ORIGINAL CASTING CALL - I am looking for a very DIVERSE Cast - all nationalities welcome - open to all. These characters are based on my friends so I am more concerned with Actors who can capture their spirit! Particularly interested in hearing from actors who have Travelled!....

CASTING FOR A SMALL PLAY about the ludicrous escapades of a group of 20-something au-pairs living in MADRID, the most underrated city in Europe (I believe). A female led comedy but with a balanced message on the gender spheres still present in modern Spanish society. The play is based on my very own experiences as an au pair in Madrid, so the characters (and dialogue) are based on all the friends and acquaintances I met during this period. I am looking for a diverse cast of women (and men) to play European and American characters! Also looking for writers/actors who are particularly interested in collaborating as the script is not yet fully finished, and I am extremely keen to work with individuals I can share ideas with! Please PM or reply with your age/playing age, why this project appeals to you and whether you have ever been to MadridJ If further interested, I can send over an even more detailed version (overly-worded) character breakdown. * * * * * * * * 7 x MAIN CHARACTERS : --ANNE-LISE: 22/23 – French, from Annecy, speaks a zillion languages. Serial dater. The friend who always manages to meet committed, responsible boys much to our chagrin!! Loves reggaeton (like the whole gang) but could easily pass for a drummer in Riot grrrl or Le Tigre --MANON: 19/20 – youngest, French/Francophone, raised in Guadeloupe, biggest heart, wild but not nearly as wild as her older sister who once set fire to her ex’s car as a 17 year old, could seemingly pass as Shakira’s younger, unrulier sister. --KATE L or ‘LEGS’: 21/22 – English, tall Pompey lass, studied politics and international relations at Loughborough Uni, dreamed of visiting the White House and Washington one day, but shortly after leaving Madrid, decided to work as a scuba instructor in South East Asia. Also missed wearing her nose ring those months as an au pair. --MARIA ERIKSSON: 25/26 – Swedish (Gothenburg), Anglophile, obsessed with The Beatles and encouraged me to start listening to Little Dragon again despite being an ex’s favourite band. The nicest but most remarkably un-boring, most interesting person I have met who I didn’t initially resent. Also actively encouraged me to stop falling asleep in my make-up and start washing my face before I go to bed i.e. helped shape the early stages of my adulthood. --AMY B: 22/23 – English, born and bred North-Londoner, adorable, freckly but fiery. Equal parts sweet and attitude without sounding like a dick. If she was a colour, it would have to be purple without a doubt. --And last but not least, LINDSEY or ‘LOW’: 24/25: VERY American, loud but the right kind of loud, obsessed with Harry Potter (to my complete delight), brazen, brassy, compassionate and the designated fanatical social co-ordinator. Without Lindsey we would have never fully experienced everything Madrid had to offer. Without her ever fully grasping it, ‘Funny as hell’ as her fellow countrymen (and countrywomen) would say. And yes, I am going to be playing a heightened, unapologeticversion of myself. The kind that is flamboyant but persistently claims not to be. FYI- I’m still working on her character. SUPPORTING ROLES: 1 x 19 year old Brighton lad, MICHAEL, with a double-barrelled surname who also worked as an au-pair, mainly playing football and playing video games with the 10 year old he looked after 1 x mid-20 Polish boy, Marek. Lovely and loud but responsible for convincing us all to come to a ‘hedonistic Erasmus party’ which largely involved playing a board game his roommates’ friends had conceived right before we arrived. 1 x crazy cat, 23 year old Londoner called CEECEE who would consistently get us all into trouble but would manage to quietly and prematurely leave. Looks like a sensible, responsive Kardashian. Sounds like Kat Slater when Alfie left her. The first time. There was also FREYA, the overly-cultured 20 year old, the friend we all loved after the first unforgettable night out in Madrid. The night which started with English tea at 5pm and ended at 08.30 the next morning when we caught the first bus back into the suburbs. The one who was always messaging, the one we shared our debauchery with in our whatsapp group but never actually came to anything since. It was like she was there but just wasn’t.
DETAILED CHARACTER BREAKDOWN 6 x MAIN female characters – all beauties in contrasting ways, incredibly funny and the kindest group of girls you could ever wish to be part of! --ANNE-LISE – 22/23 – tall, French brunette – energetic (loves being busy and running around) and loves live music, comfortable wildly dancing to reggaeton or a loud, indie band. Calm, mellow and softly spoken as well as a serial dater. The friend who also manages to meet committed, responsible boys much to our chagrin!! Classic French beauty, sun-kissed in that effortless French way and highly athletic. Hails from Annecy but has lived abroad (I want to say Liverpool but I have just whatsapped her, awaiting her response). Speaks about 100 different languages – infuriating but impressive. --MANON -19/20 – the baby of the group! Another Frenchie/Francophone! Wild (but not as wild as her oldest sister who set fire to her ex-boyfriend’s car as a teenager), chaotic, disorganised and a tad lazy. Has the biggest heart and naïve to a fault (annoyingly sees the best in everyone). The gorgeous friend who everyone fancies and if she wasn’t your friend, you’d be inclined to hate her! Not in the least bit arrogant or vain, warm, insightful and hilarious – the girl who finds herself in but still manages to extract herself from the most awkward situations. Scatty and mildly flaky but remains supremely affable – i.e. didn’t come out last night due to ongoing hangover but will architect a girly sleepover the next evening and casually compliment you on your unplanned weight loss (the girls I looked after had a strange aversion to pasta) – tall, also sun-blessed. From Guadeloupe (of course she is!). French father and Spanish-Anglo-Latin mother (this was never quite clear). Could pass as Shakira’s younger sister. --KATE-21/22 – the fellow Brit. Typical scenario of going abroad and becoming besties with a girl who lives round the corner (i.e. 20 minute car drive) from you. Tall, lanky and model-good looks (cheekbones to die for). Fiercely intelligent – studied politics and international relations at Loughborough Uni. If she didn’t get so bored easily, she could be someone you would actively encourage to be a model. Suggested she modelled purely for money but was out of the question. Along with Manon and myself, another competitor for the most hilarious crown. Keen pun-pundit and constant witticism – my main opponent. Perpetual point of conflict between the two of us. Vehemently opposed to dating English men again (believed they were only funny) but also convinced that Spanish men are too short for her (responsible for dragging us to a King’s Night party which we couldn’t get into purely ‘to meet un-vertically-challenged Dutch boys’). Laidback, strong conversationalist, hippie-ish leanings and another scatty-pot, Manon’s counterpart on a night out. After Madrid decided to work as a scuba-instructor in South East Asia. Forgot to say quirky. -- LINDSEY-24/25 –I believe all my close friends are characters but Lindsey is quite possible the BIGGEST character I am proud to call my friend. For this reason alone, I can only sum her up in one superbly outstretched, completely unnecessary sentence. Loud but the right kind of loud, American, biiig talker, obsessed and I mean obsessed with Harry Potter (to my delight as a failed adult), organised, direct, slightly abrupt, highly assertive, a real go-getter, knows exactly what she wants, fearless, brassy, audacious, brave -I know I am just listing synonyms but I am trying to dramatisethe sheer strength of her character-understanding, unshy and consistently kind, sensitive and compassionate. The type of friend who will never cancel on you and without fail, will always invite you to things and the designated, social co-ordinator. Without Lindsey, we would have never fully experience everything Madrid had to offer. --MARIA-25/26 - If you can imagine the antithesis of Lindsey or the polar opposite of any of the girls, your mind could only conjure that of sweet-tempered, placid and benign Maria. Quietly Swedish but an unabashed Anglophile. Maria is the type of friend who has always been timid and taciturn but has silently longed to be a thundering extrovert!! I’m convinced that as a collective, we were destined to meet each other and animate (or at times, startle) Maria! Arguably the most interesting out of the group, or the person with the most grown-up interests. Enthusiastic about 60’s British guitar bands with a relaxed encyclopaedic knowledge of Wes Anderson films, I would actively and embarrassingly call her my kindred spirit in public (‘you’re my girl crush, no, YOU ARE MY GIRL CRUSH etc etc’). She is the only individual I know who would ever convince me to spend 20 euros on a sea-weed facial wash – god bless the Swedes and their height of cool skincare routine – heck let’s be honest, she is the sole person to convince me to stop falling asleep wearing make-upand wash my shabby (chic) face. She has shaped my early stages of adulthood and I will be forever grateful to Maria Eriksson, the kindest, nicest but remarkably un-boring, most interesting person I have met who I didn’t initially resent. I have never seen Maria in a foul mood, not once in the 6 month period we spent together, and I’m firmly convinced she has never raised her voice (apart from singing ‘Hey Jude’ in the shower which I’m sure she must do-again, this will be addressed in our whatsapp group entitled M is for Mayhem in Madrid – this is still a work in progress, even after four years). --Marian (me) – Yes, I will be playing a heightened, outlandish version of myself and no I will not write a whole chapter about myself initially for fear of being (that) egotistical. Like my knockout friends, I am also kind (nowhere near as kind as Maria but still commendable), flamboyant but claim not to be, and unlike my dazzling/glittering friends, I am hilarious but not anywhere near as funny as I think I am.