2025-26 SEASON AUDITIONS!
ABOUT US: Short North Stage is a professional non-profit regional theater company located in the heart of the Short North Arts District in Columbus, Ohio. As an SPT Tier 5 Equity theater we produce 7 musicals and occasional special performances in our season. We love to feature exciting new takes on classics, edgy and provocative new works, and stories that will truly resonate with our audiences. Our mission to feature creative teams, onstage talent, and offstage talent with diverse, unique voices remains strong as we continuously look for qualified applicants.
Short North Stage is committed to equity, diversity, and inclusion and invites artists of all gender and non-gender conforming identities, ethnicities, and ages to audition. We are very excited about our upcoming season and are so glad you are too!
To submit your audition please read ALL the instructions below.
We are currently ONLY CASTING for WAITRESS, AMERICAN IDIOT, and THE WIZ. Auditions for the second half of our season will take place in September. Union and Non-Union Contracts available.
LOCAL Actors use THIS FORM.
NYC/Out Of Town Actors use THIS FORM.
ALL SUBMISSIONS DUE APRIL 16, 2025
AUDITION INSTRUCTIONS:
Please choose 1 or 2 contrasting songs from our Google Drive folder to perform. If you are only available or feel right for one show or role, just sing songs from that character. You do not have to have two cuts. Piano tracks are provided. (Please disregard any callback script sides. They are not needed for the first round. )
Record these songs ONLY and submit them as one link via YouTube, Google Drive, or Dropbox. Please ensure sharing settings enable the casting team to view your video. Materials can be found HERE.
LOCALS: Fill out THIS FORM that will ask for your headshot, resume, links to your audition, other reels, availability, and contact information. This form is for artists that live in central Ohio and can commute to our theater and do NOT need housing
NYC/OUT OF TOWNERS: Fill out THIS FORM that will ask for your headshot, resume, links to your audition, other reels, availability, and contact information. This form is for artists who DO need housing.
These forms MUST be completed with all information by APRIL 16, 2025. You can only complete the form once and it must be completed in it’s entirety in one sitting.
Callbacks for locals will be announced between April 23 - 25 for American Idiot and Waitress and by May 5th for The Wiz.
In person callbacks for locals will take place at Short North Stage for specific shows on these dates in the evening: American Idiot 4/28, Waitress 4/29, The Wiz 5/12
If you can NOT attend callbacks on those dates you can send in a video due the DAY BEFORE those callback dates.
Callbacks for those out of town will be held via video. This may be a rolling process as we finish local casting.
Local EPAs will be held April 28 and 29 by appointment only by emailing casting@shortnorthstage.org. We recommend filling out the form by April 16.
Our casting process is a rolling process. If you hear someone has been given an offer it does not mean that all roles for that show have been cast or offered yet. Auditions for the rest of our season will happen in the Fall. Please email casting@shortnorthstage.org with any questions. Thank you!
IMPORTANT DATES/SHOW INFO
ALL Submissions due April 16, 2025 (this includes Locals and NYC/Out Of Towners) There are 2 separate forms. PLEASE fill out the correct form!
LOCAL Callback Dates: AMERICAN IDIOT 4/28, WAITRESS 4/29, THE WIZ 5/12
VIRUTAL Callbacks will be rolling, mostly after local callbacks.
Equity Principal In Person Local Auditions by appointment only: 4/28 2pm-6pm, 4/29 2pm -6pm. For appointments email casting@shortnorthstage.org. We recommend you still fill out the above forms by 4/16. AEA contracts are SPT Tier 5.
Rehearsals run Tuesdays - Fridays typically 6-11:00pm, Saturdays and Sundays 10am/11am-6pm/7pm. Tech days are 8 hours out of 10. All rehearsal times are subject to change.
Shows are Thursdays through Saturdays at 7pm and Saturdays & Sundays at 2pm. If you are unable to perform on all show dates please do not audition for that show.
IMPORTANT SHOW DATES:
WAITRESS
Rehearsals: June 24 - July 9, 2025
Performances: July 10 - August 10, 2025
AMERICAN IDIOT
Rehearsals: August 19 - September 3, 2025
Performances: September 4 - 28, 2025
THE WIZ
Rehearsals: November 4 - 19, 2025
Performances: November 20 - December 28, 2025 (no performances Thanksgiving or Christmas)
CHARACTER BREAKDOWNS
In reference to the character descriptions below- most characters we encounter currently are written with man/woman, he/him, or she/her pronouns and you will see that in the following descriptions. However, limiting the descriptions are, our casting seeks to be as inclusive as possible and we invite gender non-conforming, genderqueer, transgender and non-binary actors to submit for the roles they most identify with.
WAITRESS
Directed/Choreographed by Dionysia Williams Velazco
Rehearsals: June 24 - July 9, 2025
Performances: July 10 - August 10, 2025
Materials Available HERE
JENNA: (Female Identifying, 25-40) A woman stuck in her life as an unhappily married waitress in a small town. Finds some happiness and expression through her meticulous baking of pies and her friendships with her coworkers, Dawn and Becky. Lives her life paycheck-to-paycheck, day by day, and wants nothing more than to get away and start fresh, unbeknownst to her destructive husband, Earl. Must have a fantastic pop/rock voice with great range. Vocal Range: F#3-F5.
DAWN: (Female Identifying, 24-30) She is the youngest of the waitresses. Thick glasses, hair parted 14 centimeters to the left — eccentric is the nice way to say she’s slightly unusual, and not so slightly OCD. She sets the tables, painstakingly ensuring each salt and pepper-shaker is equidistant from the napkin holder. Must have an excellent pop/rock/folk voice. Vocal range: G3-E5.
BECKY: (Female Identifying, 35-45) The oldest of the three waitresses. Irreverent, irascible, been there, made it back, and somehow kept her forward and sometimes wicked sense of humor with excellent comedic timing. Must have a soulful pop voice with an excellent pop belt. Vocal range: Eb3-E5.
DR. POMATTER: (Male Identifying, 30-45) Handsome, endearing, and neurotic. Has a warm, if clumsy, matter. Jenna’s gynecologist with whom an unexpected extramarital affair is born. Has a quirky sense of humor and a big heart, despite the fact that he’s contributing to the affair. Must have impeccable comedic timing and must move well. Should have a very strong pop/rock tenor that can navigate the musical style of Sara Bareilles with ease. Vocal Range: Bb2-Bb4.
EARL: (Male Identifying, 25- late 30’s) Jenna’s husband. Peaked in high school, handsome in a gruff way, but that face is clouded with broken dreams, drowned with cheap beer. Just enough narcissism mixed with stupidity, to be a potent Molotov cocktail that can explode into unexpected anger one second and then turn into a sobbing mess the next. Guitar playing a plus. Vocal range: Eb3-G4.
OGIE: (Male Identifying, 30’s) Strange, yet oddly lovable. Becomes slightly obsessed with Dawn (in a hilarious yet endearing way) after she goes on a 5-minute date with him. Quirky, incredibly persistent, and odd, yet kind. Should have excellent comedic timing. Must have an excellent pop/rock tenor/baritenor sound. Vocal range: C3-Bb4.
JOE: (Male Identifying, 60-70) The owner of the diner where Jenna, Dawn, Becky, and Cal work. A seemingly old, curmudgeonly man who has a soft spot for Jenna (and her pie), warm at heart. A sarcastically funny and no-nonsense guy with a keen ability to read people. Very funny. Vocal range: B2-G#4.
CAL: (Male Identifying, 40’s): A chef at the diner. A “Salt of the Earth” guy’s guy surrounded by gals. Brash, impatient, unsentimental, but somehow charming. Should have a strong pop/rock voice with great comedic chops. Vocal range: B2-G4.
ENSEMBLE: Must have excellent pop voices in the style of Sara Bareilles, have great comedic timing, and be able to play a range of characters comprising the community in which the story takes place. Must be strong movers/dancers.
ENSEMBLE 1 (Cover Jenna/Dawn)
ENSEMBLE 2 (Cover Becky/ Nurse Norma)
ENSEMBLE 3 (Cover Dr. Pomatter/ Earl)
ENSEMBLE 4 (Cover Cal/ Oggie)
SWING 1 (Cover Jenna/Ensemble)
SWING 2 (Cover Dr. Pom/ Ensemble)
AMERICAN IDIOT
Rehearsals: August 19 - September 3, 2025
Performances: September 4 - 28, 2025
Directed/ Choreographed by Edward Carignan
Materials Available HERE
NOTE: All roles can be played by any race or ethnicity.
JOHNNY - 18-24, The guy who goes to the city. The self-proclaimed Jesus of Suburbia. Bored of his do-nothing, go-nowhere existence, he takes off for the city to get a new lease on life. He wages an inner war between a budding love for Whatsername and growing dependency on St. Jimmy and drugs. Guitar skills are a plus. Vocal range B4/B2
TUNNY - 18-24, The guy who goes to the city and the Middle East. Johnny's friend who follows him to the city and eventually enlists in the army. He travels to the Middle East. A lost dreamer who is easily swayed, first by Johnny's ideas and then by patriotism and the American Dream. Vocal Range B4/D3
WILL - 18-24 The guy that stays home in suburbia. Johnny's friend. He ends up staying in Suburbia with his pregnant girlfriend Heather. The more he stays on the couch, the more he becomes slowly disconnected from the world and his own relationships. Guitar skills are a plus. Vocal Range A4/C#3
ST. JIMMY: Any age, non-binary, A city badass. Johnny’s alter ego. Known as the city badass. An enigmatic and charismatic enabler who gets Johnny addicted to drugs and grows jealous of his relationship with Whatsername. Vocal Range B4/C3
HEATHER: 18-24, A girl in suburbia. Will’s girlfriend. She discovers she is pregnant but has difficulty telling her boyfriend of the news. Once she settles down with him, she struggles to maintain their relationship with his despondency and eventually leaves him. Vocal Range E5/A3
WHATSERNAME 18-24 - A girl in the city. A rebel activist--fierce, strong, and capable--who falls for Johnny. She fights to have him embrace their authentic relationship rather than pursue his addiction. Vocal Range D#5/F#3
EXTRAORDINARY GIRL: A girl in the Middle East. Haunting, folk noir voice. A girl in the Middle East who appears as a hallucination to injured Tunny. Attractive and mysterious, she later appears as his nurse and accompanies him home after the war. Vocal Range E5/A#3
THEO/ENSEMBLE (Cover Johnny/Tunny)
FAVORITE SON/ENSEMBLE (Cover Tunny/ Johnny)
ENSEMBLE (Cover Will/ St. Jimmy)
ENSEMBLE (Cover St. Jimmy/ Will)
ALYSSA/ENSEMBLE (Cover Heather/ Extraordinary Girl)
ENSEMBLE (Cover Whatsername/ Heather)
ENSEMBLE (Cover Extraordinary Girl/ Whatsername)
SWING 1 (Cover Ensemble)
SWING 2 (Cover Ensemble)
THE WIZ
Rehearsals: November 4 - 19, 2025
Performances: November 20 - December 28, 2025
Directed/Choreographed by Lisa Glover
Audition Materials Available HERE
NOTE: All Characters and Ensemble are played by Black/ African-American Performers
DOROTHY-16-25 - Teenager that feels like she doesn’t belong. She is a seeker with a big heart and the capacity to be braver than she thinks. G3-Bb5 Sings “Home,” “Soon As I Get Home”
AUNT EM/ GLINDA- 30-55,Aunt Em- Loving soul, determined to ensure Dorothy belongs there. Glinda- Generous, protective and encouraging soul. Your favorite Auntie. G3-C5 Sings “That Feeling We Once Had” and “Believe in Yourself”
SCARECROW- 20-30, Big hearted and fiercely protective of his new friend Dorothy. Dances exceptionally well. A2-A4 Sings “I Was Born on the Day Before Yesterday”
TIN MAN- 20-30, Deeply curious and clever, a real leader in the group. He is seeking a heart but has enormous compassion. D3-Bb4 Sings “Slide Some Oil To Me”
LION- 20-35, Empathic kind soul who masks his insecurity with bravado. He is seeking the confidence and kindness Dorothy provides. G2-Bb4 Sings “Be a Lion”
EVILENE/ ADAPERLE- 30-55- Big personality both evil and fierce. Cunning and ruthless but with style. The original Diva. F3-Db5 Sings “No Bad News,” “He’s The Wizard”
THE WIZ/ UNCLE HENRY- 40-65 The ultimate con artist. Smooth double talker with incredible charm. Larger than life. C3-A4 Sings “So You Wanted to Meet the Wizard”
LORD HIGH UNDERLING/ GATEKEEPER (Covers Lion) - Character Man with great comedic timing
ENSEMBLE (Dorothy cover)
ENSEMBLE (Aunt Em/ Glinda cover)
ENSEMBLE (Adapearl/ Evilene cover)
ENSEMBLE (Scarecrow cover)
ENSEMBLE (Tin Man cover)
ENSEMBLE (The Wiz cover)
DANCE Ensemble 1
DANCE Ensemble 2
DANCE Ensemble 3
DANCE Ensemble 4
SWING Male presenting
SWING Female presenting
If you have issues or questions please contact casting@shortnorthstage.org or dionysia@shortnorthstage.org. Thank you!
Other Items To Note:
Short North Stage creates shows in a historic Vaudeville theater that is over 100 years old. This old building can come with it’s quirks and it should be noted that you do have to use stairs and go outside to reach the backstage area. We are working to continue to make upgrades to this building that we lease when able.
