TroupEnigma presents
Equus
Written by Peter Shaffer. Directed by Michael Juzwak.
Auditions Dates:
● Saturday, July 22, 2023 at 1:00 p.m.
● Sunday, July 23, 2023 at 7:00 p.m.
● Monday, July 24, 2023 at 7:00 p.m.
Rehearsals will begin sometime late July/early August and the show runs the first two weekends of October, October 6,7,8 and October 13, 14, 15.
Location: The CENTER for Performing Arts of Rhinebeck
Plot Synopsis: Dr. Martin Dysart, a psychiatrist who has grown unhappy with his life, takes on the peculiar case of Alan Strang, a reserved teenager who has been accused of brutally blinding six horses. Dysart slowly unravels Alan’s background, learning that he grew up in a strained household with a devoutly religious mother and an atheist father. But as Dysart begins to trace the roots of Alan’s problems, his own also begins to surface.
Characters:
● Alan Strang – teen-age Patient, must be 18 or older. (Nudity Required and will be tastefully done)
○ An intense teenage boy, with a deep connection to religion, who blinds six horses one night in Harry Dalton’s stable. He is the son of Frank and Dora Strang. Up until the crime, Alan worked a job that he hated at an appliance store and spent weekends in Dalton’s stable, grooming the horses. Sent to psychiatrist Martin Dysart for treatment, Alan slowly discloses details about his repressed childhood and his fascination with horses. He eventually reveals the secret rituals he practices in praise of Equus, the horse-god he has invented.
● Frank Strang – his Father
○ Alan Strang’s father, a devoted atheist, and a hardworking, “self-improving” man. Frank’s strict and sometimes-explosive nature is the main source of tension in the Strang household. In addition, his atheism often comes into conflict with the religious feeling of his wife Dora, and son Alan. Though Frank seems to be an exceedingly disciplined and rigid person, his own vices – and needs – are revealed when he is seen at the same pornography theater to which Jill Mason takes Alan.
● Dora Strang – his Mother
○ Alan Strang’s mother. A devout Christian and an indulgent parent, Dora brought up her son by telling him Bible stories and secretly allowing him to watch television, an activity her husband, Frank Strang, forbade. She is heartbroken by Alan’s crime but believes that neither she nor Frank is to blame for his bizarre behavior.
● Hesther Salomon – a Magistrate/Dysart’s confidant
○ A magistrate who convinces the court to send Alan Strang to get psychiatric treatment instead of going to prison. She is also Martin Dysart’s close friend and confidante.
● Jill Mason – Young Girl, must be at least 18 years old. (Nudity Required tastefully done..an intimacy coach will be used for the play)
○ An employee at Harry Dalton’s stable. A kind and free-spirited person, she meets Alan Strang at the appliance store where he works, recognizes that he is often watching the horses at the stable, and gets him the job working weekends at the stable. Jill takes a liking to Alan, and eventually takes him on a date to a pornography theater and then back to the stable for sex. Alan’s failure to have sex with Jill is the catalyst for his crime against the horses.
● Harry Dalton – stable Owner
○ The owner of the horse stable where Jill Mason and Alan Strang work.
● Nurse
○ A nurse at Rokesby Psychiatric Hospital who cares for Alan Strang.
● Six Actors, including :
○ The Horseman who also plays Nugget
○ The man who gives Alan Strang his first horseback ride, when he was just a boy and who eventually Alan becomes obsessed with as his substitute Christ/God figure.
○ Horses
■ Another five horses who are instrumental in Alan’s crime as well as diagnosis. They will wear sculpted horse heads and walk on ‘hooves’. Nugget will have to carry Alan on his back. There will be a ‘movement’ choreographer.
Strong Actors needed, ages 20-99. All ethnicities and ages are strongly encouraged to audition. Only the part of Martin Dystart is precast.
Preparation: Auditions will be selected readings from the script.
Be prepared to list conflicts For any questions please contact Michael Juzwak at: mjuzwak@hvc.rr.com