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Table of Contents
3 | New
3 | Full-Lengths 9 | One-Acts
SECTION 1 | NEW
PAGE 3
New
110 Stories | Sarah Tuft
BUY Drama | Full-length 5 males, 3 females | 8-26 actors possible
110 Stories captures the grief and resilience of New York City in the wake of September 11th through the words of those who experienced it directlynot only the firefighters and police, but the ironworkers, chaplains, K9 handlers, nurses, photojournalists, and the homeless who witnessed the horrific events and saved lives that day, too. Together these unflinching first-person testimonials offer catharsis by revealing the hope, humor, and compassion that emerged in the midst of this tragedy. Memorializing 9/11 by sharing the stories no one saw on the news, this play is a powerful and humanizing account of New York City's darkest day.
ABOUT THIS SECTION | The plays and musicals in the following section were chosen for publication in the past year, and meet the unique needs of college theaters.
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Based on the iconic novel by George Orwell, 1984 brings us the story of Winston Smith, a cog in the giant machine state of Oceania. Physically and mentally under the omnipresent eye of Big Brother, Winston has been caught struggling for scraps of love and freedom in a world awash with distrust and violence. With the brutal "help" of four Party Members, Winston is forced to confess his Thoughtcrimes before an unseen inquisitor, and the audiencewhich acts as a silent witness to his torture. A ferocious and provocative adaptation of one of the most prescient works of literature of the last century.
"Sullivan's adaptation of 1984 is a chilling reminder that some of the political excesses set forth in George Orwell's novel are painfully evident in today's increasingly monopolistic media." Melinda Schupmann, Backstage
25 Questions for a Jewish Mother Kate Moira Ryan and Judy Gold | BUY
Memoir/Comedy | Full-length 4 females | 1-21 actors possible
Part memoir and part stand-up routine, this hilarious and affecting play breaks down just what makes Jewish mothers so lamentable, laughable, and lovable. Comedienne Judy Gold and playwright Kate Moira Ryan seamlessly weave actual interviews with Jewish mothers across the United States together with memories from Gold's childhood and her own experiences as a Jewish mother in order to create a performance piece that explores it all: from rugelach to rabbis, matzoh to marriage, Ann Landers to Anne Frank, and guilt to G-D.
Judy Gold in 25 Questions for a Jewish Mother, Ars Nova, New York, NY. Photo: Carol Rosegg
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Based on actual events, A Bright Swarm of Beetles follows the breathtaking career of the greatest writer of the Soviet Union: Mikhail Bulgakov. From his beginnings in the Red revolution as a nearly homeless opium addict to the dizzying heights of literary stardom, Bulgakov struggles to write in a world fraught with madness and betrayal. After his work is denounced and banned, Bulgakov is offered a chance at redemption by the sinister dictator Joseph Stalinbut he must choose between his art and his survival. A wild, fast-paced journey through fifteen years of one of the darkest periods of modern history.
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Ebenezer Scrooge gets a Commedia dell'Arte makeover in this zany take on the classic Dickensian tale of redemption. On Christmas Eve, a Pantalone Scrooge receives a visit from his old friend Dottore Marley, launching a series of quirky visitors and unforeseen capers. Masks, acrobatics, and holiday cheer abound in this madcap physical romp.
Paul Reisman, Michael Sprouse, Joel David Santner, and Julie Garner in A Commedia Christmas Carol, Faction of Fools Theatre Company, Washington, DC (2012). Masks: Waxing Moon Masks. Photo: Second Glance Photography.
"A Commedia Christmas Carol crackles and amuses with abandon...high-spirited revelry...emotional depth." Jane Horwitz, The Washington Post
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When Gene breaks his leg after proposing to girlfriend Marisa, he begins to feel some odd changes. It turns out the oyster shell that the doctor left in his leg to assist with his healing is causing him to slowly transition into a femalejust the way an oyster does. Can Gene learn to live his life as a different gender, and will heor shebe able to feel the same for his fiancee? Consider the Oyster is a funny and surprising exploration of gender and our changeable human nature.
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"Consider the Oyster is David MacGregor's terrific new comedy... Some smart producers have an off-Broadway 1,000-plus performance hit ahead of them." Theatermania
After losing her low-level job in the publishing industry, 26-year-old Lily has no choice but to move back in with her well-meaning but neurotic parents. A series of disastrous interviews and her parents' strict house rules have Lily feeling more like a troubled teenager than an employable young womanand the Justin Beiber posters in her old bedroom aren't helping. Will she find a job before she loses both her sanity and her dignity?
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Bryan Pridgen, Mary Lucy Bivins, Eugene Wolf, and Dan Folino in Elvis Has Left the Building, Barter Theatre, Abingdon, Virginia (2011). Photo Courtesy of Barter Theatre.
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It's December 20th, 1970, and Elvis Presley has disappeared. No one, not even his wily manager, "The Colonel", knows of his whereabouts. But the Colonel is all shook up because he has racked up a secret debtand with the King himself missing, the only way to pay it off is to find an Elvis impersonator within 24 hours. Hijinks ensue as the Colonel takes desperate measures to replace a man who is irreplaceable, all while keeping the prying eyes of a nosy reporter at bay and figuring out what happened to the real Elvis.
crafting of the holiday parade float. But under the surface of this pleasant gathering, the women find themselves grappling with sexuality, betrayal, and their own hard and fast notions of right and wrong. In this ode to the complicated undercurrents of Midwestern morality, you'll meet Marty, Luce, Char, Arletta, and Doodeefive women who face the tests life presents to them with laughter, love, and a lot of fake snow.
"A rare and wonderful accomplishment... This is just plain excellent theatre; great characters, engaging script, generous humor and compelling conflict." Chicago Stage Review
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Hank, Julian, and Luann are three talented, determined suburban teens coming of age in the 1980s. Dreaming of fame and fortune in the new Hip-Hop music scene, they must overcome cultural isolation, familial dysfunction, and ruthless rivalries to make the music that defines their lives. A sultry DJ spins their stories with her own meta-theatrical perspective in this contemporary ode to the roots of rap.
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"An important and entertaining work." Bob Heisler, The Journal News
Love at First Bite | BUY Jodi Picoult, Jake van Leer, and Ellen Wilber
Musical Comedy | Full-length 11 males, 17 females, 7 either | 35-48 actors possible
A new school and a new girlfriend: things are looking good for teen vampire Drake. Except, of course, that his sweetheart's mom is not only the school principalshe's also a vampire hunter. Can Drake outwit Principal Stake and Lucy's vengeful ex-boyfriend? Only with the help of new friends like an exchange student named Frank N. Stein and Scrappy, the unusually hairy basketball player with a thing for howling at the moon. With a hilarious cast of misfit characters and catchy songs, Love at First Bite is a monstrously good time.
Jeff Berg and Joseph Lee Gramm in The Lost Boy, Helen Hayes Theatre Company, Nyack, New York (2005).
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"In its bravery, scope, creativity, extremity and sheer generosity of spirit, The Lily's Revenge, to my mind, surpasses any American theater in New York this year. [Taylor Mac] is one of the most exciting theater artists of our time." Adam Feldman, Time Out New York
"So lovely and entertaining that you want it to be true." Lynn Felder, Winston-Salem Journal
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Romeo & Juliet: Choose Your Own Ending, Capital Fringe Festival, Washington, DC (2010). Photo: Joe Flood.
Pride and Prejudice: A Romantic Musical | BUY Jon Jory and Peter Ekstrom
Musical Comedy | Full-length 6 males, 8 females | 14-22 actors possible
Jane Austen's timeless love story is given new life in this faithful and fresh musical adaptation. Strong-minded Elizabeth Bennet is not out to find a husband, and the snobbish Mr. Darcy certainly wouldn't be her first choice. But first impressions are not always what they seem, and soon both Elizabeth and Darcy must look beyond their pride to discover their true feelings. When talk of marriage is everywhere and family expectations are high, can these two overcome their prejudices to make a more meaningful connection? A lively score and moving songs add richness and warmth to this classic story of wit and romance.
Romeo & Juliet: Choose Your Own Ending | Ann Fraistat and Shawn Fraistat
Comedy | Full-length 4 males, 2 females | 6-14 actors possible
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What if Romeo had stayed helplessly in love with Rosaline instead of Juliet? Or if Mercutio and Tybalt hadn't died...but had gotten together instead? In this Shakespearean take on the "Choose Your Own Ending" model, the audience casts votes throughout the performance to determine which course true love will take; ultimately deciding whether everybody lives or everybody dies. With eight dramatically different possible endings, this isn't the tale of starcrossed lovers that you read in high school. An irreverent, madcap reimagining of Shakespeare's most beloved romance.
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"Whip-smart and hilarious... A fantastic, unexpected comedic gem." Fiona Zublin, The Washington Post
Watch Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy fall in love all over again this time filtered through the world of the internet. Modern voices interject and build on this classic love story in the form of blog posts, chat room discussions, quotes from film adaptations, and even letters from Ms. Austen herself to create a delightfully postmodern view of 19th century England. Written for five actors to play every role, Pride@Prejudice is a hilarious and moving homage to Jane Austen's most beloved novel, as well our love affair with reading.
"I can't think of another new work staged in Columbus in my 24-plus years as a Dispatch critic that has displayed so much promise or polish... This play seems destined to be seen and celebrated across the country." Michael Grossberg, Columbus Dispatch
"Fresh, insightful and a great deal of fun." Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune
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It's 1848, and Edgar Allan Poe is just coming off the spectacular success of "The Raven." Unfortunately, it's only earned him a grand total of nine dollars. So when a wealthy dowager commissions him to write her a poem for the vast sum of one hundred dollars, he leaps at the chance. Only problem: the man who shows up to write the poem isn't Poe, he's Poe's mailman, and he's on a quest to woo the dowager's spinster niece. Playing Poe is harder than it looks, though, especially when your mustache keeps falling off, the teenage grand-daughter of the house is lusting after you, and Poe's arch-nemesis, Rufus Griswold, just happens to be dropping by to settle old scores. A freewheeling, door-slamming farce with a touch of the macabre.
Ishaq and Zeblyan are the last remaining Jews in Afghanistan. They share the only remaining synagogue that has not been destroyed by the Taliban. They share a mission to repopulate the Jewish community in Kabul. But they also hate each other. Can this Middle Eastern odd couple commit to one incredible act of faith to keep the diaspora alive without killing one other? A modern vaudeville full of schtick, sorrow, and survival.
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"An uproarious comedy with a twist of faith. Through a humorous story and unforgettable characters, playwright Seth Rozin poignantly explores issues of faith, commitment and perseverance that keeps audiences laughing and thinking long past curtain call." The Jewish Ledger
Underemployed friends Adam, Matt and Beth are desperate to beat the recession any way they canlike combining forces to take over a small island in South America. But when a fortune cookie tells Matt that he will rule and Beth gets a little too handy with a dagger, plans go awry. This hilarious adaptation of Shakespeare's Macbeth pits friend against friend, ambition against fate, pet-sitting against miniature vicuna mogul-dom.
The Walk Across America for Mother Earth | BUY Taylor Mac and Ellen Maddow
Comedic Play with Music | Full-length 6 males, 4 females, 2 either | 10-12 actors possible
Political activism meets bedazzled drag show in this story about two young friends who flee their suburban upbringing in "Real America" to join a ragtag group of activists on a protest march from D.C. to Nevada. On the road, the group attempts to establish a nomadic utopia, but the marchers continually find themselves divided by cancer, unrequited affections, indecision, and a secret hunger for power. Whimsically blending commedia dell'arte influences with song and dance, The Walk Across America for Mother Earth explores how the idea of community sometimes fails to unite us, and sometimes brings us together in the most unexpected ways.
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When a small acting company eliminates one Musketeer from their production of The Three Musketeers due to budget constraints, the rest of the cast must sally forth bravely with only two. The classic tale of d'Artagnan and his sword-fighting friends is presented by a hilariously self-aware cast of six, with romance, wit, and derring-do to spare. This low-tech, high-comedy adaptation is a witty send-up of Alexandre Dumas' beloved adventure.
"With this new play, a sweet and satiric meditation on the beautiful folly of idealism, Taylor Mac establishes himself as a writer and artist of serious consequence." Charles Isherwood, The New York Times
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Rebecca Hurd and Brian Duranleau in Apocalypse or Bust, Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Edinburgh, Scotland (2012). Photo: Teresa Pearson.
All I Really Need to Know I Learned From Being a Zombie | BUY Jason Pizzarello
Dramedy | One-act 2 males, 2 females, 14 either | 5-45 actors possible
In today's chaotic, challenging world, we often don't know where to turn for help. Little did we know that life's most valuable lessons lie within the undead. Finally, zombies engage us with musings on life, death, and everything in between. They show us that brains aren't everything...you are what you eat...and what doesn't kill you makes you...more alive.
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All I Really Need to Know I Learned From Being a Zombie, Irondale Ensemble, Brooklyn, New York (2013).
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Two friends discover an incredible online simulator that shows them exactly what their future college roommate experiences will look like. Yet after a few minutes with a raging narcoleptic, a world-class procrastinator, and a childrens party clown, it may be time to seriously consider living alone.
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Meet Sheldon Grimes, the nicest guy in town. Unfortunately for Sheldon, in this town, being a nice guy is prohibited by law. But after a crash course from a pair of local police detectives and a very special specialist, Sheldon might just learn to be a jerk fast enough to stay out of prison.
Welcome to the thrilling world of watching dudes watch sports. Finally, the match-up the entire nation has been waiting for: the historic showdown between veteran slacker Donald Baxter and rookie sensation slacker Michael Felton. Legendary sportscasters Merv Johnson and Tim Bixby are there to break down all the exhilarating action, LIVE from that couch by the TV.
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SECTION 1 | NEW
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Adaptations
Ajax in Iraq | Ellen McLaughlin
BUY Drama | Full-length 5 males, 7 females | 11-30 actors possible
Past and present collide in Ellen McLaughlin's mash-up of Sophocles' classic tragedy Ajax with the modern-day war in Iraq. The play follows the parallel narratives of Ajax, an ancient Greek military hero, and A.J., a modern female American soldier, both undone by the betrayal of a commanding officer. Athena, goddess of war, coolly presides over the whole. Inspired by material collected from interviews with Iraq war veterans and their families, Ajax in Iraq explores the timeless struggle soldiers face in trying to make sense of war.
ABOUT THIS SECTION | The source materials for the plays listed below are well-known pieces of literature or popular myths. From Jane Austen to Sophocles, these adaptations are sure to engage students and faculty in the classroom or on stage.
"Ms. McLaughlin has carved out a career as a playwright of fierce moral conviction." Anita Gates, The New York Times
Frankenstein, A New Musical | BUY Mark Baron, Jeffrey Jackson, and Gary P. Cohen
Musical | Full-length 7 males, 4 females, 3 either | 9-35 actors possible
With earnest ballads and soaring ensemble numbers, this compelling new musical brings the suspense and romance of the classic tale to life in a uniquely faithful, yet thoroughly innovative adaptation of Mary Shelley's original novel. In his quest to discover the secret of life, Victor Frankenstein, a brilliant young scientist, creates a human of his own design that turns out to instead be a horrifying beast. This is no "Hollywood monster," but a flesh-and-blood man who, while terrifying in appearance, grows to become articulate, cunning, and thirsting for revenge upon the creator who abandoned him. A tragic love story and exploration of humanity, Frankenstein, A New Musical breathes new life into the world-renowned story of man and creator pitted against one another in epic battle.
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"Anon(ymous) is [a] stunning retelling of an epic quest." Dominic P. Papatola, St. Paul Pioneer Press
"...brings the classic story thrillingly to life." Julie Reed, Associated Press
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ADAPTATIONS
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"Shinn's new adaptation nudges Ibsen into modern passion without disrespecting him." Newsday
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John McMartin and Tony Award winner Norbert Leo Butz in the Broadway production of Is He Dead?, Lyceum Theatre, New York City (2007). Photo: Joan Marcus.
"A ripely enjoyable confection! An elaborate madcap comedy that registers high on the mirth meter and reaches especially giddy comic heights!" David Rooney, Variety
It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play (full-length version) | BUY Joe Landry
Holiday drama | Full-length 3 males, 2 females | 1-25 actors possible
This beloved American holiday classic comes to captivating life as a live 1940s radio broadcast. With the help of an ensemble that brings a few dozen characters to the stage, the story of idealistic George Bailey unfolds as he considers ending his life one fateful Christmas Eve. (A short version of this play is also available.)
"The show moved me so much I couldn't speak for ten minutes after." The Chicago Reader
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"One of the best holiday shows around. This is a fresh and inventive way of reconnecting with a classic story of love and redemption." Mary Houlihan, Chicago Sun-Times
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Edgar Allan Poe stands alone in the flickering darkness of his mind, trying desperately to convince himselfand usthat he's not mad. The spell he weaves brings us a highly theatrical adaptation of four tales Poe himself considered his best: "The Raven," "The Fall of the House of Usher," "The Pit and the Pendulum," and "The Tell-Tale Heart." Enter the world of Poe and check your heartbeat at the door.
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The Trojan war is over. Orestes and Electra have killed their mother. The city wants them dead. Just when it seems like they have nowhere to turn, their best friend comes up with a plan... Ironic, desperate, humorous, and highly entertaining, this potent satire on the Oresteia myth brings this marvelous play to new life.
"Anne Washburn has a way of laser-targeting her language that makes the material explode, even at a distance of 3,000 years." Helen Shaw, Time Out New York
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"[Moliere Impromptu] satirizes as it sashays, slyly infusing pop-culture references even as it honors Moliere's 17th-century playwriting achievements...it crackles with entertainment and energy..." Gina Perille, Boston Globe
"Jory, the former longtime producing director at Actors Theatre of Louisville and founder of its famed Humana Festival of New American Plays, has crafted an exceptionally clear, funny and moving version." San Francisco Chronicle
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Sherlock Holmes and The Case of the Jersey Lily | BUY Katie Forgette
Mystery/Comedy | Full-length 5 males, 2 females | 7-11 actors possible
The wit of Oscar Wilde meets the cunning of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle when Wilde brings his dear friend, Lillie Langtry, to Baker Street. Someone has stolen the highly intimate letters Lillie exchanged with the Prince of Wales, and now she is being blackmailed. Only Holmes can solve the case, going so far as to disguise himself as an early version of Lady Bracknell from Wilde's latest play, The Importance of Being Forthright, while Watson falls head-over-heels for the Jersey Lily and a wicked professor attempts to bring the Crown to its knees.
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In this beautifully haunting play based on Edgar Lee Masters' Spoon River Anthology, the former residents of Spoon River examine life and the longing for what might have been. As the citizens reflect on the dreams, secrets, and regrets of their lives, they paint a gritty and honest portrait of the town as all of their pasts are illuminated.
The Spoon River Project, Hallberg Theatre, Cal State Fullerton, Fullerton, CA (2012). Directed by Mark Ramont; Department Head Bruce Goodrich. Lighting Design: AmyAnne Tafolla; Scene Design: David Corigliano; Costume Design: Theona White.
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thrown in prison? Moliere's classic comedy satirizes religious hypocrisy, blind piety, and deceit, and this adaptation captures these themes in playful irreverent rhyme. (A short version of this play is also available.)
The Three Musketeers | BUY Linda Alper, Douglas Langworthy, and Penny Metropulos
Drama | Full-length 17 males, 7 females | 14-40 actors possible
Alexandre Dumas' classic novel gets an adventurous update as this tale of friendship and romance follows young D'Artagnan as he arrives in Paris in seek of fame, fortune, and a place among the King's Musketeers. He is quickly taken under the wing of Athos, Aramis, and Porthos, and D'Artagnan soon finds himself helping the Queen hide an affair with a British Duke and making enemies with the Cardinal Richelieu. When D'Artagnan's love, Constance Bonacieux, is kidnapped out of revenge, D'Artagnan and the rest of the Musketeers must work together to rescue Constance and restore honor in the kingdom.
Sense and Sensibility, Orlando Shakespeare, Orlando Florida, (2013). Photo by Tony Firriolo.
"For sheer action-packed, beguiling melodrama...there's nothing like this latest version of the oft-dramatized Musketeers." San Francisco Examiner
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde | BUY Noah Smith
Science fiction thriller | Full-length 5 males, 3 females | 8-21 actors possible
Dr. Henry Jekyll is a brilliant scientist frustrated by dull "respectable" life in 1888 Victorian London. He creates a formula to unleash his inner bestial nature, transforming him into the brutish but oddly compassionate Edward Hyde. Hyde lives the high life while Jekyll's middle-aged normalcy continuesuntil Hyde's passions begin to turn up a body count. This intimate, easy-to-stage version of Robert Louis Stevenson's science fiction classic features two haunting chorus characters, who speed along the action, play many supporting roles, and speak to Jekyll as the voices in his head, spurring him toward triumph and tragedy.
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Monologue Books
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Actor's Choice monologue books are unlike other monologue books. The source material of every monologue is available through our website, where you can read nearly the entire published script online for free. Whether you're looking for a monologue for classwork, competitions, or auditions, you'll be sure to find a perfect fit in this collection.
SECTION 1 | NEW
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ABOUT THIS SECTION | Below youll find a curated selection of plays and musicals from Broadway, Off-Broadway and Off-Off Broadway. Challenging and provocative, these plays are examples of the compelling voices being cultivated in the New York theater scene.
...an idiosyncratically clever one-act, as precisely tooled as a Swiss music box. John Beer, The Village Voice
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Its beauty and its depth are almost beyond language other than its own. The Austin Chronicle
COMING SOON! 14Below: A Collection of New Plays from New Yorks Downtown Theaters
More plays and musicals available at playscripts.com
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Crumble (Lay Me Down, Justin Timberlake), Moving Arts, Los Angeles (2005). Photo: Paul Amendt.
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This charming little pop musical about adolescent innocence comes from two experts on the subject... [it] should register with legions of like-minded souls on the threshold of adulthood... Paul Harris, Variety
Goodbye Cruel World | BUY Robert Ross Parker, freely adapted from Nikolai Erdmans The Suicide
Comedy | Full-length 4 males, 2 females | 6-14 actors possible
Semyon Semyonovich has a problem: he thinks his life isnt worth living. Unfortunately, everyone he knows agrees with him! But when he decides to end it all, he finds himself the center of attention, urged to blame his misery on love, philosophy, and even politics. When a glorious death is the most popular commodity in town, how much will a simple suicide cost? A saucy Soviet satire. Seriously.
Winters play is an urgent and passionate response to a crisis unfolding at this moment. Oskar Eustis, Artistic Director, the Public Theater
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This rarely produced gem is a door-slamming farce wrapped inside a humanist attack on the Soviet regime... As comedies about mortality go, this one is rather joyful. Jason Zinoman, New York Times
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Natalia Zvereva and Dianne Wiest in the New York Premiere of Memory House, Playwrights Horizons, New York City (2005). Photo: Joan Marcus.
time Hollywood casting director in the house, as well as his crazy mother (whos also his agent) and his crazy aunt (whos really his mother). When one of the actors takes sleeping pills and passes out mid-performance, and the leading lady quits, Joels relatives leap over the footlights to rescue the show. Realities collide, and his familys wild stories out-Greek the script, in a horrifically hilarious night of truth-telling. Just two actors can play all of the outlandish characters in this stripped-down, high-octane farce.
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Cleverly written...its the playwrights way with language that does the trick, her understanding of the versatile uses these sharp kids find for the idiomatic speech of their generation. Marilyn Stasio, Variety
One winter night a woman bakes a pie as a girl tries to finish her college essay. As the deadline looms, unexamined issues of the girls adoption from Russia, the rupture of her parents divorce, and the fear of leaving home break through the surface as the mother cajoles, deflects, and maneuvers around her own feelings of sadness and loss. Unfolding in real time, Memory House is about a young and an older woman who are forced to grapple with the past as they face an uncertain future. A funny and moving story about the complexity of living in the world today.
This glowingly written play by Kathleen Tolan may remind you of why we go to the theater in the first place. Journal News
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Emory is an effeminate 11-year-old boy who lives on a farm with his chain smoking Nanna and his only friend, a depressed chicken about to be processed. Nanna wishes Emory would get his head out of the clouds, stop choreographing ribbon stick dance numbers, and be more like Elliot, the boy down the road with a penchant for burning things. But Emory and Elliot have a relationshipjust not one Nanna would expect or approve of. With absurd, poignant dialog and brutal characterizations, MilkMilkLemonade is a bitterly funny exploration of gender, sexuality, life, death, and the human body.
Conkel and director Isaac Butler are unafraid to go for the belly: They want you laughing, nauseated or both. Its proof of how desperately comedy needs audacity: Here, as on your average chicken farm, only the plucky survive. TimeOut New York
The Pied Pipers of The Lower East Side Derek Ahonen | BUY
Drama/Comedy | Full-length 4 males, 2 females | 6 actors possible
An extraordinary gathering of young idealists lives above a vegan restaurant in NYC. Billy, Dawn, Dear and Wyatt are an extended sexual family battling their fears and addictions in order to live their utopian dream. The Pied Pipers of The Lower East Side is a celebration of love and the search for human grandnessand what happens when bohemian paradise begins to crumble.
Max Posner and Sam Alper in punkplay, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island (2008). Set & Photo: Sara Ossana
Brings to mind the vitality that distinguished the early Off-Off Broadway work of artists like Sam Shepard only a generation ago. The New Yorker
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The play moves like lightning, cutting through a series of brief scenes that illuminate the story in puzzle-piece fashion...smart and surprisingly funny... Insightful, engaging, witty, earnest...Self Defense is sociallyconscious drama at its best. Brooke Pierce, TheaterMania
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Its a Friday night in 1995 and Monday morning homeroom is a million miles away. Six over-stimulated, under-supervised high school students are gathered in Margots basement to meet her mysterious boyfriend from summer campthough none of them have even seen a picture of him and he has yet to show up. As the teens keep themselves busy with rounds of party games, the night gives way to stolen kisses, malicious gossip, and broken hearts. This heartbreaking, hilariously real play showcases the absurd and terrible ecstasy of being young in America.
Barb finds out that Buddhist monks in Thailand only own eight thingsand wonders if that is all she wants. She starts giving away her things but her husband Bob keeps buying her new ones. Donna wants Carla Carla to marry her, but Carla Carla doesnt like that Donna smokes. Nick meets a shark at the aquariumthey go on a date to the beach and Nick tries not to sleep with the shark too fast. Plus dream sequences. Plus a wedding.
Wildly charming... Spot-on teen dialogue. The show paces itself as parties do, with whatshould-we-play-next aimlessness punctuated by sudden moments of abruptly adult pain. Helen Shaw, Time Out New York
Bock tells his fairy tale in a surreal idiom that shows wit and imagination. Working with a loose-limbed structure of episodic scenes, [he] focuses on cute characters caught up in winsome gay love stories deriving considerable charm from their oddball humor. Marilyn Stasio, Variety
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Vampire Cowboy Trilogy | BUY Qui Nguyen and Robert Ross Parker
Comedy | Full-length 2 males, 3 females, 2 either | 7-25 actors possible
This live comic book anthology contains three irreverent comedies that hilariously skewer well-beloved genres. Hard-boiled paranormal detective Jake Misco takes on the case of a mysterious stranger who is haunted by her dead husband; a Cold War-era crime-fighting duo struggles to save America from the throes of Communism while questioning their own principles; and a teenage warrior princess named Tina must fight evil Zombie cheerleaders and the tedium of French class.
Ms. Hutchinson has a sharp ear for dialogue...and shows clearly the web of prejudice and hostility woven by peers and parents. The New York Times
Seven Minutes in Heaven, HERE Arts Center, New York City (2010). Photo: Adrienne Campbell-Holt
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Female Leads
Aloha, Say the Pretty Girls | Naomi Iizuka
Comedy | Full-length 5 males, 4 females | 9-11 actors possible
A man moves to write the great American novel. A woman moves to Alaska to start a new life. Babies, wild dogs, komodo dragons, and hula dancers abound in this play about finding your tribe in a world gone haywire.
ABOUT THIS SECTION | Covering the classics as well as new plays, this section lists plays that feature strong female leads. From Lysistrata to Nora, and everything in between, the lead roles in these plays are perfect for college-age women.
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When aging brother and sister Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert send to the orphanage in Nova Scotia for a boy to help them on the farm, they get more than they bargain for. Due to a mix-up, they are instead left with 11-year-old Anne Shirley. Over the course of six years, this romantic, hot-headed, and energetic girl wins their hearts and turns the stodgy, rural Canadian community into a bright world of "kindred spirits." This swift yet theatrical adaptation of the classic novel is an all-ages crowd-pleaser.
Nan has decided to teach her abusive husband Kyle a lesson. With the help of her friend Simon (acting as her emotionaland actualcheerleader) and a stripper named Sweetheart, she tapes Kyle to a chair and forces him to watch as they reenacts scenes from their painful past. In the piece de resistance, they plan to cover the room in meat and honey so Kyle will be mauled by a bear. Through this night of emotional trials and ridiculous theatrics, Nan and Kyle are both freed from their past in this smart, dark revenge comedy.
"Gunderson's script not only makes each character adorably quirky but engenders empathy for all four as well. This show contains enough offbeat and grislyno pun intendedhumor that the Bard's immortally funny line is a fitting title." The Week Magazine
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FEMALE LEADS
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"Strangely moving... Achieves true, and truly original, theatrical transcendence... Magical... Brings to mind the heady fall down the rabbit hole that begins Alice's Adventures in Wonderland..." Ben Brantley, The New York Times
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Convoluted fairy tale | Full-length 4 males, 5 females, 10 either | 9-19 actors possible
Kate's sister Anne, a ravishing beauty, wakes up one morning to discover a sheep's head between her shoulders. Thus begins the journey of the two sisters in their quest to return Anne's true head to its proper place. The journey is sidetracked, however, by Kate's obsession with a slim raver-boy who has a nasty little addiction. Based loosely and lyrically on the British fairy tale "Kate Crackernuts."
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This three-play cycle is a modern retelling of the fall of the House of Atreus. It follows the children of Clytemnestra and Agamemnon, siblings who are both players in the family tragedy and victims of it. The cycle of blood and vengeance seems inescapable until the final reunion of a lost sister and brother brings the bloody family saga to its mystical and unlikely end.
FEMALE LEADS
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Not sure what youre looking for? Find A Play right now.
Little Women | BUY Jacqueline Goldfinger
Comedy/Drama with music | Full-length 2 males, 5 females | 7 actors possible
In this affecting, delightful adaptation of Alcott's classic novel, the four spirited March sistersMeg, Jo, Beth, and Amyendeavor to sustain their family in the absence of their father, who is away fighting the Civil War. Led by their devoted Marmee and accompanied by music from the period, each girl struggles to overcome her own limitations to become the best version of herself, even in the midst of disease, jealousy, and poverty.
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"Craig Lucas' mission in adapting Strindberg's Miss Julie was to remove the fussy Victorian attitudes that have hampered previous translations and are not faithful to the original. He has succeeded admirably in this new version." Victor Gluck, Backstage
"Playwright Wendy MacLeod's bitter black comedy is...sick. It's perverse. It's irreverent. And it's hilarious." The Washington Post
FEMALE LEADS
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Asa Somers and Lia Aprile in Tallgrass Gothic, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Kentucky (2004). Photo: Harlan Taylor.
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"In Tallgrass Gothic, her lyric and strangely engrossing play...Marnich has sharply drawn some characters who may give the denizens of Wisteria Lane a run for their scandals... But the play is most exciting because of Marnich's promise as a writer. She has found a poetic, natural cadence for characters, and this heightened language is part of what makes Eugene O'Neill and August Wilson enduring figures." Rohan Preston, Minneapolis Star Tribune
The Big Book of Moliere Monologues: Hilarious Performance Pieces from Our Greatest Comic Playwright
SECTION 1 | NEW
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One-Acts
13 Ways to Screw Up Your College Interview | BUY Ian McWethy
Comedy | One-act 6 males, 7 females, 3 either | 4-16 actors possible
When two college recruiters at a prestigious university need to fill one last spot to keep their jobs, thirteen eccentric, dimwitted and slightly-insane high school seniors are eager to come in for an interview. What seems like a simple task turns into a nightmare when the applicants turn out to be a reality TV star, a practicing vampire, an amateur magician, and others that are much, much worse. Each applicants interview hilariously illustrates what NOT to do at a college interview.
ABOUT THIS SECTION | Listed in this section are our most popular one-acts for college-age actors and directors. From a modern adaptation of Antigone, to scenes from the wackiest dates youve ever seen (Check Please), the short plays below are perfect for study, in class performance, or studio shows.
This deeply stirring adaptation of Sophocles Antigone ...proved the starkest, most electrifying and inspired piece the company has produced in years... Its great for kids to see ancient theater connect so electrifyingly with their own world. But adult audiences deserve to see this superb experiment as well. Dallas Morning News
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ONE-ACTS
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Matt Craig and Lucy Luedeke in Boy Meets Girl: A Young Love Story, Huntington University, Huntington, Indiana (2012)
Eighteen-year-old Michael and his fourteen-year-old brother Brucie who has been considered mentally slow since birthventure out on a camping trip together. Brucies never-ending curiosity becomes increasingly unbearable to Michael, especially when the questions involve the death of their mother. Down Came the Rain is a touching, sad, and ultimately hopeful exploration of two vastly different brothers, and how they navigate the delicacy of family and truth.
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A defense lawyer cross-examines a woman during her testimony in a sexual assault caseand in doing so, horribly distorts her perfectly innocent walk in the park.
Top honors go to Sheri Wilners Bake Off, a devastatingly funny riff on the Pillsbury Bake-Off, in which contestant Rita, furious that a man won the previous years grand prize for the first time, goes to any lengths to keep well-meaning Paul from repeating the other mans win. CurtainUp
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Two friends discover an incredible online simulator that shows them exactly what their future college roommate experiences will look like. Yet after a few minutes with a raging narcoleptic, a worldclass procrastinator, and a childrens party clown, it may be time to seriously consider living alone.
ONE-ACTS
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BUY
Challenging, brutal and hilarious, four women of various shapes and sizes sitting in the waiting room of a liposuction clinic explore their perceptions of body image. The women reveal their experiences dealing with their weight issues through monologues, short scenes, and even schoolyard rhymes. From painful childhood memories to frustrations with the opposite sex, these experiences both haunt and empower these women as they imagine their way to a new vision of themselves as beautiful and whole.
...a thought-provoking glimpse at the anguished consequences for women trying to conform to societys often unattainable image of female beauty. Martin Hernandez, LA Weekly
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An eager young actress has her eye set on the role of Della, but can she convince a cold, sarcastic director that shes right for the part? A riveting and riotous look at the contemporary audition process, giving new meaning to the term stealing a scene.
Wooten has come up with a very witty ending. Give the playwright a candy barand make sure its an O. Henry. Peter Filichia, The Newark Star Ledger
Its a witty, whimsical, charming one-act play. New York Daily News
SUPERHEROES: With Great Power Comes Ordinary Responsibilities Ian McWethy | Coming Soon
Comedy | One-act
For superheroes, saving the world is tough, but the time spent away from work is tougher. The Hulk has to do taxes, sidekicks form a support group, and Batman goes stir-crazy without enough crime to fight. Superheroes is a funny, fast-paced series of vignettes that explores how the caped crusaders deal with life in street clothes.
SECTION 1 | NEW
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Anthologies
24 by 24: The 24 Hour Plays Anthology | BUY Will Eno, Tina Howe, David Ives, Terrence McNally, Adam Rapp, Theresa Rebeck, and more
In 1995, a group of writers, directors and actors gathered on Manhattans Lower East Side for what was supposed to be a one-time-only event: write, direct, produce and perform new plays within the span of 24 hours. More than a decade and just over 300 plays later, The 24 Hour Plays have been produced on Broadway, in London, Los Angeles, Chicago and across the globe.
ABOUT THIS SECTION | Playscripts offers a wide selection of anthologies from some of todays most renowned theater companies, festivals, and playwrights. From modern classics to the best 10-minute plays, these anthologies are perfect for classroom study and performance.
Beast, and a group of traveling freak show performers who reveal a deep humanity underneath their crowd-drawing deformities in Freakshow, among other uniquely inventive stories. For over a decade, Clubbed Thumb has had its finger firmly planted on the pulse of new work, and these plays prove it.
California Scenarios | BUY Luis Alfaro, Rick Coca, Joann Farias, Anne Garcia-Romero, Jose Cruz Gonzalez, and Octavio Solis
Rich in history, fantasy, triumph, and longing, this collection of short plays captures aspects of Latinos in California, from a group of women waiting in the night to be swept away by their bandit-boyfriend (Desert Longing or Las Aventureras by Anne Garcia-Romero), to a young monk who finds introspection in the form of a skeleton (The Seven Visions of Encarnacion by Octavio Solis). Inspired by Isamu Noguchis sculpture garden California Scenario, each play reveals a complex view of the California landscape as it has never been seen before.
Funny, Strange, Provocative: Seven Plays from Clubbed Thumb | BUY Adam Bock, Sheila Callaghan, Erin Courtney, Lisa DAmour, Rinne Groff, Ann Marie Healy, and Carson Kreitzer
This anthology includes seven plays produced by Clubbed Thumb, the Obie Award-winning downtown New York City theater company that burst onto the new play scene in 1996. Edgy and thought-provoking, each play is funny, strange, and provocative in surprising, widely varying waysincluding an apartment that both adores and despises its inhabitants in Crumble (Lay Me Down, Justin Timberlake), a metropolitan housewife who senses that something is watching her in 16 Spells to Charm the
Great Short Comedies, Volumes 1-6 | BUY Lucy Alibar, David Lindsay-Abaire, Werner Trieschmann, Daryl Watson, and more
Fast and funny, these volumes contain short comedies that will split your side as you roll down the aisle busting a gut. From four young businessmen handling delicate negotiations over whether to like girls (Controlling Interest by Wayne S. Rawley),to a blue-collar family coming to terms with their absurd prejudices (How We Talk in South Boston by David Lindsay-Abaire), and many more these collections will make audiences laugh till it hurts.
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Great Short Plays, Volumes 1-10 | BUY Liz Duffy Adams, Trista Baldwin, Taylor Mac, Elizabeth Meriwether, John Walch, and more
With a diverse blend of themes, styles, and cast requirements, Great Short Plays contain extraordinary comedies and dramas. From the oldest living human with exactly ten minutes left before the end of the world (The Last Woman on Earth by Liz Duffy Adams), to a marriage reconciled with puppet therapy (The Rebirth of Beautiful by John Walch), these collections deliver a little bit of everything in half the time.
Random Acts of Comedy: 15 Hit OneAct Plays for Student Actors | BUY Julia Brownell, Ian McWethy, Ed Monk, Qui Nguyen, Rich Orloff, Jonathan Rand, Don Zolidis, and more
Home of the most popular one-act plays for student actors, Playscripts, Inc. presents 15 of their very best short comedies. From a blind dating debacle to a silly Shakespeare spoof, from a fairy tale farce to a self-hating satire, this anthology contains hilarious large-cast plays that have delighted thousands of audiences around the world.
Humana Festival: The Complete Plays (2006-2013) | BUY Idris Goodwin, Lucas Hnath, Greg Kotis, Lisa Kron, Allison Moore, A. Rey Pamatmat, and more
Each anthology brings together all ten scripts from the years Humana Festival of New American Plays, staged at Actors Theatre of Louisville. These unique compilations feature an exceptional array of work by some of the most exciting new voices in the American theatre, including Adam Rapp, Anne Washburn, A. Rey Pamatmat, Sharr White, Adam Bock and many more. These diverse compilations of plays are must-haves for anyone searching for challenging, captivating, and bold theater.
Snapshot | BUY Tanya Barfield, Lynn Nottage, Dan OBrien, Craig Wright and more
A photograph captures and documents a single moment in time and spacea snapshot of history, of a reality bounded by the photos frame. But what lies outside, beyond, behind the photograph? And what stories, memories, or associations does an image of place inspire? In this multi-writer project from Actors Theatre of Louisville, a diverse assortment of talented playwrights encounter and transform Mount Rushmore, South Dakota, 1969, a compelling image of the monument by renowned photographer Lee Friedlander. Their thought-provoking scenes and monologues range from delightful comedy to utterly serious tragedy, each approaching the photos themes through a new lens.
Naked Angels Issues Projects: Collected Plays | BUY Lee Blessing, Warren Leight, Kenneth Lonergan, Craig Lucas, Jon Robin Baitz, and more
Since 1989, New York Citys Naked Angels has collaborated with some of Americas most beloved playwrights to create exciting, topical plays for their time-honored tradition: The Issues Project. The short plays within this collection respond to resonant themes from gun control to the environment, faith to human rights.
Act a Lady (Humana Festival 2006: The Complete Plays), Actors Theatre of Louisville, Kentucky (2006). Photo: Harlan Taylor.
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Ten-Minute Plays from the Guthrie Theater Volumes 1-3 | BUY Joan Ackermann, Carson Kreitzer, Melanie Marnich, Kira Obolensky, and more
Since its founding in 1963, the Guthrie Theater of Minneapolis has pioneered the American regional theater movement, bringing to life both the traditional classical repertoire and a diverse body of new works. The ten-minute plays in this series were commissioned by the theater for its Guthrie Experience summer acting conservatory. Each volume includes plays by outstanding playwrights, every one expanding the possibilities of the ten-minute form.
The Civilians: An Anthology of Six Plays | BUY Neal Bell, Steven Cosson, Michael Friedman, Anne Washburn, and The Civilians
Collected for the first time in one volume are six inventive theater pieces created by Obie Award-winning theater company The Civilians. Based on the creative investigation of actual experience, and often intertwined with experimental cabaret, their pieces are boldly theatrical and always uniquefrom a story about a Hollywood movie and a lost flock of geese (Canard, Canard, Goose?); to a tale about things lost and found, charting a musical landscape of loss (Gone Missing); to a dark ride through the landscape of American public culture, asking a thorny question: how do we know what we know when everyone in power seems to be lying? ((I Am) Nobodys Lunch).
Canard, Canard, Goose? (The Civilians: An Anthology of Six Plays), HERE Arts Center, New York City (2002). Photo: Leslie Lyons.
Twas the Night Before | BUY Christopher Durang, Len Jenkin, Roger Rosenblatt, Elizabeth Swados, and Mac Wellman
A collection of five Christmas-themed short plays from New York Citys acclaimed Flea Theater. From a family sitting down to read Twas the Night Before Christmas with unexpected results (Not a Creature Was Stirring), to elves rapping about bloody films (Holiday Movies), to an irreverent take on the story of Jesus birth (Away in the Manger), these comedies and dramas take on the holiday season like never before.
Thornton Wilders Playlets: Short, Short Plays for 3-5 Persons | BUY Thornton Wilder
This anthology by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Thornton Wilder is a collection of twenty-two very short plays, three of which are published here for the very first time. These snapshots of the creative spirit at play explore a variety of complex characters that range from the ordinary to the biblical, the haunted to the mystical. From the tale of a conflicted composer with a strangely familiar tune stuck in his head (The Song of Maria Bentedos), to a pair of newlyweds who find themselves bizarrely affected by the color of their hotels tea room (Flamingo Red: A Comedy in Danger), all these talesmany told with great wit and humorask the thought-provoking questions of mortality, morality, and faith that Thornton Wilder is famous for asking.
Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind (30 plays in 60 minutes): 90 Plays from the First 25 Years of the Neo-Futurists Greg Allen | Coming Soon
The longest-running show in Chicago history, Too Much Light Makes the Baby Go Blind comprises 90 1-minute plays from the Neo-Futurists, the ensemble that dares to attempt 30 Plays in 60 Minutes, letting the audience choose which plays will be performed, and in what sequence. Comedy, tragedy, social consciousness, and meta-theatrical mayhem are all represented in this unique collection that presents the ultimate challenge: how many plays can you perform once the 60-minute timer starts to tick?
SECTION 1 | NEW
CAST OF CHARACTERS BRIAN, 18 years old | MELISSA, 18 years old | DARLA, 18 years old | EM, 18 years old
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Sleep was first performed at The Stella Adler Studio of Acting Teen Rehearsal and Performance Program on August 13th and 14th, 2010 in New York City. It was directed by Melissa Ross and starred Shaina Ferguson, Minou Clark, Hugh Smith and Annie Rasiel. It was subsequently produced by Rattlestick Playwrights Theater as part of TheatreJam June 2, 2013 in New York City. It was directed by Moritz von Stuelpnagel and starred Emma Galvin, Pico Jogalla, Emily Perkins, and Marie Polizzano.
Sleep
PLEASE NOTE: To perform this play you must obtain performance rights at playscripts.com.
By Adam Szymkowicz
ADAM SZYMKOWICZs plays have been produced throughout the U.S., and in Canada, England, The Netherlands, Germany and Lithuania. Published full length plays include Deflowering Waldo, Pretty Theft, Food For Fish, Hearts Like Fists, Clown Bar, The Why Overhead, and Nerve. Adam received a Playwrights Diploma from The Juilliard Schools Lila Acheson Wallace American Playwrights Program and an MFA from Columbia University where he was the Deans Fellow. Szymkowicz is a two-time Lecomte du Nouy Prize winner, a member of the Dramatists Guild, Writers Guild of America, Primary Stages Dorothy Strelsin New American Writers Group, the MCC Playwrights Coalition and was a founding member of the Ars Nova Play Group.
His plays are published by Dramatists Play Service, Samuel French, Playscripts, Original Works Publishing, Indie Theater Now and featured in New York Theatre Review 07 and 09, NYTEs Cino Nights, and numerous Smith and Kraus books. He has written articles for Howlround, New York Theatre Magazine and The Brooklyn Rail and has interviewed over 600 playwrights on his blog. He also has a web series called Compulsive Love and a comic strip called Toys In My House Comics. For more, www.adamszymkowicz.com.
(BRIAN, MELISSA, DARLA and EM speak to the audience from separate spaces. Their speech may overlap.) DARLA. Where am I? BRIAN. All I want is to be taken seriously. Is that so much to ask? MELISSA. I just It doesnt make sense. EM. The truth is, there are a limited number of happy people in the world at any given time. DARLA. Where am I? MELISSA. I justgive me a minute. BRIAN. Look at me. See me. EM. The more people that are aware of how many unknowable things there are, the more people are unhappy. But of course more people are being born all the time. The number of happy people on the earth is a constant. I can show you the math.
DARLA. Where am I? BRIAN. On Saturday DARLA. On Saturday EM. On Saturday MELISSA. It was a day like any other. I woke up early to run. BRIAN. I woke up at ten. EM. I woke up at noon. DARLA. I didnt wake up. (Beat.) BRIAN. On Monday EM. On Monday MELISSA. On Monday EM. They told us. (A shift.)
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BRIAN. I am her best friend. Why would they not tell me? No, Im not her boyfriend. But thats just something we decided. As adults. Dont diminish my friendship with her. Dont diminish me. You could have told me. Sure I was surprised not to hear from her over the weekend and was surprised that she didnt answer the phone or text me back, but it wasnt alarming. I didnt think it was alarming. EM. Darla and I havent been friends in a while. And there are lots of reasons for that, none of them entirely clear. And it makes me sad, but thats how it is. Still when they had an assembly to tell us about her, it hit me hard, and when they said you could go talk to the school psychiatrist if you wanted, I found that I wanted. Or something. I want something. MELISSA. I dont want to talk to some ass clown school shrink. What does she know about Darla? What could she possibly know? Who the hell even falls into a coma for no reason? It just doesnt happen. I mean shes eighteen, not eighty. She didnt have head trauma or a drug overdose she just went to sleep and kept sleeping. Someone explain it to me! (Beat. No one explains it.) BRIAN. Last week. At the West End Diner. (BRIAN sits at a table with DARLA.) BRIAN. Do you know what you want? DARLA. I dont know. BRIAN. Because DARLA. Stop. BRIAN. No, I was just going to say DARLA. Please, Brian. Sometimes its just so tiring. BRIAN. What is? DARLA. You have to be sick of it too. BRIAN. Sure. (Beat.) Wait, what? DARLA. Just all the stupid things were expected to do in a normal day. Everything wants something from you, all the time. Im just so exhausted of the whole thing. BRIAN. I dont know what you mean. DARLA. You know what I mean. BRIAN. I dont want anything. DARLA. Thats exactly wrong. Youre a good example. I mean you and I are great. BRIAN. Yeah. DARLA. What we have is great. BRIAN. Right. DARLA. But you want something more. BRIAN. Well DARLA. You know its true. Youre going to ruin our friendship. Youchave to stop. BRIAN. Stop what? DARLA. Stop sending that kind of energy my way. Its only causing me pain. BRIAN. Pain? DARLA. Irritation!
BRIAN. But I love you. DARLA. See, whyd you have to go and say that? BRIAN. I didnt have to. DARLA. Then dont. I think we should just be friends. Dont you? BRIAN. I guess. DARLA. Good. Thats a relief. BRIAN. Yeah. I mean DARLA. Im glad we decided this like adults. BRIAN. (Defeated:) Yeah. DARLA. What are you having? Im going to have a grilled cheese. (BRIAN gets up from the table. DARLA lies down on the table, in her coma. BRIAN talks to MELISSA in the present.) MELISSA. Youre not going to the shrink, are you? BRIAN. I dont know. We could go to the hospital. MELISSA. Is she even in there? BRIAN. I dont know. MELISSA. It doesnt make any sense. BRIAN. I know. MELISSA. Just last week we were waiting for a ride after cross country and she said DARLA. (Sitting up and moving into MELISSAs space:) Melissa, I dont know. MELISSA. What? DARLA. I just cant handle the weight of it any more. MELISSA. The weight of what? DARLA. There are so many terrible things happening in the world at any given time. Mass murders, destructions of virgin forests, the creation of more plastic, people dropping out of school, not enough drinking water, oppression, home schooling, unemployment, focus groups, yellow number five, the push to ignore science, the lack of understanding, diseased animals, unsafe farming, the lack of justice, general assholery. MELISSA. Oh. DARLA. Doesnt it bother you? MELISSA. I try not to think about it. DARLA. It makes me so tired. MELISSA. Yeah. Im going to get a bottle of water. You want one? DARLA. Melissa, dont be part of the problem. (DARLA lies back down.) MELISSA. (To BRIAN:) Do you think Im part of the problem? BRIAN. No. I mean, you didnt put her in a coma. MELISSA. I didnt, did I? Its not my fault. BRIAN. No. Its my fault. (EM approaches.) EM. Um, hi. Sorry, um. You guys are friends with Darla, right? MELISSA. What do you care? BRIAN. (Scolding:) Melissa. (To EM:) Yeah we are. EM. I used to be friends with her. BRIAN. Oh. Cool.
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EM. I was just wondering. Are you going to visit her? In the hospital, I mean? MELISSA. Yeah. I think so. (Pause.) BRIAN. You want to come? EM. Can I? MELISSA. Do you have a car? EM. Sort of. (They go to her car. EM opens the doors.) EM. Sorry its such a mess. Just put all that crap on the floor. (The three get in EMs car.) EM. St. Thomas? BRIAN. Yeah. (EM drives. They are all silent.) MELISSA. This sucks. BRIAN. Yeah. MELISSA. I mean, what the hell, Darla!? (Silence.) BRIAN. How did you know her? EM. When we were kids, we played a lot. (DARLA gets up and becomes her younger self. She reveals dolls which she puts to sleep in various places on the stage.) EM. She lived right down the street from me so we would play. She liked to put all the dolls to sleep. One by one, we would put them all down. And she would always say DARLA. Goodnight. Enjoy your rest. Sleep. Sleep. Sleep. Sleep. Sleep. EM. Then she would do it again. And again. Until all of the babies were asleep. (DARLA does this.) BRIAN. I bet she was real cute when she was a kid. (The others say nothing. They arrive at the hospital. DARLA lies back down. They get out of the car, go to her.) EM. I hate hospitals.
MELISSA. Yeah. EM. The smell. MELISSA. Yeah. (They get to DARLA.) BRIAN. Ive never seen her so calm. MELISSA. Its unnatural. EM. I wonder what shes thinking. BRIAN. Should we say something? MELISSA. What? Like a eulogy. BRIAN. No, like, Hi? I dont know. (EM steps up.) EM. Darla, its Em. Hi. I know we havent talked in a while but we used to be good friends. And I miss you. I hope that when you come out of this we can be friends again. If you want. I promise to not ignore you in the halls and I will be there for you, in various ways, if you want me to Just so you know. SoOK. (EM kind of steps away and BRIAN steps up.) BRIAN. Hey, its me. Hey. Hows it going in there? You feel rested? (Beat.) Sorry. I know Im part of the problem. So, sorry about that. What can I say? I love you. I cant help it. Youre different. You see things other people dont see. I wish I was more like you. Come back, will you? I promise I wont bother you. Ill try not to. (BRIAN steps back. MELISSAs turn.) MELISSA. Listen, Im sorry so much of the world sucks. I am. But dropping out doesnt help anyone. It makes it a little harder for the world when youre not around. So wake up, OK? Stop screwing around. Im serious. Ill kick your ass if you dont come out of that coma right now! (Does DARLA shift slightly or do they just act like she did?) EM. What was that? MELISSA. Did she move? I think she moved. BRIAN. Darla? (They watch her. DARLA doesnt move. Blackout.) END OF PLAY
SECTION 1 | NEW
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Rights Information
How do I get permission to perform a play or musical? To obtain the right to perform a playwrights or composers work, you must pay the required royalty fee and receive a written performance license from Playscripts. Do I have to pay royalties? In all probability, yes. All performances MUST be licensed by Playscripts in advanceregardless of the size of the audience, and whether or not an admission fee is charged. Like a costume shop or makeup supplier, the author must receive compensation whether or not you charge admission. If you are a school, you still must pay royalties. If you are a non-profit institution, you still must pay royalties. If you do not charge admission, you still must pay royalties. If you perform the play at a school competition or festival, you still must pay royalties. Videotaping Rights Archival videotaping rights are available for selected plays in this catalog. A royalty fee may apply. For more information, please visit our website, or call our toll free number. Alterations and Cuttings You may not delete, alter, or make changes of any kind to a play or musical, including the changing of character gender or the alteration of objectionable language, unless granted express written permission by Playscripts (please email info@playscripts.com to request permission). With certain exceptions (see left), you may not use a cutting from a play or musical without first contacting Playscripts for permission. Photocopying Unauthorized copying of any play or musical is strictly forbidden by law. No part of a play, libretto, or musical score may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, including photocopying, scanning, or transcription by hand. You must purchase or otherwise lawfully obtain as many books, eScripts or musical scores as you plan to use in your production. Restrictions Performance rights for any play or musical are subject to restrictions, withdrawals, and third-party clearances, without prior notice. Do not make production plans until you receive a written performance license from Playscripts. Refund Policy All book and eScript sales are final. No returns or exchanges are accepted. Playscripts may refund the amateur performance royalty or any portion only in the event of canceled performances. You must request such a refund before the date of the last performance specified on your order form. Copyright Basics Every play and musical published by Playscripts is protected by United States and international copyright law. These laws ensure that playwrights and composers are rewarded for creating new and vital dramatic work, and protect them against theft and abuse of their work. A play or musical is a piece of property, fully owned by the playwright or composer, just like a house or car. You must obtain permission to use this property, and must pay a royalty fee for the privilegewhether or not you charge an admission fee. Playscripts collects these required payments on behalf of the author. Anyone who violates an authors copyright is liable as a copyright infringer under United States and international law. Playscripts and the author are entitled to institute legal action for any such infringement, which can subject the infringer to actual damages, statutory damages, and attorneys fees. A court may impose statutory damages of up to $150,000 for willful copyright infringements. U.S. copyright law also provides for possible criminal sanctions. Visit the website of the U.S. Copyright Office (www.copyright.gov) for more information. THE BOTTOM LINE: If you break copyright law, you are robbing a playwright or composer and opening yourself to expensive legal action. Follow the rules, and when in doubt, ask us! (For more information, visit www.playscripts.com/rights.)
What is my amateur performance royalty fee for plays? To calculate your amateur performance royalty fee for our plays, simply multiply the number of performances times the performance rate specified in this catalog. (For example: 6 performances x $40 per performance = $240 due.) If you are interested in producing a full-length play, and your organization is NOT a high school, middle school or elementary school, please see the note below: Special note for full-length plays only: Before your full-length show: To obtain amateur performance rights, calculate your royalty fee as described above, and place your order. This is your up-front minimum royalty. After your full-length show: If 8-10% of your box office receipts (ticket sales) turns out to be greater than this up-front minimum royalty, then you will owe Playscripts the difference. (Consult your licensing agreement for the exact percentage.) Within 7 days of your final performance, mail Playscripts a statement of box office receipts signed by your theaters managing director, along with any royalties due. For example: You pay an up-front minimum royalty fee of $360, and after your show, your total box office receipts turn out to be $4,000. 8% of $4,000 is $320less than your up-front minimum royalty paymentso you only need to send Playscripts your signed box office statement. On the other hand, what if your total box office receipts turn out to be $6,000? 8% of $6000 is $480, so you owe Playscripts: $480 - $360 = $120, along with your signed box office statement. In short: You owe the playwright at least a flat fee per full-length performance, and at most some percentage of your actual revenue. What is my amateur performance royalty fee for musicals? The amateur performance royalty fee for musicals may only be determined by placing an order on our website, or by calling our toll free number. In most cases, when placing an order for amateur performance rights, your royalty fee will be determined automatically during the ordering process. Professional Performance Rights for Plays and Musicals The royalty rates quoted for plays in this catalog are for amateur performances only. For all other rights, including stock/professional performance rights, and all musical rights, contact Playscripts.
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Company Information
MISSION STATEMENT PLAYSCRIPTS, INC. brings new plays and musicals to professional, school, community, and college theaters to perform, read and enjoy. These plays represent a great diversity of voices, styles, and stories and offer a fresh perspective on the human experience. PLAYSCRIPTS, INC. understands the extraordinary role of a playwright as artist, business person, and marketer. We operate under the idea that What is good for the playwright is good for Playscripts. PLAYSCRIPTS, INC. strives to curate a catalog of plays that meets the needs of theater makers, and exceeds the expectations of audiences. We are at the forefront of play publishing, providing a unique and extensive suite of services for playwrights and customers alike. Using technology, innovation and creativity, Playscripts, Inc. forges connections between playwrights and new audiences. PLAYSCRIPTS, INC. ADVISORY BOARD David Henry Hwang Morgan Jenness Tony Kushner Terrence McNally Lynn Nottage Harold Prince Theresa Rebeck Robert Schenkkan Stephen Schwartz Neil Simon Alfred Uhry This Advisory Board endorses the Playscripts, Inc. mission of connecting playwrights more effectively with production opportunities, and counsels Playscripts in achieving the highest standard of service to playwrights and theaters. Membership on the Playscripts, Inc. Advisory Board does not necessarily reflect board members' views concerning plays chosen for publication and licensing by Playscripts, Inc. PLAYSCRIPTS, INC. STAFF Teresa Sanpietro, General Manager Brendan Conheady, Licensing Director Billie Davis, Customer Service Director Lizzie Martinez, Senior Customer Service Associate John OConnor, Customer Service Associate Erin Salvi, Publications Director Cate Fricke, Publications Associate Lane Bernes, Marketing Director Jason Pizzarello, Acquisitions Director Lysna Marzani, Contracts Manager Morgan Gould, Literary Manager Adam Blodgett, Literary Assistant Jonathan Rand, Co-Founder Doug Rand, Co-Founder CAPTIONS
FRONT PAGE CAPTIONS FROM TOP LEFT: Pride@Prejudice, Capital Repertory Theatre, Albany, New York (2012). Photo: Joe Schuyler. How We Got On, Humana Festival of New American Plays, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Kentucky (2012). Photo: Alan Simons. The Lilys Revenge, HERE Arts Center, New York, New York (2009). Photo: Ves Pitts. FROM THE INSIDE FRONT COVER: Randolph Curtis Rand and Kim Stauffer in Dracula, Actors Theatre of Louisville, Kentucky (2009). Photo: Harlan Taylor. FROM THE TABLE OF CONTENTS Ruth Hornemann, Martine Schrey, Serdar Ilbuga and Wolff von Lindenau in Unsinkable, Grenzlandtheatre, Aachen, Germany (2008).
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