The Moorpark College Theatre Arts Department announces auditions for its upcoming spring 2014 production of Gilbert and Sullivan’s “The Pirates of Penzance.” Preliminary dance auditions will be held on Monday, November 25, 2013, from 6-10 p.m. and preliminary musical auditions on November 26, from 6-10 p.m., with callbacks on November 27 from 6-10 p.m. Auditions will be held on the Moorpark College campus on the main stage of the Performing Arts Center. Anyone interested in auditioning should wear comfortable clothing, bring 32 bars of sheet music or a karaoke CD to sing, and be prepared to read from script. An accompanist will be present for the audition.

A favorite among both opera and Broadway lovers, “The Pirates of Penzance” (Pirates) is one of the best known and loved of the prolific repertory by Gilbert and Sullivan. Last seen on Broadway in 1981, Pirates ran for 787 performances and won both the Tony Award for Best Revival and the Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Musical. The reverence for "character," "duty," and "will" appealed to all, and the tongue-twisting "I Am the Very Model of a Modern Major-General" is suited to the quick oral delivery of the General, who attempts to display a refinement of manners and morals suited to his day.

“I love working with the Music and Dance programs for our big spring musicals,” said John Loprieno, Director and Theatre Arts Department Chair. “Our Choreographer, Beth Megill, and our Musical Director, Marilyn Anderson, are both accomplished professionals in their own right,” said Loprieno. “The students at Moorpark College are really in for a treat this spring!” Individuals who are cast in this play must register for the three-unit Theatre Production: Performance class.

“The Pirates of Penzance” will run March 13-30, 2014, with performances Thursdays–Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. in the main stage of Moorpark College located at 7075 Campus Road in Moorpark, CA 93021. Tickets may be purchased through the Moorpark College Performing Arts Center Box Office at (805) 378-1485 or online at www.moorparkcollege.edu/pac. For additional information regarding Moorpark College Theatre Arts Music and Dance programs, please contact John Loprieno at (805) 553-4692 or at jloprieno@vcccd.edu.