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Agatha Christie's
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AUDITIONS
Saturday July 12 and Sunday July 13, 2025 at 7:00pm.
Smithfield Little Theatre Stage
Callbacks, if required will be held at the Carrollton Library Meeting Room
14362 New Towne Haven Lane, Carrollton, VA
Smithfield Little Theatre Stage
Callbacks, if required will be held at the Carrollton Library Meeting Room
14362 New Towne Haven Lane, Carrollton, VA
What to Prepare
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Please prepare one of the 6 monologues provided. IF you have an accent you are FULLY CONFIDENT in, you may choose to use it on your monologue selection, this is NOT required and we want to see your best, so if an accent hinders that, just deliver the monologue in a way that best shows us your acting ability!
On the night of auditions, come prepared with any known conflicts (A rough draft rehearsal calendar will be provided to look over) and your experience/resume, and your prepared monologue. We will also be doing cold reads from selected sides at the audition. In these we do ask that you at least attempt the accent of the character you are reading for. Do not worry if it is not great, that in no way affects your possibility of getting cast, it just helps us to better see you as a part of the picture we are creating get an ear for your ability with accents. |
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Note: All Characters can be played by any ethnicity.
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Regarding ages: some age flexibility is possible, with the following exceptions:
- Michel must be believably old enough to have an adult child in their 20s. - Helen Hubbard must be believably old enough to have an adult child in their mid-late 20’s. |
Character Descriptions
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HERCULE POIROT
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Male presenting, aged 40s-60s, Belgian accent (Commonly mistaken for French). Iconic character. Agatha Christie’s most famous detective. Poirot is brilliant, eccentric, thorough, incredibly observant, and a touch of OCD. He is both arrogant/confident and humble to fault. He is an observer of people, astute at analyzing why people behave as they do, and firmly believes that most crimes can be solved primarily by observation, psychology, and thinking them through. He values intelligence and the rule of law above all else.
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MONSIEUR BOUC
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Male presenting, aged 30s-60s, Belgian accent, the owner/director of the Wagon-Lit Company and thus the Orient Express. Bouc is a middle-aged man with a youthful vigor and attitude. Comes from family money but not in a way you resent him for. Gregarious, honest and forthright, he puts his friends and customers above profit, although he is concerned about his company's image. He is not a match for Poirot in intelligence, however.
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MARY DEBENHAM
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Female presenting, 20s-40s, English (standard) accent, A governess. Anxious, but also cool and determined, Mary has a certain sadness about her. She holds many secrets among them the fact that she is carrying on a secret affair with Colonel Arburthnot. Must be comfortable kissing on stage.
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COLONEL ARBUTHNOT
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Male presenting, 30s-50s, English or Scottish accent, A military man of the old fashioned type, possibly old-money, and used to being obeyed without question. He is strong, charismatic, holds questionable personal views. Has a temper. Must be comfortable kissing on stage.
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HECTOR MACQUEEN
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Male presenting, 20s-30s, American accent (any), Personal assistant and secretary to Samuel Ratchett, McQueen is a nervous character with a stutter that appears when he is especially anxious. Seems rather new to his profession. Talks a bit too much.
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MICHEL THE CONDUCTOR
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Male presenting, 40s-50s, French accent, Competent and organized, Michel is the conductor for the first class carriages of the Orient Express. Handles himself well in a crisis, and is very good at his job.
NOTE: This actor will double as the Head Waiter of the Tokatilian Hotel, and will also need to be able to do a Turkish accent.
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PRINCESS DRAGOMIROFF
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Female presenting, 60s-70s, Russian accent, Displaced Russian nobility. The Princess is a battleship: determined, arrogant, and accustomed to getting her way. She travels a great deal and holds very decided opinions.
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GRETA OHLSSON
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Female presenting, 30s, Swedish accent, A Catholic missionary and baby nurse, currently serving as a companion to Princess Dragomiroff. She would like to help small children in Africa. Deeply devout. This character may be funny, but should not be played as a caricature for laughs.
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COUNTESS ANDRENYI
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Female presenting, 20s-30s, Hungarian accent, any ethnicity In addition to being married to a count (and thus, nobility), she also is a doctor. Beautiful, educated, charming, and intelligent enough to match wits with Poirot. Must also be able to do an American accent.
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HELEN HUBBARD
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Female presenting, 40s-60s, Bracing American accent (think entitled American tourist). Not exactly what she seems, Hubbard comes across as a gregarious, loud, obnoxious American busybody who has been married multiple times. Must be able to sing and do a little dancing. Should also be able to pull off a cooler, more calculated version of this character with a very standard or even cultured American accent.
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SAMUEL RATCHETT
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Male presenting, 30s-50s, American accent (mobster - possibly Brooklyn or Chicago style) A dangerous and unlikable man, full of entitlement, with a hair trigger temper. Must have a forceful personality, and come across as someone not to be trusted or crossed. As the murder victim, this actor may be required to remain on stage and still for an extended period of time.
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Audition Monologues
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FEMALE
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I prayed for you to die. During the war. I really did, Noah. Well, not die. I would’ve felt terrible if you’d died. I just wanted you to kind of not be alive anymore. I couldn’t bear the thought of us never being together again, of your being with someone else, which is why I should go now, don’t you think? Oh, God, Noah, I am so confused. It may not seem like it, but I am. For seven years, no matter what I did, I couldn’t get you out of my mind, and then I met Lon, and he’s really great, and I told him I’d marry him. And I want to marry him, I really do, but then I saw your picture in the paper. And I knew I couldn’t marry him until I saw you again, because we never really finished things, not really. And now here I am, and all those adolescent feelings have come back, and I still love Lon, and I’d never break off our marriage. But, basically, all I want to do is crawl under a rock and stay there for the rest of the life. So, what do I do? Leave before I make a total mess of things, right? Or do I say the hell with everything and just stay here and enjoy whatever time we’ve got left? You tell me. What do I do?
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FEMALE
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I’m not going to let you hurt me, Nora. I’m not going to let you tell me that I don’t love you or that I haven’t tried to give you as much as I gave Laurie . . . God knows I’m not perfect because enough angry people in this house told me so tonight . . . But I am not going to be a doormat for all the frustrations and unhappiness that you or Aunt Kate or anyone else wants to lay at my feet . . . I did not create this Universe. I do not decide who lives and dies, or who’s rich or poor or who feels loved and who feels deprived. If you feel cheated that Laurie gets more than you, than I feel cheated that my husband died at thirty-six. And if you keep on feeling that way, you’ll end up like me . . . with something much worse than loneliness or helplessness and that’s self-pity. Believe me, there is nothing worse than human being who thrives on his own misfortunes .. . I am sorry, Nora, that you feel unloved and I will do everything I can to change it but I will not go back to being that frightened, helpless woman that I created! . . . I’ve already buried someone I love. Now it’s time to bury someone I hate.
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MALE
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Jim, I’m not going to lie. Marriage can be a pain in the a—. And you’re kind of right – All of this is just stuff on the way to your eventual demise. We are all on running clocks that cannot be slowed down or paused and they all lead to the same place. Some guys leave marks that last beyond their own mortality. Not guys like you and me… But some. But even those footprints disappear. (a beat) There isn’t a “point”. I’m not the guy you’d normally want to talk to about all this stuff… But think about it – your favorite memories. The greatest moments of your life? Were you alone? I don’t want to sound like a Hallmark card, but… Life? It’s better with company. Come to think of it… Last night, the night before your wedding, when all this s— was circling through your head… Weren’t you two sleeping in separate rooms? Kind of lonely? Hey. Everybody needs a copilot.
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MALE
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The bullet hasn’t moved. I wish we could get at it … but if we’re a little lucky, it’ll never move and he’ll be fine. (looks through charts) His brainwaves and reflexes look great. For a guy that’s just come out of a three month coma he’s in better shape than I am. (A long beat. sighs) Sarah, the truth is, it’s going to be a long rehabilitation. It could take six months … it could take six years. We’re starting from scratch here. Henry doesn’t remember how to speak, or how to move, or anything. His memories are still in there, I mean one day everything might come back, but there are no guarantees. (a beat) There’s nothing more we can do here. I’ve spoken to a clinic in Bedford that I’ve done some work with. We can get Henry in there immediately. (a beat) Sarah, I just want to make sure you’re prepared. Henry might not remember you, or your daughter, or anyone. Ever.
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No Set Gender
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Well obviously I can’t take this. I mean, I didn’t do it for the money anyway, I did it because you seemed like you needed a hand, and to be honest I needed a break from my high-pressure job, and even though I’m guessing you’re pretty pissed right now, in the end I think you’ll see this was the most helpful thing I could do. Because– (deep earnest) Moving on is so hard sometimes–I mean, I get it, I’ve been there. It’s such a—(gestures:fist to his heart), you know? And in those moments, when you’re in the middle of doing something really crazy and humiliating, what you need more than anything else is a reality check, someone who can reflect you back to yourself, so you can be like, hey, is this really what I want to be doing? Is this really who I want to be? (beat) So that’s what I decided to do for you, in the end. I don’t think this is who you want to be.
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No Set Gender
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So I went to college while she went to Europe, and I’ve always had my s— together and she’s always been a wreck, and I go into this office every day with cubicles and jerk guys – “Smile! Smile!” – and stupid campaigns and stupid clients, people calling me at seven at night just as I’m finally getting out of the office, calling from L.A. to tell me the ad for the rebroadcast of some Eddie Murphy movie on the USA network just isn’t exactly what they were hoping for, and so I put down my bag and I sit down and call the poor stupid writer at home and try to make it work. And if Ron calls me and he needs something, I try to make it work. I spend all day every day trying to make it work, for everyone! And sometimes I do get a little mad and think, why can’t I be the one who’s a mess and has all the fun? But I don’t know what I’ll do if she isn’t around, you know? I don’t know what I’ll do.
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