Auditions 1 | westfieldplayhouse

Audition Information

Wit

By Margaret Edson

Audition Dates

Tuesday, February 11th and Wednesday, February 12th from 7:00 - 9:00 pm.

Auditions will be held at the Basile Westfield Playhouse 220 N. Union Street, Westfield, IN 46074. Please enter through the right-side doors at the front of the building. Auditions will be held upstairs.

How to Prepare

Auditions will consist of cold reads from the script. Bring a theatre resume and headshot if you have them and a list of all conflicts between March 4 and June 8.

Those auditioning for the role of Vivian Bearing must memorize and prepare one of her monologues. Please email directors Eric Bryant & Becky Schlomann at Eric.bryant815@gmail.com & beckyschlomann@gmail.com for a copy of the monologue.

NOTE: Please be advised that Wit contains intense scenes as well as adult situations and language. Intimacy direction will be provided. This production will not include nudity. For any questions and/or to request a sample of the script, please email the directors.

Rehearsals

Rehearsals will be Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 7-9:30 PM beginning March 4.

Performance Dates

May 29 - June 8, 2025

Thursday, Friday, and Saturday shows begin at 7:30 pm. Sunday shows begin at 2:30 pm.

Synopsis

Vivian Bearing, Ph.D., a renowned professor of English who has spent years studying and teaching the brilliant and difficult metaphysical sonnets of John Donne, has been diagnosed with terminal ovarian cancer. Her approach to the study of Donne: aggressively probing, intensely rational. But during the course of her illness—and her stint as a prize patient in an experimental chemotherapy program at a major teaching hospital—Vivian comes to reassess her life and her work with a profundity and humor that are transformative both for her and the audience. Winner of the 1999 Pulitzer Prize for Drama.

Roles to be cast

All roles are open. All ages are stage ages. Some roles will double. All body types, gender identities, sexual orientations, and abilities will be considered.

VIVIAN BEARING, Ph.D (stage age 50) - Vivian is a 17th-century poetry scholar receiving treatment for stage 4 ovarian cancer.

HARVEY KELEKIAN, M.D. (stage age 50) - Dr. Kelekian is chief of medical oncology at the University Hospital.

JASON POSNER, M.D. (stage age 28) - Jason is a former student of Vivian’s and a clinical fellow at the Medical Oncology branch managing her care. He is a current student of Dr. Kelekian.

SUSIE MONAHAN, R.N., B.S.N. (stage age 28) - Susie is Vivian's primary nurse.

E.M. ASHFORD, PH.D (stage age 80) - Ashford is professor emerita of English literature. She is Vivian's former graduate mentor.

MR. BEARING (stage age 70) - Mr. Bearing is Vivian's father.

TECHNICIANS (assistants in Vivian's care), STUDENTS (former students of Vivian's classes who appear in flashbacks), CODE

TEAM (responsible for reviving patients), and FELLOWS (Jason's peers). These roles will double.

Audition Application