Schreiber Shorts: It Happened to Me - Auditions

Directed by Peter Jensen Mabel McCabe: female-identifying, 70s-80s, any ethnicity. Leviticus Wiles: male-identifying, 20s-30s, any ethnicity. Synopsis: When Leviticus Wiles, a 20s-30s Gilded Age scholar and high society dandy, finds himself in need of immediate medical assistance, he stumbles into the first residence he comes across. Too bad for him that it’s the shabby mountain cabin of the curmudgeonly Mabel McCabe, a 70s-80s country woman with a penchant for complaining about her no-good husband. All Leviticus wanted, after all, was to become the sort of outdoorsy man the object of his affection desired. But as Mabel tends to his wound and the true severity of his injury is revealed, it becomes apparent that Leviticus might have gotten more than he bargained for—both in adventuring into the wild and in seeking help in Mabel’s cabin…

Directed by Jake Turner Frankie: Female, late 20s, any ethnicity Synopsis: Frankie, a late 20s, anxious woman is kept awake by the sound of her Irish boyfriend, Fergal, snoring. At least she thinks it’s the snoring … it could be the fact that, after months of goading, she finally caved and let him perform a graphic sexual act on her. And now, he’s snoring away beside her while she struggles with insomnia. Or maybe it’s the pinging of a text notification on his phone that’s keeping her up. When she decides to unlock his phone with facial recognition, she finds more than she bargained for, revealing some hard truths about not only Fergal but also herself.

Directed by Rachel Sacks Dylan: Any Gender, any ethnicity, 40s+. Frankie: female, 40s+, any ethnicity Synopsis: Dylan and Frankie are 40s+ good friends who love each other deeply, but often differ in how they see things and what they need. They have to work to understand each other. And when Frankie tries her best to comfort Dylan during a difficult time, that work gets put to the test. But as Dylan stalls in trying to get on with their life after a tragedy, Frankie’s friendship might be the only thing that helps them move forward.

Directed by Peter Jensen Alexa: female, 17, any ethnicity. Nikki: female, 17, any ethnicity. Megan: female, 17, any ethnicity. Jason: male, 17, any ethnicity Synopsis: Nikki and Megan are waiting on their best friend Alexa after a long day at their all-girls Catholic high school. The 17-year-old girls tell each other everything, and they never lie to each other. So, Nikki and Megan just have to know what happened to Alexa when she disappeared for three days after telling them she was going to the mall with Jason. And why she suddenly showed back up at school this morning looking like a 25-year-old influencer. As Alexa walks them through her dangerous encounter with Jason and mysterious details of what happened after, Megan can’t help but be jealous, wishing to follow in her footsteps… 

Directed by Oriana Ng Man: male, 40s and up, any ethnicity. Inner Man: male, 40s and up, any ethnicity Synopsis: A playwright walks into a bakery. That’s not the start of a bad joke. It’s the tale of a 40s and up man consumed by lust, for sugar and otherwise. But less the “otherwise,” and more the “sugar.” As the playwright returns week after week to his local bakery for his standing order, his inner self starts to wonder—and then obsess—whether the handsome struggling actor/bakery clerk is judging him for his addiction. And he certainly isn’t helping matters when, to account for the volume of baked goods he’s buying, he tells the clerk all about the wife and children he doesn’t have. But when the playwright enters the bakery one day to find the clerk has left for his big break in a production of Hamlet, his sweet tooth compels him to attend a performance, ultimately changing both their lives.

Directed by Jake Turner Harper, female, 16-20, any ethnicity. Sophia, female, 16-20, any ethnicity Synopsis: Harper and Sophia, 16-20-year-old sisters, long for a simpler time. Of course, they can still scroll TikTok and try out the latest makeup trends on one another, but that doesn’t mean much when they’re hungry, orphaned, and destined for a future that looks much bleaker in the light of the second Civil War raging around them. As they try to find hope and comfort in each other, the reality of their lives closes in around them. 

Directed by Steven Lamont Maggie: female, 20s-40s, any ethnicity. Moe: male, 20s-40s, person of color. Nicky: male, 20s-40s, any ethnicity  Synopsis: Maggie and Nicky are 20-40 somethings trying to rave away their troubles and ring in the new year. When Maggie steps outside for a smoke, she meets Moe, another 20-40 something in the same boat. After Moe shares his drugs with Nicky, Maggie and Moe go back inside to dance, leaving Nicky to his drug-fueled search for his missing cell phone. As the night progresses, Maggie and Moe discover they both are hiding from the things they’ve done—and Maggie finally finds out why Moe looks so familiar…