Cleveland Public Theatre and Teatro Público De Cleveland

Announce Auditions for “Jardín Salvaje”

By Karen Zacarías

Translated into Spanish by Gustavo Ott

Directed by Juliana Frey-Méndez

AUDITIONS…

Thursday, 6/25 — 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm

Saturday, 6/27 — 2:00 pm to 5:00 pm

Monday, 6/29 — Callbacks from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm

Auditions are by appointment only and will be scheduled in individual 10-minute slots.

LOOKING TO CAST THE FOLLOWING ROLES…

CHARACTERS:

NOTE: The show will be performed in Spanish. Actors who are interested in speaking roles will need to have Spanish language proficiency. Actors cast in the ensemble roles will need to be familiar with, but not necessarily be fluent in, Spanish.

Tania Del Valle– female, early thirties, intelligent, friendly, positive, passionate, brimming with energy, doctoral student, 8 months pregnant and a gardener. Comenzando los treinta. Inteligente, simpática, positiva, apasionada, en forma, con mucha energía, candidata a doctorado. Embarazada y jardinera.

Pablo Del Valle– male, early thirties, intelligent, likable, ambitious. Junior lawyer hoping to make senior partner. Comenzando los treinta. Inteligente, simpático, ambicioso, inteligente. Joven abogado

Virginia Butley– female, 60’s-mid 70’s, an engineer—intelligent, likable, assertive, direct, and sensible. Entre sesenta y mediados de los setenta. Ingeniera, inteligente, simpática, asertiva, directa y sensata.

Frank Butley– male, 60’s-mid 70’s. Retired Federal employee. Gardener. Intelligent, likable, excitable, affectionate, and thoughtful. Entre sesenta y mediados de los setenta. Empleado federal jubilado. Jardinero. Inteligente, simpático, excitable, cariñoso y detallista.

Ensemble (2-4 actors/actores) Additional actors to play the silent roles of landscapers, the surveyor, building examiner, additional neighbors etc., creating theatrical vignettes between scenes. They are the witnesses and the transformers of the play and of situations, helping bring the world of the story to life.

Los extras desempeñan papeles silenciosos del TOPÓGRAFO, PAISAJISTAS, e INSPECTOR. Hay breves viñetas teatrales entre escenas que pueden ayudar a transformar el jardín. Estos actores exudar personalidades únicas mientras trabajan. Son los testigos, y los transformadores, tanto de la obra como de las situaciones.

ABOUT THE PLAY…

Tania, a pregnant doctoral student who loves natural landscapes, and her husband Pablo, a high-powered junior lawyer, are realizing the American dream when they purchase a house next door to community stalwarts Virginia and Frank. But a disagreement over a long-standing fence line soon spirals into an all-out war of taste, class, privilege, and entitlement. The hilarious and heart-warming results invite us to think about the nature of border wars, the cost of assimilation, and what it means to be a good neighbor.

Tania, una estudiante de doctorado embarazada y apasionada de los paisajes naturales, y su esposo Pablo, un ambicioso abogado en ascenso, parecen haber alcanzado el sueño americano al comprar una casa junto a Virginia y Frank, una respetada pareja que son los pilares de la comunidad. Sin embargo, un desacuerdo en torno a los límites de una cerca que ha delimitado ambas propiedades durante años pronto desencadena un conflicto cada vez más intenso, en el que afloran cuestiones de gusto, clase social, privilegio y sentido de pertenencia.

Esta guerra entre vecinos resulta en situaciones tan divertidas como conmovedoras, invitándonos a reflexionar sobre las causas de las disputas fronterizas, el precio de la aculturación, y lo que realmente significa ser un buen vecino en la sociedad contemporánea.

ABOUT THE PROCESS…

Rehearsals are 5-6 times a week, with evening weekday rehearsals and some daytime weekend rehearsals. Rehearsals will take place in Spanish and English. This production will adhere to the CLEan House Standards. This is a paid opportunity.

Important Dates…

• First rehearsal: on or around Feb 15, 2027
• Technical rehearsals: March 25, 26, 27, 2027
• Previews: April 1 & 2, 2027
• Opening Night: April 3, 2027
• Closing Performance: April 17, 2027

GENERAL CONTENT DISCLOSURES ABOUT THE PLAY…

• Verbal arguing (exchanging insults and name calling), swearing, allusions to drinking, references to sexism
• References to racist ideas, implied racism
• Allusions to internalized homophobia
• Elitist and classist behavior
• Disparaging references to drug trafficking and illegal immigration
• References to border walls and adverse possession of land (border disputes)
• Land dispossession
• Threats of physical violence and violence against plants
• Intergenerational hostility

For the Audition…

• Actors are encouraged to prepare the two sides available for the characters they are interested in auditioning for.
• Sides will be provided at the time of audition sign up and will be available for actors on the night of the auditions.
• For Actors auditioning for named roles: A reader will be provided for you during your 10-minute slot. You may be on book (no need to be memorized).
• For Actors auditioning for the ensemble: Please prepare the action listed on the side. You can choose to bring in props if you would like, but it is not necessary.
• Please familiarize yourself with the attached version of the script (either in English or Spanish)
• Please send a headshot and resume, if you have one.

Callbacks (Monday June 29^th from 6pm to 9 pm)

• Callback will be held in groups in 60-minute slots and will include movement along with reading sides.
• Please plan to attend all 60 minutes of your scheduled time.
• During the Callbacks, actors should prepare to read two GROUP SIDEs that will be shared (in addition to previous sides)
• More information forthcoming!

TO SCHEDULE AN AUDITION…

To schedule an audition appointment, please email auditions@cptonline.org. 

Please include [ Jardín Salvaje Auditions] in your subject line. Be sure to include: your name, email address, phone number, role you’re auditioning for & preferred audition date. Send a copy of your headshot and resume as an attachment to the email. No phone calls or walk-ins please.

ABOUT THE PLAYWRIGHT

Karen Zacarías award-winning plays include the sold-out/extended comedy THE BOOK CLUB PLAY, the sold-out world premiere drama JUST LIKE US (adapted from the book by Helen Thorpe) at Denver Theater Center, the Steinberg –citation award play LEGACY OF LIGHT , the Francesca Primus Award winning play MARIELA IN THE DESERT,  the Helen Hayes Award winning play  THE SINS OF SOR JUANA , the adaptation of Julia Alvarez’s HOW THE GARCIA GIRLS LOST THEIR ACCENTS. Karen also has a piece in the Arena Stage premiere of OUR WAR.  Her TYA musicals with composer Debbie Wicks la Puma include JANE OF THE JUNGLE, EINSTEIN IS A DUMMY, LOOKING FOR ROBERTO CLEMENTE, CINDERELLA EATS RICE AND BEANS, FERDINAND THE BULL, and FRIDA LIBRE. Her musical CHASING GEORGE WASHINGTON premiered at The Kennedy Center for Performing Arts and went on a National Tour.  Her script was then adapted into a book by Scholastic with a foreword by First Lady Michelle Obama.

ABOUT THE DIRECTOR

Juliana Frey-Méndez  (she/her/ella) is a proud Iowa-born Cuban American director dedicated to resurrecting forgotten histories that ignite the imagination. With a degree in Theatre for Social Change (Cornell University), she completed her M.F.A. in Theatre Directing (University of California: San Diego) and went on to experiment with hybrid performance as an Artist in Residence (Duke University).  As a freelance director, she has collaborated with first-time and veteran playwrights on new work in bars, historic homes, universities, naval training camps, and at theaters around the country. Selected credits include Far From Canterbury (Winner of Best Musical: FringeNYC); La Hija del Pirata (The Flagship Brewery); Calafia at Liberty (La Jolla Playhouse’s WOW Festival); digital live production of Letters from Cuba (UCSD); and Fefu and Her Friends (Riverside Theatre). A proud member of The Fornés Institute (www.fornesinstitute.com), the Stage Directors & Choreographers Society, and an active participant in The Latinx Theatre Commons. She is an Assistant Professor of Theater at Oberlin College & Conservatory.  She is thrilled to be working on another Teatro Publico show at CPT after previously directing Nathalie Bermudez’s The Exit Door Test Flight in 2026. She is an inaugural awardee of the Joan Yellen Horvitz Fellowship. www.julianafreymendez.com.