Auditions

Arsenic and Old Lace

 Comedy-thriller by Joseph Kesselring 

Directed by Dominic Massimino 

Auditions:

Sunday, November 9 at 4:00pm 
Monday, November 10 at 7:00pm

Performance dates:
  February 6, 7, 8, 13, 14, 15, 2026

At the Old Opera House Theatre in Charles Town, WV

Drama critic Mortimer Brewster’s engagement announcement is upended when he discovers a corpse in his elderly aunts’ window seat. Mortimer rushes to tell Abby and Martha before they stumble upon the body themselves, only to learn that the two old women aren’t just aware of the dead man in their parlor, they killed him! Between his aunts’ penchant for poisoning wine, a brother who thinks he’s Teddy Roosevelt, and another brother using plastic surgery to hide from the police—not to mention Mortimer’s own hesitancy about marriage, it’ll be a miracle if Mortimer makes it to his wedding. Arsenic and Old Lace is a classic black comedy about the only thing more deadly than poison: family.

Roles, with approximate ages …

  • Abby Brewster: (60-80) A sweet elderly woman with Victorian charm who poisons elderly men. Abby is the sister of Martha and an aunt to Teddy, Jonathan, and Mortimer.

  • Martha Brewster: (60-80) a darling elderly lady who poisons elderly men. Martha is the sister of Abby and an aunt to Teddy, Jonathan, and Mortimer.

  • Mortimer Brewster: (30-50) Nephew of Abby and Martha, Mortimer is a drama critic. A good-hearted cynic, he is engaged to Elaine. Mortimer cares for his aunts, but his world is turned upside-down as he tries to untangle their crazy, homicidal dilemma.

  • Elaine Harper: (25-40) An attractive girl in her twenties, and Mortimer’s fiancée, Elaine is the daughter of the Rev. Dr. Harper, who lives next-door to Abby and Martha. She is surprisingly wise in the ways of the world for a minister's daughter.

  • Teddy Brewster: (40-60) Nephew of Abby and Martha Brewster. Teddy is a delightfully certifiable man who is under the happy delusion that he is Theodore Roosevelt. 

  • Jonathan Brewster: (40-60) Nephew of Abby and Martha Brewster, Jonathan is a psychopath who has had plastic surgery and now looks like Boris Karloff.

  • Dr. Einstein: (45-55) A plastic surgeon and an alcoholic, Dr. Einstein has changed Jonathan's face three times.

  • Officer O'Hara: (45-65) A police officer, O’Hara is a would-be playwright who pesters Mortimer to read his play.

  • The Rev. Dr. Harper: (50-70) Minister and father of Elaine.

  • Officer Brophy: (25-45) A pleasant neighborhood police officer.

  • Officer Klein: (25-45) A pleasant neighborhood police officer, partner to Brophy.

  • Lieutenant Roony: (50-60) A tough and dominating police officer, the commanding officer of the precinct.

  • Mr. Witherspoon: (50-60) The superintendent of Happy Dale Sanitarium.

  • Mr. Gibbs: (55-80) An elderly man who wishes to rent a room from the Brewster sisters, narrowly escaping poison. And several more ensemble role and carolers (age 8 to 90).

The auditions will consist primarily of cold readings from the script. You do not need to prepare anything for the auditions, but becoming familiar with the story and the characters is helpful. 

Please bring your calendar or a list of dates that you are not able to rehearse (such as vacations, evening, or weekend work, etc.)  Rehearsals are held primarily in the evening and weekends.    

Do you want to be involved in a show but don’t like being on stage? We will also need backstage and tech crews. If you have an interest in helping backstage, please let our Production Manager, Lee Hebb lee@oldoperahouse.org, know. No prior experience is required. 

Please, feel free to share this opportunity with anyone who might be interested.