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Auditions: Self-Tape only; DUE September 25 by 11:59pm
Callbacks: October 2 at 1:30pm & October 3 at 11:00am by invitation only. Temple Building, Room 301
Rehearsals: March 1 - April 6, 2027
Tech: April 7 - 17, 2027
Performances: April 15 - April 25, 2027
For a more detailed schedule, please visit the NRT Callboard, found HERE.
AUDITIONS: Into the Woods
Auditions are coming soon for Nebraska Repertory Theatre and UNL Opera’s production of Into the Woods, music and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, book by James Lapine, directed and choreographed by Bobby Pieranunzi.
One of the most beloved works in the American musical theatre, Into the Woods brings together familiar characters from the stories of Cinderella, Jack and the Beanstalk, Little Red Riding Hood, and Rapunzel, among others, and sends them into the woods in pursuit of their deepest wishes. What begins as a playful collision of fairy tales becomes something richer and more surprising, exploring what happens after wishes come true and the consequences of the choices we make along the way. Funny, moving, and deeply human, the musical asks what we owe one another when the familiar stories no longer provide easy answers.
We are taking a more artistic approach to the show. The full ensemble will be responsible for curating the world around us. A movement call will be required.
INTITIAL AUDITIONS
Initial auditions for Into the Woods will take place by video submission.
SELF-TAPE REQUIREMENTS: Slate with name and height; a cut from a song in the style of the show and/or with the essence of the character you think you are right for. Singing from the show is permissible! Please do your best to sing with a piano accompanist or a YouTube instrumental track. A cappella singing and singing with a vocal track is strongly discouraged. Try to keep audition package to 2 minutes or under.
Please submit your self-tape by September 25 at 11:59 PM by completing the audition form below.
Click here to complete the audition form and submit your audition materials.
Following the initial submissions, selected auditioners will be invited to callbacks.
- Into the Woods Callbacks: October 2, beginning at 1:30 p.m.
- Into the Woods Callbacks: October 3, beginning at 11:00 a.m.
Callback invitations will be sent the morning of September 30. You will be notified by email and will receive callback materials and information at that time. Callbacks will be held in Temple Building, Room 301, unless we let you know otherwise.
Auditioners are strongly encouraged to read the script and familiarize themselves with the score in advance. Knowing the world of the musical, its characters, and the way its stories and musical themes intersect will be valuable preparation for both the initial audition and callback process.
CHARACTER BREAKDOWN
We are committed to inclusive casting and welcome submissions from performers of all races, ethnicities, gender identities, body types, and abilities for all roles. We encourage performers to submit for any role with which they identify and for which they meet the vocal and performance requirements.
The Baker - Baritone, Ab2–G4
An anxious, decent man who has learned to protect himself through control. He begins emotionally closed and becomes the show's reluctant adult. Needs warmth, humor, and vulnerability.
Baker's Wife - Mezzo/Soprano, F3–G5
Smart, funny, resourceful and restless. She loves her husband but wonders whether the life she wished for is enough. Needs exceptional text work—her comedy should come from thought rather than "playing funny."
Cinderella - Soprano, G3–G5
Intelligent, compassionate and chronically uncertain. She's not simply an ingénue; she's someone discovering that choosing is harder than wishing. Needs an excellent legit soprano who can make her thought process sound spontaneous.
The Witch - Mezzo/Alto, F3–G5
Ferocious, funny, controlling, perceptive and wounded. She genuinely loves Rapunzel but expresses love through possession. In Act II she becomes the person willing to say what everyone else refuses to hear. Huge acting role; vocal command and rhythmic precision matter enormously.
Jack - Tenor, B2–G4
Innocent, imaginative and socially a little out of step. His curiosity has catastrophic consequences before he understands what consequences are. Giants in the Sky needs wonder rather than just a big tenor voice.
Little Red - Mezzo, Bb3–F5
Precocious, voracious, funny and confident—until the world teaches her fear. Her journey is surprisingly dark: innocence → encounter with danger → self-protection. Needs superb comic timing without becoming a caricature.
Jack's Mother - Soprano/Mezzo, Bb3–Gb5
Practical, exhausted, loving and perpetually terrified by Jack's recklessness. Her anger comes from fear and scarcity. Also needs emotional weight.
Cinderella's Prince - Baritone/Tenor, approx. B2–F4/Gb4
Charismatic, overly confident, entitled and addicted to pursuit. He isn't consciously a villain—he genuinely thinks this is what romance is. That's what makes him funnier and more disturbing. Doubles as Wolf/Cinderella's Prince
The Wolf - Baritone, Bb2–Gb4
Appetite given human form: seductive, dangerous, theatrical and knowing. retain the traditional Doubles as Wolf/Cinderella's Prince
Rapunzel's Prince - Baritone, C#3–E4
Romantic, handsome, melodramatic and magnificently self-involved. Need an actor who understands that Agony becomes funniest when both princes take their suffering completely seriously.
Rapunzel - Soprano, B3–A5
Beautiful, sheltered and psychologically damaged by the Witch's possessiveness. Her instability shouldn't just be played for laughs.
Narrator - Baritone, G2–E4
Charming, articulate and apparently in command. He establishes the rules of storytelling but the Witch challenges that. Doubles as Narrator/Mysterious Man
Mysterious Man - Baritone
Eccentric, evasive and ultimately heartbreaking: the Baker's absent father. Doubles as Narrator/Mysterious Man
Cinderella's Stepmother - Mezzo, A3–F#5
Elegant, ambitious, cruel and status-obsessed. Avoid broad "evil stepmother" acting. She sincerely believes status is survival and has trained her daughters accordingly.
Florinda - Mezzo/Soprano, C4–Ab5
Vain, competitive and ruthless. Excellent comic instincts and willingness to commit physically.
Lucinda - Mezzo/Soprano, C4–Ab5
Same fairy-tale ecosystem as Florinda, but distinct personality from her.
Cinderella's Father - Ensemble singer
Passive, disconnected and ineffectual. His failure is his unwillingness to intervene.
Steward - Primarily acting / ensemble singing
Obedient, proper and seemingly innocuous until survival reveals his moral cowardice.
Cinderella's Mother - Soprano, roughly E4–F5
A supernatural maternal presence rather than simply "Mom." Double Granny/Cinderella's Mother/Giant.
Granny - Primarily acting
Small, wonderfully eccentric character role. Double Granny/Cinderella's Mother/Giant.
Giant - Spoken/offstage voice
Most important requirement is vocal authority and humanity. She's terrifying—but she's also a widow whose husband Jack killed. That moral complication matters enormously in Act II. Double Granny/Cinderella's Mother/Giant.
Snow White - Featured ensemble
Sleeping Beauty - Featured ensemble
Milky White TBD - Non-singing
Technically a character—and potentially a very important one depending upon how we ultimately realize her in the concept.
4-5 Ensemble Members
2 will be SW and SB
INTIMACY NOTE: Please be advised that "Cinderella's Prince" and the "Baker's Wife" will be required to have choreographed intimate moments. Partner dancing may also be required at times.
We look forward to seeing your work.