Lamarr! is set in the 1930s and 1940s. It concerns the life of Hedy Lamarr, “The Most Beautiful Woman In The World,” a screen actress, whose invention of Spread Spectrum radio is today at the heart of various technologies – cellphone, GPS, WiFim etc., etc…
Hedy escaped the Nazis and an abusive husband. During the Second World War, she raised millions for the Allied War Effort. She was cheated out of immense riches by the US Navy. Her very first film was banned by the Pope, she….
Let’s just say that if even one incident in your life was as dramatic as any of her top ten, you’d think you’d had an exciting ride.
Lamarr! chronicles a carefully curated selection of these events. There is humour, there are music and dancing, there is engineering.
The play has a cast of 28 (6 female, 22 male). With some doubling, the play can be cast with 10 actors (5 female, 5 male).
There are characters from Vienna, Germany and America. Accents on stage are hard to maintain and vary from actor to actor. Mostly, they’re more trouble than they are worth. One character (Maria) might benefit from a slight Austrian accent, and there’s one line about whether or not Hedy hasa vestigial accent when she’s in America, but we can play that either way. So we won’t be expecting any accents at auditions.
In the list below, up to 5 roles have been allocated to a single actor. However, if more than the minimum number of actors audition, some of the roles will be separated and allocated to more than one actor. Actors 1 to 5 are females. The Ship’s Steward, the two Porters and Schmidt, could be played by women or men.
Female Cast
Actor 1
Young Hedy. 9ish – 13ish. 2 scenes near the beginning of the play. Nice, intelligent kid with a bit of an attitude where her mother is concerned. Ability to play the piano would be lovely, but is less important than the ability to act!
Actor 2
Hedy. 17-25. till the very last scene when she’s in her mid-50s. Mechanical genius. Outgoing personality, gorgeous woman able to capture the attention of any man. No piano playing required! Ability to (learn to) waltz would be advantageous.
Actor 3
Liesl. 35 – 60. Hedy’s dresser, later her lady’s maid. Behaves like a bossy big sister. 4 scenes.
Maria. Teens – 70. 1 short scene. Maid in the Schloss (an Austrian castle). A little slow on the uptake. Could be played with a slight German accent.
Actor 4
Dead Hed (i.e., Hedy’s voice in the afterlife). The play has many short scenes. After Hedy’s death, her spirit reflects on what has been happening in the previous scene or previews what is about to happen in the following scene, while the stage crew change the set and Live Hedy changes from one glamorous costume to another. Dead Hed may have the most lines in the play. She needs to be able to express emotional subtext without someone else to react to. Could potentially be played by the same actor as Hedy. We’ll probably record this role.
Actor 5
Margaret Mayer. Early 50s. Wife of Louis B. Mayer, the movie producer. 1 scene.
Trude Kiesler Mid 30s.Hedy’s Mum. Comfortable middle-class woman, concerned for the happiness and safety of her daughter. Also a former concert pianist who has a strong desire for her daughter to follow in her footsteps. 2 scenes.
Male cast
Actor 6
Captain Duminsky (aka (Tweedle)Dum). Mid 30s. US Navy Captain. Used to command, but not terribly quick on the uptake.
Louis B. Mayer. mid 50s. Movie producer with an eye for beautiful women (it’s his job, he tells his wife). Ability to (learn to) waltz an advantage. 1 scene.
German Admiral. 40 – 65. Like Duminsky, he is used to command, but is also not terribly quick on the uptake. Two scenes.
Porter 1. Male or female. Non-speaking role. Very short time on stage.
Emil Kiesler. late 30s.2scenes. Hedy’s supportive, loving daddy. A banker with an interest in engineering.
Actor 7
Porter 2 Male or female. Teens – 70. Non-speaking role. 1 short scene.
German Naval Officer. 25 – 45. Non-speaking role. 2 scenes.
Howard Hughes. Late 30s. Billionaire aircraft designer and playboy. Has a comfortable, joshing relationship with Hedy. 1 scene.
Griffin. 30s – 60s. Ebullient talkshow host. 1 scene.
Actor 8
Friedrich (Fritz) Mandl. 30s. Hedy’s 1st husband (of 6). Arms dealer (“The Merchant of Death”) engineer. Sometimes supportive, sometimes abusive. Four scenes.
Ship’s Steward. 17 – 70. Could be male or female. 1 brief scene.
John Wayne. 50s. Tall, commanding, powerful, cowboy actor. 1 scene.
Actor 9
Commodore. 30s – 50s. German Naval officer. Significantly more capable of sounding authoritative when talking about technology (or anything, probably) than the Admiral. 2 scenes.
Ernst, Prince von Stahremberg. Early 30s. One of Hedy’s swains. Another not wonderfully astute fellow. 1 onstage scene. 1 scene as a voice over a telephone.
Ensign. US sailor. 17 – 30s. 2 scenes.
Eddie. Another US sailor, who appears on stage with Hedy to raise funds for Allied war effort. Big, strong looking fellow. A bit bashful, without a lot to say. 1 scene.
Actor 10
Hellmuth Walter. 25 – 60. German inventor. A little over-eager to talk about his invention, but never really gets the chance. 1 scene.
Schmidt. 25 – 60. Fritz Mandl’s thuggish driver. Likes to skull a spot of his boss’s whisky. 2 scenes (though only one has lines for Schmidt).
George Antheil. 30s – 40s. Music composer and Hedy’s fellow-inventor. 1 scene.