Are You a Dream? Dreamgirls Tour to Hold Auditions at Apollo Theater Nov. 1
By Adam Hetrick
09 Oct 2008
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Jennifer Holliday created the role of Effie in Dreamgirls.
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Producers of the 2009 national tour of Dreamgirls, featuring direction by Robert Longbottom and additional choreography by Shane Sparks, will hold open auditions for the show's leading ladies at the Apollo Theater in Harlem Nov. 1.
Being sought at the open call are actresses to play the girl-group trio, The Dreams: Deena Jones, Lorrell Robinson and Effie White. The audition sign-in is 9:30-11 AM. Casting directors are looking for women in their 20s for the three roles.
Produced by Vienna Waits Productions, LLC and John Breglio, the new touring production of Dreamgirls is scheduled to begin in fall 2009.
The Apollo is an ideal audition location for the Motown musical about three young women who launch their careers during an amateur night in Chicago. Since introducing the first Amateur Night contests in 1934, the Apollo Theater has played a major role in musical genres including jazz, swing, bebop, R&B, gospel, blues, soul and hip-hop, helping to launch the careers of Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Billie Holiday, Sammy Davis, Jr., James Brown, Bill Cosby, Gladys Knight, Luther Vandross, D'Angelo and Lauryn Hill.
Longbottom, who staged Henry Krieger and Bill Russell's Side Show on Broadway and earned a Tony Award nomination for his choreography on the 2003 revival of Flower Drum Song, will direct and co-choreograph the national tour of Dreamgirls.
The production will also boast co-choreography from Emmy-nominated hip-hop artist Shane Sparks. A guest judge and choreographer on "So You Think You Can Dance," Sparks also appears on "America's Best Dance Crew" and his award-winning choreography can be seen in the feature film "You Got Served."
Dreamgirls features music by Henry Krieger and book and lyrics by the late Tom Eyen. The late Michael Bennett directed and choreographed the original Broadway production; Bennett won a Tony for the show's choreography.
The musical, which follows the rise of a Supremes-like singing group, turned Tony-winner Jennifer Holliday into an overnight star when it debuted in 1981 at the Imperial Theatre. The 2006 film adaptation, featuring a screenplay and direction by Bill Condon, earned Jennifer Hudson a host of awards, including the Best Featured Actress Oscar, for her performance as Effie White.
The Apollo Theater is located in Harlem at 253 W. 125th Street, between Adam Clayton Powell Blvd. and Frederick Douglass Blvd.
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