Audition Information

Audition Information

Casting opportunities for Playhouse Stage Company productions are regularly listed on this page. Be sure to check back often, as it's updated with current casting notices.

Playhouse Stage Company is holding fall auditions for
THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER and DEAR EVAN HANSEN

Auditions run September 9–11, 2026 at Playhouse Stage Studios, 95 Remsen St, Cohoes, NY 12047 (use the side entrance near the Pioneer Bank lot on Ontario St, across from Subs-Ta-Toot).

  • Wednesday, September 9 & Thursday, September 10 — Open sign-in, 6:30–7:30pm

  • Friday, September 11 — Open sign-in, 5–7pm

  • Callbacks held nightly, immediately following each night's sign-in window

No appointment necessary — come by any time during a sign-in window. Prefer to submit ahead of time? Email a headshot, resume, and video/reel to ashley@playhousestage.org.

Prepare 32-bars (approximately 45 seconds to one minute) of a song in the style of the show. Please bring sheet music in the correct key, an accompanist will be provided. If you have a headshot/resume, please bring those as well.

If you are a STUDENT auditioning for The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, be prepared for a short movement audition following sign-in window. CALLBACKS for both productions to follow movement call each night.

We're glad to see performers of every background and experience level at auditions — students, working professionals, and everyone in between.

All adult performers are paid. Seeking local actors with transportation; please specify if housing would be required.

PRODUCTION DETAILS

The Best Christmas Pageant Ever

Rehearsals Begin: October 22, 2026, Thursdays & Fridays 5-9pm, Saturdays & Sundays 12-6pm
Technical Rehearsals: December 7-9, 2026
Performances: December 10-20, 2026
WEDNESDAYS - FRIDAYS AT 7:00PM 
SATURDAYS AT 2:00PM & 7:00PM 
SUNDAYS AT 2:00PM
Location: Cohoes, New York

Dear Evan Hansen

Rehearsals Begin: January 25 OR February 1, 2027, Mondays, Thursdays & Fridays 1-9pm, Wednesdays 10am-4pm, Saturdays & Sundays 12-8pm
Technical Rehearsals: February 17-24, 2027
Performances: February 25-March 21, 2027
WEDNESDAYS 10AM
THURSDAYS - FRIDAYS AT 7:30PM 
SATURDAYS AT 2:00PM & 7:30PM 
SUNDAYS AT 2:00PM
Location: Cohoes, New York

SUBMISSION INSTRUCTIONS

Please submit via email to ashley@playhousestage.org by May 9, 2026.

Include:

  • Headshot & resume (if available)

  • A private YouTube link or Dropbox link to your audition video (no Google Drive if possible please)

  • Subject line: SEASON 39 Audition – ACTOR NAME

Video Requirements:

  • Approximately 1-minute vocal cut of a song in the style of the show or vocal reel

SEEKING

THE BEST CHRISTMAS PAGEANT EVER

Seeking: Students Ages 8–14 & Local Professional Nonunion Adults

About the Play

Barbara Robinson's beloved holiday comedy follows the Herdmans — six of "the worst kids in the history of the world" — as they crash the church Christmas pageant and, in true Herdman fashion, take it over completely. What starts as a disaster turns into the most unforgettable pageant the town has ever seen.

Casting Breakdown

The Herdman Kids

  • Ralph (6th grade) — oldest brother, lets Imogene do the talking, the muscle of the group

  • Imogene (5th grade) — tough, outspoken leader of the Herdmans; cigar-smoking on the outside, a big mush inside

  • Leroy (4th grade) — mouthy, hot-tempered daredevil; the leanest of the group

  • Claude (3rd grade) — the collector: frogs, salamanders, bird's eggs, a slingshot in his back pocket, and a cat for show and tell

  • Ollie (2nd grade) — tough exterior, sweet and sincere underneath; keeps an old stuffed animal in the garage

  • Gladys (1st grade) — littlest and wildest, always in hand-me-downs several sizes too big

The Bradleys

  • Grace (30s–40s) — This role is cast.

  • Bob (40s) — This role is cast.

  • Beth (5th grade) — good student, good kid, kind to everyone, at the age where her parents can mortify her

  • Charlie (4th grade) — all-American little brother: Cub Scouts, Little League, a bit of a Theodore Cleaver

Townspeople

  • Helen Armstrong (40s–50s) — This role is cast.

  • Reverend Hopkins (30s–50s) — the church's frazzled peacekeeper, tries to please everyone, has a good heart

  • Church Ladies (late 30s–40s): Luanne Wendleken (uptight Junior League type, criticism delivered with a smile), Betty Brown (tells it like it is), Connie St. Clair (the genuinely sweet one)

Kids

  • Alice Wendleken (5th grade) — know-it-all, dressed in matching everything, just like her mother

  • Elmer Hopkins (4th grade) — the preacher's kid, which means he has to behave

  • Teddy Shoemaker (3rd grade) — wimpy, bespectacled, asks too many questions

  • Ivy Reed (5th grade) — smart, nice, switches allegiances between Alice and Beth

DEAR EVAN HANSEN

Seeking: Local Professional Nonunion Adults & Teens Ages 14–18

About the Play

Winner of the Tony Award for Best Musical, Dear Evan Hansen follows a lonely high schooler whose life changes when a lie about his connection to a classmate's death spirals into something he can't control — and forces his family, and a grieving one, to reckon with what it means to be truly seen.

Casting Breakdown

  • Evan Hansen — to play 17 (ages 15–25). Smart, sincere, and excruciatingly self-conscious, Evan prefers to hover in the background, a supporting player in his own life, too afraid to step forward into the spotlight and risk ridicule or, what might be worse, no one noticing him at all. Vocal range: G2–C5.

  • Zoe Murphy — to play 16 (ages 15–25). Sensitive and sophisticated, with a sharp sense of humor, Zoe could care less about the status games and popularity rites of high school. She feels a terrible ambivalence over her brother's death. Vocal range: F3–E5.

  • Connor Murphy — to play 17 (ages 15–25). An angry, disaffected loner, Connor has been a troubled kid for as long as anyone can remember, an enigma and a source of endless consternation to his long-suffering parents. Vocal range: C3–G#4.

  • Cynthia Murphy — forties. Connor and Zoe's mother. To Evan, she seems to be the perfect mother, nurturing, available, and willing to talk about anything. To her own children, it's a bit more complicated. Vocal range: F3–E5.

  • Larry Murphy — forties. Connor and Zoe's father. Though often tense and taciturn, Larry shows a different face to the world, representing for Evan the dad he always wished for: strong, confident, and more than anything, reliable, someone to be counted on. Vocal range: Bb2–G4.

  • Jared Kleinman — to play 17 (ages 15–25). Droll and sarcastic, Jared covers his own insecurities with a well-practiced swagger and a know-it-all arrogance. Vocal range: D3–B4.

  • Alana Beck — to play 17 (ages 15–25). Earnest to a fault, prone to melodrama, Alana hides a deeper loneliness beneath an ever-present smile and an almost aggressive friendliness. Vocal range: F3–E5.

  • Heidi Hansen — This role is cast.

TUITION

Student (age 18 and under) participation tuition is $600.

Playhouse Stage Company is deeply committed to tuition assistance and breaking down financial barriers to entry. No student will be turned away for inability to pay—tuition assistance opportunities will be discussed after casting.