Hands and legs shake while standing outside the theater. All eyes watch the door as you wait for instructions to enter. The door swings open, and you receive the signal to proceed to the stage and begin your audition. “Confidence is key, don’t let your nerves show,” advises Nicholas Dart ’16. Shuffling your feet, you find your rhythm and confidence as your piece progresses. Elation fills you as you speak your final lines and bid the directors farewell.
This fall, Jesuit Stage & Film will be putting on the classic play “Amadeus.” Auditions were held on Tuesday, August 26th and students from Jesuit, Ursuline, Bishop Lynch, J.J. Pearce, Cistercian, Booker T. Washington and Uplift North Hills Prep attended. Like a community theater, the Jesuit Stage & Film program draws student performers from all around the Dallas-Fort Worth area. This group marks one of the largest selections of schools to take part in auditions for a single production. Alex Motter ’16 stated that “this is the biggest cast we’ve ever had, I’m excited because we have so many good people. There’s a lot of new people, which is cool because it shows how much we are willing to spread out.”
Auditions for Jesuit Stage & Film program are generally very organic, thus allowing the actors to feel not only comfortable, but free. Actors are permitted to choose any 1 minute skit, hoping that within this short time they can pique the interest of the directors. Auditions typically run from 4:30-6:00, allowing for actors to handle their nerves and gain the confidence needed to impress. If someone has a particular part in mind, they may read a couple of that character’s lines or perform a skit as that character.
Similar to last year’s fall drama (The Crucible) and spring comedy (Black Comedy), Amadeus is a double-cast production, meaning that there are two actors playing one character, and each actor performs on a different night. While this play has the same structure as last year’s, Dart believes that “this will stick out because of the dynamic of the multiple voices.” The show will run for four nights, November 14–15 and November 21–22 with a different cast every other show.
The cast list was posted on Facebook at 9:00 P.M. on Tuesday, announcing that the lead role of Salieri was given to Nicholas Dart ’16, who transferred to Jesuit this year, and Alonso Espinosa-Dominguez ’16. Robert Morris ’15 and Marshall Baird ’15 were casted as Mozart. The full cast list is below:
Salieri:
Nicholas Dart
Alonso Espinosa-Dominguez
Mozart:
Marshall Baird
Robert Morris
Constanze:
Madison Murrah
Meghan Harshaw
Venticelli:
Dow Zabolio
Alexis Farrell
Gino Piamonte
Isabel Brown
Jared Butler
Erin Ruzicka
Jake Clarkson
Anna Moore
Zach Feffer
Madison Williams
Zach Shutze
Kat Allison
Emperor Joseph/Emperor Josephine:
Jack Schwab
Brittany Weirman
Special Servant to Emperor/Empress and understudy to both roles:
Kieran Taylor
Count Von Strack:
Sam Cormier
Carlos Cabre
Count Rosenberg:
Joseph Duebner
Henry Ainsworth
Count Van Swieten:
Garrett Alldredge
Will Scott
Kapellmeister Bonno/ Member of Royal Court:
Max Taken
Katherina Caviarelli:
Rachel Campbell
Tess Jackson
Citizens of Vienna:
Alex Magee
Caleb Blais
Ryan Schaffler
Mac Nadurak
Luke Lewis
Jack Mason
Clairmaire Buskmiller
Gavin Loera
Hayley Schrakamp
Caren Buskmiller
Sarah Mease
Zach Richardson
Henry Kirkpatrick
James Hynes
Student Directors:
Chris Ayres
James Butterfield
Tech/Understudies:
Tyler Schrakamp
Alexander Koshakji
Congratulations to the new cast of “Amadeus” as the Stage and Film Department looks forward to a wonderful production.
