Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat Will require a full cast of students and adults

Auditions for Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat will be held on Tuesday, June 22, from 6:30-8:30 and on Wednesday, June 23 from 4:30-8:30 p.m., in the Springfield Public School Auditorium.  Junior high and high school guys and gals plus adults through senior citizens will have an opportunity to audition either day.  All audition materials (music, script, etc.) will be provided, and those who audition are asked to wear clothes and sturdy shoes such as tennis shoes (or dance shoes) that allow for movement.  Anyone who wishes to be in the musical and is not able to attend one of the scheduled audition sessions should contact Cheryl Neidt at 723-6315.  Performances are scheduled for Friday-Sunday, November 19-21. Further details about auditions, including audition forms that can be completed ahead of time, and production guidelines, are available on Facebook:  Springfield Community Theatre (SCT) or the school’s website.  

Since their first co-sponsored production of The Music Man in 2009, Springfield Public School and Springfield Community Theatre have joined forces in producing large-scale, fully staffed musical theatre productions that are far beyond the ability for each group to accomplish on its own.  Joseph… is no exception as it will require the normal ensemble of around 50 cast and chorus/dance members, a group made up of mostly high school students through adults. A great deal of effort has been made from the Springfield Community Theatre’s board of directors to seek input from our high school students as well as adults regarding their show preferences.  Coordinating with Springfield Public School’s community education program, the two groups work together to financially support this type of performance experience for students and adults from Springfield and the surrounding area.  A major musical theatre production is an additional opportunity for youth, even those already involved in local athletics and fine arts activities.  Musical theatre allows students to become immersed in an activity that combines the art forms of acting, singing, dancing and other creative endeavors to better learn artistic skills and attributes grounded in the state arts standards for every student who earns a high school diploma in Minnesota:  to create and perform works of art as well as respond to and connect with the art form.  Artistic director Cheryl Neidt emphasized the way in which a musical theatre production such as this is a tool to bring all art forms (visual art, dance, vocal or instrumental music, and acting) together.  Although the musical is based on the Biblical story of Joseph and his coat of many colors, it is not particularly religious, but more focused on universal themes of jealousy, persistence, and reconciliation.

Unique to this musical is the need for an “ensemble” cast; therefore, there are only a few “lead” roles.  There are many minor and featured roles/solos/dance parts. 

See complete story in this week's issue of the Springfield Advance-Press.