Behind the scenes of casting a commercial theatre production

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Casting Director, Alison Grant, responsible for casting the Peppa Pig Live Shows in both the US and the UK, tells of her recent experiences casting actors for the UK and US tour of the new production PEPPA PIG’S SURPRISE coming to The Regent Theatre in Stoke in the autumn.

CASTING PEPPA PIG LIVE SHOWS – HOME AND AWAY

Whatever the show, this is a bittersweet process. The number of actors and actresses submitted for the 7 parts has reached the thousands so we’re often reminded of how overcrowded the business – and, of course, how popular the Peppa Pig Live shows have become. And it’s true – casting starts the moment an auditionee walks through the door; it has to, because an initial 15 minute slot to assess someone’s attitude, skill, preparation and likeability is so limiting.

Where to start? Some things help with early eliminations: why are you put forward by your agent if you are unavailable for the tour/the wrong height for the part/haven’t done any preparation/ can’t sing?

We know that Peppa Pig Live isn’t Les Miserables, but we need everyone in the company to be able to hold a tune as plenty of singing is involved.

 

For example, preparation and attitude go hand in hand to some extent. An auditionee whose preparation is poor will need less time than the 15 minutes with us because a) time is precious and b) we feel we have the right to expect some shared points of reference with the candidates we see. Nothing is more deflating than hearing thing like, ‘I’ve never watched Peppa Pig but my niece loves it’ or ‘I’d need these dates off for a part in a panto/wedding/holiday’. Those who simply don’t appear at their audition with no explanation aren’t offered an audition with us again.

We work hard at trying to relax every candidate we do see because the 3 of us on the panel have all been on the other side of the table and we know how nerves can destroy someone’s potential. I mentioned likeability earlier because for a long tour, which this will be, the kind of company member each candidate will make is vitally important. Yet it’s one of the trickiest things to assess.

Those are the ‘bitter’ aspects. Now, the sweet!

We have been lucky with our casts over the years; I can think of only one or two people who turned out to be less talented or less reasonable than first thought and, considering our tours are long – covering the UK and Eire, that’s a credit to them all.

So, let me introduce you to our UK Peppa Pig’s Surprise team…[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″ offset=”vc_col-lg-3 vc_col-md-6″][vc_column_text]Melanie Ann
(George)

Graduated from MEPA in July 2012.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″ offset=”vc_col-lg-3 vc_col-md-6″][vc_column_text]Emma Grace
Arends (Daisy)

Trained at Arts Ed School of Acting in London[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″ offset=”vc_col-lg-3 vc_col-md-6″][vc_column_text]Liam Farrow
(assorted parts)

Trained at the BRIT School and Mountview, graduated with a music theatre degree in 2015[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″ offset=”vc_col-lg-3 vc_col-md-6″][vc_column_text]Auriol Hatcher
(Mummy Pig)

Trained at The Italia Conti Academy[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″ offset=”vc_col-lg-3 vc_col-md-6″][vc_column_text]Emma Hilts
(Peppa)

Blunderbus Theatre Company veteran and puppeteer, and made her West End debut in 2015[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″ offset=”vc_col-lg-3 vc_col-md-6″][vc_column_text]Lauren Martin
(assorted parts)

Trained at Cambridge Performing Arts, and recently toured in C5’s Milkshake Live[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″ offset=”vc_col-lg-3 vc_col-md-6″][vc_column_text]David Sandham
(Daddy Pig)

Trained at Central School of Speech & Drama graduating with a MA in Music Theatre[/vc_column_text][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/2″ offset=”vc_col-lg-3 vc_col-md-6″][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Adhering to the Casting Brief

The brief was that candidates should be of a specific height, should be able to sing, to puppeteer and to recreate the iconic voices of the characters they’d be playing. The recall audition took the form of a puppeteering workshop which tested how well the shortlisted actors brought an inanimate object to life.

It’s a lot of boxes to tick. This year the ‘child’ puppets have been scaled up to waist height and the ‘adult’ puppets are larger than life – size, so operating them will be a bigger challenge than the puppeteering on past shows. Identical puppets will be used on Peppa Pig’s Big Splash in the USA where we ran auditions last month. American actors had to nail, apart from everything listed above, the English accent but those finally shortlisted from an initial 3,000 submissions, really stood out.

The real upside is this: picture a keen, talented but very nervous actor in the audition room come to life during the rehearsal process and then go on to deliver consistently, holding the audience of hundreds of little theatregoers in his or her hand. It’s an absolute joy.

Peppa Pig in Stafford

You can see Alison’s UK cast in action in Stoke on Wed 2 and Thurs 3 November, when Peppa Pig’s Suprise plays the city’s Regent Theatre.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row css=”.vc_custom_1458809015657{border-right-width: 15px !important;padding-top: 15px !important;padding-bottom: 15px !important;padding-left: 15px !important;background-color: #ededed !important;}”][vc_column][vc_column_text]

Staffordshire Theatre Community

If you’re interested in these kind of discussions about theatre production and theatre making, then the Staffordshire Theatre Community Facebook Group is the perfect place to connect and chat with other actors, directors, writers and theatre makers in Staffordshire.

Check it out at www.facebook.com/groups/staffordshiretheatrecommunity[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]