AUDITIONS are to be held next month for parts in one of the 2018 York Mystery Plays, which are set to be performed on pageant wagons in the city’s streets later this year.

The plays, which are organised by the York Festival Trust with the Guilds of York, take place every four years and the last production in 2014 involved nearly 600 people from across the community.

They will be staged again this year at various playing stations across the city centre, in line with medieval custom, on September 9 and 16, with a possible additional evening performance on September 12.

Now director Ben Prusiner is set to hold auditions, on the evening of March 9 and the afternoon of March 11, for parts in‘The Harrowing of Hell.’

He said in a message to members of the York Mystery Plays Supporters Trust that actors of all ages and genders were being sought for the ‘exciting ensemble piece pitting Jesus against Satan and all the devils in Hell, while Adam, Eve, Moses and other well-known characters look on’.

He said there would be a range of speaking and non-speaking parts, plus an ensemble of dancers and movers to ‘represent the souls trapped in limbo and the demon army of Hell’.

He said: “If you’re an experienced stilt-walker you could be the angel who helps subdue Satan at the end of the play!”

The auditions would be held in groups, consisting of a series of games and group activities highlighting movement, public speaking and acting styles.

He said crew members were also being sought for set construction and costume building, and there were vacancies for a movement director and blues musicians.

No preparation or previous experience is required and people need to email YMPSTrust@gmail.com to arrange an audition time slot.

Mr Prusiner revealed that rehearsals would take place once a month from March to June. “During these initial meetings, we’ll skill-build as an ensemble and decide, as a company, on themes we wish to highlight using the text and set design as a starting point.

“As one of the New Testament plays in the cycle, we’ve a free hand in the visual design so we can represent modern-day issues and concerns of interest to the group. Together, we’ll brainstorm costume ideas reflecting these themes for the devils, Jesus, and the trapped souls.”

He said rehearsals would be held once a week during July and August before a final dress rehearsal on September 2.

Trust chairman Roger Lee told last year how past productions had met with great popular, academic and critical acclaim, adding that the trust hoped to build on this with its 2018 production.

The wagon plays complement Mystery Play productions staged at single venues such as York Minster in 2016.