Audition

About the show:

Fifteen-year-old Christopher has an extraordinary brain; he is exceptionally intelligent but ill-equipped to interpret everyday life. When he falls under suspicion for killing his neighbor’s dog, he sets out to identify the true culprit, which leads to an earth-shattering discovery and a journey that will change his life forever. Christopher Boone (male, must be able to play 15): Incredibly intelligent but shy and mistrusting of strangers, Christopher feels things deeply but doesn’t know how to express or articulate them. He has a brilliant mind, can be fixated on certain topics, and thinks in a highly logical way, which makes him excel in math and science, but because he perceives language literally, he does not understand sarcasm or metaphors. He notices things in minute detail yet has difficulty understanding social and emotional cues and difficulty empathizing with others. This lack of understanding often makes the world seem frustrating and frightening to him, and he can become agitated and even violent when he has to deal with too many overwhelming external stimuli.

Siobhan (female, to play age 30-40): Christopher’s teacher and mentor, the only person in Christopher’s life with an understanding of his situation. She strives to teach him how society works and how to behave within its guidelines. Constantly negotiating around his anger, she is professional, warm, caring, calm, gentle and self-possessed and also sensitive to his strained relationship with his father. She often serves as the narrator of his story and of his feelings.

Ed Boone (male, to play age 35-50): Christopher’s father; estranged from his wife, Judy and struggling as a single parent trying to raise his son the best he can. A working class man. Proud, gruff, and brusque, he is unable to convey his emotions and feelings but loves his son deeply. He is a good man but there is a lot on Ed’s shoulders when he first enters the play in pain and near breaking point, though he does not openly express it. He has trouble communicating with Christopher, who often frustrates him. And though he’s naturally practical and much more patient in dealing with Christopher, a difficult situation can make him lose it, sometimes violently. A plumber and heating engineer by trade, naturally good with his hands.

Judy Boone (female, to play age 35-45): Christopher’s mother; she works as a secretary and is a working class woman with a tough exterior who has no support system to raise her son and blames herself for her inability to cope with him
effectively. She has had a hard life and had to fight for things, which she is ready to do, as she is feisty and doesn’t take anything lying down. Loving, yet impatient, she has felt very alone in her situation with Christopher and it frustrates her to a point of absolute desperation. She wishes she knew how to truly reach and care for Christopher. Independent, lonely and proud, she doesn’t easily ask for help and has never had the proper social resources to help her.

MRS. SHEARS/MRS. GASCOYNE/OTHERS: Late 30s-50. Roger’s ex-wife and Christopher’s neighbor, she is rough around the edges. She is furious at the world as a result of being betrayed and abandoned by her husband. Worn out by life, disappointed, haggard. It is her dog, Wellington that was found killed in the night.

MRS GASCOYNE: The headmistress of the school for “special needs” children that Christopher attends. Condescending and lacking in sensitivity, nuance and imagination.

ROGER SHEARS/DUTY SERGEANT/OTHERS: Late 30s-50. Mrs. Shears ex-husband. A middle class man who works at a bank. Has left his wife as a result of his relationship with Judy, which not built on sturdy ground. Doesn’t have a clue or any interest in understanding Christopher.

DUTY SERGEANT: A local Swindon desk sergeant (policeman) who releases Christopher to Ed’s custody after Christopher’s been arrested. Firm, experienced, tough but fair-minded.

MRS. ALEXANDER/OTHERS: Mid 60s – 70’s. One of Christopher’s neighbors who has probably lived in Swindon her entire life. May be middle class or middle working class. She is a lonely older woman without a lot of means. She is kind, and
so hungry for a connection with Christopher that she tries to help him and ultimately reveals information to him about his mother that he did not know.

REVEREND PETERS/STATION POLICEMAN/OTHERS: 40s-50s.

REVEREND PETERS: A vicar, pleasant enough, tries to answer Christopher’s questions about religion and is later tasked with supervising Christopher during a test.

STATION POLICEMAN: A Swindon policeman who gets stuck on a train to London while trying to convince Christopher to get off the train. Easily outsmarted by Christopher.

POLICEMAN/MR. THOMPSON/MAN WITH SOCKS/OTHERS: 20s – Early 30s.

POLICEMAN: A Swindon policeman who arrests Christopher after Christopher hits him while being questioned about the death of Wellington, the dog. He has no patience or understanding of Christopher’s way of thinking.

MR. THOMPSON: A neighbor that Christopher interviews during his investigation of who killed Wellington, the dog. Doesn’t have patience for Christopher’s line of questioning.

MAN WITH SOCKS: A guy waiting for the tube in London who suddenly has to help convince Christopher to get up from the train tracks.

NO. 40/INFORMATION/PUNK GIRL/OTHERS: 20s – Early 30s.

NO. 40: A woman who is a neighbor of Christopher’s who he interviews during his investigation of who killed Wellington the dog. She tries to gently suggest to Christopher that he should talk to his father before asking these questions.

INFORMATION: A busy information clerk in a London Railroad Station who Christopher asks for directions.

PUNK GIRL: A young woman in the tube station who tries to help Christopher. English accents appropriate to class.