<HTML><FONT FACE=arial,helvetica><HTML><FONT SIZE=2 PTSIZE=10 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" FACE="Arial" LANG="0">Auditions for Seth Rozin's Missing Link will be held on Tuesday, November 16,<BR>
and Thursday, November 18, at 7:30 p.m. in the Schenectady Civic Playhouse,<BR>
12 S. Church St., Schenectady. Registration for auditions begins at 7:00 p.m.<BR>
each night.<BR>
<BR>
Nathan and Gloria Berman relish the freedom brought on when their 13-year-old<BR>
daughter Annie takes her first overnight trip to Paris on a school trip,<BR>
until the shocking news of the mid-air explosion of her flight topples their<BR>
marriage and their world. Jettisoned into separate grief-induced <BR>
journeys through<BR>
the roots of their spiritual pasts, they are forced to re-examine the faiths<BR>
they both rejected years previously. A rich tapestry of flashback and visions,<BR>
this surrealistic play examines the role that faith plays in our cultures.<BR>
<BR>
Director Ward Dales, has announced the following roles:<BR>
<BR>
Nathan Berman: a 39-year-old atheist Jew. He comes from a mixed background of<BR>
secular scientists and deeply pious Jews. Nathan is a successful<BR>
anthropologist. He is very intellectual and attempts to process his <BR>
pain through reason,<BR>
unsuccessfully: he needs to know how his daughter's plane crashed. The actor<BR>
playing Nathan must be able to create an emotional tempest without spilling it.<BR>
<BR>
Gloria Berman: a 38-year-old agnostic. Raised a strict Catholic, she has<BR>
unresolved feelings about the Church due to the tragic death of her father when<BR>
she was a teen. Gloria is a social worker and is plagued by the desire to<BR>
understand why her daughter is dead.<BR>
<BR>
Grandpa: a 50-60-year-old, devout Jewish gentleman. He is full of old-world<BR>
wisdom and spends most of the play trying to help Nathan connect with his soul.<BR>
He is passionate and uses humorous anecdotes to cajole Nathan into embracing<BR>
his Jewish heritage and faith. (This role will probably be double-cast with<BR>
Australopithecus.)<BR>
<BR>
Australopithecus: He is the fantasy embodiment of Nathan's companion<BR>
skeleton. He appears for the climax of the play to help Nathan <BR>
understand the nature<BR>
of lineage and the randomness of life's tragedies. He is a wry and wise "<BR>
caveman." (This role will probably be double-cast with Grandpa.)<BR>
<BR>
Mother: 50ish, unquestioning Catholic. She maintains her faith after her<BR>
husband's death, while Gloria loses hers. She sometimes becomes Nathan's mother<BR>
in overlapping flashback scenes. (May double as Ella Mims.)<BR>
<BR>
Ella Mims: 50ish. Ella is a self-actualized Catholic woman. She is a groupie<BR>
who follows a group of regular Virgin-Mary-sighting chasers. She is<BR>
methodical, wise and deeply understanding and compassionate. She is <BR>
mentor for Gloria.<BR>
(May double as Mother.)<BR>
<BR>
Jean Staley: 30-40 years old-(non-Caucasian actresses are encouraged to<BR>
audition for this role). She's Ella's traveling companion, but is <BR>
jealous of Gloria<BR>
's new bond with Ella. She is motivated to seek the Virgin in order to escape<BR>
an abusive marriage. She's not truly devout, and struggles with this fact.<BR>
(May double with Rabbi Marla Shener.)<BR>
<BR>
Rabbi Marla Shener: a 40ish widow, who once was a militant Zionist. She has<BR>
learned volumes from her personal grief and is somehow an unexpected lifeline<BR>
for Nathan. (May double with Jean.)<BR>
<BR>
Mark Silvera: 30's (minority actors are encouraged to audition). He is a<BR>
Spanish teacher at the school where the Bermans' daughter went to school. A<BR>
fair-weather Catholic, he wants to blame the crash on Annie's Jewish <BR>
heritage in<BR>
order to facilitate his own school field trip. Strong character actor needed.<BR>
(Probably to be triple-cast with the following characters.)<BR>
<BR>
Gravedigger: 30ish Pakistani man (Minority actors are encouraged to<BR>
audition). He is blind. He is very wise and forthright. (Probably <BR>
triple-cast with Mark<BR>
and the vendor.)<BR>
<BR>
Vendor: 30ish working-class "Joe" who puts Gloria in her place (minority<BR>
actors are encouraged to audition). He is straightforward and coarse in his<BR>
language. (Probably triple-cast with Mark and the vendor.)<BR>
<BR>
Annie: 13-15 years old. Nathan and Gloria's daughter. She appears in one<BR>
scene only as an apparition of the Virgin Mary. This character speaks broken<BR>
French, just as a second- or third-year student would. Rehearsals for this<BR>
character will be limited.<BR>
<BR>
Each role has been described separately, though the director hopes to double-<BR>
and triple-cast several roles if possible. He also encourages actors to<BR>
contact producer Michael McDermott at 669-5414 to obtain a copy of <BR>
the script and<BR>
sides, if available. Mr. Dales encourages minority actors to audition for the<BR>
production.<BR>
<BR>
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