Auditions
THE LOST THEATRE COMPANY ARE CASTING FOR
Proud by John Stanley
25th July – 12th August 2012,
Main House, LOST Theatre, Stockwell
PROUD played to sell out audiences at The Stag in 2009. LOST, in collaboration with the writer, is presenting an updated version especially for Olympic London
Directed by Oliver Jack, this sharp, funny and ultimately moving comedy about a young Olympic hopeful will play for three weeks to coincide with The Games coming to London. Given the timing and the excitement surrounding The Greatest Show On Earth we believe that this fantastic show is happening in just the right place at just the right time.
ABOUT
Proud is a comedy/drama about a young gay man’s attempts to reconcile being an out a proud gay teenager with the demands of the macho world of boxing.
It begins as a 21st Century comedy of manners. It’s Lewis’s 18th birthday party, and he, his mother Rachel, and older sister Colleen prepare for the arrival of Lewis’s boyfriend Tom. Rachel is curious as to why Tom would be late. Lewis is curious as to why Rachel finds this curious and Colleen is curious as to why Lewis gets his clothes ironed for him when she has to do her own. So far so amusingly domestic. It is with the arrival of Tom and, unannounced, his best friend Ally, and subsequently the unexpected appearance of Lewis’s boxing trainer Mac that the domestic levity disintegrates to reveal the far deeper emotional undercurrents that connect these six characters.
Eighteen-year-old Lewis’s understandable reluctance to come clean with his boxing coach about his homosexuality provides the catalyst for the deceptions, misunderstandings and conflicts that unfold throughout this play. The aspirations of young people for London 2012 has justifiably created a desire to be proud and to make others proud. How then does that marry with being proud of who you really are? How does that marry with recognising the sacrifices and pain others have dealt with to allow you to live the life you lead?
Proud is funny, fast-paced and set in the kind of ensemble family situation that everyone has found themselves in at some point or other. If it has a message then it is simply that nothing is ever black and white – except being honest, and ultimately proud of who you are. We are looking for actors interested in having a showcase in London, who can afford to rehearse and play for three weeks in a fantastic, 181-seat, state of the art theatre with a quality technical and creative team.
CHARACTER BREAKDOWN
All six actors must have excellent comedic skills.
Please note this is a voluntary project.
LEWIS: 18 years old, Olympic boxing hopeful for 2012. He happens to be gay. He has the killer instincts, focus and determination to win gold but outside of the ring is not the sharpest pencil in the box. He is quite simply adorable, hence the nickname “Thumper”. A true golden boy. He hails from the East End of London.
He appears in training shorts and his underwear so the actor’s physique needs to be able to pass for a welterweight boxer.
RACHEL: Lewis’s mother: a woman in her early 40’s. She tries to rule her house with a rod of iron and her slightly warped moral compass, but ultimately is very caring.. She’s a single mother doing everything she can to provide and support her two kids and is proud of them both. Aware that sometimes she falls short. From the East End of London, she has some unintentional and unfortunate turns of phrase. She has little time for the politically correct brigade and believes in honesty at all times
TOM: 32 years old. Fit, sexy, white collar, out and medicated gay man: gentle, caring and emotionally fragile owing to past experiences, the most traumatic of which being the Soho bombing in which he was caught up. Hitherto unable to form lasting relationships, he has taken a step out of the ordinary in embarking on a relationship with Lewis,14 years his junior.
He smokes throughout the play.
COLLEEN: Lewis’s sister. Late teens / early twenties. She is gobby and outwardly confident and brazen. She finds life already boring despite her youth . She’s getting tired of always being just out of the spotlight that shines constantly on Lewis. From the East End of London.
Smokes a single cigarette during the play.
Appears in a bra (and skirt) for one short section.
MAC: late 40’s. Boxing coach to Lewis. He’s old-school homophobic but also a charmer when in the presence of the ladies. He appears well-read and sometimes even intellectual. He needs Lewis to get him the Olympic medal-winning status in the boxing world he thinks he deserves and that has thus far eluded him. He’s always carried a torch for Rachel. He is very much a product of bedtime stories he has heard about the Krays.
ALLY: mid to late twenties. Lesbian. Smart, attractive, with a sharp, wry tongue. Not much passes her by. A social worker by day, a party animal by night. Secretly caring and instinctively knows how to save a friend in distress. Trying to be Tom’s moral compass throughout and his voice of reason, but fighting a losing battle.
