The Bay City Arts Center is holding open auditions this weekend for its fall adult production of The Guy Who Didn’t Like Musicals. Auditions are Saturday, Oct. 10, and Sunday, Oct. 11, from noon to 4 p.m. at 5680 A Street in Bay City. Participants may arrive any time during those hours. No appointment is required. The production is open to adults 18 and older.
Auditioners should bring a short comedic monologue and 16 bars of a song. Sixteen bars is about 30 to 45 seconds of music. A karaoke track on a phone is useful if you have one. Accompaniment details have not been posted, so a simple selection is a safe choice. Wear something you can move in. Headshots and resumes are welcome and not required. If you have scheduling conflicts between November and the December performances, bring those as well.
The Guy Who Didn’t Like Musicals is a horror-comedy musical from Team StarKid. The book is by Nick and Matt Lang. Music and lyrics are by Jeff Blim. The show opened in Los Angeles in 2018 and is the first in StarKid’s Hatchetfield series. A full recording is available on the StarKid YouTube channel.
The story follows Paul Matthews, an office worker who does not like musicals, in the ordinary town of Hatchetfield. After something falls from the sky, the people around him begin to sing and dance. The singing spreads. The show draws on Invasion of the Body Snatchers, with an alien presence that turns a town into a musical. It is a comedy, and it is also a horror story: a hive mind, a town that will not stop performing, and a small group of people trying to stay themselves.
The language is adult, and some of the material is dark. That is why the audition call is limited to adults 18 and older, and why the December performances are not a family show. The original production used a small cast, with most actors playing more than one role. The show suits a community company. It calls for actors, singers, and people who can handle comedy, music, and a plot that moves quickly.
The Bay City Arts Center has served as a creative hub for Tillamook County since 2000. The building on A Street is about a century old. The center hosts gallery exhibitions, open studios, concerts, youth theater, and the community radio station KAYN 92.9. Youth theater performances at the center sold out in March. This fall production is the adult company.
Rehearsals are Saturdays and Sundays from 6 to 9 p.m., starting Nov. 1. Dress rehearsal is Dec. 17. Performances are Dec. 18, 19, and 20 at the arts center. The weekend rehearsal schedule may work for people with weekday jobs, shifts, or a drive into Tillamook. Roles are volunteer, as is usual for community theater at the center.
Questions can be sent to baycityartscenter@gmail.com. The center’s website is baycityartscenter.com. The phone number on file is (503) 377-9620. The mailing address is PO Box 3124, Bay City, OR 97107.
People who would rather work behind the scenes can ask about crew. The production will need help with lights, sound, props, and the door. People who want to see the show rather than be in it can plan on Dec. 18, 19, and 20, and buy a ticket when they go on sale.
Auditions are this weekend. Bring a short comedic monologue and 16 bars of a song, and come by the Bay City Arts Center on Saturday or Sunday between noon and 4 p.m.
