Theater Arts & Dance Auditions

Any current UCSC student is welcome to audition for our productions!

SPRING 2025 PRODUCTION &
AUDITION INFORMATION

General Auditions are traditionally held on the first Thursday and Friday of the Quarter. Spring Auditions have passed. Please read below for more information about acting opportunities still available this quarter!
See below for general production and audition information.

• Theater Arts majors: Please review info about the Production Requirement for the Major.
• Theater Arts and Dance minors: There is no production requirement for our minors, but upper division productions may be used to satisfy minor requirements – please check with the Theater Arts Advisor about this: theater-ugradadv@ucsc.edu.
• See the 2025 Spring Production Dates HERE.

Upper Division Productions(s)

• THEA 151-01 – Just Like Us written by Karen Zacarías
  • Directed by Carolina G. Riaño
  • Mainstage, Theater Arts Center
  • Based on Helen Thorpe’s bestselling book, this documentary-style play follows four Latina teenage girls in Denver—two of whom are documented and two who are not—posing difficult yet essential questions about what makes us American.
    • Casting details and a short excerpt can be found HERE !
      
• THEA 151-02 – Them Cowboys written by Chris Hernandez
  • Dharma Grace Creative Writing Award Production
  • Directed by Claire Ganem
  • Second Stage, Theater Arts Center
  • Two nonbinary cowboys, Gus and Billy, are down on their luck and traveling through the Wild West. On their journey, they learn about a fabled treasure hidden by the legendary outlaw Bungus Balloo. Seeking money to build their dream life together, they go on a whimsical cowboy quest to find it and run into some hiccups along the way.

All Upper Division production auditions will take place at Spring General Auditions on April 3rd and 4th. See GENERAL AUDITION requirements below.

Lower Division Production(s) 

• THEA 56R Rainbow Theater
  • Rainbow Theater auditions for Spring Quarter 2025 have PASSED.
  • Learn more about Rainbow Theater here.

• THEA 55A (5-units) / THEA 55B (2-units) Barnstorm Theater Company 
  Barnstorm is not active during Spring quarter. Learn about Barnstorm here.

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GENERAL AUDITION DATES, TIMES & LOCATION: 

Spring General Auditions have PASSED! However, Just Like Us and The New Play Festival is still seeking actors to fill a few more roles! Keep an eye on this page – more information is coming soon. Please email theaspl@ucsc.edu if interested!

GENERAL AUDITION REQUIREMENTS:

General Auditions for the department’s faculty and/or student-directed productions are held the first week of each quarter unless otherwise announced. Occasionally, productions have separate auditions, or special requirements for auditions – that information would be listed on this page.

Standard General Audition Requirements*

• 90 second monologue
• 60 second movement piece
• 30 second music piece (voice and/or instrument) 

Note: Please be off-book for all pieces (memorized).

• PLEASE CHECK BACK HERE FOR UPDATES BETWEEN NOW AND AUDITIONS.
  
• ACCOMPANISTS are NOT provided.
  If you feel it necessary, you may play music with a portable music device, e.g., a smart phone with speakers or old-time boom-box, though this is not required (singing may be a cappella and movement pieces may be silent). 
  
• MOVEMENT PIECE
  Unless any of the auditioning shows are musicals, the movement piece is primarily meant to demonstrate that you are comfortable in your body on stage (or at least can act as though you are!), and that you are willing to move on stage vs. staying in a narrow comfort zone of standing or sitting in one place. The movement section also offers you an opportunity to demonstrate any particular movement or performance skill if you happen to have any—e.g., pantomime, clowning, acrobatics, juggling, dance. Otherwise, even jumping jacks, the Macarena, running back and forth, etc., can show a basic willingness to move in front of people. If one of the auditioning shows is a musical, and/or if any of the directors want to see specific pieces or skills, there will be details above the sign up sheet or instructions will be given for those invited to callbacks. 

ADDITIONAL IMPORTANT
AUDITION & RELATED INFORMATION:

DESIGN WORK & STAGE MANAGEMENT FOR PRODUCTIONS

• Please see the “Tech Interest Form”/ Production Experience & Interest Form section in the Theater Arts Undergraduate Handbook.
  • Most technical positions have been filled for Spring Quarter. We are currently still seeking Prop masters!
  • Please fill out the tech interest google form to get recruited for shows!
  • We will start looking at Fall quarter soon and will be reaching out to students in May.

ENROLLMENT IN PRODUCTIONS

• Students who are cast in productions, or who have been selected to participate as designers, stage managers or dramaturgs, will be given an enrollment permission number to enroll through MyUCSC.
• Enrollment permission numbers are typically distributed by the stage manager or director of the production.
• IT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE STUDENT TO ENROLL BY THE QUARTER’S ADD/DROP/SWAP DEADLINE (date posted in the current Academic and Administrative Calendar).
• Attention Barnstorm students: be sure you are enrolling in the correct class – THEA 55A for 5 units (and to take care of the Production Requirement and/or the Lower Division Elective for the for the major), or THEA 55B for 2 units (doesn’t satisfy a course requirement). Students enrolled in the 5-unit version of the class will be expected to complete approximately three times more work than students enrolled in the 2-unit version.

BY-AUDITION OR INSTRUCTOR PERMISSION STUDIO COURSES

• Production auditions are different from those required for admittance into our studio courses (courses which mention “audition” or “interview” in the course description).
  • Please see the By-Audition or Instructor Permission Studio Courses of the Undergraduate Handbook for more information.

SATISFYING DEGREE REQUIREMENTS
WITH PRODUCTION CLASSES

SATISFYING REQUIREMENTS FOR THE THEATER ARTS MAJOR

• Theater Arts Majors may use the 5-unit lower division THEA 55A Barnstorm or THEA 56R Rainbow Theater to satisfy the lower division elective requirement and/or the Production Requirement (see below) for the THEA B.A.
• Theater Arts Majors may use 5-unit upper division production classes to fulfill one or both upper division elective requirements.

Production Requirement for the Major

One of the requirements for the Theater Arts major is participation in a 5-unit THEA production class. 

• The Production Requirement may be fulfilled with either the lower division classes THEA 55A Barnstorm or THEA 56R Rainbow Theater, classes that may also be used to fulfill the Lower Division Elective requirement for the major, or with any 5-unit upper division production class: THEA 137, 137A, 139, 151, 151A, 151I, or 155 – classes which may also be used to fulfill one or both of the major’s two Upper Division Elective requirements.
• Please see the Production Requirement for the Major section of the Theater Arts Undergraduate Handbook for more information on fulfilling this requirement as a performer, designer, stage manager or dramaturg.

SATISFYING REQUIREMENTS FOR THE MINORS

• There is no Production Requirement for either the Theater Arts or Dance minor.
• Theater Arts Minors may use any 5-unit upper division production class to fulfill one of the two upper division studio requirements.
• Dance Minors may use takes of the upper division production class THEA 139 to fulfill up to two upper division elective requirements.
• The lower division THEA 55A Barnstorm or THEA 56R Rainbow Theater do NOT satisfy a minor requirement (and the 2-unit THEA 55B does not fulfill any degree requirement). 

Questions about THEA or Dance degree requirements? Contact the Theater Arts Academic Advisor via email, theater-ugradadv@ucsc.edu, or schedule an appointment through Navigate Slug Success.

QUESTIONS?

• General Auditions questions: contact the Theater Arts Student Production Liaison, theaspl@ucsc.edu.
• Barnstorm-related questions: contact the Barnstorm Directors, ad.barn@ucsc.edu and md.bard@ucsc.edu.
• The Theater Arts advisor can also answer basic questions about auditions: theater-ugradadv@ucsc.edu.
• Please also check the UCSC Theater Arts Events and Information Facebook page.