Queanbeyan City Council's production of Sunset Boulevard

8 - 25 October 2014

Director - Stephen Pike

Musical Director - Sharon Tree
Choreographer - Annette Sharpe
Assistant Director/Production Manager - Richard Block
Assistant Musical Director - Jason Henderson

Audition Information

Audition Bookings: To book your audition session email Richard at

sunsetboulevard2014@yahoo.com.au
You will be required for approximately 1.5 hours
(see the Audition Format below)

Audition times: Saturday 12th October

Saturday 19th October (Call backs)

Location: Queanbeyan Bicentennial Hall

253 Crawford Street
Queanbeyan

Ages: 17+

Rehearsal Info: Rehearsals will be held at the Queanbeyan Bicentennial Hall

(unless otherwise advised) starting Tuesday 1st July 2014.
Tuesday evening (7:00 - 10:00)
Thursday evening (7:00 - 10:00)
Sunday afternoon (2:00 - 5:00)
 Audition Format

Auditions are in 1 hour sessions followed by a dance session. During the hour 6
auditionees will each have a private 10 minute audition in front of the panel to sing
their allocated song (which will be emailed to you when you book) and do a reading
(provided on the day).

Music
No backing tracks are to be used. You may have an accompanist but the Music
Director will play for you otherwise. Memorisation of the song is highly desirable.

Please prepare your songs as they appear (see table on page 5) and sing all parts
whether they are for your character or not.

We are seeking experienced singers with the ability to sing flexibly across a broad
range, in changing time signatures and rhythms, with strong skills in holding
harmony lines in 3-4 parts.

Feel free to contact the Music Director, Sharon Tree to discuss any questions you
may have regarding music. 0410 488 471 or email glengrove2003@yahoo.com.au

Acting
A reading will be provided on the day at your audition.

Dance
After everyone in your session has done their singing and acting audition you will all
move to another room to learn and perform a short dance routine.

Please wear comfortable clothes (no skirts or baggy clothes) and shoes you can
dance in (no rubber sole shoes). Also bring a bottle of water.

Other notes

 Please complete your audition form before you arrive at your audition
 Please try and arrive 10 minutes before your scheduled start time
 If call backs are deemed necessary they will be held Saturday 19th October. If
you are not called back it does not mean you haven't been given a role in the
show
 Sunset Boulevard - Character Breakdown
(For vocal range and songs required for audition see the table below)

Norma Desmond
The role will be played by talented local veteran Bronwyn Sullivan. This role is not
open for auditions.

Silent movie star who still lives in her isolated dream world of the past. Maturely
attractive and stylized in dress and manner. Eccentric and jaded.

Joe Gillis (Male 25-35, minimum height 178cm)

A young writer, struggling to make his name in Hollywood. Not Hollywood in
manner, but very Hollywood in looks. Tall, strikingly handsome, self assured, yet with
a manly rugged demeanor. Must be an excellent singer with a natural film-style
approach. Should be charming, with an opportunist-like quality.

Excellent singer/actor required. Strong vocal, high baritone, not “pop” style.

Featured Songs: Let's Have Lunch, Betty's Pitch, Salome, Schwab's Drugstore, Girl
Meets Boy, I Started Work, New Ways to Dream, The Lady's Paying, New Year Tango,
The Perfect Year, I Had to Get Out, This Time Next Year, Sunset Boulevard, It Took
Her Three Days, Paramount Conversations, Girl Meets Boy (Reprise), I Should Have
Stayed There, Too Much in Love to Care, What's Going on Joe.

Max von Mayerling (Male 50 to 60)

Ex-film-director-turned-devoted-servant, with European accent. Norma's biggest fan
and also her ex-husband.

Excellent actor/singer required. Full, deep baritone.

Featured Songs: The Greatest Star of All, I Started Work, New Year Tango,
Paramount Conversations, New Ways to Dream (Reprise).

Artie (Male 25 – 30)

Joe's friend, a generous, hardworking director's assistant. Clean cut professional but
fun. Betty's fiancé.

Strong vocals, baritone/tenor.

Featured Songs: Let's Have Lunch, Schwab's Drugstore, Girl Meets Boy, This Time
Next Year.

Betty Schaefer (Female 20 – 27)

Artie's fiancée, a clean-cut, bright-looking girl, in her twenties. Sweet but
sophisticated in a professional manner, a go-getter who wants to sincerely work with
Joe…eventually falling for him.

Must have an excellent mix singing voice.

Featured Songs: Betty's Pitch, Schwab's Drugstore, Girl Meets Boy, Paramount
Conversations, Girl Meets Boy (Reprise), Too Much in Love to Care, What's Going on
Joe.

Cecil B DeMille - (Male 50 – 60)

Famous film director. Strong, imposing with a fatherly quality.

Baritone voice.

Featured Songs: Norma in the Studio, Paramount Conversations, Was That Really
Norma Desmond.

Sheldrake – (Male 27 – 60)

Boss of the studio

Featured Songs: Let's Have Lunch, Paramount Conversations

Manfred – (Male 25 – 45)

An expensive taylor to the stars.

Featured Songs: The Lady's Paying

Chorus - There are more than 20 named characters throughout the show with solo
singing parts. A chorus of all ages, types and cultural backgrounds with strong vocals
and movement abilities are encouraged to audition.

Ages specified are what the characters need to be able to portray on stage more
than real age years.
 Character Song Range
where middle C = C4
Joe Gillis Sunset Boulevard A2-G4
Max Myerling The Greatest Star of All G2-Gflat4
Betty Schaeffer Too Much in Love to Care (including Joe’s A3-G5
part)
Artie Every Movie’s a Circus (excerpt from C3-G4
Schwab’s Drugstore)
Sheldrake Let’s Have Lunch D3-F4
(excerpt)
Manfred The Lady’s Paying C3-G4
Cecil B. DeMille Was That Really Norma Desmond? Aflat2-Dflat4
Ensemble Women – A Little Suffering
Men – The Lady’s Paying
All – Auld Lang Syne

CALL BACK SONGS

Joe & Betty.............Girl Meets Boy
Norma & Joe...........The Perfect Year

PRODUCTION DATES:
8, 9, 10, 11, 15, 16, 17, 18 October 2014 at 8.00 pm
11, 18 October 2014 at 2.00 pm
19 October 2014 at 5.00 pm

There is an option to extend to 25 October should bookings warrant.

REQUIREMENTS:
Where possible cast members shall:
 ensure they are available for the entire production period (not negotiable).
 attend all rehearsal where required unless previously advised.
 be punctual and remain at rehearsals as long as required.
 provide timely warning of any unavoidable absences to the appropriate person.
 treat fellow cast members and production team with respect.
 if required, provide their own accessories e.g. shoes, gloves etc.
 if necessary, provide their own make-up in accordance with the make-up design of
the production.
 Be available for a range of media and publicity events and other promotional
activity.

The Story - Sunset Boulevard

Set in the busy and cut-throat world of Hollywood in 1949. We are introduced to Joe
Gillis a writer, trying to pitch his idea to one of the studio bosses. Joe has fallen on
hard times and is being closely followed by repossession agents who are threatening
to take away his car. Joe tries to lose his pursuers and drives through the streets of
Hollywood and into Sunset Boulevard.

Unsure of where he is, he ends up in the gardens of a mansion owed by Norma

Desmond a former film star. In the late 1920’s films began to use sound and very
quickly ‘talkies’ overtook silent movies in popularity, until they finally died away.

Joe recognizes Norma and we learn that she was the greatest silent movie star of all
time, but as the genre died so did Norma’s career. Now she lives rich but alone with
the exception of Max, her butler and refuses to accept that her career and fame has
faded.

JOE: You used to be in pictures, you used to be big.

NORMA: I am big…it’s the pictures that got small!

Norma plans to make a comeback after 20 years out of the business and she sees an
opportunity in the young writer stranded in her house. She has written a screenplay
based on the biblical story of “Salome” and Norma asks Joe if he will work for her
and edit the script. She plans to give it to the famous director Cecil B. DeMille and is
sure he’ll want to give her the job. Joe is unsure at first, but then agrees to help her.

Back at the studio Joe meets Betty Schaefer, she turns out to be in a relationship
with Joe’s friend Artie Green. Betty convinces Joe to work with her on a script, which
she thinks is certain to get produced. In the meantime Norma has had all of Joe’s
belongings brought to her house and although Joe is unwilling to move in at first, he
realises that as he is so poor he has no choice.

Soon the eccentric Norma Desmond develops feelings for Joe and although she
doesn’t pay him, she lavishes him with new clothes and gifts. On New Year’s Eve Joe
turns down Norma’s invitation to her party, instead he goes to see his friends Betty
and Artie. Max informs Joe that because of his rejection Norma has attempted to kill
herself.

Joe returns to Norma and finishes editing “Salome” and the script is sent to DeMille.
An impatient Norma waits for a response and meanwhile Joe continues to work with
Betty on their new script. While Artie is away working, Betty and Joe get closer and
begin to fall in love.

Days pass and finally Norma receives a call from the studio, but it’s Norma’s classic
car that they are interested in and not her. Max hasn’t the heart to tell her the news.
Norma marches off, triumphantly she thinks, to meet DeMille who humours her, but
remains vague about her film.

It’s not long before Norma finds out about Joe’s relationship with Betty. She phones
Betty to warn her off, but Joe catches her and takes the phone off her. Sick of
Norma’s control over him he asks Betty to come to the mansion. When Betty arrives,
Joe tells Norma that he and Betty are leaving. Norma is outraged and as they leave
she pulls out a gun and shoots Joe, killing him. Norma swiftly descends into madness
and in the final moments of the show, Norma believes she is on the set, making her
comeback film and the curtainfalls with her most famous line:

"...And now, Mr. De Mille, I am ready for my close-up."

The History of Sunset Boulevard

Andrew Lloyd Webber took his inspiration from the classic film of the same name.
The original movie was co-written and directed by the legendary Billy Wilder in 1950.

Lloyd Webber had the idea of creating a musical based on the film in the early
1970’s, but for various reasons did not begin composing until the late 80’s.

‘Sunset Boulevard’ is the name of a famous street in Los Angeles, California. It is over
20 miles in length and often used as a reference to the glamour of Hollywood.

Andrew Lloyd Webber was not the only one who wanted to make a musical out of
the film. Another famous composer Stephen Sondheim tried to get permission in the
early 60’s, but Billy Wilder said “it has to be an opera. After all it’s about a dethroned
queen”, after that Sondheim gave up.

The show has won over 25 awards, including 5 for Glenn Close who played Norma in
the first American production (1995). Despite receiving mixed reviews from the
papers, the premiere production in London’s West End was a success, selling-out for
1,529 performances.

For the first American production in Los Angeles, Andrew Lloyd Webber re-worked
the music and added a new song “Every Movie’s A Circus”, which is not in the English
version. It was again a success, this time receiving much better reviews. It played 369
performances before moving to Broadway in New York.
 PRINCIPALS

 2 Women
 2 Men

FEATURED
ENSEMBLE CHARACTERS
(in order of appearance)
 4 Men

PRINCIPAL AND FEATURED  Myron

 Mary
 Joanna
 Norma Desmond
 First And Second Finance Men
 Joe Gillis
 Sammy
 Max Von Mayerling
 Morino
 Betty Schaefer
 Wunderkind
 Cecil B. DeMille
 Myron
 Artie Green
 Secretary
 Sheldrake
 Cliff
 Manfred
 Katherine
 Lisa
 John
 Anita
 Adam
 Waitress
 Actor
 Sandy
 Larissa
 Jane
 Glenn
 Danielle
 Dawn
 Barman
 First through Seventh Salesmen
 Richard
 Jean
 Actor #4
 Guard
 Jones
 Heather
 Hog-Eye
 Victor Mature Stand-In (Non-Speaking)
 Hedy Lamarr Stand-In (Non-Speaking)
 Astrologer
 Masseuse #1 And #2
 Beautician #1, #2, #3
 Analyst
 Doctor
 Journal