Hangmen
Audition Date: August 3, 2025
Time: 10:30am
Place: The Playhouse, 2 Matai St Taupo
Production Dates: Oct 29 – Nov 8, 2025
Written By: Martin McDonagh
Directed By: Sharon Shanks
Produced By: Centre Stage Taupo Inc
Production Manager: Jo Bixley
Auditions | Centre Stage Taupo
Synopsis: It’s 1965, and capital punishment has just been abolished in the UK. In a dingy pub in the north of England, the landlord, Harry, who until recently was known as ‘the second-best hangman in Britain’, holds court. Surrounded by a motley crew of sycophants and hangers-on, he relishes the celebrity his profession has brought him. His wife, Alice, works behind the bar; neither seems to notice that their anxious, awkward teenage daughter, Shirley, is ripe for exploitation. The arrival of Mooney, a mysterious stranger from London creates an atmosphere toxic with suspicion, and when Harry’s arch-rival turns up, the clash of egos is brutal.
A pitch-black Olivier Award-winning comedy from the master of darkness, Martin McDonagh, the multi-award-winning writer of plays The Beauty Queen of Leenane and The Lieutenant of Innishmore, and the films The Banshees of Inisherin, In Bruges, and Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri.
“A sly throat-gripping mystery” The New York Times
“Tremendous, terrifying” The Observer
Characters required – 10 male, 2 female. Suggested character ages available through Centre Stage. Some characters will need to speak with a *northern or London accent – coaching will be given.
Please direct any further inquiries to:
Director, Sharon Shanks: [email protected] or
Production Manager, Jo Bixley: [email protected]
