Katie Michelle Stahl Productions
New York, NY
US

CONTACT NAME

Katie Stahl

DESCRIPTION

MON FEB 9TH: Auditions open

MON FEB 23RD: Auditions due

WED FEB 25TH: Callback invitations sent

MON MARCH 2ND: Offers out

FRI FEB 27TH: Full company intro zoom meeting

REHEARSALS: March 1st-April 10th (about 2-3 times a week depending on actors’ schedules)

TECH: TBD

PERFORMANCE: Sunday, April 12th at 5pm

Chestnuts is a raw, darkly funny family drama set over the course of a single Christmas night, where unresolved grief, addiction, and love collide inside a fractured household.

As the night escalates, long-buried resentments surface. When confrontations turn violent and temptation pushes Malcolm to the edge of relapse, Chestnuts becomes a reckoning, forcing each character to confront the difference between love and enabling, loyalty and responsibility, and grief and accountability. By morning, the family is irrevocably changed, learning that healing does not come from saving others, but from finally choosing truth.

CHARACTER BREAKDOWN:

MALCOLM: Male-identifying, early 20s (strong preference for actors who are South Asian/Indian, although everyone is invited to audition)
Malcolm is thoughtful, guarded, and quietly carrying more weight than anyone realizes. Still grieving the loss of his brother Paul, he is newly sober and terrified of becoming the person his family failed to save.

NICOLE: Female-identifying, early 20s, any ethnicity.
Nicole is sharp, warm, and emotionally mature. In recovery herself, she is grounded in honesty and self-respect, refusing to sacrifice her sobriety to keep the peace. While she enters the family dynamic as an outsider, she quickly becomes its emotional compass, modeling boundaries and accountability that the family lacks.

DIVA: Female-identifying, 50s (strong preference for actors who are South Asian/Indian, although everyone is invited to audition)
Diva is a mother who has spent her life holding everyone together, often at her own expense. Deeply loving but deeply flawed, she confuses caretaking with control and loyalty with denial. The loss of her son Paul has left her paralyzed by fear, terrified that if she lets go of Aziz, she will lose him too.

RODNEY: Male-identifying, 50s (strong preference for actors who are South Asian/Indian, although everyone is invited to audition)
Rodney is pragmatic, emotionally reserved, and worn down by years of conflict. He sees the danger Aziz represents and wants to protect his family, but his frustration often manifests as rigidity rather than empathy. Rodney loves his wife and son deeply, yet struggles to express it without ultimatums.

AZIZ: Male-identifying, 30s (strong preference for actors who are South Asian/Indian, although everyone is invited to audition)
Aziz is charismatic, volatile, and deeply broken. A lifelong addict, he masks his guilt and self-loathing with humor, manipulation, and bravado. Aziz loves his family but refuses responsibility for the damage he causes, perpetually casting himself as both victim and savior. He embodies the chaos of untreated addiction: charming, dangerous, and tragically incapable of change until forced to face true consequences.

AUDITIONS DUE MONDAY FEBRUARY 23RD BY 11:59PM
AUDITION INFO: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1fVujbGYFPEvTzPgKIBsMymDM8EVRLimXInQkKDV81g8/edit?usp=sharing

Once you've read the document all the way through, feel free to email
[email protected] with questions!

We look forward to watching your submissions!

DURATION

Feb 27, 2026 - Apr 12, 2026

SALARY

$200.00 – $200.00 per gig

APPLY ONLINE

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1fVujbGYFPEvTzPgKIBsMymDM8EVRLimXInQkKDV81g8/edit?usp=sharing