LEAD ROLES TO BE CAST
Characters are identified by the names of the actors who created the roles in the original Broadway production.

FIVE YOUNG MEN

ADRIAN ---- FRED ---- KEN ----VICTOR ----MICHAEL

Leiber and Stoller wrote for two famous African-American quartets: The Drifters and The Coasters

We are looking for the quartet of VICTOR, ADRIAN, KEN and FRED to evoke the sound and style of these two quartets.  They do not all have to be African-Americans, but must fit the style.

As described in the R & H production notice:
“The Drifters, led by Ben E. King, were smooth as silk, sexy and irresistible; the Coasters were promoted as ‘the clown princes of rock and roll’ and delivered hectic mayhem onstage, almost an extension of vaudeville clowning, but entirely in song.” 

“Most of the comedy rests with VICTOR, (the preening bad-boy) some with ADRIAN (the slow one). 
KEN gets to be the smoothie, and FRED the implacable bass, who’s seen it all and refuses to get upset about it.”

“Leiber and Stoller also wrote for two powerful figures of white rock and roll – Dion (of Dion and the Belmonts) and, of course, Elvis Presley.  In the show the Elvis material has been distributed fairly evenhandedly to the various performers, but it is essential that a white singer, MICHAEL, be able to evoke a memory of Elvis (and Dion and Fabian and all those other duck-tailed teen idols) without doing an Elvis impression or camping his way through a GREASE-inspired parody.  MICHAEL should be genuinely suave and impressive.  Sexy wouldn’t hurt.”

FOUR YOUNG WOMEN

DELEE ---- B.J. ---- BRENDA ---- PATTIE

“B.J.’s character was inspired by the titantic rhythm and blues shouter Big Mama Thornton, who recorded the original version of ‘Hound Dog.’  Big Mama was a woman of size, arrogance and great good humor.”

“DELEE should evoke both the innocence of the teenage girls who fell in love with Elvis and Dion and Fabian and Frankie Avalon on the Dick Clark Show, and the wild streak that all of us dreamed about such girls having.  She is Brenda Lee, but sometimes she wants to be Jane Mansfield.”

“PATTIE is the throaty voice of experience; a little older-but-wiser, she anchors the more serious moments, and may even seem to come from a slightly later period (Janis Joplin, Tracy Nelson, Bonnie Raitt) than the rest of the company.”

“BRENDA is a combination of savvy, wit, brains and beauty that is born of the line of stunning rock and roll divas which has included Ruth Brown, LaVern Baker, Tina Turner and Patti LaBelle.  She must have timing and sexuality to deliver her big moment, which is called ‘Don Juan’”.

ENSEMBLE DANCERS
12-16 YOUNG WOMEN
5-9 YOUNG MEN

ALL DANCERS ARE IN ACT I: “NEIGHBORHOOD,” “DW WASHBURN,”  “SAVED,”
 “ON BROADWAY,” and ACT II: “JAILHOUSE ROCK” & “STAND BY ME”
(SELECTED DANCERS ARE IN OTHER SONGS)
SPECIFIC SONGS FOR EACH CHARACTER & DANCE ENSEMBLE

ACT I

1.  “NEIGHBORHOOD”
Cast:  All Leads Sing
Ensemble Girls and Guys singers and dancers

2.  “YOUNGBLOOD”
Cast:  Adrian with Fred, Ken, Victor (Sing and dance)
Guy Ensemble Dancers
Brenda (Stage Movement)

3.  “FALLING”
Cast:  Delee (sings) to Michael
Lead Guys
Select Girl Ensemble Dancers (4)
Select Guy Ensemble Dancers (4)

4.  “RUBY BABY”
Cast:  Michael (sings) with Adrian, Fred, Ken, Victor
Lead Girls

5.  “DANCE WITH ME”
Cast: Ken (sings) and BJ (sings) with Adrian, Fred, Victor (all dance)
All guy Ensemble Dancers

6.  “NEIGHBORHOOD” (REPRISE)
Cast: BJ, Brenda, DeLee, Pattie (all sing)
All Ensemble Girl

7.  “KEEP ON ROLLIN’”
Cast:  Victor, Adrian, Ken, Fred (all sing and dance)

8.  “SEARCHIN’”
Cast:  Victor with Adrian, Ken, Fred (all sing and dance)

9.  “KANSAS CITY”
Cast: BJ, Pattie, Michael (sing)
Girl and Guy Ensemble Dancers

10. “TROUBLE”
Cast: Delee and Brenda (sing & dance)

11.  “LOVE ME/DON’T”
Cast: Adrian and Pattie (sing)

12.  “FOOLS FALL IN LOVE”
Cast: BJ (sing)
Girl and Guy Ensemble Dancers 

 13. “POISON IVY”
Cast: Ken (sings) with Adrian, Fred Victor (join and dance)  Should we add Michael??
Guys Ensemble Dancers

14. “DON JUAN”
Cast: Brenda (sing and musical stage movement)
6 girl Ensemble Dancers

15. “SHOPPIN’ FOR CLOTHES”
Cast: Victor and Fred with Adrian, Ken and Michael (sing and dance)

16. “I KEEP FORGETTIN”
Cast: Pattie (sing)

17. “ON BROADWAY”
Cast: Adrian, Fred, Ken, Victor (sing and dance)
Girl Leads, Michael, and Girl and Guy Ensemble Dancers

18. “DW WASHBURN”
Cast: Victor (sing) and Company (sing and dance except for B.J.)
All Girl and Guy Ensemble Dancers

19. “SAVED”
Cast: B.J. (sing) and Leads and Dance Ensemble (sing and dance)
        
ACT II

20. “BABY, THAT IS ROCK & ROLL”
Cast: All Leads Sing
Girl and Guy Ensemble Dancers

21. “YAKETY YAK”
Cast: All Leads Sing

22. “CHARLIE BROWN”
Cast: All Leads sing
Ensemble Dancers

23.  “STAY A WHILE”
Cast:  TBD

24. “PEARL’S A SINGER”
Cast: Pattie (sings)
Some Ensemble Dancers

25. “TEACH ME HOW TO SHIMMY”
Cast: Michael (sings) with Adrian and Victor  Delee (dances)

 26. “YOU’RE THE BOSS”
Cast: Fred and Brenda (sing)
           
27. “LOVING YOU”
Cast: Ken (sings) and Leads sing back-up
All chorus sings back-up

28. “TREAT ME NICE”
Cast: Victor (sings)
Leads and Ensemble at tables

29. “HOUND DOG”
Cast: BJ (sings)
Leads and Ensemble at tables 

30. “LITTLE EGYPT”
Cast: Fred (sings) with Adrian, Ken, Michael, Victor join
Ensemble Guys

31. “I’M A WOMAN”
Cast: Girl leads (sing)
         
32. “THERE GOES MY BABY”
Cast: Adrian (sings) with Fred, Ken, Michael, Victor join
Ensemble guys who can sing

33. “LOVE POTION #9”
Cast: Adrian (sings) with Fred, Ken, Michael, Victor join
Ensemble guys who can sing

34. “SOME CATS KNOW”
Cast: Brenda (sings)

35. “JAILHOUSE ROCK”
Cast: Michael (sings) and Leads dance (except for BJ)
Entire Girl and Guy Ensemble Dancers
         
36. “FOOLS FALL IN LOVE” (REPRISE)
Cast: BJ (sings)
        
37. “SPANISH HARLEM”
Cast: Ken (sings)
One Selected Girl Ensemble member dances

38. “I WHO HAVE NOTHING”
Cast: Victor (sings)
One Selected Girl Ensemble member dances
Two Selected Guys Ensemble members dance
       
38. “NEIGHBORHOOD” (REPRISE #2)
Cast: Pattie (sings)   

39. “STAND BY ME”
Cast: Adrian (sings) and Leads join
Girl and Guy Ensemble Dancers