12 Angry Jurors is a play that contemplates the huge responsibility of 12 ordinary people as they consider the guilt or innocence of a young man accused of murder. The 12 jurors bring their own histories, prejudices, and biases to the jury room as they work through this life or death decision. Note: CASTING ANYONE 18 to 85. Below is a list of character descriptions:

1 Foreman, Short; serious; well dressed; unintelligent; makes good decisions; likes being in charge.

2 Shy; a follower; easily changes their mind based on the last person they spoke to; no opinion of their own.

3 Strong; forceful; humorless; strict; forces others to agree with him/her; forces their opinion; only their opinion is right; full of themselves.

4 Wealthy; presents himself/herself well all the time; serious; only wants facts; thinks they are above the other jurors; doesn’t like other jurors’ behaviors.

5 Scared; takes his/her obligations(responsibility) seriously; afraid to speak up (especially to those older); young; naïve (not aware of the facts); oblivious.

6 Nice; honest; not too smart; makes decisions carefully; accepts opinions he/she likes; difficult to create positive opinions.

7 Loud; wealthy; quick temper; very opinionated ; bully; coward; quick opinions on things they know nothing about; being on the jury is “waste of their time”

8 Quiet; a lot of opinions; considers others’ opinions; believes in justice; seeks the truth; will fight to get what is right.

9 Nice old man/woman; lives life strong; does not hide their age; does not hold back on their decisions; wishes they were more courageous when younger; defeated by life; waiting to die.

10 Angry; miserable; racist; hates everyone but himself; knows their life is going nowhere.

11 Pushover; do what others want/say; ashamed because they are a refugee from Europe; speaks with accent; wants justice because they have been treated unfairly; compassionate.

12 “all that”; full of himself/herself; egocentric; snob; bright; does not understand people, tries to be a good person.

Plan to read in groups. Hope to see you there!