Theatre Cedar Rapids is excited to announce auditions for our upcoming production of Les Misérables. All performance opportunities are volunteer roles.

This page contains everything you'll need to register, prepare for auditions, and understand the casting process. Whether you've performed at TCR many times or are considering auditioning for the first time, we hope you'll join us!

Table of Contents

Production Information
Key Audition Dates
Rehearsal & Performance Commitment
Registration & Audition Options
Our Commitment to Inclusive Casting
What to Prepare
What to Expect at Auditions
Callbacks & Casting
Content & Participation Information
Casting Breakdown
Accessibility & Questions

Production Information

Les Misérables
Music by Claude-Michel Schönberg
Lyrics by Herbert Kretzmer
Book by Alain Boublil and Claude-Michel Schönberg
Based on the novel by Victor Hugo

Director: Matt Hagmeier Curtis
Music Director: Janelle Lauer
Choreographer: Megan Helmers

Rehearsals Begin: Late February 2027, anticipated the week of February 21
Tech Rehearsals: April 17–18, 2027
Dress Rehearsals: April 19–22, 2027
Performances: April 23–May 23, 2027

All roles are volunteer and unpaid.

Our Approach to Les Misérables

For more than four decades, the characters of Les Misérables have been brought to life by extraordinary performers around the world. Those performances are part of what has made this musical so beloved—but we're not looking for recreations of them.

We're interested in what you bring to these characters.

At its heart, Les Misérables is a story about people: people trying to survive, people falling in love, people fighting for a better world, and people wrestling with questions of justice, mercy, sacrifice, and change. Victor Hugo wrote about the world around him. Our production will look for the humanity in these characters that allows their story to remain urgent and meaningful in ours.

Come prepared to make choices, tell a story, and let us meet your version of these extraordinary people.

Key Audition Dates

Registration & Video Submissions

• Registration Opens: Monday, September 28
• Video Audition Registration and Submission Deadline: Friday, October 2 at 5:00 PM
• In-Person Registration Deadline: Friday, October 9 at 5:00 PM

All performers must register by the respective deadlines for the type of audition they choose.

In-Person Vocal / Acting Auditions

• Saturday, October 10 – By appointment; morning and afternoon
• Sunday, October 11 – By appointment; afternoon

In-person vocal / acting auditions are scheduled in individual five-minute appointments. Available appointment times will be shown during registration.

Movement Call

• Sunday, October 11 – Audition groups; evening

Groups with available capacity will be shown during registration.

Callbacks

• Monday, October 12 – By invitation

Rehearsal & Performance Commitment

TCR builds its rehearsal schedule around the availability and conflicts disclosed by the cast. Not every performer will be called to every rehearsal, and most performers can expect two or more days without rehearsal during a typical week. Some portions of the process may require more concentrated rehearsals, including weekend calls.

We know our volunteer performers balance theatre with work, school, family, and other commitments. Please disclose all known rehearsal conflicts when registering so we can build a schedule that works for the company. If an unavoidable rehearsal absence arises, we'll work with performers on an appropriate plan to catch up.

All technical rehearsals, dress rehearsals, and performances are required. Performance conflicts cannot be accommodated. Please review the production calendar carefully before auditioning.

Registration & Audition Options

All performers must complete TCR's online audition registration form.

During registration, you'll provide contact information, tell us about your casting interests, disclose known conflicts, select either an in-person vocal / acting audition appointment or the video audition option, and select a movement audition group (as applicable).

In-person audition appointments are limited and available on a first-come basis. We encourage you to register early to secure your preferred time.

Performers submitting a video may register before their recording is complete and return to their registration using the provided link to add their video before the Friday, October 2 at 5:00 PM deadline.

Performers age 16 and older are invited to audition for principal and ensemble roles unless otherwise noted in the casting breakdown.

Young performers auditioning for Young Cosette, Young Éponine, or Gavroche should register using the video audition option and submit a video following the preparation guidelines below. Young performers should not schedule an in-person initial audition or attend the dance call. They may be invited to attend callbacks in person on Monday, October 12.

Our Commitment to Inclusive Casting

New to TCR—or new to theatre altogether? You're welcome here. Previous performance experience is not required unless specifically noted in the casting breakdown.

TCR welcomes performers of all races, ethnicities, gender identities and expressions, body types, abilities, and backgrounds. When a character's identity is essential to the story, TCR and the creative team are committed to casting that role as authentically as possible.

The Character as Written information in the casting breakdown describes the character in the licensed material; it is not intended to limit who may audition. Performers of any gender identity are welcome to audition for roles they feel comfortable portraying, provided the character can be presented as required by the licensed material.

All roles are open.

What to Prepare

Prepare 45–60 seconds of one song that showcases both your vocal and acting abilities. Your selection should not exceed 60 seconds.

Choose a song that gives you an opportunity to tell a story and make specific acting choices. Your selection may be from Les Misérables, another musical, or another style of music that you feel represents you well.

In-Person Auditions

An accompanist will be provided. If using the accompanist, please bring clearly marked sheet music in the correct key.

You may also sing with an accompaniment track played from your phone or another device. TCR will provide a Bluetooth speaker, but performers are welcome to bring their own. Using your own speaker can help avoid spending part of your audition appointment connecting to an unfamiliar device.

Please do not sing a cappella.

Video Auditions

Record 45–60 seconds of one song following the same preparation guidelines as an in-person audition.

Upload your recording to YouTube, Vimeo, Google Drive, or another video-sharing service. Please confirm that your sharing settings allow the casting team to view the video without requesting additional access.

You'll submit the link through your audition registration. You may register before your recording is ready and return using your registration edit link to add it later, but your video must be submitted by Friday, October 2 at 5:00 PM.

Video auditions receive the same consideration as in-person auditions.

What to Expect at Auditions

The TCR casting team will include Director Matt Hagmeier Curtis, Music Director Janelle Lauer, Choreographer Megan Helmers, Artistic Director Angie Toomsen, and members of the TCR Production Team.

No intimacy, staged violence, or sensitive physical contact will be required during initial auditions.

Vocal / Acting Auditions

Vocal / acting auditions are scheduled in individual five-minute appointments. When you arrive, a member of the TCR Production Team will be stationed in the lobby to check you in and direct you to the appropriate waiting area prior to your audition.

The creative team may occasionally offer an adjustment or ask you to try something again. This isn't a judgment on your first attempt; it simply gives us an opportunity to see another choice and how you respond to direction.

Movement Call

Les Misérables includes stylized movement, ensemble staging, and some choreographed sequences, but extensive dance training is not required.

The dance call will focus primarily on basic movement ability, musicality, and your ability to learn and perform simple choreography. Please wear clothing and shoes that allow you to move comfortably.

Young performers auditioning for Young Cosette, Young Éponine, or Gavroche will not attend the movement call.

If you're unable to attend the scheduled movement call, please note that during registration. The casting team will determine whether any additional movement evaluation is needed.

Callbacks & Casting

Callbacks will take place Monday, October 12 and are by invitation. Performers invited to callbacks will receive information about timing and any material to prepare via email after initial auditions have concluded.

Not receiving a callback does not necessarily mean you are no longer being considered for the production. In some cases, the casting team may have seen everything needed during your initial audition.

If you are unavailable for callbacks, please disclose that conflict during registration. Depending on the needs of the production and availability of the creative team, alternate arrangements may be possible.

Every performer will hear from TCR twice: once to let you know whether you're needed at callbacks, and again after final casting decisions have been made.

If you're offered a role, you'll have an opportunity to review the role and any significant participation information before accepting.

Content & Participation Information

Les Misérables contains mature themes and material including poverty, exploitation, sexual situations and sexual violence, physical violence, suicide, and death. Performers may participate in staged violence or combat, use or handle prop firearms and other weapons, portray death or dying, or participate in scenes involving intimate or sensitive physical contact. The production may also use theatrical blood.

TCR will engage an intimacy coordinator for this production and will work with a fight choreographer. Moments involving intimacy, violence, or other sensitive physical contact will be carefully choreographed and rehearsed with clear boundaries. Performers will not be asked to improvise intimate contact or staged violence.

Some roles involve sensitive material beyond what a performer might reasonably anticipate from the general production information above. Where applicable, this is noted in the character breakdown so performers can make informed decisions about the roles for which they would like to be considered. Any additional significant role-specific participation information will be shared during the audition and casting process, before a performer is asked to accept a role.

Casting Breakdown

Unless otherwise noted, performers age 16 and older are invited to audition for the principal roles and ensemble.

JEAN VALJEAN

Character Age: Approximately 35–60 (the musical spans eighteen years, so the character ages appropriately during the course of the action)
Character as Written: Male
Vocal Range: Tenor / high baritone; G#2–B4

A man who has survived nineteen years of imprisonment and hard labor, Valjean begins the story hardened by injustice and distrustful of the world around him. An unexpected act of mercy challenges everything he believes and begins a lifelong journey toward compassion, responsibility, and redemption. Valjean must possess tremendous vocal ability, but equally important is an actor capable of vulnerability, strength, tenderness, paternal love, fear, and profound moral struggle. We are looking for a deeply human Valjean—not an imitation of a performance you've seen before.

JAVERT

Character Age: Approximately 35–60 (the musical spans eighteen years, so the character ages appropriately during the course of the action)
Character as Written: Male
Vocal Range: Baritone; F2–G4

A police inspector whose unwavering belief in law and order has become the foundation of his identity. Javert is not a conventional villain: he sincerely believes that justice is absolute and that people cannot escape what they have made themselves. Requires commanding presence, vocal authority, and an actor capable of grounding his certainty in genuine conviction. His tragedy comes when the world proves more complicated than the rules by which he has lived.

Participation Note: Involves depiction of suicide.

FANTINE

Character Age: Approximately 20–35
Character as Written: Female
Vocal Range: Mezzo-soprano; F3–Eb5

A working-class mother fiercely committed to providing for her young daughter, Cosette. As circumstance strips away her security and choices, Fantine fights desperately to survive and protect her child. We are looking for strength, specificity, and emotional fearlessness rather than generalized tragedy. Requires a powerful storyteller who can reveal both Fantine's vulnerability and her determination.

Participation Note: Involves staged sexual violence, physical violence, and depiction of the character's death.

THÉNARDIER

Character Age: Approximately 35–60
Character as Written: Male
Vocal Range: Baritone / character voice; C2–G4

An innkeeper, opportunist, thief, and survivor with an extraordinary ability to benefit from nearly any situation. Thénardier is genuinely funny—but he is also dangerous, selfish, and shameless. Requires a bold comic actor with strong musical instincts who can find humor through character and circumstance rather than playing solely for laughs.

MADAME THÉNARDIER

Character Age: Approximately 30–60
Character as Written: Female
Vocal Range: Mezzo / belt / character voice; G#3–D5

Thénardier's formidable wife and equal partner in running their inn and exploiting nearly everyone who passes through it. Blunt, shrewd, unsentimental, and fiercely capable. Requires excellent comic instincts, strong musicality, and an actor willing to embrace the character's considerable rough edges without turning her into a caricature.

Participation Note: Involves portrayal of physical and psychological abuse toward a child.

ÉPONINE

Character Age: Approximately 18–25
Character as Written: Female
Vocal Range: Mezzo / belt; F3–E5 (belts to C#)

The Thénardiers' daughter, now surviving largely on her own in the streets of Paris. Street-smart, resilient, funny, perceptive, and deeply in love with Marius. Éponine's unrequited love is an important part of her story, but it is not the entirety of who she is. We are looking for an actor who can bring a full lived experience to the character, with emotional transparency, strength, humor, and powerful storytelling through song.

COSETTE

Character Age: Approximately 18–25
Character as Written: Female
Vocal Range: Lyric soprano; Bb3–C6

Valjean's adopted daughter, raised with love after a traumatic childhood. Cosette is compassionate, intelligent, hopeful, and discovering adulthood and romantic love for the first time. Her gentleness should not be mistaken for passivity. Requires a secure lyric soprano and an actor who can bring warmth, curiosity, specificity, and an active inner life to a character too easily reduced to the romantic ingénue.

MARIUS

Character Age: Approximately 18–25
Character as Written: Male
Vocal Range: Tenor / high baritone; A2–Ab4

A young student caught between political conviction, friendship, and unexpected love. Marius is earnest, impulsive, romantic, and still discovering the person he wants to become. Over the course of the story, he experiences extraordinary love, loss, and maturation. Requires a strong singer and emotionally available actor capable of vulnerability without sentimentality.

ENJOLRAS

Character Age: Approximately 20–35
Character as Written: Male
Vocal Range: Tenor / high baritone; A2–G#4

The passionate leader of a group of students committed to revolutionary change. Intelligent, disciplined, charismatic, and utterly devoted to the cause. Enjolras needs more than a commanding voice: we must understand why others trust him, follow him, and are willing to risk everything beside him. Requires authority, conviction, strong ensemble instincts, and compelling stage presence.

Young Performers

We are seeking young performers, approximately ages 8–12, for Young Cosette, Young Éponine, and Gavroche. Age ranges are approximate; casting will also consider the needs of the production and how performers read alongside the rest of the company.

Depending on casting, some young performer roles may be shared, doubled, or alternated.

YOUNG COSETTE

Character Age: Approximately 8–12
Character as Written: Female

A young girl living with the Thénardiers while her mother, Fantine, works to support her. Despite loneliness and mistreatment, Cosette retains an extraordinary imagination and capacity for hope. Sings "Castle on a Cloud." We are looking for a young performer with a secure singing voice, clear storytelling ability, and natural, honest acting.

Participation Note: Involves staged physical and emotional mistreatment by adult characters.

YOUNG ÉPONINE

Character Age: Approximately 8–12
Character as Written: Female

The young daughter of Monsieur and Madame Thénardier. A small but featured acting role that helps establish the world of the Thénardier household and Cosette's childhood. Stage presence and confident storytelling are most important.

GAVROCHE

Character Age: Approximately 8–12
Character as Written: Male

A resourceful, fearless, funny young street kid who knows Paris—and its people—better than most adults do. Gavroche becomes an important part of the students' revolutionary world and needs to feel entirely at home within it. We are looking for a confident young actor and singer with personality, strong storytelling instincts, musical ability, and the ability to hold their own alongside the older company.

Participation Note: Involves significant staged violence and depiction of the character's death.

ENSEMBLE & FEATURED ROLES

Ages 16+

Les Misérables is an ensemble-driven musical, and we are seeking a large company of strong singers and actors to create the many communities at the center of the story. Ensemble performers take on multiple roles throughout the production, and many tracks include featured acting and singing opportunities.

Together, the ensemble creates the world of the production: prisoners and laborers; factory workers; sailors and the people of the docks; inn patrons; students and revolutionaries; the people of Paris; Thénardier's gang; wedding guests; and others encountered throughout the story.

Featured and named roles—including the Bishop of Digne, the Factory Foreman, Factory Girl, Bamatabois, Grantaire, Combeferre, Feuilly, Courfeyrac, Joly, Montparnasse, Babet, Brujon, Claquesous, and others—will be cast from within the company.

Ensemble performers should be strong storytellers who enjoy creating distinct characters and working collaboratively. You do not need to know which specific ensemble role or track is right for you before auditioning. We're interested in meeting you and discovering where you might fit within the world of the production.

Ready to Audition?

If Les Misérables sounds like a production you'd like to be part of, we'd love to meet you.

Registration will open Monday, September 28. Video auditions must be submitted by Friday, October 2 at 5:00 PM, and in-person registration closes Friday, October 9 at 5:00 PM.

Accessibility & Questions

TCR wants every performer to have an equitable opportunity to audition. If you need an accessibility accommodation or adjustment to participate in the audition process, please let us know. We're happy to work with you to identify an appropriate accommodation.

Questions about auditions, registration, scheduling, or accessibility accomodations may be sent to auditions@theatrecr.org.

We look forward to meeting you!