"It's my creation – like Frankenstein's monster."
Auditions are open for Dinner by Moira Buffini and directed by Christopher Grabski - a refreshing modern comedy chiller, perfect for Halloween.
This small cast play with no small roles is the perfect challenge for anyone that wants to dive deep into a character.
We encourage all aspiring actors of 18 and above, of all ethnicities, abilities and gender identities to sign up to audition for the characters they’d like to portray.
Please fill out and submit the audition form below latest May 22nd, at noon.
Audition Date: Saturday, May 24th, 2025
Self-Tape Submission Deadline: Saturday, May 24th, 2025, 16:00 (optional)
Audition Location: CREA, room 3.08, Nieuwe Achtergracht 170, Amsterdam
Call Back Date: Saturday, May 31st, 2025
Call Back Location: CREA, room 3.08, Nieuwe Achtergracht 170, Amsterdam
Performances Dates:
Thursday, October 30, evening
Friday, October 31, evening
Saturday, November 1, afternoon and evening
Sunday, November 2, afternoon
Performance Location: Polanentheater, Amsterdam
Director: Christopher Grabski
Synopsis of the Play:
Under the thick blanket of an eerie fog, Paige is hosting a dinner party her guest will never forget. What's the occasion? Her husband's new bestselling pop-psych self-help book “Beyond Belief” - a book she's not even read. With the help of a silent waiter she found on the dark web, Paige serves up three remarkable dishes that challenge her guests moral predispositions - and their stomachs. But Paige's classy affair is rudely interrupted when a suspicious working class man seeking help shows up at her door. As the fog thickens the guest realise they're now stranded here with this man - and with each other. No phone reception, inedible food, and a kitchen teeming with live lobsters, this fancy evening quickly descends into the dinner party from hell. But, there's still one more course on the menu…
Dinner by Moira Buffini is a sharp, witty and refreshing contemporary comedy about class, status, wealth and the secret to happiness. Nominated for Best New Comedy at the 2003 Olivier Awards.
About the Director:
Christopher Grabski can always be found lurking around in a dark theatre somewhere in the world. As a teenager he had an after-school job showing people to their seats where he got to watch theatre every night - and it all went downhill from there. Chris is an actor, writer, director and lighting designer and will reluctantly do sound if you ask him nicely. He has an academic background in theatre studies which has played a starring role in so many of the rejection letters he’s received throughout his career. But in theatres, recent sightings in Amsterdam have included: Roland in Constellations (Downstage Left); Mickey in Blood Brothers (HEA Productions); John Proctor in The Crucible (InPlayers); Cecil in The Importance of Being Ernest (QETC); Various roles in Couch (Leiden English Theatre); and as the lighting designer for La Cage Aux Folles (QETC) & Wyrd Sisters (InPlayers).
Characters:
| Paige | Paige (W playing 30 - 50) is a rich bitch (her words). But even though she’s posh, spoilt, rude and a little self-indulgent, her view on the world is perhaps the sharpest of all her guests. She has a viper wit that stings through back-handed compliments and using your own description of yourself against you. When asked what she thinks about her husband’s best-selling book she says, “I haven’t read it. I thought I’d wait till it came out in paperback. Then I wouldn’t worry if I dropped it in the bath.” There’s a bitterness under all that pomp, lavishness and etiquette but also a cunning mind. Think along the lines of Rosamund Pike in Saltburn or Olivia Coleman in Fleabag. | |
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| Lars | Lars (M playing 30 - 50) thinks of himself as being self-made. But that’s not entirely true. He married Paige, who is insanely rich. Yet he’ll still be the one to tell you, that “Making money’s as simple as sneezing. You just have to want to do it.” With money being no problem, he has more than enough time to tell everyone else how they should be living their lives. And that’s exactly what he’s done in his recent pseudo psychological best-selling self-help book “Beyond Belief”. God isn’t dead. You are god. Stop whining, take action and do want you want. Lars is an excellent mansplainer who uses philosophy and his wealthy status to justify his often chauvinist and self-indulgent behaviour in a way that can’t be argued with. Think along the lines of Matt Smith or Colin Firth. | |
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| Wynne | Wynne (W playing 30 - 50) is a little crazy. She’s not a feminist, she’s an eroticist (her words). An undiscovered artist, a vegan, spiritual and a little naive, she is completely unaware when someone is making fun of her, or taking advantage of her. She has strong feelings about very small details that probably come from a lot of childhood trauma. And to compensate, everything’s rainbows, sunshine and positivity to the point that it’s obvious things are no going so well with her. But she has good intentions, even if she doesn’t understand what’s really going on. Think along the lines of a more ditsy Helena Bohnam Carter or Claire Foy. | |
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| Hal | Hal (M playing 30 - 50) is a microbiologist, but thinks of himself as a cool scientist. He looks at the world through a microscope and studies the carnage of single cell organisms, so human life is all pretty trivial. He’s married to Siân and but doesn’t quite get her. Even though he comes across as a somewhat reasonable guy, he gets incredibly awkward around tough situations to the point that he’s just plain mean. For example, his previous wife attempted suicide, so he divorced her - while she was still in the hospital - by telling her in a card. Ultimately he is haunted by the fact that he, as man and not a micro-organism, has emotions. And he deflects them as much as he can. Think along the lines of Michael Cera or Eddie Redmayne. | |
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| Siân | Siân (W playing 30 - 40) is the sexpot that decorates the rolling news (her words). She’s dark, nonchalant, sarcastic and has razor sharp wit. Her job as a news presenter means that people think they already know her, and to fight against that, she finds joy in making them uncomfortable by being rude, cold and unapproachable. When asked by the others what kind of criminal she would be, Siân says “I’d like to disguise myself as someone warm and caring and rip off the old, vulnerable and the bereaved.” Think Aubrey Plaza. | |
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| Mike | Mike (M playing 20’s/early 30s) crashes the dinner party after his van breaks down outside. Mike is a pretty candid working class guy and has a completely different vibe than the rest of the guest. At first, Paige wants him to leave but Lars uses that as an opportunity to show how considerate he can be by offering Mike to stay for dinner. While Hal and Lars have to use their jobs and their books to prove their masculinity, Mike is effortlessly masculine and that is both exciting and threatening to the rest of the guest. No one is ever really sure if Mike is telling the truth or not. Even though Mike and Paige are polar opposites in terms of wealth and status, they somehow find a connection between them, mostly through their shared sense of wit and sarcasm at making fun of the other guests. But is Mike really who he says he is? Think James McAvoy or Jonathan Bailey. | |
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| The Waiter | The waiter (can be any age and gender) has probably 3 lines in the entire play - but is always around. Their presence has a sort of uncanny feeling. They’re a professional but in a way that’s not quite the warmth you’d expect from a waiter. Obedient, precise, calm and emotionless. It’s the kind of challenge for someone who wants focus on their physical presence and doesn’t want to learn many lines. But the waiter is central to the plot. They serves each dish, drink and ensure that every spoon, fork, and knife, ends up in the right place…. | |
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We’re also looking to strengthen the team that will produce this play. Click here to see how you can help!