Auditions: Thursday, 24th July 2025 from 6pm  

Ruby Productions: Level 1, 15 Evan Street, Penrith

 

Written by Willy Russell | Directed by Blake Reeves

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SYNOPSIS:

Educating Rita follows the evolving relationship between Rita, a 26-year-old working-class hairdresser hungry for intellectual growth, and Frank, a weary university lecturer who's lost faith in his work and  himself. As they meet across the desk in Frank’s book-strewn office, their conversations begin to chip away at social expectations and personal barriers, drawing them both into an unexpected journey of  transformation.  
Premiering in 1980, Educating Rita is one of Willy Russell’s most celebrated works - praised for its wit,  emotional resonance, and its exploration of themes like class, education, and self-identity. Loosely based  on Russell’s own life experiences, the play is a sharply observed character study set against the backdrop  of Britain’s Open University system. Told entirely through a series of private lessons over the course of an academic year, the story unfolds in a  single location - Frank’s office. But within those four walls, a richly layered connection forms. What starts  as a simple tutoring arrangement slowly becomes something deeper: an honest, funny, and often  confronting look at what it means to change, and what we gain or lose in the process. 

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AUDITION INFORMATION

Whether you’re drawn to Rita’s fiery drive for transformation or Frank’s dry, wounded charm, Educating Rita offers two actors a rare opportunity to tackle complex, fully realised characters in a smart, intimate play.  
Auditions will be held in the upstairs space at Ruby Productions, starting at 6 pm, please contact Blake for audition material and a time slot.  
SMS: 0420 703 051  Email: blake.dav.reeves@gmail.com

PERFORMANCE DATES

Saturday, 1st November at 7pm

Friday, 7th November at 7pm

Saturday, 8th November at 2pm & 7pm

Friday, 14th November at 7pm

Saturday, 15th November at 2pm & 7pm  

PERFORMANCE LOCATION
Ruby Productions

at Ruby’s new home (TBA).

REHEARSAL INFORMATION

Every Thursday at 6:30 pm and Sunday @ 1pm starting in August  
Ruby Productions: Level 1, 15 Evan Street, Penrith 

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CHARACTERS​

RITA

Female, 25 - 35

Brash working-class hairdresser.

Liverpudlian accent required.

Rita is a bright, brash, working-class hairdresser with a hunger for something more out of life. Feeling  trapped by her job, her background, and her marriage, she signs up for an Open University course in  English literature. Full of energy and curiosity, she is unfiltered, funny, and deeply honest. Over the course of the play, she undergoes a personal transformation - not just academically, but emotionally and philosophically - as she confronts what it means to "better" oneself and what she might lose in the  process. Actresses auditioning for Rita must be comfortable handling emotionally dynamic material, blending comic timing with moments of serious vulnerability.

 

FRANK

Male, 45 - 65

Disillusioned university teacher. Received Pronunciation preferred.

Neutral English accent required.

Frank is a university lecturer and published poet whose passion for literature has faded beneath layers  of cynicism, self-loathing, and heavy drinking. At the start of the play, he is coasting through life, disillusioned with academia and resigned to mediocrity. Rita's entrance into his world is both a disruption and a salvation. Through tutoring her, Frank rediscovers both the joy and the pain of caring about something again. Actors auditioning for Frank should bring gravitas, dry humour, and an ability to subtly convey emotional depth beneath a crusty exterior.