DeSales University ‘A Civil War Christmas’ auditions

DeSales University will hold auditions for the role of Jessa (ages 9-14, African American), the daughter of Hannah who is searching for freedom in the nation’s capital on Christmas Eve 1864, for its upcoming production of Paula Vogel’s “A Civil War Christmas: An American Musical Celebration.”

Auditions will be held 5-6 p.m. Oct. 17-18 at the Labuda Center for the Performing Arts, DeSales University, Center Valley. The role will require movement and a little singing.

It’s 1864, and Washington, D.C. is settling down to the coldest Christmas Eve in years. In the White House, President and Mrs. Lincoln are planning their gift-giving, while on the banks of the Potomac, a young rebel soldier asks for mercy from a Union blacksmith, and in a downtown alley, Hannah, an escaped enslaved woman searches for her daughter after sending her off to discover freedom. Along with the sounds of holiday music, marches, hymns, and spirituals, Pulitzer Prize-winning author Paula Vogel weaves together multiple stories from one of the darkest moments of our nation’s history to create a story of hope, peace, and resilience.

Sides can be provided in advance by emailing Victoria Kopishke, program administrator, at Victoria. kopishke@desales.edu

If you choose to send in a self-tape, please make it a YouTube link with the child’s name and email it to paris.crayton@desales.edu no later than October 12.