WHEN: FRIDAY, NOV 7 @ 5pm – 9pm

CALLBACKS: SATURDAY, NOV 8 @ 2pm – 6pm

     o These callbacks are only for INTO THE WOODS. If called back, come prepared to sing, dance, and read scenes/sides from the show. Be prepared to remain for the entire time. Sides will be provided for callbacks only.

     o Callbacks for HIGH DESERT will occur in January at the beginning of the Spring 2026 semester, and will be read from sides. The High Desert plays have not yet been selected, but will be made available prior to callbacks.

WHERE: ASNMSU Center for the Arts (CFTA), 2nd Floor Rehearsal Hall

WHAT TO PREPARE:

If you are auditioning for INTO THE WOODS only:

     - TWO 16-bar cuts, contrasting, from musical theatre songs*

If you are auditioning for HIGH DESERT only:

     - TWO contrasting 60-90 second monologues**

If you are auditioning for INTO THE WOODS and HIGH DESERT:

     - TWO 16-bar cuts, contrasting, from musical theatre songs*

     - 60-90 second monologue

*NOTE FOR SINGERS: sheet music in the correct key as your audition is preferred. An accompanist will be provided. You may also use a backing track, but must bring your own amplification (such as a portable speaker or even your phone). No acapella auditions, please.

** If you do not have two monologues, please do not let that stop you from auditioning. Two is ideal, since it will show us different qualities, but one is fine to give us a sense of you as an actor.

HIGH DESERT auditions will be recorded to be shared with the playwrights and directors. If you do not wish to have your audition recorded, please let us know.

WHAT IS THE HIGH DESERT PLAY FESTIVAL?

Bi-annually, NMSU Theatre solicits plays for this program from 15-20 nationally renowned and emerging playwrights. Two of those plays are selected for a developmental workshop and reading. The playwrights each spend a week in residence in Las Cruces, workshopping their play with a director, actors, and at times a dramaturg. Most of the collaborators are NMSU students, faculty and staff. Additionally, NMSU solicits 10-minute plays and excerpts from students and other local writers, as well as monologues by students.  Student directors helm workshops and staged readings of the local works.   All of the workshops culminate in a public staged reading.

Following the reading series, one of the two full-length scripts is frequently selected for a fully-mounted production the next season, with the playwright in-residence for one or two weeks of the rehearsal/performance process.

Casting for the HIGH DESERT PLAY FESTIVAL supplies the actors for these readings. It is a great opportunity to workshop a new play from the ground-up. The specific scripts for this year’s 2026 HIGH DESERT PLAY FESTIVAL are still being chosen, and so callbacks for this production will occur in January 2026 at the beginning of the semester.

For more information on the Festival and the process through which plays are selected, visit our website at https://theatre.nmsu.edu/performances-events/high-desert-new-play-development.html. For more information on the casting process and auditions, please contact Professor Larissa Lury at llury@nmsu.edu.

WHAT IS INTO THE WOODS?

INTO THE WOODS is a musical theatre classic featuring the work of the late legendary Stephen Sondheim. James Lapine and Stephen Sondheim take everyone's favorite storybook characters and bring them together for a timeless, yet relevant, piece... and a rare modern classic. The Tony Award-winning book and score are both enchanting and touching. The story follows a Baker and his wife, who wish to have a child; Cinderella, who wishes to attend the King's Festival; and Jack, who wishes his cow would give milk. When the Baker and his wife learn that they cannot have a child because of a Witch's curse, the two set off on a journey to break the curse. Everyone's wish is granted, but the consequences of their actions return to haunt them later with disastrous results. One of Sondheim’s most popular works, INTO THE WOODS is a musically sophisticated show rife with fantastical elements in a magical world.

Copies of the script and songs are available to read and listen to prior to auditioning. You can find these at the main desk on the third floor of the CFTA with Tina, our administrative assistant extraordinaire.

Cast/Character Descriptions

** NOTICE ABOUT CONTENT: It is your responsibility as a potential performer to read the full script PRIOR to auditions and determine your comfort level with the material. It is assumed for this production that if you are auditioning for this show, you are comfortable with all material as presented in the script. **

For questions about INTO THE WOODS auditions, please contact Director Lisa Hermanson at lisakh@nmsu.edu.

ADVICE FROM THE DIRECTORS

1. For your audition cuts, please choose music from musical theatre only. There is no limitation on what shows, but please be aware that the two cuts should contrast and complement one another. For example, you might sing a slow song (ballad) and then a faster one (uptempo), or an older piece (golden age) and a newer one (contemporary). We are asking for two cuts so that you can showcase more than one skill.
   • A 16-bar cut is about 30 seconds of music.
   • Less is more. You can do everything you need in a 16-bar cut.
2. When choosing monologues or songs, look for pieces that you connect to, and that show off different sides of you as a performer (this could be comedic and dramatic, or just two very different characters).
   • For HIGH DESERT, please select contemporary material (these are all new plays, and most are written in current-day language); anything written after 1980 should be okay.     
3. Read the plays! The scripts are available to check-out from Tina (third floor of CTFA). We highly recommend that you read the plays before you audition (for HD, before your callback). That will help you choose audition material that gets us to see you in the roles you're most interested in playing. It will also make sure that you are auditioning for something you're excited to work on, and gives you the opportunity to see if there is anything in the plays that might cross a boundary for you, so that you can ask questions about it during the audition process. (Please note the “NOTICE ABOUT CONTENT” for INTO THE WOODS, above. **)
4.  You are also welcome to audition just for the practice! If you do not want to be considered for the shows but are still auditioning, please inform the directors upon arrival!

Please feel free to reach out to us with any questions!

Larissa Lury (Chair of the HIGH DESERT PLAY FESTIVAL Committee): llury@nmsu.edu

Lisa Hermanson (Director of INTO THE WOODS): lisakh@nmsu.edu

Bobbi Masters (Production Stage Manager): masteb@nmsu.edu