“Let them eat cake!”

After all, who doesn’t like cake? We’re loading up on the frosting and witty comebacks as we prepare for the first show of the 2019 season, Eat Cake, a murder mystery farce set at the time of the French Revolution. We need actors to play our hilarious group of Versailles aristocrats and troublemakers for our show.

EAT CAKE

Auditions

Friday, December 14 and Saturday, December 15, 2018

5 to 7 p.m. at Red Rock Books (206 W. Ridgecrest Blvd.)

Ridgecrest, CA

Eat Cake will be our second partnership with the legendary Amargosa Opera House in Death Valley Junction, CA. Amargosa Opera House, featuring the gorgeous murals painted by the late Marta Becket, was the venue of our smash success murder mystery opera, Exit Prima Donna, in Spring 2018. Amargosa was very keen on bringing us back for the 2019 season. Eat Cake calls upon those elaborate murals once again, and we have designed a festive French court farce set in the backdrop of rumbling revolution. The action is fast-paced, the characters sarcastic and scheming, and the behavior scandalous. Our script calls for four females and two males.

Actors need to be age 15 and older to audition. Those under 18 will need a parent/guardian signature on a permission slip AND a parent/guardian MUST attend any and all rehearsals their child attends. Actors will be paid for their work. Amargosa Opera House is located in Death Valley which requires lots of travel time. We will work to coordinate transportation for everyone. Actors under 18 require a parent/guardian to travel with us. The show performs March 23, March 30, April 6, and April 13, 2019 at 2 p.m. at Amargosa Opera House.

During auditions, everyone will fill out an audition form which will ask for basics such as name, email, experience, availability, etc. These are just basics to give us an understanding on who the performer is as well as contact information. Then we pair up performers for cold readings of selected scenes from the original script by Daniel Stallings. Rehearsal schedule will be finalized after auditions based on actor availability.  First rehearsal will not be until after the holidays.  After auditions, casting emails will be sent out to actors.

If you are unable to attend the posted audition dates, but are still interested in trying out, message us on Facebook or email us at mastermysteryproductions@hotmail.com to schedule an outside audition.

SYNOPSIS

It’s 1789, and it’s the last hurrah for the French aristocracy before the guillotine cuts the celebration short. At the gilt-and-crystal splendor of Versailles, the eccentric and flamboyant Marquis Mauvais has taken up the latest fashion in “philanthropy” when he scoops up Brigitte the Bawd from the streets of Paris and aims to transform her from the slums to the salons. Contending with his fiancée, a vicious gossip, and a distinguished, yet doomed countess is a cake walk for the egotistical nobleman, but little does he know that his pet project intends to smuggle in dangerous revolutionaries into the palace. When a series of failed assassinations at multiple targets rock the Marquis’ apartments, a madcap maze of motives and mistaken identity is exposed. Who is responsible for the insanity? Is anyone truly innocent? In a farcical nod to the madness of Versailles and the French Revolution, Eat Cake is a hilarious, high-speed mystery comedy with wacky characters, screwball secrets, and tumultuous twists and turns that make you wonder if anyone can have their cake and eat it too.

CAST OF CHARACTERS

THE MARQUIS MAUVAIS — The eccentric, vain, and flamboyant master of the apartments in Versailles. Ridiculous and fickle, the Marquis vacillates between fashions and whims in the blink of an eye. His current fixation is “philanthropy,” an insane desire to do good while actually doing nothing of the sort. He has taken Brigitte into his home to teach her the finer things in life without realizing she is using him to aid a revolutionary plot. He is often at odds with Lady Chantilly, his intended bride, whom he never calls by the correct name.

BRIGITTE THE BAWD — A “woman of ill repute” who lives in the slums of Paris and regularly turns a profit on noblemen who visit her establishment. Sassy, smart-mouthed, and strong-willed, Brigitte is never afraid to confront the issue or speak her mind. Said to have a mind “like a guillotine,” she is the sharpest person involved and often has to figure out how to fix the chaos caused by the others. She is pro-Revolution and is trying to sneak revolutionary friends of hers into Versailles to complete a secret plan.

LADY CHANTILLY — The Marquis’ fiancée and the ward of Madame la Comtesse. Clearly the brains of the relationship with the Marquis, Her Ladyship has been cooking up a scheme with him which they hope to execute that day. Unfortunately, he neglected to tell her about Brigitte, which infuriates Lady Chantilly. Exasperated by his fickleness and narcissism, she nonetheless stays loyal to him and their goals, despite never missing the opportunity to throw a little shade in his direction.

MADAME LA COMTESSE (The Countess of Nowhere in Particular) — The widowed and childless Countess is an extremely wealthy and respected member of the French court, despite no one knowing or caring where she is a countess of. She is full of backhanded compliments spouted with genuine caring and maternal instinct. The Countess becomes a central figure in the play when it’s clear several attempts have been made on her life. Unconcerned about her safety, the Countess has a bad habit of showing up at places where it’s dangerous for her to be, creating even more chaos as several nefarious plans collide and conflict with each other. Despite the Marquis’ belief that she’s dim, the Countess is more observant and cunning than many give her credit for.

HENRI — A revolutionary aiming to take down the French aristocracy and an associate of Brigitte the Bawd. Hot-headed and eager to fight, Henri is the least stable of the revolutionary duo as he is keen on picking fights with the aristocrats. Brigitte is trying to sneak him into Versailles for a secret mission. But when disaster strikes, Henri gets tangled up in the aristocracy in a way he didn’t expect: having to play as one of their own.

MADAME DU POMMADE — A vicious gossip who haunts the halls of Versailles, collecting people’s secrets for her “private enjoyment.” Sneaky and sly, Madame du Pommade has set her sights on The Marquis Mauvais as her next target in her “game of information.” She has invited herself, completely unsolicited, to his apartments and becomes an extra complication for our characters to work around. At best an inconvenience, at worst an active spy, Madame du Pommade knows something is up at Versailles and is determined to stick her nose right into the heart of the matter. Even if it means risking the chopping block.

Eat Cake will be a rollicking, rowdy, and rambunctious show. We’re aiming for high energy and hilarity while still providing the cunning mystery our fans expect from our work. We welcome anyone who is interested to audition! No theatrical experience is necessary. We are happy to take and develop new talent all the time. If you have questions or concerns, email us at mastermysteryproductions@hotmail.com or message Master Mystery Productions of Facebook.

Come join the fun! For once, we can have our cake and eat it too.

Hope to see you at auditions!

–Master Mystery Productions