Dagaz Media is looking for voice actors for The Collective, a new original audio play by Asata Radcliffe.
The Collective is a riveting story of survival told through the eyes of Nora, a 26-year old black woman from Harlem who becomes pregnant, a dangerous act in a time when the powers-that-be have determined sterilization as the only means to protect the earth from overpopulation. Caught in an apocalyptic moment, Nora must make a harrowing trek to New Mexico and make a choice about who – if anyone – to trust in a world where she cannot survive on her own.
Casting Call Details:
- Casting call period: Auditions open until midnight (Pacific time) February 5, 2021.
- Recording dates: February 26-27, 2021.
- Recording location: Open to anyone, anywhere, with access to sufficient internet to work over Zoom; this production will be recorded remotely, which entails having access to your own recording setup. Loaner equipment kits will be available. Actors in Greater Portland, Maine, area will have option to record in our South Portland facility.
- Produced by Fred Greenhalgh and Asata Radcliffe.
- Compensation: Non-union production, with $50 session fee per 2hr Zoom session. Lead roles will have up to 5-6 sessions, minor roles 1-2 sessions.
What Remote Recording is like
Remote recording means that every actor records their own lines for their character on audio equipment at their location. We do this in realtime with each other, with each actor also logged into a Zoom session and hearing the performances of the other actors in their scenes as well as receiving input from the director. This means you need two devices, typically a cell phone/tablet to run the Zoom call, and then a laptop or piece of audio hardware which records your audio. While it’s possible to run Zoom on a computer and record yourself at the same time, that option is better for people with some experience in this type of recording.
For each day of recording, we will run three two-hour Zoom sessions. A typical day looks like this (All times in Eastern)
- Session 1 – 10am-12pm
- Session 2 – 1pm-3pm
- Session 3 – 3:30pm-5:30pm
If you don’t currently have a home recording set-up, we can arrange for a loaner kit, which will be mailed to you in advance of recording (postage paid).
Characters
Feel free to audition for one or more characters. The page # for the relevant character in the audition script is listed next to their name.
Nora Harlem (Late 20s, Black, she/hers) – Audition on Pages 1-2
Nora is a New Yorker, a survivor of a major climate change event that destroys NYC. An orphan, she is pregnant, a Carrier, and on the run, unafraid to make a cross-country trek in a dystopian world to save herself and her unborn. She is also a good keeper of secrets.
Young Auckland (30s, Korean, they/he) – Audition on page 9
A Chicago native, also orphaned, Young gave up his life as art professor to join the Collective. Young never believed in an American dream. His dream is to create an art collective on the newly colonized Moon.
Nina Flagstaff (36, Diné—or Navajo, she/her, Queer)
After the civil war between the Dine nation & the one world-government of the Plutarchs, as a young girl, Nina’s family sought refuge with the Collective. Nina is now a Guardian for the Collective. Her favorite Star Wars character is the Mandalorian.
Jefferey (40s White, he/him) – Audition on Page 4
Jefferey makes his way in the world by illegally transporting members of the Collective to and from undisclosed locations that are undisclosed due to the Collective being targeted by the government as a terrorist organization. He lives in his van when he’s not transporting for hire.
Sara Harlem (Immortal, she/hers) – Audition on Page 11
Sara Harlem is the enigmatic mother of Nora. Sara was a highly skilled software engineer before becoming one of the founders of the Collective. Sara now lives in the realm of the Immortals.
Nora’s Grandmother (70-80s, she/hers)
Nora’s Grandmother despised her daughter Sara for being an atheist, and before she died, prayed to her god that Nora wouldn’t follow in the same path.
The Director (60+, White, nonbinary) – Audition on page 3
Presenting as a rather sinister clinic director for Carriers, their motives are questionable as to where their allegiance lies.
Dr. Curtis Hartwell (60+, Black, he/him) – Audition on page 5
An eccentric Marine Scientist and celebrated visionary, he sustains most of the survivors on Planet Earth, and the Moon, by producing food he grows on a compound, a sort of world Aquacultural Supermarket. He loves his wife and binge watches Star Trek: Deep Space Nine in his free time.
Marianne Harwell (60+, Black/Caddo, she/hers) – Audition on page 5
Wife to a scientist-prophet, she makes all of the business decisions, and is working on surprising her partner with an 30th wedding anniversary present of a Moon getaway vacation. Highly intuitive, she is not afraid of anyone, let alone the Plutarchs.
Frank—the Beekeeper (40s, Apache, he/him) – Audition on page 12
After suffering an injury that left him paralyzed below the waist, Frank found a way to survive in a dystopian world by harvesting the beehives his grandfather started before the era of the C.E. (Catastrophic Event). Thankfully, this profession made him wealthy as bees are now extinct in most of the world. His wheelchair comes equipped with streaming music and capable of communicating with all of the computers on his adobe home compound.
Patrick Chicago (50-60s, Lakota, he/him) – Audition on page 7
A wanderlust musician who survived Day Zero (he had a concert scheduled in NY on that day), nothing stops Patrick from living his dream as an aging rock star. His music is influenced by Tool and Pantera.
DJ Bristol (30-40s, Tamil/British, she/they) – Audition on page 7
Due to the Plutarchs abolishing the world wide web, artists have taken to sharing music on digital pirate radio frequencies throughout the world. DJ’s are former computer hackers, thus the Plutarchs don’t have the insight or budget to shut down global pirate radio.
Sun Auckland (Immortal, Korean, he/him) – Audition on page 9
Sun is Young’s grandfather. Sun is one of the founders of the Collective, and also lives in the realm of Immortals.
Empathy Builder Guard (20s-30s, Black, he/him) – Audition on page 1
Just a brother making his way in a dystopian world. His favorite Star Wars character is Jango Fett.
How to Audition
Record lines for any role you want to audition for using the audition script below. The page where you’ll find the lines for each character are next to the Character’s Name in the section above. If you have a home recording setup, please record your demo on the same equipment you would use to record. If you don’t, do your best to find a quiet room. Using a smartphone with a voice recording app works a bit better than a laptop mic. If you don’t have a scene partner, it’s fine to record your lines “Clean” — i.e. you just read the lines for the character you’re auditioning for in the best way you can. What we’re looking for is you giving a natural, TV/film-like performance, and acting out the scene, and not sounding like you’re reading a book.
Audition Script (Read on Screen)
Collective Radio Play Audition ScriptIf you don’t have a home recording set-up, please do not let this be a barrier to you auditioning for this project! We have the resources to offer loaner equipment to performers and would like to invite you to join the world of audio drama.