CSC2

Erika Anclade (Juliet) and Gregory Hermann (Romeo) in Romeo & Juliet, CSC2, 2019-Photo by Nile Hawver/Nile Scott Shots.

2025 CSC2 AUDITIONS ARE NOW OPEN FOR SUBMISSION!

Please read below to fully ensure you understand the program commitments. Once you have done that, you can proceed to the Auditions page to submit an audition request.

CSC2 is a company of 8-12 non-equity emerging professional actors that works with Commonwealth Shakespeare Company to further develop skills in classical acting through performance, artistic and professional development, and an array of educational and coaching opportunities.

The ideal candidate for CSC2 will be interested in furthering their own training, providing mentorship/coaching to near-peer actors, and occasionally acting as a representative of CSC to our stakeholders. There is a stipend for each section of the program. Housing and transportation are not included.

CSC is not able to enlist any AEA actor into the CSC2 program. Additionally, no actors enrolled in any kind of undergraduate or graduate program in the Spring of 2025 will be seen at auditions unless this is cleared by your advisor or head of department.

Spring

In the spring, CSC2 actors begin working as a cohort to perform one of Shakespeare’s plays for a middle and high school audience. These performances, CSC’s Stage2 Student Matinee Series, are followed by post-show talk backs for attending schools, and may include participation in classroom visits and workshops.

This year’s title is Macbeth and will be directed by CSC’s Associate Artistic Director, Bryn Boice. Imbedded in this rehearsal process, CSC2 also receives training in coaching and Shakespeare’s Text from Bryn, for their summer mentorship role with the Apprentices.

Summer

Starting in mid June, as part of a summer mentorship program, CSC2 actors will work with our Apprentice Company of early-career actors on heightened language in small-group monologue coaching sessions.

Also beginning in June, CSC2 will rehearse and perform with our equity company in small and ensemble roles for CSC’s signature presentation of Free Shakespeare on the Boston Common. Each member of CSC2 will also be assigned an understudy role within this production. 

Questions?  Email apprentice@commshakes.org

Auditions

Rachel Belleman (Helena) A Midsummer Night’s Dream, 2016. Photo by Nile Hawver/Nile Scott Shots

Auditions for the 2025 CSC2 Company will be held in-person in Boston on Sunday, January 26 from 11:00AM-7:00PM and Monday, January 27 from 5:30PM-9:30PM at the Boston Playwrights’ Theatre, 949 Commonwealth Ave. Please visit the Auditions page to book an audition slot. 

Virtual audition submissions will be accepted through January 22, 2025. The form for submission can also be found on the Auditions page.

POLICIES OF NOTE:

Commonwealth Shakespeare Company is an equal opportunity employer. Actors of all races, ethnicities, sexual orientations, genders, gender expressions, and people with disabilities are encouraged to audition.

All rehearsals and performances will be held in accordance with the most up to date state, city and union safety protocols regarding COVID-19. CSC will require all staff and performers to provide proof of a completed FDA-approved vaccine regimen for COVID-19. Additional protocols regarding masking, testing, and/or vaccine booster requirements will be announced closer to the start of rehearsals. This policy allows for exemption accommodations for disability or religious reasons.

CSC is participating in the Line Drawn Initiative to prevent harassment and abuse in the performing arts community. As such, we will be adopting the Community Standards found at https://commshakes.org/linedrawn/ for all our projects moving forward.

Commonwealth Shakespeare Company (CSC) was founded to provide people from all walks of life access to great theater, and we recognize that in order to truly fulfill that vision we need to take our commitment to anti-racism much further. We have an opportunity and obligation to not only reflect the demographics of Boston in our theater making, but also the ideals of our City’s multi-faceted communities. Our full Commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Access can be found at https://commshakes.org/commdeia/.

Testimonials

Michael Underhill

2019, 2018 CSC2 Alumnus; Ferdinand in The Tempest, Free Shakespeare on the Common, 2022, Arviragus in Cymbeline, Free Shakespeare on the Common, 2019, Henry, Earl of Richmond in Richard III, Free Shakespeare on the Common, 2018, and CSC’s 2017 reading of Fear and Misery in the Third Reich

Michael in Romeo & Juliet, 2019. Photo by Nile Hawver/Nile Scott Shots

“The experience included intensive rehearsal & performance time, teaching artist opportunities, and the chance to learn and disseminate the Shakespearean text theory that defines the CSC performance style. In addition to all of this – I have gained an invaluable asset in 11 wonderful artistic soulmates who joined me on the four-month CSC2 journey and with whom, I have no doubt, I will be crossing paths and collaborating with for the rest of my theatrical career. CSC has meant so much to me as a young professional and an actor. To find a mission that aligns so closely with my own, and to find professionals who care about their craft – I just feel very, very lucky.”

Billy Saunders, Jr.

2018 CSC2 Alumnus; Sir William Catesby in Richard III, Free Shakespeare on the Common, 2018

Billy as “Macbeth” in Macbeth, 2018. Photo by Nile Hawver/Nile Scott Shots

“My four months with CSC2 were such a fruitful experience for myself as an actor, creator, human, and friend. I was lucky enough to be part of an ensemble of eleven other actors that were passionate, excited, ambitious, and fearless when it came to the work/the process, and I’m glad to say that the 12 of us are now lifelong friends/collaborators because of it. Working with the Apprentices pushed me to not only be a better coach, but also shaped my artistic process and shined light on skills I didn’t know I had. And, of course, being on the Boston Common in front of thousands of people is something you just can’t beat.”

Kaci Hamilton

2017 CSC2 Alumna; Prince Escalus in Romeo & Juliet, Free Shakespeare on the Common, 2017

Kaci as “Anthony” in Julius Caesar, 2017. Photo by Nile Hawver/Nile Scott Shots

“My summer with CSC2 was the experience of a lifetime!  I affectionately refer to it as “Shakespeare Boot Camp”, because every day we dove deeper and deeper into the techniques and skills required to lift the text off the page and drive it into our bodies.  With every experience, from rehearsals, to mentoring the Apprentices, to projecting my voice to the thousands who showed up every night on the Common, I learned so much about not only my process and the work, but also about being a working actor.  I treasure my time and the friends I made with CSC2, and I know that I am forever spoiled by the inclusive, fun-loving, and professional environment they created.”