Auditions

PlayMakers Laboratory holds Annual Auditions this October

PlayMakers Laboratory (PML) is an arts education nonprofit that teaches creative writing in Chicago elementary schools and then brings students’ stories to life on stage. PML is a community of approximately 60 passionate actor-educators who value the creative voices of young people. Performers adapt the stories written by our students into sketches, songs, and poems, which are then performed for the school community as well as for the public. PML is seeking actor-educators of all ages, ethnicities, sexual orientations, gender identities, abilities, and silhouettes who have great collaborative skills, improvisation abilities, and a passion for working with and performing for youth.

Ideal candidates have experience in sketch, musical theatre, and/or devising original work. They are skilled teaching artists and have experience working in schools, with young people, and performing throughout the city.

PlayMakers Laboratory is an equal opportunity employer.

PlayMakers Laboratory is especially seeking performers who reflect the cultural backgrounds of the students we serve, who are primarily Black and Latino students on the South and West sides of Chicago. We are also seeking musicians who can underscore (on keys) and adapt student stories into musical numbers. Fluency in Spanish is also highly desirable.

Above all, we are looking for artists who are passionate about the work we do and the young people with whom we collaborate.

Category: Non Equity

Expectations: Artistic Associates who are cast are expected to perform in 2 to 4 school-based shows during the 2024/25 school year; Each show includes 6 three-hour devising rehearsals and a final performance at the school amounting to 21 hours total. The entire show process occurs over a period of two-weeks, and we produce shows throughout the year, providing flexibility in scheduling which shows Artistic Associates can sign up for based on their other work schedules. In addition we ask that artistic associates become oriented with our in-school curriculum, so that they can opt to participate in paid teaching opportunities as they arise. After an Artistic Associate fulfills these expectations for one school year, they may become candidates for Company Membership to continue working with PlayMakers Lab.

Pay for Performance: Performer Pay is $349.50/show process & Stage Manager/Director pay is $399/show process (pay reflects 18hrs of rehearsal and a single final in-person performance at an elementary school);

Pay for Teaching: Typical pay for a day of teaching is $94.50/day, which includes 1 hour of prep and 3 hours of in-class instruction (pay reflects competitive hourly rates for teaching and varies depending partnership and number of hours). Teaching artists teach on a team of 3 or 4 PlayMaker TAs.

Audition Details
To submit for PlayMakers Laboratory’s Artistic Associate positions, please send a video submission, headshot, resume, and optional teaching resume to Executive Artistic Director, Brandon Cloyd at bcloyd@playmakerslab.org, due on October 10, 2024. We’d also particularly love to know about your proficiency in writing music, live underscoring on a keyboard, and Spanish language, so please include information about those skills on your resume if they apply to you.

What to prepare for Video Submission:

ALL Auditioners: Please prepare a 2 to 3 minute video showcasing any combination of your performance, artistic, and teaching skills. You can perform a monologue, tell a story, sing, dance, rap, mime, perform stand-up, spoken word, lead a short classroom activity, adapt a PML student’s story from our story archive, or incorporate any other element that shows off your skills as a teacher/artist. It’s ideal to demonstrate your range of talents, be creative and show us your best work!
*Musicians: If you are a musician, as a part of you 2 to 3 minute self tape we would like you to include a 1-minute song (or part of a song). This should be an original musical performance adapted from a student-written PML story of your choosing. Stories can be found here on our website’s story archive. Musicians can feel free to play any instrument.
Please upload your submission to Vimeo or YouTube as an UNLISTED VIDEO, and paste the link in your email.

General In-Person Auditions will be held on Tuesday October 29, from 6pm to 9pm at the Neo Futurist Theatre (5153 N Ashland Ave, Chicago, IL 60640). If you are called into the audition you will attend a 3-hour group devising audition. Auditions will include some light improv, leading a theatre game/activity, and devising adaptations of student stories. Additionally musicians will do a skills assessment on keyboard.

Orientation for newly cast Artistic Associates will be held on TBD.

*If you are unavailable for any of these times, we may be able to schedule an alternate Audition time slot.