Community

38 pages

4 m, 3 w

Philip, the Stone Age lord of an elegant cave suite, is something of a Neanderthal when it comes to change. Rumors of a new secret weapon worry him. So does the alarmingly barbaric tribe that has settled across the river who live in boxes made of wooden logs with a panel that opens and closes! Then there's his son, Thomas, who has dropped out of hunting-fishing-agriculture school and does nothing but play with inventions. His daughter, Sharon, befriends animals instead of attracting a nice caveman who will carry her off to a decent cavern in a good neighborho...

44 pages

7 m, 11 w. Much doubling possible.

The terrible waste of war never seemed more contemporary than in these quintessential tragedies by Euripides set before and after the siege of Troy. Far from being “historical dramas,” they speak to any generation embroiled in conflict. We see up close and firsthand that war is the most pitiful—and most poetic—of human activities. In the first play, "Iphigenia at Aulis," the Grecian army waits to embark on the conquest of Troy. The army’s commander, Agamemnon, has been forced to offer his young daughter, Iphigenia, as a martyr to ensure victory. Valiant effor...

32 pages

4 m, 4 w

Friendships are tried, prejudice revealed, and self-interest is (dare it be said) exposed, in this fast-moving comedy. A small Iowa town must deal with the weighty issue of whether a stone statue violates the morals ordinance. Chorlis Deets, longtime resident of Lamb’s Corner, has a new lawn ornament in honor of his departed wife...a stone statue of Aphrodite...painted pink and “situated” on a swing in his front yard. An emergency meeting of the city council is called to debate the issue and decide whether or not to forcibly remove the statue. As the meeting ...

36 pages

4 m, 4 w

Duke Deadheader, the most rotten rascal on the railroad, plots to relieve the simple but honest stationmaster, Ralph Roundhouse, of the company's construction funds. Aided by his beautiful, but nasty, accomplice, Flora Flagstop, he burns down the lumber mill of our hero, Stanley Studmill, cons Ralph into signing a worthless contract for ties (Ralph thought they were railroad ties), and kidnaps our heroine Rebecca Roundhouse. All appears lost, but Duke has not reckoned with the mysterious Chinese foreman, Gan Dee, nor the ever-reliable Boxcar Betsy and her cou...

32 pages

7 m

Jabez Wilson is a pawnbroker whose store is located on Coburg Square next to a bank. He consults Sherlock Holmes about the "League of Red-Headed Men." He had been told by his employee, Vincent Spaulding, that it is a group established by a red-headed American millionaire, now dead, who had left a large amount of money for men with such hair color. Spaulding introduced Wilson to Duncan Ross who is also red-headed and the manager of the operation. All Wilson needed to do to earn the money was to spend four hours a day at an office, copying out the Encyclopedia ...

17 pages

1m, 1w

One male actor and one female actor each play two parts that's the challenge and fun of this one-act play. All the action takes place in front of a simple park setting. First a teenage boy and girl discuss their young love, he the romantic, she the practical one. She leaves (late for work) and the actress returns as a middle-aged woman, who gives the young romantic some sage advice on love from her lifetime experience. The boy rushes off to save his girlfriend's job and the actor returns as a middle-aged British man who is wooing the older woman. Their scene ...

23 pages

4 m, 3 w

Investigator Keith Schwartz has been sent to look into the alleged suicide of Mr. Nazareth, a patient at the Fallen Oaks Correctional Facility for the Criminally Insane. But there are complications: The body has disappeared from the morgue, staff and patients are hiding something, and even the head psychiatrist seems reluctant to talk. Schwartz interviews the patients to discover what really happened that night. This one-act, single set drama is both a whodunit mystery and a retelling of the gospel for a modern audience.

36 pages

4 m, 6 w

Melodrama meets the high seas when J. P. Morganfeller, mysterious millionaire, carries his priceless painting, the "Mona Lisa Unbuttoned," aboard ship. A villainous art thief and three lady cat burglars (thinly disguised as high society types) steal it and throw all the blame on officer Vance Trueblue, who must solve the case to keep his sterling reputation and his true love, Dimity Darling. About 40 minutes.

42 pages

2 m, 2 w, 1 flexible

Ronald Schmidt has just left his bride at the altar to attend an urgent meeting at Dr. Shaw's office. Diana Henderson has left her bridegroom at the altar to attend the same meeting. Both hope it's about inheriting the late doctor's fortune, but all that the two strangers find are Shaw's ashes in an urn and Shaw's assistant. To qualify for their legacy, he says, they must be handcuffed for twenty-four hours. Once alone, they argue, then kiss and eventually break the handcuffs. The assistant returns with the jilted bride and bridegroom, the ones left at the re...

35 pages

2 m, 2 w

This show is a lively compilation of the many face of love, taken from the works of William Shakespeare. Selections range from the ridiculous to the sublime: excerpts from A MIDSUMMER NIGHTS DREAM, ROMEO AND JULIET, THE TAMING OF THE SHREW, and LOVE'S LABOR'S LOST alternate with some of the Bard's most beautiful sonnets in this very funny and moving show. This is an entertaining and accessible tribute to Shakespeare and his most irritating muse, Cupid. 30 - 40 minutes.

35 pages

7 m, 2 w

Hilton Cubitt, a squire, has come to Sherlock Holmes for help. Cubitt has found several messages of coded letters drawn in the form of dancing men, undecipherable to him but extremely disturbing to his American wife, Elsie. With his typical brilliance Sherlock Holmes quickly realizes the danger the messages convey, and he and Watson travel to the Cubitt estate. But it is too late. Cubitt is dead and it is believed that Elsie shot him, although it cannot be proved because she herself is unconscious, near death’s door. Holmes sets a trap for an American man ren...

34 pages

6 m, 5 w, 1 flexible, doubling possible

Based on the story by H.H. Munro (Saki). Wealthy Uncle Lulworth eagerly awaits the next meal from his uncommonly skilled, but foul-tempered cook, Mrs. Sebastian. His niece, Ellen, visits him shortly before dinner after their aunt's funeral. As executor of the estate, Ellen has run across a series of letters to the aunt from another relative, Uncle Peter, who died years earlier under mysterious circumstances. Through re-enactments based on the letters, we learn Uncle Peter was a despicable human being and was probably killed by a "common" criminal, perhaps som...

38 pages

2 m, 2 w

Based on the short story "Twin Spirits" by W. W. Jacobs. This delicious comedy tells of Gilbert and Addie Cox, whose marriage is based on her money and headed for the rocks. When Gilbert begins to pawn household items to pay for his gambling, Addie confides in her nosy neighbor, Doris. The two women concoct a plan involving Doris' lazy Uncle Joseph. He is to pretend to be an agent from the bank repossessing the house and property. But the two men conspire to turn the tables on the women and get more money out of Addie. Addie and Doris, however, are smarter th...

42 pages

1 m, 5 w

In this rollicking comedy two brides-to-be get caught up in a web of lies and half-truths while shopping for their wedding dresses at Tammy Ann Rennert’s One-Stop Bridal Bootique in rural Texas. When an iconic image of the Virgin Mary makes a miraculous appearance on the back of one of the gowns, chaos ensues. Secrets are revealed, hair is let down, and each woman reconsiders her attitudes towards marriage, men, morals, and miracles. Ultimately, everyone gets her heart’s desire. About an hour. Winner of the 2007 Hill Country Playwriting Festival in Marble Fal...

33 pages

3 m, 7 w

Here's sparkling mellerdrammer that has more plot twists than a pretzel factory. The setting is a near-bankrupt photo studio in the Territory of Arizona, owned by Mrs. Paula Roid, a widow who divides her time between her sickbed and her lovely daughter, Aster, "the dainty darling of the darkroom." But several other Arizonians have their beady eyes on Miss Roid, including the dastardly Mayor Gobblecrud, who is also their landlord. Just when the situation is about to explode, a stagecoach arrives with several interesting characters, including Jacques-Louis Dagu...

22 pages

Flexible cast of 14

Smedley S. Snerd, a typical nerd hero, is the star student of Miss Fossil's geology class. He's got a big crush on Marybelle Moosenheimer, the heroine, star cheerleader, and member of the Locks, a group which values their beautiful hair. Other peer groups include the Rocks, who are into "heavy metal"; the Jocks, who are athletically inclined; and the Rolls, a gang of hoodlums led by the infamous macho villain, Mr. G. But brain outwits brawn as Smedley uses his marbles to trip up Mr. G and his gang, win Marybelle's hand, and explain to Miss Fossil the real ori...

33 pages

1 m, 2 w

This play deals with the heartache and the trauma of being old, being alone in the world and forgotten. Mrs. Delmonico, a former actress, lives in a tenement building in New York. She exists mostly in her imagination and takes her torment out on her neighbor, Mrs. Quinn. They are unable to get along in any way until this Christmas Eve when Mr. Gartch, one of the roomers whom they have never met, happens upon the scene. He becomes their catalyst - motivating them to look at things differently. Because of his being so positive and hopeful, and because he is ano...

46 pages

7 m, 5 w, 11 teen girls, 3 teen boys.

The Davies’ house is a picture of confusion and complications this Christmas Day with the arrival of various extended family members and guests. No one can find Uncle John, there’s body glitter all over Kelly’s room, Sandy and her daughters have been doing something with feathers in the kitchen, and nobody knows what Nana Jane might do this year! But then a stranger appears who might be Sandy’s new boyfriend, Phil’s old friend from college, or (if we believe Grandpa) the mysterious Uncle Don from the Amazon. The stranger says nothing, and yet his soft smile i...

28 pages

1 m, 2 w

Katherine Bourgeois, a senior at college, has flunked algebra, a course she needs to graduate. She complains to Dr. Hoffmann, the chairwoman of the math department, who tells Mr. O'Leary, Katherine's instructor, to go over the final exam and give her another test. Mr. O'Leary tries to do this, but Katherine evades the work - she apparently has something else in mind. What is she really offering him for a grade? When Dr. Hoffmann returns, a sobbing Katherine accuses Mr. O'Leary of sexual harassment. Dr. Hoffmann offers Katherine an incomplete, but she’s not in...

32 pages

3 m, 2 w, 1 flexible

Get the youngsters in your audience twitching their noses, making engine noises, bowing to the king, catching imaginary gold thread, and shouting out names, especially Rumpelstiltskin! With such audience participation, this fairy tale adaptation is loads of active fun. It features a braggart father, his long-suffering wife, their poor but beautiful daughter, a strict rule-enforcing chancellor; a monarch whose kingdom depends on straw being spun into gold, and of course, the mysterious little man who is willing to perform that exceptional feat – but at a treme...

40 pages

3 m, 2 w, 1 flexible

Get the youngsters in your audience twitching their noses, making engine noises, bowing to the king, catching imaginary gold thread, and shouting out names, especially Rumpelstiltskin! With such audience participation, this fairy tale adaptation is loads of active fun. It features a braggart father, his long-suffering wife, their poor but beautiful daughter, a strict rule-enforcing chancellor; a monarch whose kingdom depends on straw being spun into gold, and of course, the mysterious little man who is willing to perform that exceptional feat – but at a treme...

36 pages

2 Actors

David Radman, a young journalist, must write a story about The Vaudeville Theatre, which has recently been designated for destruction.  He reluctantly arrives at the building for an appointment with the President of the Theatre Rescue Society, but is instead greeted by Charles Grimm, the janitor.  Grimm shows Radman the magic of theatre.  During a series of theatrical explorations—in which they dance a soft-shoe, eat lunch on the backdrop, explore the props cabinet, and fence—Grimm and Radman peel away years of heartache and ang...

68 pages

4 m, 6 w

"I've had trouble breaking into a house before but this is the first time I've had problems breaking OUT again!" So moans Merle to his partner, Howie. These two minor-league burglars have really met their match this time, it seems. They decided on a house only to find, after managing to get into the place, that it's up for sale and before they can leave, Conrad and Glenda, prospective buyers, show up. Merle figures they have two choices - either pretend to be real estate agents or beat it, making the buyers suspect them and call in the police. Merle begins to...

69 pages

5 to 6 m, 7 w

Wouldn't it be great fun to direct William Shakespeare's "Hamlet"? That was what Margo Daley always thought...until she is hired to do just that by the Peaceful Glen Memorial Players in their theater, a renovated funeral home. They DO have a couple of conditions, however. Margo has to make the play a melodrama, so the audience will know when to throw the popcorn. And they can't be too loud because the lady who lives under the theater bangs her cane on the stage. Oh, and Margo has to insert the sponsors' names into the play and, by the way, has to take place i...

68 pages

Flexible cast of 15 to 50

Here's a comedy package of 12 yuletide sketches just perfect to give your audience for an evening's entertainment this Christmas! Everybody in the little town of Christmas is friendly and funny and you'll meet them all, including Skeezix and Sylvester, an elf comedy team that is short in stature and long in laughter; Dancer, the reindeer with a whacky sense of humor; Mrs. Claus, the REAL boss of the outfit; and a hilarious street corner Santa, tested and almost bested by one tough little kid with a sticky sucker. Also included are old favorite stories such as...

72 pages

3 m, 4 w

Here is a sweet comedy featuring a social-climbing sister who tries to keep her visiting country sister from embarrassing her among her new society friends. Meet Millicent and Coreen – two girls who grew up in Bullfrog Waller. Millicent is now a big-city snob. Her sister, Coreen, on the other hand, chose to stay in the country…until now! How can Millicent keep her embarrassing past a secret when Coreen, as country as cornbread and grits, shows up spouting her backwoods sentiments to everyone at Millicent's party? Frantic, Millicent decides to pass Coreen off ...

65 pages

4 m, 5 w, 1 boy

Lillie Scones is a sweet retired nanny who runs a boarding house with one resident and "a cat the size of the Louisiana Purchase." Her two friends, Jocelyn and Carmella, help to pass the time by listening to music and gossiping. Then Stuart, an old charge of hers, rents a room. Lillie is tickled to have him around again, not knowing he is planning on robbing the bank on the corner. Stuart's mind may not be totally on the bank job, however, when he meets Betty. However, when Stuart finds out that Betty is about to graduate from an academy on the very night the...

41 pages

1 m, 4 w

Judge Reginald P. Cogsworth, a curmudgeon who hates sweets, is judging a charity bakeoff, albeit grudgingly. Countless entries have been whittled down to three: a tart submitted by Lucy "Scooter" Bright, owner of a nail salon; a Depression-era style cake by Edna Mae Carter, the local librarian; and a rich torte created by Margaret Mason, a local society lady. In the middle of tasting all the goodies, the judge falls dead, and it's up to Miss Peabody, the head of the contest, and the audience to determine the murderer. There are clues in the theatre, some hidd...

65 pages

1 m, 8 w (or 9 w)

Veronica Blather is a sweet little old lady who spends most of her time knitting and solving murders, most of which occur whenever she shows up. Understandably she has a problem finding a place to live. When her niece invites her to stay at a retirement home for old knitters, it seems ideal - until one of its members dies from drinking poisoned punch. Who did it? Was it Matilda, the president of the Crazy Quilt Club, or Lydia, who likes to die on Tuesdays? Could it be Clara, who's a compulsive liar, or the wisecracking Sarafina who doesn't trust anybody and c...

67 pages

5 m, 11 w

You are invited to the most offbeat wedding of the season, where murder takes center stage and all the guests are suspects. Neither the groom's parents nor the bride's former boyfriend want the marriage to happen. The family lawyer has a little something up his sleeve and it might involve an enigmatic guest who dies mysteriously before revealing who she really is. When the lawyer is also murdered, amateur sleuth Miss Peabody conducts an investigation punctuated by the traditional wedding events in which the audience can also participate, such as throwing the ...