, but I don’t want you to do it. I shan’t let you do it! [She laughs] You are mine, you are mine! This forehead is mine, these eyes are mine, this silky hair is mine. All your being is mine. You are so clever, so wise, the first of all living writers; you are the only hope of your country. You are so fresh, so simple, so deeply humourous. You can bring out every feature of a man or of a landscape in a single line, and your characters live and breathe. Do you think that these words are but the incense of flattery? Do you think I am not speaking the truth? Come, look into my eyes; look deep; do you find lies there? No, you see that I alone know how to treasure you. I alone tell you the truth. Oh, my very dear, you will go with me? You will? You will not forsake me? 

Trigorin: What success have I had? I have never pleased myself; as a writer, I do not like myself at all. The trouble is that I am made giddy, as it were, by the fumes of my brain, and often hardly know what I am writing. I love this lake, these trees, the blue heaven; nature’s voice speaks to me and wakes a feeling of passion in my heart, and I am overcome by an uncontrollable desire to write. But I am not only a painter of landscapes, I am a man of the city besides. I love my country, too, and her people; I feel that, as a writer, it is my duty to speak of their sorrows, of their future, also of science, of the rights of man, and so forth. So I write on every subject, and the public hounds me on all sides, sometimes in anger, and I race and dodge like a fox with a pack of hounds on his trail. I see life and knowledge flitting away before me. I am left behind them like a peasant who has missed his train at a station, and finally I come back to the conclusion that all I am fit for is to describe landscapes, and that whatever else I attempt rings abominably false. 

Medviedenko: Why should you be unhappy? [Thinking it over] I don’t understand it. You are healthy, and though your father is not rich, he has a good competency. My life is far harder than yours. I only have twenty-three roubles a month to live on, but I don’t wear mourning. Yes, poor men can be unhappy. In theory, yes, but not in reality. Take my case, for instance; my mother, my two sisters, my little brother and I must all live somehow on my salary of twenty-three roubles a month. We have to eat and drink, I take it. You wouldn’t have us go without tea and sugar, would you? Or tobacco? Answer me that, if you can. 

CHARACTER BREAKDOWN: 

Treplev/Conrad— a young, frustrated writer, in love with Nina 

Arkadina/ Emma— his mother, an actress, in love with Trigorin 

Trigorin/ Doyle— a famous writer, in love with himself 

Nina/Nina— a budding actress, in love with Trigorin 

Masha/ Masha—wow, is she sad, in love with Treplev 
*Masha in Stupid Fucking Bird must play ukulele or another instrument. 

Medvedenko/Dev— a schoolteacher, in love with Masha 

Sorin/Sorn—Arkadina’s Brother, in love with… 

CHARACTERS ONLY IN THE SEAGULL: 

Shamrayev—Manager of the estate, Masha’s Father 

Polina—his wife, Masha’s Mother 

Dorn—A doctor—will be cast as a female identifying or non-binary actor 

Yakov—a workman, performing understudy to be determined which role. 

Maid— performing understudy to be determined which role. 

PLEASE NOTE: 

Rehearsals for these two shows: Due to the limited time and double bill, there will be one weekly rehearsal outside of the regular Monday-Friday 6:15pm-10:15pm rehearsal schedule for Stupid Fucking Bird. It will either be on Friday afternoons or Sunday afternoons, depending on cast availability and preference. There will be no Saturday rehearsals until tech/performance dates. Overall, when one cast is called, the other is not—except for certain rehearsal milestones like a run for the other cast.  

By William Shakespeare 

November 7-16 / Pasant Theatre
Director: Ji Won Jeon 

IMPORTANT DATES: 

• 1st Rehearsal: September 29th 
• Tech Rehearsals Begins: October 31 
• Performances: November 7-16 

SYNOPSIS: 

In Venice, Iago, a manipulative ensign, resents Othello, a Moorish general, for promoting Cassio over him. He conspires with Roderigo, a suitor in love with Desdemona, to ruin Othello. They inform Desdemona’s father, Brabantio, of her secret marriage to Othello, accusing the general of using witchcraft. Othello defends his love before the Duke, and Desdemona confirms her devotion. The Duke sends Othello to Cyprus to defend against a Turkish invasion. In Cyprus, a storm destroys the Turkish fleet, securing victory before battle. Iago begins his scheme to ruin Othello, convincing Roderigo that Desdemona will tire of Othello and that Cassio is a rival. Iago gets Cassio drunk, leading to a brawl that results in Cassio’s demotion. Iago advises Cassio to seek Desdemona’s help in regaining Othello’s favor, planting the seeds of suspicion. Desdemona pleads Cassio’s case, but Iago fuels Othello’s jealousy, suggesting she is unfaithful. He uses Desdemona’s lost handkerchief—Othello’s first gift to her—as false proof of her affair. Othello, consumed by doubt, vows revenge and makes Iago his new lieutenant. Iago continues manipulating Othello, making him witness Cassio’s laughter, which he misinterprets as mockery over his wife’s alleged affair. Othello, enraged, resolves to kill Desdemona. Despite her protests, he refuses to believe her innocence. Iago’s plans unravel as Roderigo fails to kill Cassio and is murdered by Iago. Othello smothers Desdemona, then learns the truth of Iago’s deception. Overcome with guilt, he takes his own life. Iago is arrested, and Cassio takes command, left to restore order.  

Source: OpenAI, 2025.   

DIRECTOR’S NOTE: 

I find the story of Othello extremely relevant to our current world as we reflect on our collective experience of the global pandemic and continue to confront the raw facets of our minds amid political upheaval and global crises. Therefore, this production of Othello is set in modern-day America and explores the story through the lens of diverse immigrant experiences, including but not limited to Middle Eastern, African American, Asian American, and Latinx perspectives. In light of the current sociopolitical landscape, the production examines how individuals and society justify their own acts of hatred and violence by exploiting their fear of the unknown and otherness. I invite all actors who dare to ask and investigate the question of how we should confront our own fear and vulnerability at this moment in America to audition. 

CONTENT INFORMATION:  

Please note that this production may involve gun violence. Staged intimacy and violence moments will be professionally choreographed. (See below for scenic breakdown.) 

AUDITION REQUIREMENTS: 

Please prepare 60 seconds of monologue from classical text such as Shakespeare, Greek & Roman, and other global classics. Although the character breakdown below is currently written with he/him and she/her pronouns, we invite gender non-conforming, gender-queer, transgender and non-binary actors to audition for the roles they most identify with. While casting is open to all MSU undergraduate and graduate students, please note that certain roles are only open to certain race and ethnicity. For any questions regarding casting, please email the director Ji Won Jeon at jiwonjeo@msu.edu. You can download a copy of the script at Folger Shakespeare Library. www.folger.edu 

CALLBACKS: 

Callbacks are conducted in a group setting where you will work in pairs and larger groups during a 45-minute session. You will be asked to read for multiple characters. You only need to attend 1 session based on the posted callback schedule. If you cannot make it to your scheduled callback date and time, please email production stage manager Jackson Cosme-Brooks (cosmebr2@msu.edu) to reschedule. 

STAGED INTIMACY & VIOLENCE: 

Please note that this production may involve gun violence. Staged intimacy and violence moments will be professionally choreographed. 

• Act II, Scene 1. Cassio greets Desdemona and Emilia with kisses and some physical contact, demonstrating his courtly manner.  

• Act II, Scene 1. Othello and Desdemona reunite in Cyprus with a passionate embrace and kiss, displaying their love.  

• Act II, Scene 3. Cassio fights with Roderigo with knife, and Montano tries to stop Cassio. Cassio ends up hurting Montano badly.  

• Act III, Scene 3. Othello witnesses some physical contact or gesture between Desdemona and Cassio. 

• Act III, Scene 3. Desdemona takes Othello’s hand tenderly while pleading for Cassio’s reinstatement, emphasizing her affectionate and persuasive nature.  

• Act IV, Scene 1. Cassio speaks of “Desdemona” with some obscene physical gesture when he’s talking about Bianca and bragging his relationship with women.  

• Act IV, Scene 1. Othello strikes Desdemona and curses her in public.  

• Act V, Scene 1. Roderigo makes a thrust at Cassio, and Cassio stabs Roderigo.  

• Act V, Scene 1. Iago stabs Roderigo.  

• Act V, Scene 1. Iago wounds Cassio’s leg from behind and runs away.  

• Act V, Scene 1. Iago kills Roderigo.  

• Act V, Scene 2. Othello kisses Desdemona’s forehead while she’s asleep. Kisses three times. 

• Act V, Scene 2. Othello smothers Desdemona in her bed, believing she has betrayed him.  

• Act V, Scene 2. Othello grabs Emilia violently. 

• Act V, Scene 2. Iago attempts to stab Emilia.  

• Act V, Scene 2. Othello runs at Iago, and Iago stabs and kills Emilia.  

• Act V, Scene 2. Othello stabs Iago.  

• Act V, Scene 2. Othello realizing his tragic mistake kills himself (with knife or potentially a gun). 

ACTOR-CHARACTER BREAKDOWN: 

Gender in this character breakdown refers to the gender of character in this production. Actors audition for the roles they most identify with.  

  *PLEASE NOTE: 

If you have any conflicts during our tech and performances, please opt out of this audition.  

By Lauren Wilson 

November 19-23 / Studio 60
Director: Brad Willcuts 

IMPORTANT DATES: 

• 1st Rehearsal: October 22 
• Tech Rehearsals Begin: November 15 
• Performances: November 19-23 

DESCRIPTION: 

A darkly comic adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. In Victorian England, repressed impulses burst as Dr. Jekyll’s experiments in the nature of evil threaten to reveal the bloody hands beneath the gloves of the British Empire. A fast-paced romp about people tightrope-walking the line between aristocracy and depravity, and between the twin specters of good and evil.  

CONTENT INFORMATION: 

This show will pursue a significant amount of physical comedy, some intimacy and violence – more info available soon! 

AUDITION REQUIREMENTS: 

Brad will be attending the other auditions on Tuesday evening to observe students’ respective monologues and decide on callbacks. 

NOTES ON CASTING: 

• The characters described below have specific gender representations as noted by the author, but the director (as well as the author’s notes for casting) would like to allow for the roles of Lady Throckmortenshire and Euphronia Jekyll to be played by male identifying actors if needed.   
• This show will ask actors to employ a British accent as well. 

CHARACTER BREAKDOWN: 

Euphronia Jekyll – female presenting, age 40-70. A society matron. Mother to Henry and Ambrosia.  

Ambrosia Jekyll – female presenting, age 30-60. Daughter to Euphronia and sister to Henry.  

Henry Jekyll – male presenting, age 30-60. The infamous Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.  

Lady Throckmortonshire – female presenting, age 40-70. A grande dame.  

Calliope & Penelope Throckmortonshire – female presenting, 9-year-old twins to be played by one performer age 15-30. Daughters of Lady Throckmortonshire.  

Rosamunda Dewthistle – female presenting, age 30-60. An eligible young lady. Xavier Utterson – male presenting, age 30-60. Cousin to Henry and Ambrosia.  

Ivy – female presenting, age 30-60. The Jekyll’s maid.   

Plodgett – female presenting, age 40-70. The Jekyll’s cook.  

Constable – male presenting, age 30-60.  

Police Lieutenant – male presenting, age 30-60. The Constable’s commanding officer.