Wellington Light Opera will be auditioning 10am-3pm on 15 and 16 February 2020 at Te Whaea for principals and chorus for three Gilbert and Sullivan operetta productions in 2020. If you’re a capable singer, enjoy acting and are available for rehearsals and all performance dates for one or more of the shows outlined below we want to hear from you.
Though we are auditioning for all three seasons, you may choose to audition for just one, or two, or all three of them.
You can book your audition (5 minutes for chorus, or 10 minutes if you are seeking a principal role) via this web form. We would like you to sing a short song or aria in English – either by Gilbert and Sullivan or in a similar style. The audition panel will comprise musical director Michael Vinten, director Ali Hodge, and production secretary Jean Hulbert.
We’re planning short (approx 80 minutes), semi-staged shows with trimmed dialogue and piano accompaniment that we will tour to 200-300 seat venues in Wellington, Hutt Valley, Kapiti, Whanganui and Palmerston North. Each show will involve 4-5 weeks of up to 3 rehearsals a week, followed by performances on one weekday (evening and tentatively lunchtime) and 2-3 weekends. Performers will need to keep the full days of the weekend performances clear to allow for travel to venues outside Wellington.
Season 1: Pirates of Penzance
Rehearsals
| Tuesdays 7.30-10.00pm | Thursdays 7.30-10.00pm | Sundays 2pm-5pm |
| Rehearsals – all at Te Whaea | 1 March (all cast read through) | |
| 5 April | ||
| 19 April | ||
| 21 April | 23 April | 26 April |
| 28 April | 30 April | 3 May |
| 5 May | 7 May |
Performances – venues and times have yet to be confirmed
- Saturday 9 May
- Sunday 10 May
- Thursday 14 May (may include a daytime performance if enough cast are available)
- Saturday 16 May
- Sunday 17 May
Season 2: HMS Pinafore
Rehearsals
| Tuesdays 7.30-10.00pm | Thursdays 7.30-10.00pm | Sundays 2pm-5pm |
| Rehearsals – all at Te Whaea | 24 May (all cast read through) | |
| 12 July | ||
| 19 July | ||
| 21 July | 23 July | 26 July |
| 28 July | 30 July | 2 August |
| 4 August | 6 August |
Performances – venues and times have yet to be confirmed
- Saturday 8 August
- Sunday 9 August
- Thursday 13 August (may include a daytime performance if enough cast are available)
- Saturday 15 August
- Sunday 16 August
Season 3: Trial by Jury (performance details indicative only)
Rehearsals
| Tuesdays 7.30-10.00pm | Thursdays 7.30-10.00pm | Sundays 2pm-5pm |
| Rehearsals – all at Te Whaea | 30 August (all cast read through) | |
| 18 October | ||
| 1 November | ||
| 3 November | 5 November | 8 November |
| 10 November | 12 November | 15 November |
| 17 November | 19 November |
Performances – venues and times have yet to be confirmed.
- Sunday 22 November
- Thursday 26 November (may include a daytime performance if enough cast are available)
- Saturday 28 November
- Sunday 29 November
- Saturday 5 December
- Sunday 6 December
Wellington Comic Opera 