THE WAVES
NYC, NY
US

DESCRIPTION

Seeking exceptional singers/actors with a proficiency in learning contemporary scores quickly for an industry presentation of selections from THE WAVES, a bold new musical theatre-opera hybrid based on Virginia Woolf's classic novel.

ABOUT THE PRODUCTION

Six friends navigate the shifting currents of desire, grief, and memory in a genre-defying opera that distills Virginia Woolf's timeless novel into a meditation on the fleeting brilliance of being alive. Woven from overlapping voices, choral textures, and shifting interior musical monologues, this work traces their passage from childhood into the tangled realms of love, ambition, grief, and aging.

Librettist: Will Nunziata
Composer: Blake Allen

SEEKING:

JINNY – Coloratura Soprano (B4–F6) - 20s-40s
A radiant creature of movement and desire, Jinny lives through the senses: her body, her beauty, her fleeting encounters, shimmering with the vitality of the moment.

SUSAN – Lyric Soprano (A3–D6) - 20s-40s
Rooted and elemental, Susan embodies earth and home; her life is bound to cycles of family and harvest, her voice carrying the quiet strength of devotion and continuity. Intense emotional range essential.

RHODA – Mezzo-Soprano (F3–G5) - 20s-40s
Shadowed and tremulous, Rhoda is a soul of fragile imagination, ever-dreaming yet dissolving at the edges, seeking refuge from the weight of her own reflection. Requires extraordinary sensitivity and vocal delicacy.

NEVILLE – Countertenor (or Soprano) (A3–Bb5) - 20s-40s
An elegant, wounded intellectual, Neville is drawn to order, beauty, and desire; brilliant in society yet set apart by the unspoken truth of his love for Percival. Must convey repressed longing with lyric vulnerability.

BERNARD – Baritenor (A2–G4) - 20s-40s
Bernard is the restless weaver of words, the eternal storyteller who fashions life into phrases and seeks in language the shape and grandeur of existence itself. Strong actor-singer who can navigate both public exuberance and private uncertainty.

LOUIS – Bass-Baritone (D2–G4) - 20s-40s
Marked by his Australian accent and his inherent difference, Louis is both an outsider and an aspirant; he aches for belonging among his poetic companions, yet bends his will toward ambition and worldly success.

LIEBESLIEDER & CHORUS (All voice types) - 20s-40s
Soprano I, Soprano II, Alto, Tenor I, Tenor II, Bass
Multiple character roles including: Mrs. Constable (caretaker), Miss Hudson (governess), Miss Curry (gentle caretaker), Miss Lambert (school mistress), Dr. Crane (headmaster), Walter J. Trumble (tradesman), and others. Must blend beautifully as an ensemble.

ABOUT THE SCORE

Blake Allen's score is a living tide, weaving between opera, musical theatre, and drama with the same fluidity as Woolf's prose. Oscillating between modernity, neo-classicism, impressionism, jazz, operetta, and verismo, the music breathes with the characters from luminous harmonies capturing the wonder of first discoveries to surging climaxes echoing life's chaos.

DATES

Rehearsals: Week of January 26, 2026

Industry Presentations: Monday, February 2, 2026

COMPENSATION

This is a PAID opportunity per AEA 29-Hour Code Contract.

SUBMISSIONS

Please submit:

-Headshot & Resume

-Link to vocal reel or video (classical/opera/musical theatre)

-Indicate which role(s) you're interested in

Subject Line: THE WAVES - [Your Name] - [Role Name / Voice Part]

Deadline: Monday, December 29, 2025

All voice types, ethnicities, and gender identities are encouraged to apply. This production is committed to inclusive casting.

DURATION

Jan 26, 2026 - Feb 2, 2026

SALARY

$100 per Gig

UNION

NON-UNION

APPLY BY EMAIL

8d222327-0b7c-40b7-84df-53b7d42301ec…
^*NOTE: Do not copy/paste the above email address as it is encoded with SPAM protection. Just click it to initiate an email from your preferred email client.