The Riverfront Theatre & Arts Centre, Newport are delighted to announce that auditions to find the young company for their pantomime, Beauty and the Beast, will take place at The Riverfront on Sunday 10 September between 10am and 3pm with registration at 9.30am. All talented youngsters welcome!       

Beauty and the Beast will star a very talented cast featuring some familiar faces, like Newport favourite Richard Elis! This high-quality, professional and family-friendly pantomime will be full of magic, glitz and laughs and will run from Wednesday 29th November 2023 to Saturday 6th January 2024. It will also feature three teams of children in fun singing and dancing routines, who will be selected through these auditions.

The Riverfront are looking for 18 children and young people who will be selected, to form three young companies of 6 children, who will perform on alternate days of the pantomime’s run. The Riverfront is keen to see children’s ‘personality’ as well as their dancing and acting skills. It is important that all auditionees are confident across both areas – dancing and acting.

The audition will include the young people learning a short dance routine, singing as a group. We may also ask them to recite a very short poem or joke of their choice. All talented youngsters are welcome, whether they go to drama school, study drama or dance in school or are looking to tread the boards for the first time.

Auditionees should wear comfortable clothes and footwear suitable for moving and dancing in. Clothing should be non-branded and not shiny material, as numbers won’t stick to it. Auditionees will not need to prepare anything but might want to bring water and snacks.

The auditions are open to children and young people who live in the boroughs of Newport, Cardiff and Torfaen only. The minimum age is 9 years on the first day of rehearsal (13 November 2023) and the maximum age is 15 years and 11 months on the last day of the run (6th January 2024). A list of performances and rehearsal commitments will be available on the day. It is essential that selected children must be able to commit to the full period of the pantomime, which will include a small number of term time dates as well as some weekend performances.

All successful castings will be subject to licensing approval. 

For more information on auditions, please head to their website or contact The Riverfront Box Office on 01633 656757.