Operation Mincemeat: The Expanded Cast

Principal Roles

EWEN MONTAGU – (Man, 30) The “host” of the show (at least in his mind), Montagu is charming, confident and very much used to getting what he wants as a result. A member of the elite upper classes, he’s the definition of privilege. He is still impatient to prove himself as the hero he’s yet to be recognised as – bounding excitedly into every room with an imagined trumpet chorus.
CHARLES CHOLMONDELEY – (Man, 24) [pronounced “Chumley”] The man behind the plan, Charles has most of the advantages Montagu has in life, and yet has never quite managed to fit in. Awkward, cripplingly shy and a slave to perfection, he’d rather be off studying a rare form of newt than be in the spotlight.
JOHNNY BEVAN – (Man, 48) Colonel Bevan is the Head of Military Deception. Painfully serious and often despairing at the maniacs he has working for him, he is our reminder of what’s at stake during the operation. Although he and Montagu are often at odds, he’s not an antagonist; he’s a man with a huge weight on his shoulders trying to get the job done.
HESTER LEGGATT – (Woman, 45) Bevan’s incredibly capable and trusted right-hand woman, Hester is reserved and often comes across as severe to her colleagues. However, underneath her stern exterior and strong sense of duty lies a genuine warmth and desire to connect with the people around her in a deeper way.
JEAN LESLIE – (Woman, 20) Young, smart and ambitious, Jean cannot believe the opportunity she’s getting in working at MI-bloody-5! Impatient and outspoken (sometimes to a fault, sometimes to her advantage), she’s constantly pushing against the boundaries of what is expected of her as a young woman in a man’s world.

Ensemble & Principal Doubling Roles

MI5 & GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES

HASELDEN – (Man, 60s) An impossibly sweaty, anxious British diplomat from the West Country caught up in the mission despite being way out of his depth.
STEVE – (Man, 60s) Haselden’s doddery right-hand idiot.
IAN FLEMING – (Man, 20s) Technically in his 20s but played as a cheerfully mad nine-year-old boy. Fleming works at MI5 but is completely obsessed with his creation James Bond.
JOHN MASTERMAN & REGGIE TAR – (Men, 50s) Old Etonians with absolutely insane plans for killing Hitler.
MERYL, BERYL & CHERYL – (Women, 20s) The women working in the secretarial staff at MI5, they’re young and ditzy but ambitious, and boy can they dance.
ADMIRAL GOUT, ADMIRAL PLUMP, ADMIRAL GUFF – (Men, 90s) Ancient, dusty men of the sea.
MI5 AGENTS & SECRETARIES – Additional workers in the MI5 offices

SUBMARINERS

CAPTAIN JEWELL – (Man, 40s) An incredibly serious submarine captain. The only person in the show to successfully intimidate Montagu.
CHIEF WALKER, BOSUN, COXSWAIN & DOUGLASS – (Men, Various ages) Submariners are our connection to the seriousness of war. They’re not comedy characters and during Act One, Scene Eight they should be naturalistic, a reminder of the stakes of the mission.

LONDONERS

SIR BERNARD SPILSBURY – (Man, 50s) If Liberace was obsessed with corpses. Spilsbury is a showman and a maniac, he loves the spotlight and all things blood and gore.
MORGUE ASSISTANTS – Half showgirl, half goblin. Spilsbury’s creepy and glamorous sidekicks.
COCKNEY BARROW BOYS – Heel-clicking, flat-cap-wearing Newsie-style boys.
SHOESHINE BOY – A cheerful shoeshining orphan who’s somehow fallen out of a Dickens novel into this show.
TAILOR – Quite literally… a tailor.
UMBRELLA MAN – A nonplussed passerby (carrying an umbrella, of course).
WAITERS – Waiters at the Ritz, moustaches preferred.
MARY PIGGLES – (Woman, 40s) A slow-moving barmaid with a truly hideous smile.
IVOR MONTAGU – (Man, 20s) Monty’s younger brother, an enigmatic filmmaker (and possible Communist spy).
HEL – (Woman, 20s) Ivor’s glamorous wife.
DANCERS, CLUBBERS, BARMEN & PATRONS – An array of characters that move and transform throughout Act One, Scene Eleven. They are found in The Milky Pig, Clinky’s, Baby Sam’s Brass Bonanza, Mama Maracas, and many other London bars during Montagu and Cholmondeley’s night out.

SPANISH MORGUE

DR POBIL – (Men, 40s) A highly competent Spanish coroner.
JUAN & JOSÉ – (Men, 20s) Dr Pobil’s assistants.

ADDITIONAL CHARACTERS

NAZI OFFICERS – Members of a sexy Nazi boy band – think Backstreet Boys meets BTS.
GERMAN SPIES – German spies who take the bait from Haselden.
AMBASSADOR’S BALL ATTENDEES – Masked dancers.
WILLIE WATKINS – (Man, 20s) Unbelievably cheery all-American crooner who turns up unannounced, with an annoying cartoonish ability to pop up in unexpected locations.
WILLIE’S SHOWGIRLS – Wide-eyed and even wider smiles. Willie Watkins’s glitzy USA cheerleaders who transform into glitzy Nazi cheerleaders mid-song.
MOVIE CHORUS – A typical Broadway dancing chorus, giving 110 percent.
TUB – An American actor playing Cholmondeley in Montagu’s movie (must be played by the person playing Cholmondeley).

Actor Assignments

Please note: Operation Mincemeat: The Expanded Cast requires a minimum cast size of thirteen actors. Licensees are welcome to expand the cast further by removing doubling and/or utilizing a chorus of any size. A large-format roadmap, with character assignments by scene, is provided to licensees with their music rehearsal package.

PRINCIPAL CAST

ACTOR 1 – EWEN MONTAGU; Doubles as NAZI OFFICER and JUAN
ACTOR 2 – CHARLES CHOLMONDELEY; Doubles as NAZI OFFICER, DR POBIL and TUB
ACTOR 3 – JOHNNY BEVAN; Doubles as NAZI OFFICER and HASELDEN
ACTOR 4 – HESTER LEGGATT; Doubles as COXSWAIN, NAZI OFFICER and JOSÉ
ACTOR 5 – JEAN LESLIE Doubles as BOSUN, NAZI OFFICER and STEVE

ENSEMBLE CAST

ACTOR 6 – Doubles as REGGIE TAR, MERYL, SHOESHINE BOY, ADMIRAL PLUMP, CLUBBER, HEL, NAZI OFFICER (CHORUS) and GERMAN SPY
ACTOR 7 – Doubles as JOHN MASTERMAN, CHERYL, ADMIRAL GOUT, NAZI OFFICER (CHORUS) and DOUGLASS
ACTOR 8 – Doubles as IAN FLEMING, BERYL, ADMIRAL GUFF, MARY PIGGLES, CLUBBER, IVOR MONTAGU, MAKE-UP ARTIST, NAZI OFFICER (CHORUS) and GERMAN SPY
ACTOR 9 – Doubles as MI5 AGENT, SIR BERNARD SPILSBURY, CAPTAIN BILL JEWELL, NAZI OFFICER (CHORUS) and WILLIE WATKINS
ACTOR 10 – Doubles as MI5 AGENT, SECRETARY, COCKNEY 1, WAITER 1, CHIEF WALKER, AMBASSADOR’S BALL ATTENDEE, SHOWGIRL, NAZI OFFICER (CHORUS) and MOVIE CHORUS MEMBER
ACTOR 11 – Doubles as MI5 AGENT, SECRETARY, COCKNEY 3, WAITER 2, SUBMARINER, CLINKY’S PATRON, BABY SAM’S DANCER, MAMA MARACAS DANCER, CLUBBER, AMBASSADOR’S BALL ATTENDEE, SHOWGIRL, NAZI OFFICER (CHORUS) and MOVIE CHORUS MEMBER
ACTOR 12 – Doubles as MI5 AGENT, SECRETARY, UMBRELLA MAN, MORGUE ASSISTANT 1, SUBMARINER, CLINKY’S WAITER, BABY SAM’S DANCER, BOUNCER, CLUBBER, AMBASSADOR’S BALL ATTENDEE, SHOWGIRL, NAZI OFFICER (CHORUS) and MOVIE CHORUS MEMBER
ACTOR 13 – Doubles as MI5 AGENT, SECRETARY, COCKNEY 2, MORGUE ASSISTANT 2, TAILOR, SUBMARINER, CLINKY’S BARMAN, BABY SAM’S DANCER, MAMA MARACAS DANCER, CLUBBER, AMBASSADOR’S BALL ATTENDEE, SHOWGIRL, NAZI OFFICER (CHORUS) and MOVIE CHORUS MEMBER

Notes on gender and casting: The gender swapping should not be pointed, exaggerated, or even acknowledged. It should simply be part of the fabric of the show. It’s just more fun that way.

ACTOR 1 (MONTAGU) should not be played by a cis man.
ACTOR 4 (HESTER) should not be played by a cis woman.
All other roles can be played by an actor of any gender. For single gender casts, these rules can be disregarded.

Operation Mincemeat: The Expanded Cast requires a minimum cast size of 13 actors. Licensees are welcome to expand the cast further by removing doubling and/or utilizing a chorus of any size. A large-format roadmap, with character assignments by scene, is provided to licensees with their music rehearsal package.

Notes on gender and casting:
The gender swapping should not be pointed, exaggerated, or even acknowledged. It should simply be part of the fabric of the show. It’s just more fun that way.

ACTOR 1 (MONTAGU) should not be played by a cis man.
ACTOR 4 (HESTER) should not be played by a cis woman.
All other roles can be played by an actor of any gender. For single gender casts, these rules can be disregarded.