Adapted by Jon Jory
Original Story by O. Henry
Directed by Beth Gilles-Whitehead
This heartwarming, romantic holiday favorite tells the story of Della and Jim, who are desperately in love with each other but also very poor. In their attempts to buy each other proper Christmas gifts, a strange twist of fate leads the couple to find the perfect gifts for one another — but at an unexpected cost. Though they may not have the perfect Christmas, the couple learns about the importance of the gift of love in this beautiful adaptation of the story by O. Henry. An inspiring holiday feel-good story, suitable for the entire family!
Providence Players of Fairfax is:
- A non-profit community theater troupe. All participation is on a volunteer basis. No members of the cast or crew are compensated.
- A membership organization. Membership is not required to audition. If cast, all actors (and in fact, all volunteers), are required to become members of Providence Players of Fairfax ($25 per individual or $60 per family – three or more) for the season (if not already a member).
Casting Announcement
Providence Players is casting 15-18 roles. No roles are precast, and all roles are open. All backgrounds, ages, ethnicities welcome and encouraged to audition! All welcome!
Download all three documents: Audition Announcement,Form and Theater Access Schedule.
Audition Dates
7:00 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 8
7:00 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 9
7:00 p.m., Tuesday, Oct. 15
PLEASE RSVP to info@providenceplayers.org with the date you plan to attend.
Actors who audition one night may be asked to come back a second night, if available. You are not required to be available multiple evenings to be considered. The Director reserves the right to extend the audition period pending initial audition response.
Audition Location
The James Lee Community Center
2855 Annandale Road
Falls Church, VA 22042
Auditions will be held in two locations at the Center. Please come into the front entrance of the community center and sign in at counter. Staff can point you in the right direction and signs will be posted.
Performance Dates and Times
Preview: December 5, 2019; 7:00 pm
Evening Performances: Thurs. Fri. Sat.; December 6 – 15, 7:30 pm
Matinees: Saturdays and Sundays, December 7, 8, 14 & 15, 2:00 pm
About the Director: Beth Gilles-Whitehead
Beth Gilles-Whitehead is a 17-year veteran of Providence Players. She is currently on the board and will be directing The Gift of the Magi opening this December. Beth has directed a number of shows for the players including: To Kill a Mockingbird, A Christmas Carol (2018), Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, All My Sons (Ruby Griffith award winner for Overall Excellence), The Best Christmas Pageant Ever, The Good Doctor (co-directed with David Whitehead), Waiting in the Wings, California Suite and others. She’s acted in many Providence Players productions including: Mame in Auntie Mame, (WATCH nomination) Barbara in August Osage County, M’Lynn in Steel Magnolias, Charlotte in Moon Over Buffalo, Romaine in Witness for the Prosecution (WATCH nomination), Meg in Crimes of the Heart, and others.
Thumbnail Character Descriptions
| ROLE | GENDER | DESCRIPTIONS (ages are flexible) |
| Jim | m | 20-30’s, marries Della |
| Digsby | m | 20-30’s, friend to Jim |
| Della | f | 20-30’s, marries Jim |
| Dot | f | 20-30’s, marries Jim |
| Clarice | f | 30-40’s, poor mother, neighbor to Jim and Della |
| Art | m | 30-45, acquaintance of Jim and Digsby |
| Bootman | m | male older Irish store guy |
| Shopgirl | f | young woman, at least 20 |
| Madam Vodvaskaya | f | older Russian woman shop owner |
| Ensemble (6-8 people) | m/f | will sing, be people on the street, people in park, stores, etc…will also be part of the stage crew. ALL WILL SING. |
From the director, Beth Gilles-Whitehead
The Gift of the Magi is a well loved and heartwarming story of giving and true love. Each year the Play-Selection Committee presents to the board, many options to serve our audience with entertaining and sometimes traditional stories. At the holiday we want to present a show for the whole family. O. Henry was a great short story writer, and this is one his most well-known and beloved. Born William Sydney Porter in 1862 in North Carolina, he lived in many places and led a very colorful life. All of his occupations, places of residence and relationships made his stories witty, clever, interesting and “known for their surprise endings.” Jon Jory (playwright) has taken the O. Henry story and created a beautiful, funny, poignant, theatrical play perfect for the holidays.
REHEARSALS: Download a copy of the Theater Access Schedule for this show. This is NOT the specific rehearsal schedule (which will be supplied later), but it will give you an idea for the commitment you are making – rehearsal space and performance – and how to identify conflicts.
A tentative rehearsal schedule will be available at auditions. The schedule will be finalized the week after casting and will be based on crew and actor conflicts. Unless indicated otherwise, all rehearsals will take place at the James Lee Community Center. Weeknight rehearsals will start at 7pm and will generally go until 9:45pm. Weekend rehearsals will be based on availability.
Please come to auditions prepared to list any availability conflicts with rehearsal or the performance schedule. Space is provided on the audition form for this purpose.
All actors should prepare 16 bars of a song and come prepared to sing it “a cappella.”
Please read the O. Henry story before auditioning, if you can. It’s short and easily accessible. Sides will be available at the audition and you will have time to prepare.
Additional Audition Information/Instructions:
- HOW WE WORK: Most Providence auditions have actors up and down to read multiple times in multiple combinations and scenes. Most actors find this fun. As space allows, you will be able to watch the auditions. You may be asked to go into the hallway with audition partners and work a bit on a scene. We will do our best to get you up multiple times reading for parts you are interested in. You will also be asked to read for other parts you may not be auditioning for. The Providence Players strives to make our productions open to interested and engaged actors & actresses, regardless of their level of experience. We try and make our auditions as relaxing and fun as possible.
- AUDITION PROCESS & SIDES: Auditions will consist of readings from the script. No monologue required although one of the sides may be a monologue from the play. Sides for the audition process will be supplied at auditions.
- AUDITION FORM: Please ALSO COMPLETE the attached Providence Audition Form and bring it with you to the audition. Resumes and headshots will be accepted but are not required. We may ask to take a picture of you, but this is for internal use only and will not be shared.
We look forward to seeing you at Auditions!