Welcome to open auditions for our one-act play: We Are Not Amused by Ulf Persson, directed by Ulf Persson and Graham Lees.

The auditions will take place onSunday 11 February 2018, 1–3 pm at FINNBRIT, Fredrikinkatu 20 A 9, 00120 Helsinki.

There will be performances at Höyhentämö between 20 August and 2 September 2018, as part of the Helsinki Fesitival and Night of the Arts. Rehearsals will be in held during the spring, with a break over summer and a 'refresher period' in August.

REGISTRATION
Please register for the auditions in advance, stating which role or roles you’re interested in auditioning for. Also let us know if you would be interested in joining the backstage crew. Please write to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

You do not have to be a member to audition, but you must join if cast. Please arrive in good time to begin at 13:00.

PREPARATION
Please prepare for some light improv in character, in which you answer questions about your character’s life, such as its ups and downs, what they are proud of, what they regret, etc. In short, find out a little about the character or characters you intend to audition for!

ENTRY TO THE BUILDING
Press the FINNBRIT buzzer by the street door to be let in.

MORE INFORMATION & QUERIES
If you cannot attend on Sunday, or if you have any questions about the play, rehearsal schedule or other arrangements, please contact Ulf (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.).

THE PLAY
We Are Not Amused is a talkshow. It’s also a late show in the sense that all the guests are dead. Very famous and very dead. But here they are again to talk about their lives, their pleasures and disappointments, family affairs, loves and – why they are not amused.

THE CHARACTERS (3F, 1M)

Host (M) – a talk show host who knows how to ask probing questions

Elisabeth – Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary, 1837-1898

Victoria – Queen of England and Empress of India, 1819-1901

Lady Diana – Princess of Wales, 1961-1997

F100 – Findependence

Produced by Zoë Chandler & Ulf Persson 

To mark Finland’s centenary, the Finn-Brit Players has put together a collection of short plays, poetry and music under the title F100–Finndependence. As its name suggests, the show’s two main themes are to celebrate all things Finnish and to explore various aspects of freedom and independence – or a lack thereof. Although many of the pieces take a humorous or satirical view of the topics, they also contain plenty of food for thought.

So join us for a couple of hours of entertainment with complimentary wine and nibbles. Below you'll find a list of the pieces in alphabetical order:

THE PLAYS

Alice  written & directed by Ulf Persson

We have all heard the story about Alice who followed the rabbit down a hole and ended up in Wonderland. Here she is again, she follows the rabbit and ends up in – Finland! Maybe that is Wonderland? Satumaa! So meet Alice, the rabbit, a dog, the mad Hatter and others. Here they are – in Kaivopuisto!

Cast:
Alice – Esteri Hellgrén
Various roles – Graham Lees & Ulf Persson

The Finnish Playette  adapt. by Graham Lees from a play by Ian Eastment & directed by Angie Hämäläinen

Gerald – the ex-pat abroad – returns, despite a total lack of popular demand, to insult and offend in this short adaptation of The Finnish Play. Gerald thinks he is funny; others are not amused.

Cast:
Gerald – Graham Lees
Heidi – Esteri Hellgrén
Georgie – Angie Hämäläinen

Going Viral  written & directed by Zoë Chandler

Do you ever feel controlled by advertising? Do you use adblockers to fight back against the constant onslaught? Then you’d better watch out for the future’s next megatrend….

Cast:
Mr Fitzroy – Salomon Marttila
Ms Marshall – Zoë Chandler

Independence written & directed by Ahti Tolvanen

A young couple from Helsinki takes a long weekend break to an exceptionally rainy London, and have a falling out after accidently making conflicting bookings for the evening. They visit a marriage counsellor for help, but during the session, they become aware of a sudden flood emergency hitting the city – just as a close relative calls from home to say he is joining a terrorist organization. The counsellor runs off in near panic and they are left alone…. Can their relationship – indeed can they – survive the increasingly disturbing situation?

Cast:
Maria: Jessica Calonius
Abdul: John Koroma
Leslie: Maybelle Pristine

What are you doing for Finland? directed and adapt. by Graham Lees
from Aware, Awareness, Shampoo and Chocolates by Elina Jackson

Less of a conversation, more a projection of underlying insecurity. 

Cast:
Person 1 – Angie Hämälainen (VO Graham Lees)
Person 2 – Esteri Hellgrén

THE POETRY
Beauty and the Beast – written & perf. by Zoë Chandler
In Envy of J.L. Runeberg and His Just Desserts – written & perf. by Kent Tankersley
Memories of a distant winter wonderland – written & perf. by Tiina Isoviita
Ode to Finland – written & perf. by Ulf Persson
Oh Finland – written & perf. by Tiina Isoviita
The Stuffed Beast of Savo – written & perf. by Kent Tankersley
What I sang in Karaoke – written & perf. by Tiina Isoviita
When I tell you about the emperor – written by Paavo Haavikko, trans. & perf. by Zoë Chandler

THE MUSIC
Classic Finnish songs in English – perf. by Amanda Arttio & Max Van de Kamp

One performance only at Rauhanasema (Veturitie 3, 00520 Helsinki)
Thurs 7 Dec 2017 at 19:00

TICKETS
10€ – standard admission
8€ – students, national service, retired & FBP members

Finn-Brit Players members (who have paid their membership fees for the year) may buy a reasonable number of tickets for those accompanying them to the theatre, or for friends and family to watch them on stage. Members will need to have their membership numbers to hand when ordering (in the form FBPXXXX, where XXXX is your four-digit membership number).

See the product description in our online store for information about discount codes and to buy tickets, or click directly on the icon below:

Welcome to open auditions for the Finn-Brit Players' spring production in cooperation with the Passport Theatre Company: Hay Fever by Noel Coward, directed by Adrian Goldman.

The performances will be on 16–20 May 2018. You must be available for an intensive rehearsal period starting about 30 April 2018, that is, rehearsals almost every day. Weekday rehearsals will be in the evenings and weekend rehearsals during the day.

REGISTRATION
The main auditions will take place on Sunday 17 December at 1–6 pm. There may (or may not) be callbacks on 27 December at 6–9 pm or 3 January at 6–9 pm.

If you intend to audition, please click here to book an audition slot in advance. NOTE If all the slots are taken, please email Adrian (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) to arrange an audition time, either before 1 pm or after 6 pm.

PREPARATION
We’d like you to prepare a short monologue in advance, preferably a comedic one. Preparing a monologue is preferred but not essential.

ENTRY TO THE BUILDING
Press the FINNBRIT buzzer by the street door to be let in.

MORE INFORMATION & QUERIES
If you cannot attend the main Sunday auditions, or if there are no available slots left, please contact Adrian (This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) to make alternative arrangements. Likewise if you have any questions about the play, rehearsal schedule or other arrangements.

THE PLAY
Hay Fever is a wonderful cross between high farce and an English comedy of bad manners. The play is set in an English country house in the 1920s, and deals with the four eccentric members of the Bliss family and their outlandish behaviour when they each invite a guest to spend the weekend. Each – unbeknownst to the rest – invites down a house guest for a quiet weekend! The self-centred behaviour of the hosts finally drives their guests to flee, while the Blisses are so engaged in a family row that they do not notice their guests' furtive departure.

Written when Noel Coward was just 25, it is the first of his superb comedies that achieved recognition as part of the canon of English comedic play writing stretching back through Wilde to Congreve and Sheridan. It truly is an even 9-hander: there’s not a bad part to be had.

THE CHARACTERS (5F, 4M)
Judith Bliss – an actress of a certain age who has retired (several times) from the stage, which is her natural metier
David Bliss – her husband, a writer of novels that the entire family argue about; inclined to a little dalliance on the side
Simon Bliss – their son, a painter of aggressive daubs
Sorel Bliss – their daughter, an accomplished instrumentalist (but skills NOT required, though welcome!)
Both of the children are every bit as theatrical, as egomaniacal in the nicest possible way, as their parents.

Richard Greatham – a career diplomat (40–60+), who “always says something exquisitely diplomatic”
Myra Arundel – a society lady (35–45) of whom Judith says “she uses sex like a shrimping net”
Sandy Tyrell – a younger “anyone for tennis” sporty chap who has fallen in love with Judith having seen her in some dreadful melodrama
Jackie Coryton – a scared little thing who has been picked by the husband David

Clara – the long-suffering maid, who used to be Judith’s dresser, and is quite coarse with it