Edinburgh Deaf Festival is looking for two performers to help us with the development of our new original play, titled ‘The Ghost of Alexander Blackwood’. 

The ghost of Alexander Blackwood is going to share his story about becoming a pastor at a deaf church in Edinburgh. Follow his journey to see how this impacted the deaf community and our language.

We are looking for deaf, hard of hearing and hearing performers based in Edinburgh (or within reasonable travelling distance) to join our research and development (R&D) workshop to develop the draft script for our new play, ‘The Ghost of Alexander Blackwood’. The workshops will help to inform the final version of the script and are an invaluable opportunity for our production team to collaborate with the wider community to deliver this new play

  • Please note that this call out is for the R&D workshops only.
  • Auditions will be held at a later date to secure the cast for the performances after the script is finalised.
  • This is a paid fixed-term contract for the development workshops only. Performers will be paid £360 per person for attending the R&D workshops. This payment includes coverage for any travel expenses incurred by the performers during the dates of the workshops.  
Casting information

Open to deaf, hard of hearing, hearing, deaf people with speech. All genders welcome. 18+.

Required commitment

The mandatory attendance dates are below. Please only apply if you are available on all of these dates. Auditions and workshops will take place at Deaf Action’s venue in Edinburgh.

  • Deadline to apply: 22 April
  • Audition: 2 May
  • Research & development: 20–22 May
Expectation for self-tape

Please wear a plain black t-shirt or top. Position yourself on a plain background with a good lighting on your face, upper body and sides. Ensure the video is clear, maximum 2 minutes.

  • For deaf performer – choose a monologue in BSL but that shows your acting skills too, for example, physical theatre, movement, VV
  • For English speaking performer (can be deaf person with speech) – find a monologue that has both a storytelling element and character work.
How to apply

To be considered for an in-person audition, please submit your CV, headshot and bio, along with your short monologue of your choice to showcase your acting skills to festival@deafaction.org & jamie.rea@deafaction.org