The casting notice describes the role as "male, 20's, any ethnicity. A masculine drug addict and drag queen with excellent comic chops and strong pop/rock singing voice. A physically beautiful boy."
The open call will be held July 17 from 10 AM-5 PM at the Ripley/Grier Studios, located in Manhattan at 520 Eighth Avenue at 36th Street (16th floor). Those auditioning are requested to prepare 16 bars of a pop/rock song not from the musical theatre. And, the notice adds, "Don't dress in drag."
Taboo arrives on Broadway at the Plymouth Theatre Oct. 21 with an official opening scheduled for Nov. 13. To date, the cast includes George O'Dowd (Leigh Bowery), Euan Morton (George O'Dowd), Raul Esparza (Philip Sallon), Sarah Uriarte-Berry (Nicola), Cary Shields (Marcus) and Liz McCartney (Big Sue). The ensemble currently comprises Jennifer Cody, Dioni Michelle Collins, Lisa Gajda, Bob Gaynor, Curtis Holbrook, Lori Holmes, Jennifer Mrozik, Nathan Peck, Alexander Quiroga, Asa Somers, Denise Summerford, Jody Reynard and Gregory Treco.
Christopher Renshaw directs the musical, which began life at London’s Venue in January 2002. That production played its final performance April 26. Mark Dendy will choreograph the Broadway mounting, and the remainder of the creative team comprises John McDaniel (musical supervision), Tim Goodchild (scenic design), Mike Nicholls and Bobby Pearce (costume design), Natasha Katz (lighting design), Jonathan Deans (sound design) and make-up and hair design (Christine Bateman). Charles Busch has written a new book for the Broadway production based on material by Mark Davies.
Set in London in the early eighties, Taboo focuses on two young men: anarchic performance artist-designer Leigh Bowery and a young, rough-edged boy who becomes a surprising crossover star, Boy George. The stories of Bowery and George are told against the background of the London club Taboo. The Plymouth Theatre is located at 236 West 45th Street. Tickets, priced between $80 and $100, will go on sale in late August through Telecharge, (212) 239-6200. For more information about the musical, visit www.tabooonbroadway.com.
