Casting Breakdown
FANTASMA
SYNOPSIS:
On Christmas Eve in Southern California, three generations of women
gather in Rosie’s newly renovated kitchen to make chuchitos – a
traditional Guatemalan recipe passed down by heart, touch, and
intuition. While her granddaughters attempt to document the dish
step-by-step, they discover that what’s being preserved isn’t just food,
and that recording and remembering are entirely different things.
Spanning nearly two decades, Fantasma is a bittersweet exploration of
what we keep, what we lose, and the impossibility of ever capturing it
exactly right.
SEEKING:
RAMONA “MONCHA”:
57-58: Eldest sister, the diplomat of the group. CARMELINA “CARMEN”:
47-54+: middle sister, she's living a 1950's Stepford wife fantasy.
PATRICIA “PATTY”: 45-48: youngest sister, the clown of the group: she'd
be annoying if she wasn't so fun .
CELESTE: 23-38: Ramona's daughter, she's ambitious, serious, and driven, a hard worker
ELIZABETH
“LIZZY”: 17-32: Carmelina's daughter, she's got more of a lightness,
she's been sheltered by her mother but her admiration for her cousin
means she turns into who Celeste wanted to be herself, doesn't have to
work as hard to achieve.
ROSENDA “ROSIE”: 75: mother (and
grandmother), the dominant matriarch with hard walls up (that her
daughters mostly experience) and a tender interior (that her
grandchildren mostly experience).
BABY SHOWER KATIE
SYNOPSIS:
Best friends Rebecca and Hannah are at a crossroads: Rebecca
desperately wants a child, while Hannah can't imagine anything worse.
Across four baby showers, thrown for three different women named Katie,
Rebecca and Hannah are forced to confront their divergent dreams, the
absurd expectations placed on mothers, and the terror and uncertainty
that can surround pregnancy. Beth Hyland's irreverent new comedy asks
what happens when the life we have been told to want no longer fits the
person we are becoming.
SEEKING:
REBECCA: 30s,
she/her: Upbeat, bright, warm, over-functioning, slightly rigid, highly
competent, has never forgotten to write a thank you note; she has an
ingratiating normie exterior that belies a weird, sensitive soul and a
steely core. Rebecca has a high-paying job, a nice husband, a
goldendoodle, and (as of very recently) a cute house in the suburbs. She
has always known that she wants to be a mother and that she'll be very,
very good at it. HANNAH: 30s, she/her: Charismatic, chaotic, quick,
funny, intense, hyper-verbal, rebellious, deeply sensitive and dark;
loves to party, but parties to fill the void. Hannah prides herself on
departing from the norms of her and Rebecca's suburban upbringing. She
lives in Brooklyn and has a cool creative job and a wide circle of
friends. She has always known that she does not want children.
DR.
ALMOND: 60s she/her: Katie B.'s mother. The most terrifying,
high-status grande dame in Scarsdale, Dr. Almond is in control of any
situation she enters. An actual medical doctor who raised her children
while working and keeping a Martha Stewart-level house, Dr. Almond
combines an obsession with feminine codes of etiquette and politeness
with a naked will to power - but underneath her firehose speech and
controlling relationship with her daughter, Dr. Almond is a very smart
woman who is capable of being loving, loyal, and perceptive.
THE
KATIES: 30s, she/her, all played by the same actor: KATIE B., Rebecca
and Hannah's close childhood friend. Precious, anxious, sweet, and pure;
deeply kind and good, slightly shaky, seems younger than she is;
happily an observer of/the third wheel in Rebecca and Hannah's much
closer and more intense friendship. Katie has also re-settled in the
suburb she, Rebecca, and Hannah grew up in and lives in fear of social
judgement and her terrifying mother Dr. Almond. KATIE M., Hannah's boss.
The ultimate woo-woo alpha Park Slope mama, Katie M. rules her
brownstone and her company with performative empathy, an emphasis on
Alignment, and expensive non-toxic cleaning products. Happiest when
spending time with her family, participating in a sound bath, or
recommending a book/podcast episode/essential oil blend. KATIE S.,
Rebecca and Hannah's acquaintance from high school. An influencer girlie
with beachy waves, a Stanley cup, a thriving TikTok account, the whole
nine. Crucially, though, Katie S. is NOT a mean girl: she wants the best
for everyone and is an incredibly kind, warm person who nothing bad has
ever happened to.
KING OF THE YEES
SYNOPSIS:
For nearly twenty years, Larry Yee has been the heart and soul of the
Yee Fung Toy Family Association, a fraternal organization in San
Francisco’s iconic Chinatown. But to his daughter Lauren, a playwright
living in New York, the association is an obsolete relic of a vanishing
world. When Larry suddenly disappears, Lauren sets off on a wild quest
to find him, embarking on a surreal, magical journey through the history
and myths of her own lineage. KING OF THE YEES is a hilarious and
heartfelt "kind of true" story by Signature resident artist Lauren Yee,
who turns her incisive comedic eye on what we inherit and what it means
to truly be a Yee.
SEEKING:
LARRY: CAST. Male,
Asian American [60]. A member of the Yee Fung Toy Family Association
who works as a telephone repairman and has spent 20 years volunteering
for Senator Leland Yee’s campaigns. Father of LAUREN.
LAUREN:
CAST. Female, Asian American [30]. A playwright based in New York,
visiting home and working on a play about San Francisco’s Chinatown and
her family legacy. Thinking about moving to Germany but hasn’t told her
dad yet. Daughter of LARRY. Straight arrow, tightly wound.
ACTOR
1: CAST. Male, Asian American [30s-50s]. A variety of roles, including a
meta version of Larry, Shrimp Boy, a Lum elder, a Sichuan face changer.
Versatile, funny. ACTOR 2: OFFER OUT. Female, Asian American
[20s-40s]. A variety of roles, including a meta version of Lauren, Jenny
Pang, the first lion dance, the FBI agent, a Lum elder, the whiskey
seller. Versatile, funny.
ACTOR 3: OFFER OUT. Male, Asian
American [20s-30s]. A variety of roles, including Danny Ma, the
chiropractor, a Lum elder, the second lion dance, the model ancestor.
Versatile, funny, youthful energy.
MILES FOR MARY
SYNOPSIS:
It’s 1988 in Ohio, and the Garrison High Phys Ed department is
determined to make their annual telethon the best one yet. But as the
planning committee navigates a strained democratic process, the pressure
to "do more" begins to crack their professional veneer. This sharply
observed comedy by and featuring Signature resident artists The Mad Ones
returns in an all-new staging, capturing the quiet agony and absurdity
of trying to change the world from a linoleum-floored faculty lounge.
SANDRA
BULKMAN: CAST. 30s-40s. Track and Field Coach, Math Teacher. Veteran of
the Telethon Planning Committee. An idea woman. A former smoker.
DAVID
EAGAN: CAST. 30s-40s. Wrestling Coach, History Teacher. A wife and two
small girls at home. Veteran of the Committee. A peacemaker grappling
with the complexities of leadership. Verbose.
ROD DIETRICH:
CAST. 30s-40s. Assistant Wrestling Coach (fall) and Assistant Track
& Field Coach (spring), Health and Phys Ed Teacher. Joined the
Committee two years ago, newer to the school. A guileless alpha male.
Yellow belt in Judo.
KEN WYCKOFF: CAST. 30s-40s. Head of AV
Club, Economics Teacher. Married to Julie. Joined the Committee last
year, though he has contributed for longer in his AV capacity. A private
person with boundaries. Concerned with getting it right.
JULIE
WYCKOFF-BARNES: CAST. 30s-40s. AP English Teacher. Married to Ken. New
to the Committee. Capable, a high achiever. A list-maker.
BRENDA
ZADAKIAN: CAST. 40s-50s. Guidance Counselor. Veteran Chair of the
Committee. Sidelined by a devastating accident over summer break. She
starts the play attempting to lead the committee by speakerphone.
ANGELA’S MIXTAPE
SYNOPSIS:
What’s it like to grow up in the shadow of a shero? Signature resident
artist Eisa Davis pens a love letter to her radical upbringing in a
family of proud activists, including her mother and her legendary aunt,
Angela Y. Davis. Set on the dividing line between Oakland and Berkeley,
California and moving to the rhythm of her childhood’s hip-hop, soul,
pop and classical soundtrack, this memory- and timeshifting piece is a
revealing portrait of a young artist in search of her own beat.
SEEKING:
EISA:
Femme presenting, Black, 20s-30s, plays every stage from childhood to
young adulthood. Autobiographical insert for the playwright, deeply
curious, funny, observant, and intelligent. She sets the tempo of the
show. Should be comfortable shifting abruptly between emotional states.
Good singing ability and a solid sense of musicality and rhythm
essential. Classical piano skills a plus.
ANGELA: Femme
presenting, Black, 30s-50s. A representation of writer/activist Angela
Davis. Eisa's aunt, she and Eisa have a close relationship. She's her
fun elder. She's also a refuge for Eisa as she continues to navigate her
sense of identity. Intellectual and effortlessly brilliant, she is
devoted to the liberation of all oppressed people. Magnetic and
commanding while remaining grounded and playful.
CES/VARIOUS:
Femme presenting, Black, 20s-30s, a variety of ages. Eisa’s cousin.
Zany, bubbly, and full of energy. A natural dancer and singer. Loves
hanging out with Eisa. Doubles as a myriad of roles and can easily
transform between ages and personalities. MOMMY: Femme presenting,
Black, 30s-50s. Eisa’s mother, Angela's sister. Graceful, fierce,
demanding, and loves with force. A freedom fighter. Shapes the family
environment authoritatively while holding a great deal of vulnerability
and hurt of her own. GRANDMA/VARIOUS: Femme presenting, Black, 50s-60s.
Eisa’s Grandmother. The family matriarch. With perfect etiquette and
elocution, she is an elementary school teacher who makes learning
delightful and constant. She's deeply religious and has a smile for
everyone. She is always ready to help those in need. Grounded, funny,
and cautious. Doubles as a variety of other roles and can easily
transform between ages and personalities.
