Community

75 pages

4 m, 4 w

In this faithful adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic, a traveling troupe of commedia dell'Arte players re-create the Victorian world of “A Christmas Carol” on a bare stage. All of the many wonderful characters are portrayed by these 8 players with cleverness, skill, and comedy. Dickens, an actor, playwright, and enthusiastic theatergoer himself, used many theatrical characters in his novels, especially characters from the commedia dell'Arte tradition. The most notable of these is Ebenezer Scrooge, who is played in this adaptation by commedia's cranky bu...

72 pages

3 m, 3 w, 2 flexible (one non-speaking)

A madman is on the loose and college student Penny, somewhat flighty, has gotten a gun for protection over the objections of her brainy roommate Janice. The objections prove all too true when Penny accidentally shoots her boyfriend, Glen. Granted, his sense of humor often makes people want to shoot him, but this was truly an accident. Fortunately, Janice is a pre-med genius and she is able to use a very unorthodox method to save Glen’s life...kind of. His head at least, but only temporarily. While Glen protests to being stored in the TV cabinet, Penny is conc...

69 pages

6 m, 5 w

Two young innkeepers, Alex and Rolly, are struggling to make a success of a once-elegant hostelry in the Hamptons, but it's tough, especially with the owner Lucinda Pickle breathing down their necks. Of course it doesn't help that the hotel's permanent resident, Mrs. Prescott, collects pet mice; that the hotel chef, Cookie, is given to bursting into tears and resigning; and that a petty criminal, Willis the pickpocket, is looking for a place to hide out. When Hollywood horror movie producer Julian K. Silverblatt checks in with his vain bodyguard and his sneez...

44 pages

4 m, 3 w

Two married couples pool their resources to buy a diner in the middle of the desert. Excited and enthusiastic at first, they come to realize their dream isn’t turning out to be the success they wanted. Unable to afford to fix the diner’s broken sign or pave the dusty parking lot, the hoped-for customers continue to drive by without stopping. Inside the diner, with failing equipment and dwindling funds, the two couples discover they can’t even sell the building for a portion of what they paid for it. They are about to give up in desperation when a handsome, ch...

62 pages

4 m, 3 w

What do you do to prepare for a visit from your parents? Plenty, when you're the daughter of strict Italian Catholic parents who expect to meet your female roommate, who is actually a guy. John was hoping to celebrate his and Maria's two-year anniversary as housemates by proposing to her. Instead he finds himself as "Suzanne" wearing a dress and trying to cope with Maria's cranky father, her overbearing mother and her wild younger sister. Then there's Maria's old childhood friend who tries to make his move on Maria as well as "Suzanne." Add John's trouble-mak...

40 pages

6 m, 4 w, 4 flexible, extras,

Mild-mannered suburbanite Rob Clark is shocked when Eugene, an unlikely angel, tells him that he is going to have a baby. Rob and his wife, Cindy, have wanted a child, but they never expected Rob to be the one to get pregnant! Their family physician, Doc Mitchell, an old-fashioned doctor who'd rather be fishing, confirms the pregnancy, but Dr. Stern, a cynical psychologist, says everyone is nuts! Meanwhile, Rob and Cindy, who are trying to come to terms with the situation, are besieged by a parade of curiosity seekers, led by Dr. Stern, while Doc Mitchell com...

72 pages

Cast: 7 m, 12 w

How could a box of cornflakes almost start a world war? Writing an ad campaign for Hampton’s Medicated Cornflakes is tough, especially when you have to get paid immediately to not get evicted! That’s what faces Rosie, Max, and Sid, who hit upon the idea of quarantining their own office to keep out their demanding landlady. But when a man stumbles in, stabbed in the back, it’s a whole new ballgame. Now, nobody can leave since it’s become the scene of a crime. More police show up along with a legal secretary, a Russian travel agent, a handsome doctor, and worst...

33 pages

2 m, 4 w, 2 flexible, extras, doubling possible

Here is a hip, contemporary adaptation of O'Henry's famous short story. Bonnie, Bridget and Billy Driscoll are living in a dumpy apartment, their credit cards charged to the max, trying to make it on their own in New York. When Bridget brings home Dolly, a seemingly sweet lost little girl, (perhaps a bit "high strung"), the siblings soon realize that she is the daughter of an extremely wealthy New Yorker. While Billy plays cowboys and "indigenous people" with Dolly, the sisters jokingly write a ransom note on the computer for the modest amount of $25,000, eno...

36 pages

5 m, 6 w, 8 flexible, (doubling possible)

Reality TV stars Roy and Rita Rafferty are full of energy and excitement for their home improvement audience. However, the ratings for “Roy and Rita's Ridiculous Remodel Show!” are looking bleak. After filming only ten episodes, the network has informed them that unless they can boost their ratings – drastically! – this episode will be their last. Roy and Rita consult with their production team and, as a last ditch effort, decide to do a kitchen remodel in 24 hours and film it all live! But can they pull it off with an oddball construction crew? The electrici...

55 pages

4 m, 6 w

Ivory Keyes, the sharp-tongued, shoot-from-the-hip piano player from the "Calamity Gulch" trilogy, is back in her own brand-new adventure. When Ivory learns that her uncle, Lord Ebony Keyes, has died, she and Sheriff Prettyfoot travel to England to claim the inheritance. The family solicitor, Basil Q. Wainscoting, Esquire, plots to keep the estate to himself by proving Ivory to be "unvirtuous." His plans are foiled when his handsome nephew, Heathcliff, a poet, falls instead for pretty secretary, Paisley Fairfax. Before too long, a storm is raging outside and ...

62 pages

4 m, 5 w, extras

It's winter in a poor coal mining town in the early 1900s. When a foundling baby girl appears on the doorsteps of the company store, Annie, the possessive wife of the proprietor, takes a shine to her. But Arly, who works at the store and makes Christmas presents for all the kids in town, learns that Francine is the real mother. Francine loves the baby, but is too poor to raise her with her other daughter. A cave-in at the mine sows tragedy among the miners and their families and complicates matters further. Francine, who has lost her husband in the disaster, ...

63 pages

5 m, 4 w, extras

A Commedia dell'Arte troupe invades a town square on market day and performs a hilarious play. In it, two young men and their servant have come to the town to find love. And they do with two young ladies. But their father, an impoverished man, has plans to marry one to his rich, fat friend, who happens to be the father of one of the young men. The daughter would rather marry the other young man, of course. Meanwhile, a rich, widowed contessa begins to pursue the girls' father. It falls to the faithful servant to arrange all the romances, forcing him to preten...

68 pages

3 m, 2 w

Dr. Jack Ramsay, an obstetrician/gynecologist, is "going bare," that is, going without insurance coverage to avoid paying outrageous malpractice premiums. When he is hit with a frivolous lawsuit to the tune of $4.2 million, Jack and his devoted wife, Barbara, conspire to get a divorce that puts all their assets into her name. "You'll be too poor to sue because I'll have all your money," she chirps. Possibly a destitute doctor will discourage the plaintiff's attorney from pursuing a large settlement. Jack loves the idea and so the divorce plans proceed over th...

69 pages

4 m, 7 w, extras

Ever since tragedy befell Grandpa Howard on Christmas Eve 25 years earlier, he makes life miserable for everyone including himself. He won't let Mrs. Howard borrow his car for a fund-raising drive and won't listen to a plea from Mr. Howard and daughter Susan to borrow money for a very important business deal for Susan's boyfriend. Young Larry and the neighborhood pest, Betty, are constantly running afoul of Grandpa's temper. Pathos and fantasy come from Grandpa's dreamy reminiscing over the beautiful girl who was once his wife the humor arises from the hilari...

52 pages

3 m, 2 w

Sarah and Teddy, who used to be a couple and have not seen each other since the break-up, meet by chance. Both pretend to be in relationships that don’t really exist, because neither wants to appear unsuccessful to the other. They agree to get together with their (imaginary) significant others. This leads Sarah to contact Steven Ames, the proprietor of an unusual business called Even Steven which helps its clients to get even with people who have wronged them. Steven agrees to provide Sarah with a fake boyfriend, but Steven then contacts Teddy to provide him ...