Auditions
2026-27 SEASON LOCAL EQUITY PRINCIPAL AUDITIONS
Hartford Stage operates under a LORT B (League of Resident Theatres) contract with Actors Equity Association.
Audition information
We will be hosting in-person Equity Principal Auditions on Monday, April 27th and Wednesday, April 29th at the Hartford Stage Rehearsal Studios. The span of day is 11a to 7p, lunch 2:30-3:30p.
We encourage actors who are local (official residence within 50 miles of Hartford Stage) to attend the Hartford EPA. A NYC EPA will be held at a later date.
Only members of AEA and sister unions may reserve an appointment in advance. To sign up for a 5-minute audition appointment, please complete this form by Friday, April 24th at 5p: bit.ly/26-27LocalEPAForm.
Non-union members are not able to reserve appointments in advance, but will be seen as time permits on the day of the auditions.
If you need assistance setting up an appointment, email: auditions@hartfordstage.org
The Rehearsal Studios are located at 942 Main St., 2nd Floor, Hartford, CT 06103. To get to the Studios, enter the building with the red Residence Inn awning. Straight ahead you’ll see an elevator with a sign next to it for Hartford Stage. Take the elevator to the 2nd floor, where you’ll see signs directing you to the Studios.
NOTE: We do not accept video submissions.
Material
MATERIAL
Please prepare two contrasting monologues from a play of your choice.
Bring 1 copy of picture and resume, stapled together.
Directions
Contract
Personnel Viewing Auditions
General Submission
Electronic submissions of your headshot and resume can be emailed to: auditions@hartfordstage.org
Hard copies of your headshot and resume can be mailed to:
Hartford Stage Casting
50 Church Street
Hartford, CT 06103
Please, no phone calls or video submissions.
Other
An Equity Monitor will not be provided. The producer will run all aspects of this audition.
Always bring your Equity Membership card to auditions.
Some roles in in A CHRISTMAS CAROL: A GHOST STORY OF CHRISTMAS will be internally understudied. No other roles will be understudied.
Stage Management submissions can be mailed to Bryan Holcombe, Director of Production: Hartford Stage, c/o Bryan Holcombe, 50 Church Street, Hartford, CT 06103.
WE ARE AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER:
We are committed to a strong anti-racist ethos and a collective recommitment to nurture and sustain a culture of equity, inclusion and belonging at our organization. We seek to build a team that is passionate about theatre and that reflects the abundant vibrancy and diversity of our city, state, and nation. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applications will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, gender-identity, sexual orientation, familial status, religion, ability, age, national origin, class and veteran or immigrant status.
NOTE:
While the characters are written with “he/him” or “she/her” pronouns in the original scripts, we welcome gender non-conforming, genderqueer, transgender, and non-binary actors to audition for the roles they most identify with. We will also list race/ethnicity when specific to the character but are otherwise seeking all races and ethnicities. In addition, we will list disability when specific to a character, but are otherwise seeking actors of all abilities. Thank you to First Folio Theatre for inspiring the language in this note as we work towards a more inclusive casting process.
Hartford Stage 2026-27 EPA Character Breakdown
By Morgan Lloyd Malcolm
Directed by Jackson Gay
First Rehearsal: September 8, 2026
First Preview: October 9, 2026
Opening: October 16, 2026
Closing: November 1, 2026
MINA. Female. 25–35. A study in contradictions: she presents as the “fragile Victorian,” but possesses a seething, dormant power. She is a magnetic, ethereal storyteller with an unnerving, haunting edge. Must be able to pivot from delicate to fierce and dangerous.
JONATHAN / ENSEMBLE. Male. White. 25–40. A man defined by trauma and confusion, struggling to tether himself to reality. Driven by a desperate, unwavering devotion to Mina. Note: This actor will frequently morph into the ensemble; versatility is key.
LUCY / ENSEMBLE. Female-identifying, 25–35. Radiant, exuberant, and deeply passionate. We watch her vibrant spirit unravel as Dracula infiltrates her mind. Requirements: Must be a strong mover capable of intense emotional vulnerability. Will also play various ensemble roles.
3 ENSEMBLE MEMBERS. Female. 21–98. A versatile group of “players” in Mina’s world. They inhabit everything from Van Helsing and Dr. Seward to wolves and sailors. We are seeking strong movers for a high level of physical theater/movement.
By Charles Dickens
Adapted and Directed by Michael Wilson
First Rehearsal: October 27, 2026
First Preview: November 20, 2026
Opening: December 4, 2026
Closing: December 27, 2026
NOTE: All characters speak with a British dialect.
ALL AEA ROLES ARE CAST.
By Theresa Rebeck
Directed by TBA
WORLD PREMIERE
First Rehearsal: December 15, 2026
First Preview: January 22, 2027
Opening: January 29, 2027
Closing: February 14, 2027
NOTE: There will be an unpaid holiday break the week of December 21, 2026.
ROLE IS CAST.
By Phanésia Pharel
Directed by Melia Bensussen
COLLECTIVE WORLD PREMIERE WITH BARRINGTON STAGE COMPANY AND GOODMAN THEATRE
BARRINGTON STAGE COMPANY DATES (St. Germain Theatre / LORT D):
First Rehearsal: July 7, 2026
First Tech: July 31, 2026
First Preview: August 5, 2026
Opening: August 9, 2026
Closing: August 29, 2026
GOODMAN THEATRE DATES (Owen Theater / LORT D):
First Rehearsal: September 15, 2026
First Tech: September 22, 2026
First Preview: September 26, 2026
Opening: October 5, 2026
Closing: November 1, 2026
Possible Extension Closing: November 8, 2026
HARTFORD STAGE DATES (LORT B):
First Rehearsal: February 16, 2027
First Tech: February 26, 2027
First Preview: March 5, 2027
Opening: March 12, 2027
Closing: March 28, 2027
NOTE: None of these girls are “kiddie,” the play dies in the world of kiddie. And they all have a sense of humor, and a lust for life. Energy, laughter, curiosity abound in all four. Actors must be available for all three runs.
SALMA. Female. Latina. 18+ to play two days away from fifteen. Brainy, anxious, always on the go. Not an ounce of the sentimental in that smart mind. Salma is the driver of the play and investigation. Powerful and harsh. We must feel the genuine capacity to be scared of her. A surprise in the play is her heart. It’s huge. She loves like no one else but covers that like mad until she doesn’t.
ESTE. Female. Latina. 18+ to play six months away from fifteen. Underdog. At the top of the play, she has yet to step into her power – she is a very smart young woman. Este is an immigrant and the only immigrant out of the four girls. The only working-class member of the team, and someone for whom English is a second language.
PHOEBE. Female. Afro-Latina. 18+ to play three months into sixteen. Phoebe is a softer but formidable opponent to Salma. A bad case of “good girl” syndrome, she hides her power through her politeness and care. But the fierceness is there.
MARIA. Female. Latina. 18+ to play fifteen. Maria is the big reveal! There’s more to la niña bonita than meets the eye. She is the glue of this group. No rosy-eyed glasses for her, she sees everything clearly in her life and sees her friends clearly as well.
Directed by Valerie Curtis-Newton
First Rehearsal: March 16, 2027
First Preview: April 16, 2027
Opening: April 23, 2027
Closing: May 19, 2027
HARMOND WILKS. Male. Black. 40s. Real-estate developer seeking mayoral candidacy, well-placed local leader.
MAME WILKS. Female. Black. 40s. Harmond’s wife of more than twenty years, professional public relations representative.
ROOSEVELT HICKS. Male. Black. 40s. Harmond’s business partner and college roommate, avid golfer.
STERLING JOHNSON. Male. Black. 50s. Self-employed contractor and neighborhood handyman, robbed bank thirty years ago.
ELDER JOSEPH BARLOW. Male. Black. 89. Recently returned to the Hill District where he was born in 1918.
By Anton Chekhov
Directed by Melia Bensussen
First Rehearsal: April 27, 2027
First Preview: May 28, 2027
Opening: June 4, 2027
Closing: June 20, 2027
NOTE: All roles will require a deft touch, a lightness about big ideas – a quicksilver emotional life. Musical abilities a plus, several of these characters may play instruments and/or sing.
[ROLE ALREADY CAST] MADAME LYUBA RANEVSKAYA. Female. 50s-early 60s. A once-wealthy landowner, Ranevskaya is returning to her beloved estate and cherry orchard after an extended stay abroad. She is learning that she can no longer afford her estate, but cannot reconcile herself to giving it up, nor can she change with the times. Charming, vibrant, sensual and able to liven up any room at her command. Chooses to go into denial about any topic that might cause her pain, and there are many. But at heart she does know herself better than people think.
ANYA. Female. 18+ to play 17. Ranevskaya’s daughter. She journeys to Paris to rescue her mother from her desperate situation. She is an innocent, strong young woman. She is in love with Trofimov, and listens to his revolutionary ideas, happy to live in an idealized reality without fully understanding what Trofimov is about. Adores her family, despite their foibles. Is ready for a change. A light approach through life.
VARYA. Female. Late 20s-early 30s. Ranevskaya’s adopted daughter. Varya is deeply religious, serious, and wishes to make everything and everyone better. Having managed the estate for years, she is exhausted by concern: about debts, for the servants, and about the future. She is in love with Lopakhin, who is so busy making money that he cannot bring himself to propose to her. Varya’s illusions of happiness and peace tempt her to run away to enter a convent – she wishes her life to be simpler, she wishes for more joy, and she deserves it.
LEONID GAYEV. Male. Late 50s. Ranevskaya’s brother, a restless and impractical dreamer. Even more in denial than his sister, he’s never quite grown up. He escapes into his mental games of billiards to help with his denial of the harsh forces of reality intruding. A light soul, a great comic sensibility – doesn’t want to take anything, including himself, too seriously. Until the end he thinks he will be saved by some miracle – not unlike a child’s magical thinking.
YERMOLAY LOPAKHIN. Male. 50s. A recently wealthy merchant, whose father was once a serf on Ranevskaya’s estate. He greatly enjoys living the “high life,” in part the pleasure derives from his awareness of how poor he stated. He loves the Gayev family, particularly Ranesvkaya, and wishes she would take his advice. He does love Varya, but is paralyzed by his own insecurities, as well as his obsession with money. In the end he does what business demands he do, even if his heart would have him do otherwise.
PETER TROFIMOV. Male. Late 20s-early 30s. A student. Trofimov is in love with Anya and was once the tutor of Ranevskaya’s son who died when he was young. Trofimov is depicted as the “eternal” (or in some translations “wandering”) student. An impassioned left-wing political commentator who easily criticizes the status quo without really knowing what his next steps will be, little less what the Country should do. More innocent than he knows, prone to self-righteousness.
BORIS SIMEONOV-PISHCHIK. Male. 50s-60s. A landowner. Another old aristocrat, whose own estate has hit hard times. He is constantly discussing new business ventures that may save him, or badgering Ranyevskaya for a loan. He embodies the irony of the aristocracy’s position: despite his financial peril, he spends the play relaxing and socializing with his neighbors. Quiet charm, no self-consciousness at all about himself.
CHARLOTTA. Female. Ageless (40s-60s). Charlotta is the only governess the Gayevs could afford to provide a companion for Anya. At her heart a child of the circus, she can perform any number of tricks. The voice for the absurdity of life and accepts whatever comes her way. Has a quiet mirth within her, and a great stoicism to boot.
SIMEON YEPIKHODOV. Male. 40s. A clerk. Yepikhodov is in love with Dunyasha. He is clumsy, sweet, always striking bad luck. He earns himself a nickname of Mr. Calamity… Finds himself laughing at himself as much as others laugh at him. What other choice is there?
DUNYASHA. Female. 20s. A maid. Coming from nothing, she is amazed to be with these “grand” people, and is an attention seeker, can’t help it – wants to show herself off and “fit in” with the upper class. She is in love with Yasha but is a real innocent and oblivious to the hypocrisy within him. Guileless, and a wee bit too full of herself even so.
[ROLE ALREADY CAST] FIRS. Late 80s. Firs considers the emancipation of the Russian serfs to be a disaster, is very nostalgic for the old Empire and way of doing things. Firs is near the end of their life, and romanticizes their youth, and the family for whom they have dedicated their life. They are like a Mother Hen to Gayev, and would be to the others if they’d let them.
YASHA. Male. Late 20s-early 30s. In retainer to the family. He dislikes the old ways of doing things but doesn’t have a sense of how to improve anything. He chooses to take advantage of what there is to have – becoming quite inconsiderate of others. Bored by the estate life (missing Paris…) he toys with the emotions of those around him, getting a big kick out of creating conflicts and little dramas. Pretends to be in love with Dunyasha, with no sense of responsibility for her heart or innocence.
