Auditions: What You Need to Know

Who: Actors in grades 1-12 (24-25 school year). 

When:

• Friday, May 9th @ 6:00-7:30pm (grades 1-6) and 7:30-9:00pm (grades 7-12) 
• Saturday, May 10th @ 3:00-4:30pm (grades 1-6) and 4:30-6:00pm (grades 7-12) 
• Monday, May 12th @ 6-8pm Callbacks (we will let actors who are called back know via email after their audition session if they need to return for callbacks on this date)

*If you need to swap dates after you submit the form or cannot make it to the dates/times listed below, please contact Sadie Carr at sadie@columbiachildrenstheatre.com

Where: Brookland Lakeview Empowerment Center in West Columbia (1218 Batchelor St, West Columbia, SC 29169). 

*Please arrive prior to the start time listed above, as we will audition as a group. Parents will drop their actors off after check-in and come back at the end time listed above.

Rehearsals will begin May 21st, 2025. 

Steps to take: 

• Fill out the Online Audition Form and Conflict Calendar (Google Form)
• Review the Production Information Sheet (pdf file) carefully. **By signing the audition form, you agree to adhere to all listed requirements on this sheet. 
• Auditionees in grades 7-12 will be asked to perform a selection of a song from the show. Audition Selections will be sent out via email. 
• Actors will also learn a short dance routine and may be asked to read lines from the script at each audition session 
• Actors only need to attend one audition session unless they are asked to return for a callback audition (May 12th). 
• Please wear closed-toed shoes and clothing suited for movement (NO CROCS, please!).

IMPORTANT INFO 

• The cast list will be sent out via email by Friday, May 16th @5pm. Here you will accept or decline your actor’s role. 
• Rehearsals begin May 21st. Rehearsals will generally be held Monday through Friday evenings, Saturday times vary, and Sunday afternoons at the Brookland Lakeview Empowerment Center. The rehearsal schedule will be released after the first rehearsal. 
• There will be a mandatory parent meeting at the first rehearsal for each cast on May 21st (Cast Pure Imagination) and May 22nd (Cast Golden Ticket) at 6pm. The meeting will take approximately 30 minutes. 
• Participation fees and retail items will be available for purchase on our retail page on May 16th. 
• Willy Wonka will have two casts, one performing a 4-show run each weekend at CA Johnson High School. 
• July 28-30 (CAST PURE IMAGINATION) 
• July 25th @7pm
• July 26th @ 2pm and 7pm
• July 27th @ 3pm
• August 4-6 (CAST GOLDEN TICKET) 
• August 1st @7pm
• August 2nd @ 2pm and 7pm
• August 3rd @ 3pm
• There will be no conflicts accepted for either cast July 14th-19th. There will also be no conflicts for CAST PURE IMAGINATION July 21st-27th and no conflicts for CAST GOLDEN TICKET July 28th-August 3rd. CCT will be closed June 28th-July 6th. 

*Any actor with more than 10 conflicts with rehearsals may not be considered for a role unless conflicts are negotiated. Conflicts must be finalized by audition date. Additional conflicts will be accepted on a case-by-case basis. Conflicts listed on audition form will be honored as excused absences, and unexcused absences may result in an actor being cut from songs and/or scenes or recast.

Director: Sadie Carr

Music Director: Anna Swearingen

Choreographer: Erica Cooper 

Stage Manager: Tobias Shaw 

CCT’s YouTheatre Ensembles will combine this summer to stage this production! 

The delicious adventures experienced by Charlie Bucket on his visit to Willy Wonka's mysterious chocolate factory light up the stage in this captivating adaptation of Roald Dahl's fantastical tale. Featuring the enchanting songs from the 1971 film starring Gene Wilder and new songs by Leslie Bricusse and Anthony Newley, Roald Dahl's Willy Wonka is a scrumdidilyumptious musical guaranteed to delight everyone's sweet tooth. Roald Dahl's Willy Wonka follows enigmatic candy manufacturer, Willy Wonka, as he stages a contest by hiding golden tickets in five of his scrumptious candy bars. Whomever comes up with these tickets will win a free tour of the Wonka factory, as well as a lifetime supply of candy. Four of the five winning children are insufferable brats: the fifth is a likable young lad named Charlie Bucket, who takes the tour in the company of his equally amiable grandfather. The children must learn to follow Mr. Wonka's rules in the factory... or suffer the consequences.

Questions? Please contact CCT Director of Operations, Sadie Carr at sadie@columbiachildrenstheatre.com