National Open Casting Call for Brand New North American Tour of R.E.S.P.E.C.T.

Right Angle Entertainment, Maple Tree Entertainment and Quatro Entertainment are searching for their Queen of Soul! Along with Executive Producer Jim Lanahan, they proudly present the North American debut of R.E.S.P.E.C.T., an electrifying tribute concert celebrating the legendary Aretha Franklin, and announce a national open casting call to find the stars of the show. The brand new North American production is adapted from McGee Entertainment’s Australian touring smash-hit, RESPECT—The Aretha Franklin Story starring Angie Narayan (Australian Idol), which continues to play to sold out audiences across the country. R.E.S.P.E.C.T. follows the musical maven’s story through a soundtrack of the hits that made her the Queen of Soul.

The American tour of R.E.S.P.E.C.T. will be directed by Broadway’s Christina Sajous (Spongebob Squarepants, Spider-Man: Turn off the Dark, American Idiot, Baby It’s You), with Musical Direction by Darnell White (Revelation The Musical, Gospel at Colonus) and Casting by Tracey Moore (creator of “The Black Box” on Crackle, founder of The Spirited Actor Workshop; casting credits with Miramax, Fox, MTV, Spike Lee and national commercials). More than just a concert, this is the Aretha experience like no other featuring all of your favorite hits in one evening including “Natural Woman,” “Think,” “I Knew You Were Waiting for Me,” “Chain of Fools,” “Respect,” and many more!

The search for supreme American talent to bring this event to life is on with an open casting call to fill the following roles:

Lead Singer: Black American, 30’s- 50’s, Powerhouse vocalist, Female, “The Queen of Soul”. Diva personified through the gift of her vocal talent, and captivating presence. She embodies the spirit, strength, grace, power, allure, and range of the legend “Aretha Franklin”. Seeking a vocal talent that has a deeply rooted gospel/ church influence with a pop sensibility, wide vocal range of G5 full voice (and can “flip” to a mix above that) a voice filled with emotional depths that can shake an audience to its core.

Host 1: Black American, 30’s- 50’s, Powerhouse vocalist, Female, a fierce, type A personality that keeps the show in order. A captivating entertainer/ storyteller who shares the story of “The Queen of Soul” with great enthusiasm, open to improvisation, creativity, and collaboration. She embodies the energy of being the eldest of the trio, who is a leader with a warm, yet demanding presence. Seeking an actor, and vocalist of a wide range between soprano- mezzo with a gospel and pop sensibility. Movement/dance skills are a plus. This character will also cover/understudy “The Queen of Soul” (vocal range G5 full voice and can “flip” to a mix above that)

Host 2: Black American, 20’s-40s, Powerhouse vocalist, Female, life of the party, vivacious, flirty, and comedic. A captivating entertainer/storyteller who shares the story of “The Queen of Soul” with great enthusiasm, open to improvisation, creativity, and collaboration. She embodies the energy of being the youngest of the trio, who is rebellious to structure and encourages the audience and the other hosts to let loose. Seeking an actor, and vocalist of a wide range between soprano-mezzo with a gospel and pop sensibility. Movement/dance skills are a plus. This character will also cover/understudy “Host 1” (a fierce, type A personality that keeps the show in order, a leader with a warm, yet demanding presence)

Host 3: Black American, 20’s-40’s, Powerhouse vocalist, Male, loyal, protective, soulful, earnest, and charming. A captivating entertainer/storyteller who shares the story of “The Queen of Soul” with great enthusiasm, open to improvisation, creativity, and collaboration. He embodies the energy of being the middle person of the trio, who is diplomatic. Seeking an actor, and vocalist who is a full tenor and Baritone with access to his falsetto. Vocal style should be similar to Sam Cooke, Marvin Gaye and/or Stevie Wonder with a gospel and pop sensibility. Movement/dance skills are a plus. Guitar skills are a plus.

Piano Player (Keys 2): BIPOC, Pianist. They should exhibit the ability to play gospel, pop and rock and roll. Will be responsible for horn, organ, and transitional music programming on keyboard patches. This is a collaborative process, so an artist with creative musical instincts, the freedom of improvisation, and vocal talent is a plus.

Final callbacks will take place on June 9, 2022 in New York City. Visit www.RespectOnTour.com to submit audition materials and learn more about the show. Follow R.E.S.P.E.C.T. on social media at instagram.com/respectontour/ and facebook.com/respectontour.

For booking inquiries, contact The Booking Group through Brian Brooks at [email protected] and Rich Rundle and [email protected].

RIGHT ANGLE ENTERTAINMENT (Producer) specializes in the production, marketing, management and distribution of live theatrical, digital and concert events. RAE’s proud roster includes: America’s Got Talent Live!, The Price is Right LIVE!, The Masked Singer National Tour, The Simon and Garfunkel Story, The Office! An Unauthorized Musical Parody (Off Broadway and National Tour), FRIENDS! A Musical Parody (Off-Broadway and National Tour), Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer (National Tour and Grand Old Opry), Together Live with Abby Wambach and Glennon Doyle, Sasha Velour’s Smoke & Mirrors Tour, among many others.

MAPLE TREE ENTERTAINMENT (Producer) Headed by Dean Elliott, Maple Tree Entertainment Ltd is a theatrical production company that specializes in creating, presenting and producing high quality music, drama and musicals both in the UK and across the world. Maple Tree Entertainment’s flagship show The Simon & Garfunkel Story has been seen by hundreds of thousands of people across the world and is still today the leading theatrical show concerning Simon & Garfunkel. The company is committed to extremely high-quality work and will always have the satisfaction of the audience as its main driving goal.

QUATRO ENTERTAINMENT (Producer) co-produces The Simon & Garfunkel Story, The Life and Music of George Michael, The British Invasion – Live On Stage and promotes national Broadway touring shows. With offices in Calgary, Alberta, Victoria, British Columbia and Reno, Nevada they present hundreds of events across North America each year. Recent Broadway touring shows include Dirty Dancing, Kinky Boots, Rock of Ages and The Illusionists. For more information visit: http://quatroentertainment.com.

CHRISTINA SAJOUS (Director) Broadway: Spongebob Squarepants (Sandy Cheeks), Spider-Man: Turn off the Dark (Arachne), American Idiot (Extraordinary Girl), Baby It’s You! (Shirley), Tupac Shakur’s Holler If Ya Hear Me. Regional: A Wonderful World (Miami New Drama) Paradise Square (Berkeley Rep), The Prince of Egypt (TheatreWorks), Carmen: an Afro Cuban Musical (TecTonic Theatre Project), Romeo & Juliet (Baltimore Symphony Orchestra), Disgraced (Denver Center of Performing Arts). TV/Film performing credits include “Spongebob Squarepants The Musical Live on Stage” as Sandy Cheeks (Nickelodeon), “Run the World” (Starz) “Kevin Can F*** Himself” (AMC) “Chicago Med” (NBC), “Blue Bloods” (CBS),“Jesus Christ Superstar Live” (NBC), “Alpha House”(Amazon), “One Life to Live” (ABC), “Broadway Idiot” (Netflix). Christina attended NYU: Tisch School of the Arts, and the International Theatre Wing in Amsterdam.

DARNELL WHITE (Music Director) A noted staple in New York City’s music scene, Darnell has developed a pristine reputation as a performer, composer, and musical director. As a music director he has collaborated with artists including Melba Moore, Brian McKnight, Blaine Krauss, Amma Ossei, Willis White, Angela Birchett, David LaMarr, Carlton Jumel Smith and more. He recently served as musical director for the off-Broadway show Revelation The Musical as well as the film adaptation of Gospel at Colonus, Lady Day at Emerson’s Grill (Depot Theater) and served as the Artist in Residence at the American Songbook Association. He is currently the musical director for several churches in the New York area and the chorusmaster for Trilogy: An Opera Company in Newark, NJ. Darnell is highly recognized as one of New York City’s top vocal coaches and is always accepting new talent into his studio.

TRACEY MOORE (Casting Director) has more than 30 years of casting experience across the entertainment industry. She has worked on projects with MTV, Fox, and Miramax, and her commercial clients include Nike, Sprite, Coca-Cola, New York Times, Miller Lite, Pontiac and more. Tracey teaches The Spirited Actor Workshop and she conducts private coaching sessions with clients such as Cardi B, Busta Rhymes, Missy Elliot, Eve, Nelly, Faith Evans, LaLa Anthony, Common, Ludacris and more. Tracey wrote her first book entitled “The Spirited Actor; Principles for a Successful Audition” to empower and encourage actors on their journey. Tracey also created the show “Inside the Black Box” which premiered on Crackle + on February 17, 2022.

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Tags: Aretha Franklin, R.E.S.P.E.C.T.

About the Author

Dr. Jerry Doby Editor-in-Chief of The Hype Magazine, Media and SEO Consultant, Journalist, Ph.D. and retired combat vet. 2023 recipient of The President's Lifetime Achievement Award. Partner at THM Media Group. Member of the U.S. Department of Arts and Culture, the United States Press Agency and ForbesBLK.