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Don’t Dress For Dinner
By Marc Camolotti
Adapted for the stage by Robin Hawdon
Directed by Brian Tabak
While his wife Jacqueline is away tending to her ailing mother, Bernard plans a tryst with his Parisian mistress. He’s arranged everything for the perfect romantic weekend, even hiring a gourmet chef to prepare their meals. To cover the liaison, he invites his best friend Robert to stay the weekend and provide a convenient alibi.
Unbeknownst to Bernard, Robert is having an affair with Jacqueline – who, upon learning that her lover will be there, decides not to leave town after all. When the cook and the mistress arrive, they are quickly mistaken for each other and must play their new roles at this suddenly-crowded dinner party.
You won’t stop laughing as Bernard and Robert scramble to keep their stories straight while the lies pile up, mistaken identities multiply, and the evening hurtles delightfully out of control.
Auditions: May 19-20 at 6:45 PM – Callbacks May 21, 2025 at 7:00 PM
(See Info Below)
Director: Brian Tabak
Brian Tabak is directing his second production with Aurora Players, following Theatre in Hamlin Park’s The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane in 2025. He made his onstage Aurora Players debut in 2023’s One Man, Two Guvnors.
For much of the 2010s, Brian served as Creative Director for WNY’s longest-running improv program, CSz Buffalo. During his tenure, he performed in more than 1,100 ComedySportz matches, the company’s flagship competitive improv show.
Over the past decade, Brian has gradually shifted his focus to scripted theatre, appearing on stages across Western New York. He has been frequently seen at NRTG’s Ellicott Creek Playhouse, including as The Creature in Young Frankenstein, Garry in Noises Off, and Charles in Blithe Spirit, among others. Most recently, he appeared as eldest son Richard in Making God Laugh and dead-for-most-of-the-show Jonathan in The Play That Goes Wrong – both with Rocking Horse Productions – as well as Andy Dufresne in The Shawshank Redemption at Desiderio’s.
Brian thinks you made the right choice with that shirt today, and it looks really nice on you.
Cast List Announced!
MURDER ON THE ORIENT EXPRESS
CAST
HERCULE POIROT………………………Joshua Verby
CONSTANTINE BOUC……………………John Kehoe
MARY DEBENHAM………………..Megan Mahaney
HECTOR MACQUEEN…………………Nick Benstead
PIERRE MICHEL / HEAD WAITER………..Chris Biggie
PRINCESS DRAGOMIROFF………………Jessica Rasp
GRETA OHLSSON…………………………Erin Kosich
COUNTESS ANDRENYI…………………Anne Gerace
HELEN HUBBARD……………………….Tara Potzler
COLONEL ARBUTHNOT…………………Zach Wilcox
SAMUEL RATCHETT……………………..Lucas Smith
DAISY ARMSTRONG…………………Emerson Disch
DETAILS:
- Auditions will be held at Aurora Players: Roycroft Pavilion, Hamlin Park, 166 South Grove Street, East Aurora.
- The production opens Friday, March 13, 2026 and runs for three weekends through Sunday, March 29. Friday/Saturday shows are at 7:30 PM; Sunday shows, 2:30 PM.
- All cast members must be available for first read through on Monday, January 5. Headshots for publicity and the show program will be taken at this time.
- Rehearsals begin January 6; please note any dates you are unavailable for rehearsal on the audition form. Other dates that cannot be missed are: February 28th (tech rehearsal) and dress rehearsals from March 9-11.
PREPARATION:
- Actors of any race and gender identity are encouraged to audition for any role.
- Character ages listed in character descriptions are approximate; any actor may audition for any role.
- Sides will be available at the audition and are linked on this page.
- The nationalities of the characters are important to the story. Accents are preferred. Suggested reference videos are also linked on this page.
SYNOPSIS:
Just after midnight during the winter of 1934, the luxurious Orient Express train is stopped in its tracks by a snowdrift. In the morning, a passenger is discovered murdered in their bunk–stabbed eight times, and the cabin locked from inside. Isolated, and with a killer in their midst, the unusual assortment of passengers must rely on famed detective Hercule Poirot to identify the killer before they strike again!
CHARACTERS AND DESCRIPTIONS:
Hercule Poirot (40+) – world-famous detective. Eccentric, romantic, appreciative of luxury in life. Often underestimated, but fiercely intelligent and concerned with the moral good. (Belgian)
Constantine Bouc (40+) – friend of Poirot. Accustomed to luxury; owner of the train. (Belgian)
Mary Debenham (25+) – governess; cool and capable. Involved with Arbuthnot (British RP)
Hector MacQueen (25+) – personal secretary to Ratchett. Nervous, put-upon, very competent. (American)
Pierre Michel (40+) – train conductor. Charming and attentive to the passengers, extremely efficient and competent at his job. (French)
Princess Natalya Dragomiroff (50+) – imperious, domineering princess of the old school; exiled after the Bolsheviks took power. (Russian)
Greta Ohlsson (40+) – meek and pious missionary; companion to Dragomiroff. (Swedish)
Countess Elena Andreyni (20+) – medical doctor; commoner who married into the aristocracy and became a countess. (Hungarian)
Helen Hubbard (50+) – brash, uncouth, sardonic middle-aged midwesterner. (American)
Colonel James Arbuthnot (30+) – officer in the British military stationed in India; cliched in the era’s ideal of imperialist masculinity; romantically involved with Debenham. (Scottish)
Samuel Ratchett (35+) – owner of a vaguely defined import-export business. Vulgar, chauvinistic and unpleasant. (American)
Questions? Write to info@auroraplayers.org or leave a message with our box office: 716-687-6727. Aurora Players welcomes all to audition, whether new or seasoned actors.
Chris Biggie
PIERRE MICHEL
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