Auditions This Weekend for "First Day of Summer"

Auditions will be held this weekend for the next First Stage Theatre Company production. It's a non-musical written and directed by a local playwright.

Here's the info:

Jonathan Joy will be auditioning young actors in grades 3-12 for his original play, The First Day of Summer.

Auditions are 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 27 and 2 to 4 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 28 at Pea Ridge United Methodist Church. Rehearsals begin in mid-March.

Performance dates for the First Stage Theatre production are May 7, 8 and 9 at the Huntington Museum of Art.

There are roles available for five to seven boys and five to seven girls. No experience is necessary.

The First Day of Summer is a story of two young people, a boy named Ron and a girl named Laney, who meet at age 12 one year while on summer vacation. The two clash at first, but eventually grow close and begin a lifelong friendship.

They spend their days playing games, talking about hopes and dreams and sharing stories of fellow classmates from their two different hometowns. When they are split apart at the end of summer, they make a pact. They agree to meet back at their favorite spot in the woods on the first day of summer following high school graduation. Four actors portray Ron and Laney at age 12 and at age 18.

I'm prejudiced, of course, but I read an early draft of the show and loved it.

It's going to be a great experience for young actors, and it's history in the making. As the final show of First Stage's 20th Anniversary season, this is the first original play the long-running children's theatre has presented.

Highly recommended for any young actors out there!