Production Auditions
Auditions are open to all Loyola students regardless of their declared major or minor.
The Theatre Program is committed to equity, diversity and inclusion. As such, we encourage performers of all races and ethnicities, gender identities, sexualities, disabilities, and ages, as well as d/Deaf, to attend every audition.
General Audition Information
The Department of Fine and Performing Arts holds auditions for actors, singers and dancers for its Mainstage and student led Second Stage productions throughout the academic year.
On average, the DFPA produces 3-4 Mainstage productions a year and 6-10 Second Stage projects. Depending on the time commitment, students that are cast are enrolled in THTR 323 - Rehearsal and Performance. This one-credit class, in addition to supporting the amount of time a student spends in rehearsals and performances, also serves as part of the applied knowledge in production that theatre majors will receive as part of their graduation requirements.
Incoming freshmen have the opportunity to audition for competitive scholarships. Usually these auditions are scheduled in the February prior to a student's enrollment in the program.
Current students looking for more information regarding upcoming auditions are encouraged to join the THTR PROGRAM Sakai site.
Functioning much like the class-specific Sakai spaces, the THTR PROGRAM Sakai is the best place to find any announcements or information regarding upcoming opportunities. Please email dfpamc@luc.edu to be added to the site. Students enrolled in theatre classes are automatically added to the site at the beginning of the semester.
Fall 2026 Mainstage Auditions
And It Is The People Who Should Wield It
An Original Forum Theatre Play by Loyola Students | Directed by Kelly Howe
Audition Info
AUDITIONS: Monday, August 24 | 6:00-10:00p.m. | Mundelein Studio 125 (MUND 125)
Each auditionee should prepare a 60-second monologue from any play written after 1925. For example, the monologue can be in the genre of Realism or a more obviously stylized genre like Epic theatre, magical realism, absurdism, expressionism, etc. The piece can be dramatic or comedic. All of those options are equally welcome! If you don't ave a monologue prepared, you are still warmly welcomed to audition! We will have a few monologue options available onsite at auditions for you to use.
As part of the audition process, auditionees will also provide answers to several short essay questions, and the responses to those questions will be considered alongside the student's work on their monologue. Two of the essay questions are presented in the audition form and a third short essay question will need to be answered by any auditionees who are called back for the second night of auditions.
AUDITION FORM: Available HERE.
CALLBACKS: Tuesday, August 25 | 6:00-10:00p.m. | Mundelein Studio 125 (MUND 125)
The stage manager Riley Bulson, rbulson@luc.edu, will notify you if you are called back.
Description
There is no script or list of characters to review for this project because the play will be devised by Loyola students and director Kelly Howe during the rehearsal process itself. Kelly, an experienced practitioner of Theatre of the Oppressed, will facilitate the devising process and help edit what is created to ensure that the play makes a clear and accessible invitation to its audience. Nevertheless, student ideas and students’ social justice concerns will be the project’s guiding stars. Because we will create the play together, it is impossible to know right from the outset exactly which character(s) an actor will play when they are cast. What each actor will be guaranteed upon selection for the ensemble is that all ensemble members will perform live as part of the production AND that every effort will be made by the director to ensure the most meaningful experience possible for every performer. In all moments, however, obtaining actor consent will be pivotal. For example, as the play is developed, students will have the opportunity to decline to play a specific role if they are not comfortable embodying that role. In other words, accepting a casting offer for this production does not mean that you automatically must embody any role the director might wish to assign to you. The process will be far more collaborative (and, again, consent-based) than that. Some or all students might play multiple characters; some might not. We will know more as the process unfolds, since we cannot predetermine too much. One key element of a genuine Theatre of the Oppressed process is that many of the discoveries are made collectively. One of the particularly exciting things about this kind of theatre is that all students will have some agency in shaping the play.
Director's Casting Considerations
Auditions for this play welcome performers of any race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, disability, ability, body physicality, religious affiliation, form of neurodivergence, nationality, citizenship status, etc. We will actively aim to feature the most diverse cast possible. While the monologues that students prepare for auditions will of course be a factor in casting, the short essay answers provided by students at two key moments of the process (on the audition form and during the callback process) will receive at least equal consideration. Sincere student curiosity about (and passion for) the project is especially important for a production of this nature.
All who audition must be committed to helping maintain a mutually supportive environment, one that is characterized by open-mindedness, kindness, patience, curiosity, equity, and respect for the full personhood of all members of the team.
Characters
A live Forum Theatre experience is facilitated by someone Augusto Boal called the Joker. The Joker is the person who explains the guidelines of the Forum Theatre section of the performance to everyone in attendance and then facilitates all elements of participation by the audience, the potential “spect-actors.” The primary Joker for this project will be the director, Kelly Howe, meaning that she will joker at each performance. That said, for at least some performances, we expect that there will be a co-Joker collaborating with Kelly so that students can practice their skills as facilitators, too. The student dramaturg will be invited to co-Joker for at least one performance; other students with interest in theatrical facilitation techniques can also contact Kelly (khowe2@luc.edu) if they think that they might want to be considered as a possible co-Joker. You do not necessarily need to be a performer cast in the play itself to be selected to be trained as a co-Joker.
Spring 2027 Mainstage Auditions
for colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf
By Ntozake Shange | Directed by DeRon S. Williams
Audition Info
AUDITIONS: TBA | 6:00-10:00p.m. | Gabel Rehearsal Studio (MUND 409)
More information to come
AUDITION FORM: Available HERE.
CALLBACKS: TBA | 6:00-10:00p.m. | Gabel Rehearsal Studio (MUND 409)
The stage manager Riley Bulson, rbulson@luc.edu, will notify you if you are called back.
Description
More information to come.
Important Dates
- Rehearsals Begin: TBD
- Tech: TBA
- Performances:
-
- Thursday, February 18 - Saturday, February 20 | 7:30p.m.
- Sunday, February 21 | 2:00p.m.
- Tuesday, February 25 - Saturday, February 27 | 7:30p.m.
- Sunday, February 28 | 2:00p.m.
NOTE: Due to the needs of this play, we will be having rehearsals during Fall 2026 semester. The fall dates/dates are listed below:
Fall Rehearsal Dates
TBA
This project conflicts with rehearsals for Mainstage show Alice by Heart.
Director's Casting Considerations
More information to come.
Characters
More information to come
Alice By Heart
Book by Steven Sater and Jessie Nelson, Music by Ducan Sheik, Lyrics by Steven Sater | Directed by Emily Ritger
Audition Info
AUDITIONS: TBA | 6:00-10:00p.m. | MUND 125
AUDITION FORM: Available HERE.
CALLBACKS: TBA | 6:00-10:00p.m. | Gabel Rehearsal Studio (MUND 409)
More Information to come
The stage manager, Carmela Suomi (csuozzi@luc.edu), will notify you if you are called back.
Description
More information to come
Important Dates
- Rehearsals Begin: TBA
- Tech: TBA
- Performances:
-
- Thursday, April 15 - Saturday, April 17 | 7:30p.m.
- Sunday, April 18 | 2:00p.m.
- Thursday, April 22 - Saturday, April 24 | 7:30p.m.
- Sunday, April 25 | 2:00p.m.
This project conflicts with rehearsals for Mainstage show for colored girls who have considered suicide / when the rainbow is enuf
Casting Considerations
Casting Considerations
More information to come.
Characters
More information to come