Audition – The Skin of Our Teeth

Los Altos Stage Company is holding open auditions for The Skin of Our Teeth  by Thornton Wilder.

Directed by Chris Reber

In the 5,000 years they’ve been married, George and Maggie Antrobus have survived wars, plagues, floods, and everything in between. Now they’re running low on food – and a massive glacier is headed toward their New Jersey home. A timely comedy about the endurance of human spirit, Thornton Wilder’s The Skin of Our Teeth follows one “every-family” through the great struggles and triumphs of the human experience. 

Performance dates: Wednesdays through Sundays, from April 11th through May 5th, 2024. Wednesday-Saturday performances start at 8pm. Sundays start at 3pm.

Audition date: Monday, October 23rd, 2023 from 6 pm to 10 pm. 

Where: Grant Park Room 3, 1575 Holt Ave, Los Altos, CA

Callbacks: Monday, October 30th, 2023 from 6 pm to 10 pm.

Rehearsals: Weekly – Sundays, Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays 7-10pm until tech and performance weeks, which will be evenings from 6-10pm. 

Audition requirements:  Please prepare a two-minute comedic monologue. Please sign up for a slot on our Sign-Up Genius here. 

It is preferable that you audition in person, but if you are unable to make auditions, video submissions will be considered through Monday, October 23rd.  Please fill out the audition form and send your video to rebecca@losaltosstage.org.  

Callbacks must be in person. 

Actor Acknowledgement: All roles are volunteer and non-AEA. A $15 meal per diem will be provided for rehearsal and performance days to which the actor is called up to a total amount of $500.

Audition Sign Up: Please choose a time to audition using our Sign-Up Genius here.

Online Audition Form: Please fill out Los Altos Stage Company’s virtual audition form here. You must fill this form out in addition to the Sign-Up Genius.

Please forward questions to LASC’s Production Manager, Rebecca Voss at rebecca@losaltosstage.org.

Roles: 

LASC does not discriminate based on race, color, creed, sex, religion, age, marital or veteran’s status, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, or genetics. LASC is committed to diversity in all its casting. Actors are encouraged to audition for any role they are interested in, regardless of how it has been portrayed previously.

• Mr. Antrobus – The family patriarch. Mr. Antrobus is, by all accounts, charming and like-able; he’s an aspirational Everyman. He is at once a genius and a buffoon. Mr. Antrobus is a brilliant inventor, the President of the Ancient and Honorable Order of Mammals, Subdivision Humans, and a soldier in the Great War. Despite his occasionally wandering eye, he is a good man who wants to do right by his family and by the human race (which in this play, is kind of the same thing).
• Mrs. Antrobus – The matriarch of the Antrobus family. Mrs. Antrobus is fiercely protective of her children, and even more protective of the cozy little suburban home that her family has built. She does not suffer fools, even when those fools are her own relations. She’s strict, but she’s fair. More than anyone else on stage, Mrs. Antrobus remains grounded, rational, and genuine, throughout.
• Henry – Ages 9 to 20-ish over the course of the play, Henry is a bit of a hellion — he’s all arms and legs, and bubbles resentment and anger wherever he goes. As a child, this makes him a bit of a menace: he has a bad habit of throwing rocks at people’s heads. Henry even kills his own brother in this fashion. As a young adult, his violent streak turns Henry into a ruthless killer, who fights his own father while serving as a soldier on the “wrong” side of the war. An energetic, impulsive child and a haunted, violent adult.
• Gladys – Ages from 8 to 20s or so over the course of the play. A bundle of energy, Gladys is less destructive than her brother, but no less enthusiastic. She’s an excellent student, knows it, and is always glad to have the chance to prove herself. Gladys attempts to wear makeup and stylish clothes (despite her mother’s intense disapproval). As she grows into a woman, Gladys becomes more grounded and serious. She begins to find beauty in simple things — the sky, fresh air, freedom. An energetic young child and a serious, war-weary adult.
• Sabina – The housemaid at the Antrobus house, she’s “over-rouged,” and something of a tart. Sabina expresses nothing but admiration for her employers, and fawns over their children — at least until she becomes irritated and gives her two-weeks notice (which happens often, since she never follows through). Sabina loves the movies, movie stars, and the lavish world she sees in films — she does not like work. Sabina frequently breaks the fourth wall, commenting on her dislike for a given scene or line, or for the entire play. In the second act, Sabina appears in the form of the sexy, seductive, and scheming beauty queen.
• Featured/Ensemble – 4-6 actors to play 25 roles, including the Announcer, Mr. Fitzpatrick, Mammoth, Dinosaur, Fortune Teller, Telegraph Boy, and many others. Super fun for actors with a facility for bold characters.