Too Darn Hot! performed in November 2022; Credit: Chronicle.lu

Pirate Productions is looking for cast members for an upcoming production of "Too Darn Hot!" to be staged end of May / early June 2025.

Auditions will take place at The Waldorf School in Luxembourg-Limpertsberg on Sunday 26 January 2025 from 14:00 to 18:00.

The show was first performed in November 2023 at the Centre Culturel Hollerich as a two-act piece, written and directed by Neil Johnson, current Chair of Pirate Productions. The show is a biography of the American composer and playwright, Cole Porter, who enjoyed great success on Broadway during the 1920s through to the 1950s with shows such as "Anything Goes", "Kiss me, Kate" and "Gay Divorcee".

The Call for Auditions concerns both actors and actresses: "Too Darn Hot!" has been accepted as an official entrant to the Festival of European Anglophone Theatrical Societies (FEATS) 2025 in Hamburg, Germany, the weekend of Friday 6 to Monday 9 June 2025.

FEATS takes place over four consecutive nights, Friday to Monday. Three one-act plays of a maximum 55 minutes are presented to an audience and an adjudicator each evening, so twelve plays in total. After the final play, awards are given by the adjudicator for the three best productions as well as for best stage presentation, best actor and best actress. The host group gives out an award for best stage management.

While the New World Theatre Club (NWTC) has regularly participated at FEATS over the years, this is a first for Pirate Productions who also plan to perform the show in Luxembourg the weekend of 22 to 25 May 2025.

Several of the original cast have agreed to reprise their roles from 2023 but they are specifically looking to cast the following additional roles:
- Louis B Meyer (Hollywood mogul) – male (age 45+)
- Irving Berlin (American composer) – male (35+)
- Armando Smith (Broadway actor/singer) – male (age 20-30)
- Ginger Rogers (American Actress) – female (age 30+)

All roles will require some singing and dancing, but not necessarily solos.

Things one should know for those who wish to audition:

- One must be able to commit to both the Luxembourg performances and FEATS in Hamburg
- All those auditioning will have their vocal range assessed by the Musical Director, Philip Dutton. One can perform a prepared song, if one wishes.

Rehearsals will commence mid-February.

Depending on which evening Pirate Productions are allotted at FEATS, one may have to be available on Thursday 5 and/or Friday 6 June, in order to travel to Hamburg, or perhaps Tuesday 10 June to travel back. Pirates will cover expenses for travel and accommodation in Hamburg.

Those who would like to audition are asked to contact Neil Johnson by email: chair@pirates.lu by no later than Friday 24 January 2025.