Auditions

AUDITION NOTICE!

THE COTTAGE

by Sandy Rustin

Directed by Barbara Larose
Producers: Bill Hammond & Karen Matthews

ON STAGE: April 24 to May 16, 2026
(Non-union, non-paying. We are unable to cast Equity or ACTRA members.)

AUDITIONS will be held in person at the Village Playhouse, 2190E Bloor Street West (one block east of the Runnymede subway station) on the following dates and times:
• Monday, January 26 (6:30 to 9:45 pm)
• Wednesday, January 28 (6:30 to 9:45 pm)
• Saturday, January 31 (11 am to 5:30 pm}
• CALLBACKS will be also be at the theatre on Saturday, February 7,: 11 am to 5:30 pm

ALL REHEARSALS & PERFORMANCES will take place at the VILLAGE PLAYHOUSE.

Rehearsals will generally be Tuesdays and Thursdays (6:30 – 9:45pm) and Sunday afternoons (12:30 – 5:00pm) but are flexible depending on actor availability. Rehearsals will begin with a read-through on Thursday, February 12

Actors must be available for all of Tech Sunday, April 19; for Tech Week evenings of Monday, April 20 through Thursday, April 23 (preview performance); and for all 14 performances:

  • Friday, April 24 – Saturday, April 25 (Saturday is a matinée)
  • Wednesday, April 29 – Sunday, May 3 (Sunday is a matinée)
  • Thursday, May 7 – Sunday, May 10 (Sunday is a matinée)
  • Thursday, May 14 – Saturday, May 16
  • Actors are also expected to stay for a short wine & cheese reception with the patrons after Opening Night (April 24) and the short audience Talkback after the show on May 14.

SYNOPSIS:

Written by a contemporary woman, Sandy Rustin, The Cottage is a sexy romp with underlying themes about love, marriage, betrayal, secrets, honesty and, in the end, a woman’s independence. A surprising, hilarious web of secrets unravels in this ridiculous – potentially murderous – uncharacteristically feminist farce set in 1923 about sex, betrayal, and oh yes, love … When Sylvia and Beau find themselves in an English countryside cottage for their yearly rendezvous, Sylvia knows this time it will be the beginning of their new life together. But then Beau demurs on a shared future, their spouses arrive at the cottage … and chaos ensues.  

For more information about THE COTTAGE click on the name of the play.

REQUIREMENTS:

  • A Received Pronounciation (upper-class English) accent will be used for all roles, but casting is open to actors of any ethnicity and dialect coaching will be provided;
  • The plays calls for physical intimacy (lots of kissing and hugging), for which the show will use an intimacy coordinator. The characters of Beau and Sylvia will be partially undressed, i.e. appearing in  pj’s, robes, and/or negligée.

CHARACTERS:

  • Sylvia – a lovely and rash romantic; having a tryst with Beau, married to Clarke
  • Beau – perhaps the best looking man in Britain; having a tryst with Sylvia, married  to Marjorie, having an affair with Dierdre, brother to Clarke
  • Marjorie – Eight months pregnant, pragmatic and a tad spicy; having an affair with Clarke, married to Beau
  • Clarke – a distinguished gent with a lover’s spirit; married to Sylvia, having an affair with Marjorie,  brother to Beau
  • Dierdre – an awfully pretty, sometimes wise, nincompoop. Not quite the same class as the others, she is the outsider. She’s having an affair with Beau and is Richard’s ex-wife.
  • Richard – a murderous yet gentle soul. Richard is just his pseudonym; Dierdre is his ex-wife. He has secrets.

    Age ranges for the characters are flexible late 20’s to 60’s.  It’s all relative.

PREPARATION:

Auditionees must read the play. A copy of the script will be made available upon request.

  • For the first audition, please prepare a short (3 min or less) contemporary monologue, on which you may be redirected. You might also be asked to read sides from the script, which will be provided at the audition (we recommend arriving early). 
  • If called back, you will be reading sides from the script with scene partner(s).

TO BOOK AN AUDITION: Please email a copy of your headshot and resume to villageplayersauditions@gmail.com with your preferred date, time, interested role(s), and contact information. Once we receive and confirm your details, we will give you a day and time for your audition.

Our local community sponsors are listed on our website. Please support these local businesses, our neighbours, when you can. Don’t forget to tell them you saw the ad on the Village website!    

To see a copy of The Village Players Policy for Respect of All Members, click HERE

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“If you get a chance to act in a room that somebody else has paid rent for, then you’re given a free chance to practice your craft.”
~ Philip Seymour Hoffman on auditioning

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