AUDITIONS : Underdog : The Other Other Brontë by Sarah Gordon

Date: 
11 February 2026 - 7:30pm - 12 February 2026 - 7:30pm

Auditions for Banbury Cross Players June 2026 production coming up at The Mill Arts Centre, Banbury, OX16 5QE on 11th and 12 February 2026.  

Read Through
Thursday 5 Feb 2026, 7.30pm at The Mill Arts Centre.  All welcome. 

The Play
An irreverent retelling of the life and legend of the Brontë sisters, and the sibling power dynamics that shaped their uneven rise to fame.  A familiar story told with a modern voice which makes these three exceptional women very accessible for an audience of today.  The play brushes aside the view of three tiny women holed up in a gloomy parsonage in Yorkshire and presents them as passionate forward-thinking women, wanting to be successful. 

Roles

  • Charlotte Brontë – elder sister, narrator, seeker of fame and fortune
  • Emily Brontë – middle sister, fiery, most poetic of the sisters, Anne’s Guardian
  • Anne Brontë – younger sister, mild-mannered, gentle soul (or is she?)
  • Five-actor ensemble, gender neutral, playing 30+ characters (eg Elizabeth Gaskell, Branwell Brontë, Literary Critics, Publishers, Servants, Children, Coachman, Aristocrats)

The Audition will include

  • Warm-up - ALL
  • Movement exercise - “Ladylike Tricks” AKA Critics Scene (Act 2 Sc3, p63-66) - ALL
  • “Cunliffe” (Act 1 Sc 2, p19-23) – ENSEMBLE
  • “There’s Been a Mix Up” (p79 - 83) – SISTERS
  • Solo prepared piece - ALL
  • Auditionees must be 18+

Everyone will perform the Solo Prepared piece.  It is not necessary to learn unless you wish to do so.  The roles of the sisters in the ALL and ENSEMBLE pieces may be allocated to those auditioning for Ensemble for the purposes of audition.

There will be an Audition panel of three – the Director and two senior members of BCP.

Audition Dates
Wednesday 11 Feb 2026 & Thursday 12 Feb 2026, 7.30pm at The Mill Arts Centre
You do not need to be a member of BCP to audition but will be required to join if cast. 

To request Audition material or if you would like to audition but cannot attend the above dates or if you would like to read the script or if you have any other questions contact Director, Linda Shaw, lindashaw80@hotmail.com or 07802 301726.

Performance Dates - 18 – 20 June 2026 (inc Saturday matinee)

Full details https://banburycrossplayers.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/UNDERDOG-AUDITION-INFORMATION.pdf