THE THANKSGIVING PLAY
Written by Larissa FastHorse
Directed by Robin Havens-Parker
Produced by Charles Dragonette (cdragon@rcn.com) and Jim Pearson (lemp0670@gmail.com)
Auditions: Sat. July 25 – 2:00-4:00 pm & Sun. July 26– 4:00-6:00 pm.
Callback by invitation 27 July.
Auditions, rehearsals and performances at Aldersgate United Methodist Church, 1301 Collingwood Rd., Alexandria, VA. 22308.
Shows: Fri, Sat, Sun Oct 2 – Oct 18. Friday and Saturday 7:30; Sunday matinee at 2:00.
Auditions will consist of cold readings from the script. Copies will be provided upon request by the producers.
Sign ups are available from 2:00 to 3:00 on the 25th; 4:00 to 5:00 and 5:00 to 6:00 the 26th. Walk-ins welcome and all will be accommodated.
Note: The Signup link to be provided soon.
SYNOPSIS:
Good intentions collide with absurd assumptions as two terminally woke teaching artists, one fact-obsessed wannabe playwright, and a Hollywood actress with no agenda whatsoever, scramble to create a culturally sensitive Thanksgiving pageant for elementary school children — with no Native Americans involved. Set in a high school drama classroom anywhere but Los Angeles, The Thanksgiving Play is a sharp and hilariously uncomfortable look at the spectacular gap between good intentions and good sense, people who mean well and fumble everything, and the absurdity of trying to do the right thing in all the wrong ways
CONFLICTS
Please come prepared to provide ALL dates that you have conflicts July 27 – October 18, 2026. This is extremely important, as the rehearsal schedule will be built around your availability. Once the schedule is set, alterations will be at the directors’ discretion.
Character Descriptions:
Age Range: Late 20s to early 40s, though flexible for the right performer. Due to the author’s requirement and the pointed satire of the script, everyone cast should pass as Caucasian.
LOGAN — Female, Caucasian looking. The high school drama teacher who is always pushing the envelope in potentially inappropriate ways. Tightly wound, earnest, and desperate to prove herself, Logan is the moral center of the piece — and the most anxious about getting everything “right.” Which is precisely what makes her so funny. In a complicated relationship with Jaxton
JAXTON — Male, Caucasian looking. Yoga practitioner and semi-professional actor. Politically correct to a fault — a big one. A hippie who lives for his street acting. He has good intentions but is so deep inside his own head that he can’t actually see or listen to anyone around him. In a complicated relationship with Logan.
CADEN — Male, Caucasian looking. An awkward elementary school history teacher with dramatic aspirations and no experience. Determined to have historical accuracy above all else, he arrives with a briefcase full of script. He is played as a nerd, with a lot of head knowledge but little emotional intelligence.
ALICIA — Female, brunette, Caucasian looking but with looks that would have been cast as ethnic in 1950s movies. A professional Hollywood actress hired with grant money meant for a Native American performer. She just wants to act and get paid — and unlike everyone else in the room, she has absolutely no inner conflict about any of it.