A Play by Lynn Nottage
Director: Sharia Benn
The time is 1905, the place is New York City, where Esther, a black seamstress, lives in a boarding house for women and sews intimate apparel for clients who range from wealthy white patrons to prostitutes. Her skills and discretion are much in demand, and she has managed to stuff a good sum of money into her quilt over the years. One by one, the other denizens of the boarding house marry and move away, but Esther remains lonely and longing for a husband and a future. Her plan is to find the right man and use the money she’s saved to open a beauty parlor where black women will be treated as royally as the white women she sews for. By way of a mutual acquaintance, she begins to receive beautiful letters from a lonesome Caribbean man named George who is working on the Panama Canal. Being illiterate, Esther has one of her patrons respond to the letters, and over time the correspondence becomes increasingly intimate until George persuades her that they should marry, sight unseen. Meanwhile, Esther’s heart seems to lie with the Hasidic shopkeeper from whom she buys cloth, and his heart with her, but the impossibility of the match is obvious to them both, and Esther consents to marry George. When George arrives in New York, however, he turns out not to be the man his letters painted him to be, and he absconds with Esther’s savings, frittering it away on whores and liquor. Deeply wounded by the betrayal, but somehow unbroken, Esther returns to the boarding house determined to use her gifted hands and her sewing machine to refashion her dreams and make them anew from the whole cloth of her life’s experiences.
CHARACTER BREAKDOWNS
Please review the breakdown of roles and prepare to audition for the one that speaks to you the most.
Please note that as a part of this production, the following intimacy will be required between the following characters:
- Mrs. Van Buren Kisses Esther
- George Kisses Esther, George places his hands on Esther’s body, General Husband and Wife Intimacy between George and Esther
- Intimacy between Mayme and George
Audition Requirements:
- Be prepared to present two contrasting, one-minute, memorized monologues from works of established playwrights, including at least one contemporary selection.
- Monologues must be from published plays written for theatre.
- You should have read the entire play and have a thorough understanding of the character you are playing.
- Please note: Anyone auditioning for GEORGE or MR. MARKS will be required to slate (introduce themselves) with an accent as listed above. The auditioner may present one of their audition monologues with the accent, this is encouraged but not required for the first audition. For callbacks, auditioners will be asked to perform a short excerpt from the play in the accent, side will be provided.
Callbacks:
Callbacks will be March 24th by invitation only.
Reach out to [email protected] with questions.
PLEASE NOTE:
Auditions are by sign-up ONLY. Please sign up through the following form: