Auditions starting soon – but where are the boys?

Auditions starting soon – but where are the boys?

Once-in-a-Lifetime Opportunity for New Zealand Children
to Star in International Production Of the Sound of Music
Casting agents will this weekend begin the first stage of their search for young stars to play the Von Trapp children in one of the biggest and best-loved musicals of all time, THE SOUND OF MUSIC, is coming to New Zealand in September.

About 1000 young actors have registered online to audition for this spectacular show and of those registered, the girls outnumber the boys 5:1.

Agents are particularly keen to see more boys register to play 14-year-old Friedrich and 11-year-old Kurt in the Andrew Lloyd Webber production that opens at Wellington’s St James Theatre on 12 September and The Civic in Auckland on 3 October, featuring a stellar international cast in the principal roles.

“New Zealand’s strong sports culture has seen boys shy away from performing arts,” says Shane Cortese, a star of TV and stage. “It’s OK to be a sportsman and an actor too. Performing isn’t a sissy’s sport. It’s cool and lots of fun and can be a very good career. New Zealand has a lot of very good natural performers who, for whatever reason, are reluctant to take those first steps. Give it a go boys. You may actually enjoy it.”

Pre-registrations will be held in Wellington on Saturday and Auckland on Sunday. More details at www.soundofmusic.co.nz.

This lavish and critically acclaimed West End production features seven children that form the Von Trapp family, and the producers will cast six of these children in New Zealand.
Two male and four female roles will be auditioned for in Wellington and Auckland over the next few weeks and children who fit the character brief outlined below.

The roles the producers are looking for are:

Friedrich – height 1.52m (5’ approx), playing a boy aged 14
Louisa – height 1.49m (4’11 approx), playing a girl aged 13
Kurt – height 1.44m (4’9 approx), playing a boy aged 11
Brigitta – height 1.4m (4’7” approx), playing a girl aged 9/10
Marta – height 1.32m (4’4 approx), playing a girl aged 7
Gretl – height 1.2m (4 approx), played by a girl to be no younger than 6/7

Producer of THE SOUND OF MUSIC and Chief Executive of Lunchbox Theatrical Productions James Cundall said, “This is an exciting opportunity for local talent to star in an international and West End blockbuster. We are looking for 18 children in total to play six roles in this family musical and encourage aspiring young actors and actresses of the right height to come along and audition.”

With its unforgettable score THE SOUND OF MUSIC touches the hearts of all ages and brims over with some of the most memorable songs ever performed on the musical theatre stage, including My Favorite Things, Do-Re-Mi,Climb Ev’ry Mountain, Edelweiss, The Lonely Goatherd, Sixteen Going on Seventeen, and of course the glorious title song The Sound of Music.
THE SOUND OF MUSIC tells the uplifting true story of Maria, the fun-loving governess who changes the lives of the widowed Captain Von Trapp and his seven children by re-introducing them to music, culminating in the family’s escape across the mountains.
The original Broadway production of THE SOUND OF MUSIC won six Tony Awards, including Best Musical, and was Rogers and Hammerstein’s biggest success. The 1965 movie starring Julie Andrews as Maria won five Oscars, including Best Picture, and remains one of the most popular movies of all time.

This dazzling production from the home of West End musical theatre – the famous London Palladium – is produced by Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Really Useful Company and David Ian Productions, and is presented in New Zealand by Lunchbox Theatrical Productions and David Atkins Enterprises.

TICKETING AND SHOW INFORMATION
WELLINGTON – From 12 September – St James Theatre
AUCKLAND – From 3 October – The Civic
Tickets on sale in June.
ABOUT LUNCHBOX THEATRICAL PRODUCTIONS
Headed by James Cundall, Lunchbox Theatrical Productions is one of Australasia’s leading producers of live entertainment, and over the last two decades has created a reputation for bringing top quality international productions to audiences across five continents.
Since 1992, Lunchbox Theatrical Productions has produced a wide array of live entertainment including musicals (Annie, Chicago, Cats, We Will Rock You, Chicago, Miss Saigon, Les Miserables, South Pacific, Mamma Mia, West Side Story, The Phantom of the Opera); spectaculars (Cirque du Soleil’s Alegria, Riverdance); boutique shows (Les Ballet Trockadero de Monte Carlo, Stomp, Circus Oz, Potted Potter, Slava’s Snowshow); musical concerts (ABBA Mania, The Music of Andrew Lloyd Webber, The Bootleg Beatles); international artists (Elaine Paige, Bryn Terfel, David Helfgott, Clive James, Ricky Martin); concerts (The Last Night of the Proms for the Hong Kong Handover, The Grimethorpe Colliery Band); plays (The 39 Steps, The Woman in Black); children’s shows (Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends, Barney the Dinosaur); as well as The Imperial Ice Stars productions of The Sleeping Beauty on Ice, Swan Lake on Ice , Cinderella on Ice and The Nutcracker on Ice to name just a few.
Lunchbox Theatrical Productions is based in the UK with companies in Hong Kong, Singapore, The Philippines, Australia and New Zealand. www.lunchbox-productions.com

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