Professional Adult Actor Auditions

Professional Adult Actor Auditions

A note from First Stage and our Belonging, Equity, Access, and Diversity (BEAD) Committee:

At First Stage we recognize that our audiences connect more deeply with our work when they see themselves on stage. To that end, we will list race/ethnicity/ability when specific to the character and/or story but are otherwise seeking all races, ethnicities, and abilities. Additionally, while most characters we currently encounter in scripts are written with binary pronouns (he/him or she/her), our casting seeks to be as inclusive as possible. We invite gender non-conforming, genderqueer, transgender, and non-binary actors to submit for the roles which they most interest them. 

  — Adopted from language originally created by Kevin Kantor and Emily Trarquin of Actors Theatre of Louisville 

ADULT EQUITY GENERAL AUDITIONS

Monday, February 8, 2027 | 10am-6pm 

Milwaukee Youth Arts Center 
325 W. Walnut St. 
Milwaukee, WI 53212 

ADULT NON-EQUITY GENERAL AUDITIONS

Sunday, February 7, 2027 | 10am-6pm

Milwaukee Youth Arts Center
325 W. Walnut St. 
Milwaukee, WI 53212  

HOW TO AUDITION

To request an audition appointment, please email auditions@firststage.org. Appointments will be scheduled on a first come, first served basis until full. 

Our 2027–28 season has not yet been finalized. Our Audition Notice will be posted in January 2027, once the season has been announced, with information about the shows, casting needs, and audition material.
 
Once the Audition Notice is available, actors auditioning in person should prepare a monologue and a song in the style of our season. You may also choose to prepare two contrasting monologues instead. Your pieces, including your slate, should be approximately 3–5 minutes total. An accompanist will be provided for in-person auditions.
 
We will also accept video audition submissions through April 1, 2027, including dance reels for musical consideration. In-person callbacks will be held by invitation in May/June 2027 in Milwaukee.

ROLLING ACTOR SUBMISSIONS

Not available for our General Auditions? We’d still love to hear from you! First Stage accepts rolling submissions from adult actors throughout the year. We are continually expanding our Actor Database and welcome submissions from performers interested in working with First Stage in productions, new play development, understudy opportunities, special events, and other artistic projects.
 
Please send your submission to auditions@firststage.org with the following:
  • Current resume
  • Headshot
  • Self-tape of a monologue
  • Self-tape of a song, if applicable
  • Movement, dance, or specialty reels, if available 
We also welcome materials that help us understand the full range of your skills as a performer. These might include:
  • Dance or movement reels
  • Stage combat
  • Acrobatics, tricks, or other physical skills
  • Puppetry
  • Musical instrument performance
  • Vocal reels
  • Clowning or physical comedy 
  • Other specialty performance skills
You do not need to have a traditional “actor package” to submit. If there is something you do exceptionally well onstage, we want to know about it.
 
Rolling submissions allow our artistic team to get to know performers before specific casting needs arise. Materials may be considered for future seasons as well as special projects, including First Stage’s Amplify New Play Development processes and other performance opportunities.
 
Please note that a rolling submission does not guarantee an audition, callback, employment, or consideration for a specific role. We encourage actors to submit updated materials as their resumes, headshots, reels, or areas of expertise change.

UNDERSTUDY OPPORTUNITIES

All adult roles will be understudied for this season by non-union actors. A First Stage understudy typically covers one to two tracks. Understudies are expected to attend rehearsals approximately 8 hours per week during the rehearsal process, as well as attend the production once per week while the show is in performance. Understudies must be local to Milwaukee.
 
Understudy tracks pay $150/week, with additional per-performance pay if you are called to perform. If you are interested in being considered for an understudy opportunity, please contact our auditions team at auditions@firststage.org.

OTHER WAYS TO GET INVOLVED

Stage Managers
AEA Stage Managers interested in working with First Stage may submit their resumes to Sammy Brown, our Director of Production, at production@firststage.org.

Teaching Artists
We are always looking for teaching artists for our Theater in Education programs during the school year and our Theater Academy during the school year and summer.

Please send your interest and resume to J.T. Backes at academy@firststage.org for Academy opportunities or Brinn Hill at education@firststage.org for in-school and after-school education programs 

ABOUT FIRST STAGE

FIRST STAGE is proud to employ between 24-32 professional actors every season, and there are opportunities for Internships, Understudies, and Teaching Artist Fellows. FIRST STAGE employs Actor’s Equity Association Actors and Non-Equity actors under a Theatre For Young Audience (TYA) Contract. First Stage is one of the nation’s largest professional theatre for young audiences. We are an Equity theatre that also hires non-equity actors and understudies for all shows. Contracts run in length from six to nine weeks. We do age-appropriate casting for our young roles, and cast anywhere from five to twenty-five young performers per show. We also are interested in actors who have experience or potential as teaching artists either in our Theater in Education department or our nationally acclaimed Theater Academy.

more information

Jeff Frank, Artistic Director — jfrank@firststage.org, auditions@firststage.org, or (414) 267-2981
Michelle LoRicco, Associate Artistic Director — mloricco@firststage.org