Auditions

We are committed to building diversity and inclusion onstage and throughout our organization. Actors of all ethnicities, gender identities, and abilities are highly encouraged to audition. 

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THE GREAT AMERICAN TRAILER PARK MUSICAL
Music & Lyrics by David Nehls
Book by Betsy Kelso
Directed by Bobby Schultz
Music Directed by Jill Brunelle
Production Consultant: Betsy Kelso (the show’s writer and original Off-Broadway director!)

AUDITIONS: Monday, May 4 & Tuesday, May 5, beginning at 7:00pm (sign-up required)
CALLBACKS: Wednesday, May 6, beginning at 7:00pm
PERFORMANCE DATES: July 31-August 16, 2026 (Thurs-Sat at 7:30pm, Sun at 2pm)
REHEARSALS: Begin in early June and typically run 2-3 weeknights (TBD) and Sunday afternoons. All cast members may not be required at every rehearsal.
LOCATION: Almira Stephan Memorial Playhouse, 59 West Main St., Meriden

ABOUT THE SHOW:  Press-on nails, daisy dukes, and lawn flamingos have never been this funny. Armadillo Acres, Florida’s most exclusive trailer park, is populated with quite and interesting bunch of folks, including an agoraphobic housewife addicted to talk shows, her toll booth collector husband, a world-weary young stripper, her jealous ex-boyfriend and a singing trio of double wide divas to boot. The story serves as a humorous and poignant reminder of the trials and tribulations that occur on the other side of the tracks. “Adultery, strippers, murderous ex-boyfriends, Costco and the Ice Capades… Undeniable fun.” —The Village Voice

AUDITION REQUIREMENTS:
• Click HERE to sign up for an audition.
• Be prepare 32-bars of an uptempo musical theatre song, preferably comedic. Bring sheet music in the correct key, an accompanist will be provided. (No a capaella singing, please)
• Be also prepare a comedic monologue that shows off your range
• Please print/complete our AUDITION FORM, and bring it with you, along with a headshot & resume.
• Due to subject matter and mature material, auditioners must 18 years old or older.

CHARACTER BREAKDOWN (All ages listed are “playing” age ranges)

Jeannie Garstecki – 35-45, character is female (Belt and Mezzo) –  Jeannie has lived in a trailer at Armadillo Acres for 20 years with her husband and high- school sweetheart, Norbert. A faded beauty, she was 17 when she married, 18 when her son was born and 23 when he got kidnapped. That, coupled with a really bad perm, has turned her into an agoraphobic. She hasn’t left her trailer in all these years, and the man she loves is drifting further and further away and she’s determined to get him back…that is if she could manage to get out of the trailer to do it.

Norbert Garstecki – 35-45, character is male (High Baritone) – Jeannie’s husband, Norbert, collects tolls for a living and tries to be as good a husband as one can be to an agoraphobic. A former high-school football star, any good looks he may have had when younger, are now marred by fatigue and the stress of his difficult marriage. He is a simple man who desperately wishes his wife could get out of the trailer, but he’s not equipped with the emotional or intellectual tools to help her do it. He has never loved or slept with another woman other than Jeannie. That is until he meets Pippi…

Pippi – 28-35, character is female (Big Belt) – Pippi is a striking beauty with a great body and a taste for clothing that shows it off. She is a professional stripper who has gotten by on her looks and talents for dancing and petty theft. She means no harm and is ready to stop making bad choices and start making changes. She leaves her boyfriend and moves to the small town of Armadillo Acres to start over.

Duke – 24-28, character is male (Rock Tenor) – Duke is Pippi’s obsessive, possessive and excessive Magic-Marker sniffing boyfriend; ex-boyfriend according to Pippi. Not so, according to Duke. Not the brightest guy south of the Mason-Dixon Line, Duke leaves a trail of disaster in his wake wherever he goes. His road trip to Starke is no exception and his arrival at the trailer park is full of surprises- even for a group of people who have had their share of excitement.

Betty – 38-50 something, character is female (Rough Belt) – Betty attended high school with Norbert and Jeannie Garstecki and has lived at Armadillo Acres for just as long. She now runs the leasing office and makes it her business to know everything about everybody who passes through the trailer park. Though a self-proclaimed bad-ass, Betty is really a mother hen to the denizens of the trailer park. Of all “The Girls,” Betty is the most grounded, earthy and dry.

Linoleum (aka Lin) – 30 something, character is female (Belt) – So named because her mother gave birth to her on the kitchen floor, Linoleum has a husband on death row at the Florida State Prison. His fate is the electric chair that doesn’t work properly unless most of the town’s electricity is turned off. So Lin watches everyone’s lights and appliances very closely in the hopes that she can keep the chair on the fritz. Sometimes self-absorbed and sometimes just a smart-ass, she hints at a wild, rock-and-roll past and is the fieriest of “The Girls.”

Donna (aka Pickles) – 17 years old, character is female (Belt) – A newlywed, Donna is called “Pickles” because she is perpetually hysterically pregnant – that is, she is so convinced she should be pregnant she’s exhibiting symptoms. Her husband is a lot fancier than she is, as he is from the big city of Jacksonville. His parents haven’t been very supportive of his marital choice, so Pickles is desperate to give her husband a family of his own – even if she has to fake it. The dimmest of “The Girls,” Pickles is airy, sweet and blissfully ignorant.

PLEASE NOTE: This show contains STRONG ADULT LANGUAGE & DARK HUMOR. If you have genteel sensibilities, this is probably not a show for which you should audition.

RESOURCES: You can listen to the Original Cast Recording HERE, and read the script for free HERE.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to EMAIL US.