Auditions

Nobody expected what showed up to a casting call.

Day 4: “I am the pumpkin king.” — Jack Skellington, The Nightmare Before Christmas (1993)

Edward groaned inwardly, this was Shakespeare's A Winter Tale. Scarecrows wearing crowns atop their pumpkin head had no potential in the bard's realm. Why bother auditioning when you had no sense of the gravity of this play?

The casting agent tapped his clipboard. "So, Mr. King, what part are you reading for?"

Its fiery eyes blinked. How could a pumpkin blink? This costume had to be using some sort of projection system. What a waste of money. There was no way some cooky person was getting any role here.

"I am the Pumpkin King," the performer said. They spit seeds all over the stage. How unhygienic, Edward had expected candidates to be more professional.

No more words came from the actor's mouth. They stood there as if it just expected to land a part with pure stage presence. Edward had seen enough. Time to get the wanna be out the door.

"I'm sorry," he said. "If you didn't even prepare a monologue, you're wasting both our time. Now if you'll kindly exit—"

Before the rejection was complete, the performer ripped what had looked like a mask from its head. There was nothing beneath it. The pumpkin screamed, spraying the orchestra pit with seeds. Edward barely ducked in time to dodge the flaming gourd. It impacted the seat behind him.

Suddenly flames began devouring the velvet upholstery. It burned surprisingly fast. In all his time in the theater, Edward had never seen anyone take rejection this badly. He didn't bother looking around as he ran to the emergency exit.

Word count:258 words