The Importance of Being Earnest
By Oscar Wilde
Production Team:
Director: Michael Muffuletto
Stage Manager: Matt Miyagi
For the complete performance and rehearsal schedule, and to sign up to audition, visit www.sullivantheater.com/auditions
SUMMARY
The Importance of Being Earnest is a witty comedy of manners by Oscar Wilde that satirizes Victorian society's obsession with appearances, social status, and marriage. The plot follows two bachelors, Jack and Algernon, who create fictional personas—both named "Ernest"—to escape social obligations and pursue romantic entanglements. Their deception leads to a series of farcical misunderstandings involving their love interests, Gwendolen and Cecily, both of whom are determined to marry a man named Ernest. The chaos escalates with the arrival of the formidable Lady Bracknell and a series of surprising revelations about Jack's origins. In the end, identities are restored, love triumphs, and Wilde delivers a playful jab at the triviality beneath society’s seriousness.
CHARACTER BREAKDOWN
**Please note we would love a diverse cast and welcome all ages, genders, races, and ethnicities to audition. While there are specific ages listed for many of these characters, the director is open to flexibility on these ages. Auditioners must be 16 years or older to audition, though not all roles are appropriate for young performers**
Accents will be required for this show. Accent details are listed with each character’s description.
John “Jack” Worthing
Jack is the play’s protagonist. He is a seemingly responsible and respectable young man who leads a double life. As a baby, Jack was found in a handbag in the cloakroom of Victoria Station by Thomas Cardew. Jack is now the guardian of Thomas’s granddaughter, Cecily Cardew. Jack is in love with Algernon’s cousin, Gwendolen Fairfax.
Age Range: 30’s, or passing as such
Accent: Received Pronunciation (i.e. “standard” British accent)
Note: Role will require some choreographed stage intimacy, which may include stage kissing.
Algernon Moncrieff
Algernon is Jack’s rather dishonest hedonist friend. Algernon is charming, brilliant, witty, and selfish. Unlike Jack, Algernon is not serious. Algernon falls in love with Cecily, while posing as Jack’s younger brother, Ernest. Algernon is the nephew of Lady Bracknell and cousin of Gwendolen Fairfax.
Age Range: late 20’s - 30’s, or passing as such
Accent: Received Pronunciation (i.e. “standard” British accent)
Note: Role will require some choreographed stage intimacy, which will include stage kissing.
Gwendolen Fairfax
Gwendolen is Lady Bracknell’s daughter and Algernon’s cousin. She is in love with Jack, whom she knows as Ernest. She is a modern, independent-thinking woman within the constraints of Victorian society, prioritizing her own desires and opinions.
Age Range: 20s - 30s, or passing as such
Accent: Received Pronunciation (i.e. “standard” British accent)
Note: Role will require some choreographed stage intimacy, which may include stage kissing.
Lady Bracknell
Lady Bracknell is a strongly opinionated matriarch, dowager, and tyrant. She is the perfect symbol of Victorian earnestness — the belief that style is more important than substance and that social and class barriers are to be enforced. She is Gwendolen’s mother and Algernon’s aunt. Lady Bracknell makes declarations that are unintentionally humorous.
Age Range: 55+, or passing as such
Accent: Received Pronunciation (i.e. “standard” British accent)
Cecily Cardew
Cecily is Jack’s young ward and niece. She lives with him in the country. Like Gwendolen, she is obsessed with the name Ernest and is intrigued by the idea of wickedness. This idea, rather than the virtuous-sounding name, has prompted her to fall in love with Jack's brother Ernest in her imagination and to invent an elaborate romance and courtship between them. She falls in love with Algernon when he visits her under the name of Ernest.
Age Range: 20’s, or passing as such
Accent: Received Pronunciation (i.e. “standard” British accent)
Note: Role will require some choreographed stage intimacy, which will include stage kissing.
Rev. Canon Chasuble, D.D.
Chasuble is the rector (vicar) at Jack’s country estate. Though he is celibate, he engages in flirtations with Miss Prism. Like Miss Prism, he is the source of Victorian moral judgments, but under the surface he appears to be lecherous. His sermons often have a double meaning, mocking religious conventions.
Age Range: 55+, or passing as such
Accent: Received Pronunciation (i.e. “standard” British accent)
Miss Prism
Miss Prism is Cecily’s governess and a symbol of Victorian moral righteousness. She is educating Cecily to have no imagination or sensationalism in her life. Quoting scripture as a symbol of her Victorian morality, she reveals a secret life of passion by her concern for the whereabouts of her misplaced novel and her flirtation with the local vicar, Dr. Chasuble.
Age Range: 45+, or passing as such
Accent: Received Pronunciation (i.e. “standard” British accent)
Lane
Lane is Algernon's manservant (butler). He delivers a number of droll lines, showing that he is far from a passive servant. Lane says soothing and comforting things to his employer but stays within the neutral guidelines of a servant. He aids and abets the lies of Algernon.
Age Range: 45+, or passing as such
Accent: Received Pronunciation (i.e. “standard” British accent) or Estuary (a mix of RP and Cockney)
Merriman
Merriman is Jack’s butler at the Manor house in the country. Merriman keeps the structure of the plot working: he announces people and happenings. Like Lane, he does not comment on his "betters," but does take amusement in their folly. Includes plenty of non-verbal acting.
Age Range: Any
Accent: Received Pronunciation (i.e. “standard” British accent) or Estuary (a mix of RP and Cockney)
Additional non-verbal characters could be added, such as Footmen, Servants, and Maids. These actors would also serve as crew.
Sign up now at www.sullivantheater.com/auditions
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