AUDITION NOTICE: The Mysterious Disappearance - Footlights Theatrical

Title: The Mysterious Disappearance

Presented By: Footlights Theatrical Inc.

Genre: Play / Mystery / Drama

Synopsis: The Mysterious Disappearance by Kirt Shineman is not an Agatha Christie mystery, but a play about Agatha Christie. Set in Christie’s home in December 1975, the story finds the legendary author under pressure to finish her autobiography and final novel before the new year. But her mind keeps returning to 1926, when Nancy Neele stole the affections of her first husband, Archie. With the help of Mary Westmacott, Christie’s literary alter ego and a construct of her own mind, Agatha begins imagining what it might have been like to murder Nancy. When Nancy suddenly turns up dead, the pair begin investigating. But as Agatha moves increasingly between reality, memory, and fantasy, another mystery emerges: did she really kill Nancy, or is the thing truly disappearing Agatha’s own memory?

The production explores Christie’s famous 1926 disappearance alongside her declining memory, aphasia, imagination, and extraordinary deductive mind.

Audition Date: Wednesday 12 August 2026

Audition Time: 15-minute audition timeslots available by request.

Audition Location and Address: Footlights Studio, 83 Roseneath Parade, Wynnum West QLD

Audition Self-Tape Due (if applicable): Wednesday 12 August 2026

Video submissions are accepted. Auditionees may upload their monologue via Google Drive instead of attending in person. Ensure the link is accessible to anyone with the link.

Audition Requirements:

• Prepare a one-minute monologue, either dramatic or comedic, from a contemporary play.

• Auditionees may either:

  • Attend an in-person 15-minute audition timeslot; or

  • Submit a recorded monologue via Google Drive.

• Callbacks will be held on Monday 17 August 2026 if required.

Audition Registration: Complete the Audition Form

Audition Pack: View the Audition Pack

Performance Dates: Friday 9 October 2026 - Saturday 10 October 2026

Performance Location: Morningside School of Arts

Rehearsal Dates: Rehearsals commence from 23 August 2026 and continue until bump-in on Monday 5 October 2026.

Rehearsal Times:

• Tuesdays – 7:00pm–9:30pm

• Thursdays – 7:00pm–9:30pm

• Sundays – 2:00pm–5:00pm

Rehearsals will initially be held at the Footlights rehearsal space in Wynnum West. From bump-in on 5 October, rehearsals will move to Morningside School of Arts.

Warnings: Themes include memory loss, aphasia, murder, death, marital infidelity, and imagined violence.

Performer Age: Adult performers. Playing ages range predominantly from 50+ to 80+

Creative Team: Director – Roslyn Johnson

Production Website: Footlights Theatrical Auditions

Other information:

• This production is being presented in partnership with Morningside School of Arts as part of its centenary celebrations.

• Footlights Theatrical has received a small grant from Brisbane City Council, allowing performers to receive a small honorarium.

• The production is also seeking 1–2 vocalists to perform Postmodern Jukebox-style song excerpts, adding atmosphere and helping connect the contemporary storytelling with the 1926 memory sequences.

Available Roles/Character Breakdown:

Dame Agatha Christie

• Female-presenting | Playing age 80+

• The central role and rarely leaves the stage. Agatha is nearing the end of her career and beginning to experience aphasia and memory confusion. She moves seamlessly between reality, memory, and fantasy as the boundaries between them begin to dissolve. Her formidable intellect remains intact, but her ability to express herself is gradually diminishing, often without her awareness.

Mary Westmacott

• Female-presenting | Playing age 80+

• Agatha’s alter ego and a mental construct visible and audible only to Agatha. Mary gives Agatha a way to articulate memories, theories, and deductions. She knits, drinks tea, and represents the sharp deductive powers of Christie’s mind. A substantial role appearing in almost every scene.

Rosalind Hicks

• Female-presenting | Playing age 50+

• Agatha’s daughter from her first marriage to Archie Christie. Rosalind has stepped away from her legal practice in London to become her mother’s carer.

Tony Hicks

• Male-presenting | Playing age 50+

• Rosalind’s well-meaning and somewhat clumsy husband.

Harry Maynard / Archie Christie / Billy Collins Male-presenting | One performer plays all three roles.

Harry Maynard – An elderly man appearing only in the prologue.

Archie Christie – Agatha’s first husband, appearing during flashbacks to 1926.

Billy Collins – Agatha’s editor, appearing during fantasy and hallucination sequences in which Agatha repeatedly murders him.

Vocalists – 1–2 performers Performers are sought to provide atmospheric Postmodern Jukebox-style song excerpts, connecting the play with its 1926 sequences and enhancing the event styling.