AUDITION NOTICE
Lamplighters Theatre is holding auditions for:
THE 25th ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE
Music & lyrics by William Finn, book by Rachel Sheinkin, conceived by Rebecca Feldman with additional material by Jay Reissll
DIRECTOR: Jonathan Sturch
MUSICAL DIRECTOR: Christopher T. Miller
CHOREOGRAPHER: Patrick Mayuyu
PRODUCERS: Teri Brown and Nancy Roger
SHOW RUN DATES: April 17 through May 17, 2026
Auditions will be held at Lamplighters Theatre, 5915 Severin Drive, La Mesa, CA 91942
.
AUDITION DATES:
Monday, February 02, 2026 at 6:30pm
Tuesday, February 03, 2026 at 6:30pm
Please prepare a 1 to 2 minute song in the style of the show. An accompanist will be provided. Please bring your own sheet music or backing track. No a capella auditions.
CALLBACKS BY INVITATION ONLY: Callbacks will be held at a different location on Sunday, February 08, 2026 at 6:30pm. Those invited to callbacks will be provided the location information.
SYNOPSIS
An eclectic group of students are set to compete in the spelling bee of their young lives. Six spellers bravely enter the competition with hopes of winning the ultimate prize – a trip to the National Spelling Bee in Washington, D.C. Intent on avoiding the soul-crushing “ding” of the bell signaling a spelling mistake, they pour out their hearts, revealing touching and hilarious stories from their tween vantage point.
ALL ROLES WILL BE PORTRAYED BY ACTORS 18+ YEARS OF AGE.
AVAILABLE ROLES:
Chip Tolentino Male-presenting, any ethnicity; student character; actor may also play Jesus; Tenor: Vocal range top: B4, Vocal range bottom: C3
Logainne Schwartzandgrubeniere ("Schwartzy") Female-presenting, any ethnicity; student character; Mezzo: Vocal range top: G5, Vocal range bottom: G3
Leaf Coneybear Male-presenting, any ethnicity; student character; actor may also play Carl Dad; High baritone: Vocal range top: A4, Vocal range bottom: A2
William Barfee Male-presenting, any ethnicity; student character; Tenor: Vocal range top: Bb4, Vocal range bottom: C3
Marcy Park Female-presenting, any ethnicity; student character; Mezzo: Vocal range top: Eb5, Vocal range bottom: A3
Olive Ostrovsky Female-presenting, any ethnicity; student character; Mezzo: Vocal range top: F#5, Vocal range bottom: A3
Douglas Panch Male presenting, any ethnicity; adult character; strong improv skills desired
Mitch Mahoney Male presenting, any ethnicity; adult character; actor may also play Dan Dad and Olive's Dad; High baritone: Vocal range top: A4, Vocal range bottom: E3
The role of Rona Lisa Peretti has been cast.
This show has been been cast.
Lamplighters Theatre is holding auditions for:
The Book of Will
A Play by LAUREN GUNDERSON
DIRECTOR: Samuel Young
PRODUCER: Pamela Stompoly
AUDITION DATES:
Sunday, November 30, 6:30 – 8:30 PM,
Monday, December 1, 6:30 – 8:30 PM, 2025
CALLBACKS BY INVITATION ONLY: Thursday, December 4 at 7:00 pm.
Those actors called back will be notified within three days.
**AUDITIONS WILL BE HELD IN THE THEATRE**
5915 Severin Drive, La Mesa, CA 91942
SHOW RUN: February 27 through March 22, 2026
INDUSTRY NIGHT: Monday, March 9, 2026, at 7:30 pm.
PERFORMANCES: Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Sundays at 2 pm.
Second and fourth Saturdays, March 7 & March 21, 2026, are 2:00 matinees; no evening performance.
REHEARSALS begin January 5, 2026, but there will be a read-thru before the holidays and the cast will be given their scripts to study ahead of time.
AUDITION INFORMATION: Actors will be asked to bring two one-minute monologues, one contemporary and one Shakespearean/classical.
A British accent is required. A dialect coach will be provided during rehearsals.
Please bring your current headshot and resume.
All roles are open for inclusivity and diversity.
Lamplighters is an all-volunteer organization.
SYNOPSIS:
The Book of Will is a play by Lauren Gunderson that tells the story of Shakespeare's friends, Henry
Condell and John Heminges, who race to collect and publish his plays after his death. Set in the
1620s, they are motivated by a pirated, poorly done version of Hamlet and the fear that the plays will
be lost forever. The play is a funny and poignant celebration of friendship, theatre, and the struggle
to preserve Shakespeare's legacy in the First Folio and preserve the words that shaped their lives.
They’ll just have to borrow, beg, and band together to get it done…
ALL ROLES AVAILABLE:
Henry Condell (Male 40-50s) Feisty and hopeful, Shakespeare’s friend, and actor in the King’s Men.
John Heminges (Male 50-60s) Reasonable and serious, Shakespeare’s friend, and financial manager
of the King’s Men. He is a good man, a gentleman, and owner of the Globe Tap House.
Richard Burbage (Male 40-50s) A seasoned lion of the stage, loud and proud, and famous across England.
Ben Jonson (Male 40-50s) – Poet laureate of England and friend/rival of Shakespeare, Ben is an amusing drunk,
a bear of a man and surprisingly weepy.
Alice Heminges (Female 20-30s) John’s daughter and alewife, knows everyone, and hangs with the boys.
Susannah Shakespeare (Female 20-30s) – A good girl and daughter of Shakespeare.
Rebecca Heminges (Female 40-60s) John’s wife, Rebecca is strong, busy with their grocery business,
and a woman who has weathered much but loves her husband, her sons, and God.
Anne Hathaway (Female 40-60s) -- Shakespeare’s now ailing wife, Anne is strong-willed, a classy lady, a survivor.
Elizabeth Condell (Female 30-50s) — Savvy and fun, Elizabeth is Condell’s wife
Emilia Bassano Lanier (Female 30-50s) – A fiery Italian feminist and poet, Emilia is an independent woman, and
a lover of life (and Shakespeare).
William Jaggard (Male 60-70s) Successful if shady publisher of books, plays, and playbills, William is confident
in his ability to get what he wants.
Sir Edward Dering (Male 60-70s) ~~ A book and theatre lover, Edward is sixty years old and the first customer of
The First Folio.
Isaac Jaggard (Male 20-40s) William’s son, Isaac will inherit the business. He is sensitive, an artist at heart.
Ed Knight (Male 20-40s) ~~ “Stage manager” for the King’s Men, Ed is self-serious and particular.
Ralph Crane (Male 20-40s) Humble scrivener of the King’s Men, Ralph is quick, sure, and quiet.
Compositor (Male 20-40s) ~~ Works for Jaggard, young.
Boy Hamlet (Male 20s) A young actor.
Marcus (Male 20s) ~~ Printer’s apprentice at the Jaggard print shop, is nosy but honest.
Town Crier (Male/Female 20s) ~~ A newsboy.
*Most roles will be doubled or tripled.
ADDITIONAL DOUBLED ROLES
Fruit Seller ~~ Fruit Seller.
Two Barmen ~~ Drunk ruffians. Barman 1, Barman 2
Bernardo, Francisco, Horatio, Marcellus ~~ Actors playing these roles
This show has been been cast.
Lamplighters Theatre is holding auditions for:
Of Mice and Men
A Drama by John Steinbeck
DIRECTED BY: Teri Brown
PRODUCED BY: Cydney King and Nancy Roger
AUDITION DATES:
Saturday, October 25, 2025 at 6:30pm
Sunday, October 26, 2025 at 6:30pm
CALLBACKS BY INVITATION ONLY: Saturday, November 1st at 2:00pm. Those actors called back will be notified the day following auditions.
**AUDITIONS WILL BE HELD IN THE THEATRE**
5915 Severin Drive, La Mesa, CA 91942
SHOW RUN: January 9, 2026 though February 1, 2026
PERFORMANCES:
Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 pm, Sundays at 2 pm.
Second and fourth Saturdays, January 17 & January 31, 2025, are 2:00 pm matinees; no evening performance.
INDUSTRY NIGHT: Monday, January 19th at 7:30 pm
AUDITION INFORMATION: Please prepare a one-to-two minute contemporary dramatic monologue.
CALLBACKS BY INVITATION ONLY: Wednesday August 6, 2025 at 6:30 pm. Those actors called back will be notified the day after they audition.
Please bring your current headshot and resume.
All roles are open for inclusivity and diversity.
Lamplighters is an all-volunteer organization.
SYNOPSIS:
Written in 1937 by John Steinbeck, this American classic requires a strong cast to portray the iconic characters.
Two migrant field hands with dreams of living off the “fat of the land,” George and his friend, the strong but childlike Lennie, find work on a farm in California during the Great Depression.
Lennie’s obsessions with things soft and cuddly make George cautious about who the gentle giant associates with. His promise to allow Lennie to tend to the rabbits on their future land keeps Lennie calm. But when a ranch boss’ wife stirs up trouble it causes George to worry about his own safety and Lennie's. Realizing they can’t run away anymore, George is faced with a moral question: How should he deal with Lennie before the ranchers find him and take matters into their own hands?
PLEASE NOTE: A racial slur describing African-Americans is used in the script. This word is indicative of the era and will be used in the production.
All actors must be comfortable with some form of stage combat.
ROLES AVAILABLE: Eight males/20s – 80s, one female/20s – 30s
GEORGE MILTON – role has been cast
LENNIE SMALL – (male presenting, any race, 20s-40s) A large, strong, childlike man who is George's friend and companion. A gentle giant with no ill intent.
SLIM – (male presenting, any race, 30s-40s) A highly skilled mule driver and the acknowledged leader of the field hands. He is known as the "prince of the ranch" due to his exceptional skills and authoritative presence. The only character who seems at peace with himself, Slim understands the nature of the bond between George and Lennie.
CANDY – (male presenting, any race, 60s-80s) An aging ranch handyman. Candy lost his hand in an accident and worries about his future on the ranch. Fearing that his age is making him useless, he seizes on George’s description of the farm he and Lennie will have, offering his life’s savings if he can join George and Lennie in owning the land.
CROOKS – (male presenting, African American, 30s-60s) The stable hand, Crooks gets his name from his crooked back due to a kick from a horse. Proud, bitter, and caustically funny, he is isolated from the other men because of the color of his skin. Crooks becomes fond of Lennie, and though he claims to have seen countless men following empty dreams of buying their own land, he asks Lennie if he can go with them.
CARLSON – (male presenting, any race, 30s-40s) A ranch-hand. Carlson is an aggressive man who lacks empathy and acts as a flunkey to Curley. After years of working on the ranch, he has become mean and self-centered.
WHIT – (male presenting, any race, 30s-40s) A ranch-hand who enjoys a good time and regularly spends all his money at the whorehouse in town. Aggressive, nosy, and always looking to be where the action is, Whit seems to seek out and enjoy any drama or tension on the ranch.
CURLEY – (male presenting, any race, 20s-40s) Rumored to be a champion prizefighter, Curley is a confrontational, mean-spirited, and aggressive young man who seeks to compensate for his small stature by picking fights with larger men. Recently married, Curley is plagued with jealous suspicions and is extremely possessive of his young wife.
THE BOSS – (male presenting, any race, 50s-70s) A well-dressed man in charge of the ranch, and Curley’s father. He is never named but seems to be a fair-minded man.
CURLEY’S WIFE – (female presenting, any race, 20s-30s) She is never given a name and is only mentioned in reference to her husband. The men on the farm refer to her as a “tramp” and a “tart”. Steinbeck depicts her not as a villain, but rather as a victim. She is desperately lonely and has broken dreams of a better life.