March / April 2025

Directed by Nick Smith & Jesse Hana

Don’t Dress for Dinner – Audition Details

Audition Dates
Monday 9th December 2024 – 7.00pm – Coolum Civic Centre, Park Street, Coolum Beach
Wednesday 11th December – 7.00pm – Coolum Civic Centre, Park Street, Coolum Beach

Show Dates
The shows will be performed at the Coolum Civic Centre on the following dates:-
Friday, March 28th & Saturday, March 29th @ 7.30pm
Sunday, March 30th @ 2.00pm
Friday, April 4th & Saturday, April 5th @ 7.30pm
Sunday, April 6th @ 2.00pm

Production History
This comedy was a smash hit in Paris, where it ran for two years, and in London, where it ran for
six. It was revived in Chicago and New York in 2012 and was nominated for two Tony Awards.

Plot
Bernard is planning a romantic weekend with his mistress in his charming French farmhouse,
whilst his wife, Jacqueline, is away. He has arranged for a cordon bleu cook to prepare gourmet
delights and has invited his best friend, Robert, to provide the alibi. It’s foolproof!
But Robert turns up not sure why he’s there. And, awkwardly, he’s Jacqueline’s secret lover and
so doesn’t want Jacqueline away. The cook then must pretend to be the mistress and,
unfortunately, the mistress can’t cook. And let’s not forget the rather protective cook’s husband.
Confusion ensues, improvisation occurs, and alibis are swapped. All at breakneck speed.

Characters
BERNARD – Male – late 30s to mid 50s
Bernard is planning a romantic weekend with his mistress in his converted farmhouse whilst his
wife is away. He’s a handsome businessman – flirtatious, dapper, and self-assured.
JACQUELINE – Female – late 30s to mid 50s
Bernard’s wife who discovers that her lover, Robert, is coming to keep Bernard company for the
weekend. She is lovely, assertive, romantic and intelligent – a beautiful, modern woman.
ROBERT – Male – late 30s to mid 50s
Bernard’s best friend who is invited to provide him an alibi. He is also Jacqueline’s lover. He’s
handsome, reserved and seems like an all-around nice guy – except he’s a scoundrel at heart!
SUZETTE – Female – late 20s to mid 40s
The cook, friendly, working class, funny, hiding a great body. She is a swan beneath the duckling
exterior. Gets herself way too involved in the situation.
SUZANNE – Female – late 20s to late 30s
Bernard’s mistress, a fashion model with a great body – chic, stylish, but easily flustered and
can’t quite believe what is happening.
GEORGE – Male – mid 50s+
Suzette’s husband, big, strong, and very protective of Suzette. A little bit scary. Definitely not
one to indulge in fooling around and doesn’t take fools lightly.

Audition Process
Just turn up. No preparation is required. We’ll warm up in some way, shape or form. We may try
some accent work (French, English posh, English working class) and sections of the play will be
printed and ready for some cold reads. We may even do some improvisation work. Who knows.

Further Details
If you would like any further details, please contact the director, Nick Smith, via email at
nickinbuenos@gmail.com, or the Assistant Director, Jesse Hana, at jesse.hana@yahoo.com.

See you all at the Civic!