Hello, Dolly!
by Fredericksburg Theater Company (FTC)
Oct. 24 - Oct. 25 (2016)
Hello, Dolly! is the story of Mrs. Dolly Levi’s efforts to marry Horace Vandergelder, the well-known half-a-millionaire, and send his money circulating among the people like rainwater the way her late husband, Ephraim Levi, taught her. Along the way she also succeeds in matching up the young and beautiful Widow Molloy with Vandergelder’s head clerk, Cornelius Hackl; Cornelius’ assistant, Barnaby Tucker, with Mrs. Molloy’s assistant, Minnie Fay; and the struggling artist, Ambrose Kemper, with Mr. Vandergelder’s weeping niece, Ermengarde.
Mrs. Levi tracks Vandergelder to his hay and feed store in Yonkers, then by train back to Mrs. Molloy’s hat shop in New York, out into the streets of the city where they are all caught up in the great Fourteenth Street Association Parade, and finally to the most elegant and expensive restaurant in town, the Harmonia Gardens. There, Dolly is greeted by the waiters, cooks, doormen and wine stewards in one of the most famous songs in the history of American musical comedy, "Hello, Dolly!"
What happens in the end? Dolly gets her man, of course. (She even makes him glad she caught him!) Dolly leaves the stage at the end of Act II with a wink to the audience as she takes a peep into Vandergelder’s bulging cash register, and promises that his fortune will soon be put to good use. She quotes her late husband as she says, “Money, pardon the expression, is like manure. It’s not worth a thing unless it’s spread around encouraging young things to grow.”
Hello, Dolly! is an ebullient and irresistible story of the joy of living, glittering with happy songs, shining with loving scenes, alive with the personality of one of the most fabulous characters on the musical stage…Dolly Gallagher Levi!
Classic musical numbers include "Put On Your Sunday Clothes", "Ribbons Down My Back", "Before the Parade Passes By", "Elegance", "It Only Takes A Moment" and "So Long, Dearie."
Auditions for FTC’s Winter Musical, Hello, Dolly! are scheduled for Monday and Tuesday, Oct. 24th & 25th at 7 pm at the Steve W. Shepherd Theater, located at 1668 South U.S Highway 87 in Fredericksburg. Callbacks (if needed) will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 26th at 7:00 p.m. All roles are available. Everyone is welcome to attend both audition sessions on Oct. 24th & 25th, but it is not mandatory.
Anyone interested in a principal role will need to prepare 16 bars of an up-tempo Broadway musical standard. It is highly recommended that you prepare a piece that best features your vocal range. Please have your song memorized. A pianist, CD player, and a computer for mp3 tracks will be available. Please be prepared to sing with a pianist or a backing track. Please, no a cappella auditions.
Anyone interested in only a chorus part may audition as part of a group by singing the title song to the show, "Hello, Dolly!" Sheet music will be available at the theater office beginning Monday, September 26th, Monday - Friday, 9:00 am to 1:00 pm.
Please be prepared for a brief dance/movement audition to follow the vocal audition. Acrobatic skills (rolls, flips, hand-stands, etc.) will be needed for some of the actors playing the Harmonia Garden's waiters. The movement audition will be followed with cold readings from the script.
If cast, attendance to all technical rehearsals, Feb. 11th-16th, is mandatory, as well as attendance to all performances. Performance dates are Friday’s, Saturday’s and Sunday’s February 17th-March 5th. For further details please call the theater office at 830-997-3588 and ask to speak to Steve Reily.
PRINCIPALS:
(5 female; 4 male)
Mrs. Dolly Gallagher Levi — an indefatigable meddling matchmaker; a widow in her middle years
Mrs. Irene Molloy — a millineress with a hat shop near 14th Street in New York City
Minnie Fay — a young girl who works in Irene’s Shop
Ernestina — a brash woman in need of Mrs. Levi’s services
Ermengarde — the 17-year-old niece of Horace Vandergelder
Horace Vandergelder — proprietor of a hay and feed store in Yonkers, NY and a client of Mrs. Levi’s
Cornelius Hackl — Vandergelder’s chief clerk, 33 years old
Barnaby Tucker — an assistant to Cornelius, 17 years old
Ambrose Kemper — a young artist seeking to marry Ermengarde
SUPPORTING (from the Chorus):
Mrs. Rose — sells vegetables from a street cart, a friend of Mrs. Levi’s from years before
Coachman — non-speaking
Horse — two chorus/dancers
Rudolph Reisenweber — the Prussian major-domo of the Harmonia Gardens Restaurant
Stanley — a young waiter
Fritz, Harry, Louie, Danny, Manny and Hank — Harmonia Gardens waiters; non-speaking chorus/dancers
First Cook — Harmonia Gardens employee with a German accent
Second Cook — Harmonia Gardens employee
Judge — white-whiskered, red-nosed, New York night court
Policemen — several New York City officers; only one speaking
Court Clerk (Recorder) — male chorus member
Paperhanger — non-speaking
ENSEMBLE:
Townspeople of New York
Yonkers Band
Lodge Members
Feed Store Customers
Harmonia Gardens Customers
Polka Contest Contestants
14th Street Parade Ensemble
About the Fredericksburg Theater Company: The mission of the Fredericksburg Theater Company (FTC) is “to provide superior theatrical programs for regional participation which entertain, educate, enrich and inspire.” Formed in 1997 by Jeryl Hoover, the theater has grown to an audience of over 13,000 annually. All performances are held at the Steve W. Shepherd Theater. FTC is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. It has received statewide recognition from the Texas Nonprofit Theatres as well as grants from various arts endowment organizations.
For further information please contact Executive Director Steve Reily at the theater office by calling 888-669-7114 or email at fbgtheaterco@verizon.net.
