Synopsis

Imagine - it's September 1934.

Saunders, the general manager of the Cleveland Grand Opera Company, is primed to welcome world-famous singer Tito Merelli, known as Il Stupendo, the greatest tenor of his generation, to appear for one night only as the star of the opera. Tito arrives late, and through a hilarious series of mishaps, he is given a double dose of tranquilizers and passes out.

His pulse is so low that Saunders and his assistant Max believe he’s dead - and in a frantic attempt to salvage the evening, Saunders persuades Max to get into Merelli's costume and fool the audience into thinking he's Il Stupendo. Max succeeds and lives up to his idol, but Merelli regains consciousness and gets into the identical costume, ready to perform.

Now two opera singers are running around in the same costume and two women are running around in lingerie, each thinking she is with Il Stupendo. A sensation on Broadway and in London's West End, this madcap, screwball comedy is guaranteed to leave audiences teary-eyed with laughter.

Charaters

• Henry Saunders – The Cleveland Grand Opera's general manager. Father to Maggie. A blowhard who often loses his temper at the slightest mishap.
• Max – Saunders' long-suffering assistant and Maggie's suitor, forced to take Tito's place in the role of Othello.
• Maggie Saunders – Saunders' daughter, and Max's girlfriend. She has a great admiration for Tito.
• Tito Merelli – The world's most renowned opera tenor, and notorious ladies man.
• Maria – Tito's long-suffering wife, with an "Italian temper". Leaves Tito early in the play, but ultimately returns to him. Loves Tito, despite his philandering.
• Diana – The opera's ingenue soprano, who is "flinging her way" to the top. A seductive woman (and she knows it).
• Julia – Chairwoman of the Cleveland Opera Guild, who considers herself a "grande dame." She wears a silver dress which, Saunders says, makes her look "like the Chrysler Building."
• The Bellhop – A comic relief character who has an ongoing feud with Saunders. An obnoxious opera fan, the bellhop keeps showing up at the hotel suite at the wrong moment, trying to get an autograph and a photo of Tito Merelli.

Auditions

Auditions will be at 7 p.m. on June 8th. Please be prepared for cold reads. 

Helpful note: We will have an audition form for you to fill out. If you have an acting resume, that will help save you from filling out as much information! 

Show dates include nine performances between
September 25 and October 11.

Learn more about Colonial Playhouse.

Ask us questions about the auditions: colonialplayhousetheater@yahoo.com.