The
Strollers is holding auditions for OTHER DESERT CITIES.
Audition dates Monday, August 5, 7:30 - 9 PM Tuesday, August 6, 7:30 - 9 PM
Callbacks Thursday, August 8, 7:30 - 9 PM
Performance Dates November 8, 9, 15 & 16 at 8 PM, and November 10 at 2 PM
Audition Location The Burgdorff Center For The Performing Arts 10 Durand Rd.,
Maplewood, NJ 07040 (NJ Transit train station is at the end of the street)
The time is Christmas, 2004, soon after the invasion of Iraq. Polly and Lyman
Wyeth are former Hollywood royalty. Polly was a screenwriter.
Lyman was a movie star. Conservative Republicans, Polly and Lyman are members
of a unique Hollywood subset that hobnobbed with Ron and Nancy
Reagan. Lyman left Hollywood to become an
ambassador under Reagan, and Polly devoted her life to her family and,
especially, Lyman. Now, in their seventies, they have retired to Palm Springs where their lives
now center around the country club and Republican fundraisers. When their
daughter, left-leaning author Brooke Wyeth, joins them with a copy of her yet
to be published book, the announcement that it is a memoir forces the reveal of
a shocking family secret.
This tightly woven family drama includes Polly and Lyman's son Trip, a wildly
successful reality TV producer, and Polly's accident-prone, alcoholic sister,
Silda, also a former screenwriter who once partnered with Polly. The themes of
art, life and the power of love come together in what The New York Times
called, The most richly enjoyable new play for grown-ups that New York has known in many
seasons. . . . our sympathies keep shifting among the members of the wounded
family portrayed here. Every one of them emerges as selfish, loving, cruel,
compassionate, irritating, charming, and just possibly heroic . . . leaves you feeling
both moved and gratifyingly sated.
Cast Breakdown:
Brooke Wyeth: Early 40s. “an attractive and dry woman. A writer, out-spoken,
witty, and scrappy, Brooke not only spars with her family over the contents of
her next book, but with a depression that has recently put her in a catatonic
state. Her parents, in their own ways, both dote and fret over her. She has
embraced liberal politics and life in the Northeast.
Polly Wyeth: Seventies. elegant and forthright and whip-smart. Formidable in a
Pat Buckley, Nancy Reagan kind of way, she is a former member of Hollywood royalty. In the
fifties, partnering with her sister, Polly wrote a successful series of
screenplays. She retired (once it became about drugs and lefties whining, I was
out) to devote herself entirely to her family, and especially to her ambassador
husband, Lyman.
Lyman Wyeth: oak-like . . . is sturdy in the way of old Californians of a
particular type. A former movie star befriended by Ronald Reagan and his ilk,
Lyman left Hollywood and became an
ambassador under Reagan. In one interview, JR Baitz said he used John Gavin,
former ambassador to Mexico under Ronald Reagan,
as his model for this character. As Baitz description suggests, Lyman is
devoted, solid, and loyal.
Trip Wyeth: bright, funny, young man, perhaps a decade her (Brooke) junior The
TV producer of a wildly successful reality show, Trip is the baby of the family
and is often not taken seriously among them. While he seems simple and stress
free, his own complex emotions of love, jealousy, and defensiveness bubble
over.
Silda Grauman: Seventies or perhaps a bit younger. A dervish, leaving them
(Polly & Trip) slightly undone in her wake. A former screenwriter, Silda is
also an alcoholic who recently had a dramatic slip after five years of
sobriety. Her lack of self-censorship provides both comic relief and a
challenging presence.
It is not necessary to make an appointment to audition.
Please note that the Strollers is a membership company and performers are
expected to join. Dues of $35 include 1 ticket to each of our 3 main stage
shows (a $52 value) and the opportunity to participate in our monthly
membership meetings.
For more information visitwww.thestrollers.org
