62 pages
4 m, 7 w
Eddie Poe is a direct descendant of Edgar Allan Poe and hoping to follow in his illustrious ancestor’s flaky footsteps. He gets his chance when his girlfriend Lucy, a personal assistant to a very wealthy woman, tells him someone has stolen her boss’s very expensive jewelry. Fearing she’ll be the prime suspect, Lucy begs Eddie to help her by attending a conference for people with famous ancestors. The attendees turn out to be a comical cross-section of world history with the descendants of Henry VIII, Molly Brown, Joan of Ark, Michelangelo, Davy Crockett, and ...
60 pages
4 m, 6 w, 3 flexible
Two inept detectives, Cagney and Lacey, have been put in charge of protecting an unusual family at a safe house until the mother, Elvira Bytes, can testify against a ruthless crime mob. The police are unaware, however, that Elvira, her husband Barnabas, and their three kids are vampires! The parents are trying to change the family ways but it isn’t easy with sarcastic teenage daughter, Scarlett, who uses a voodoo doll, and teenage son, Jason, who thinks he is also a werewolf. Only the youngest daughter, Raven, wants to be normal. When she brings home a new fr...
56 pages
With doubling: 4m, 4w, plus ensemble to play various small roles
When Mandy Kate, a young slave girl, overhears a threat to sell her brother-in-law Robert, she rushes to warn her sister Sarah. The family plans to escape together, but Mandy Kate is inadvertently left behind when trying to help another slave, Old Job. Together the old man and young girl must set off on their own. They disguise themselvesOld Job as a woman (Josephine) and Mandy Kate as a boy (Abe)and are initially helped by a clever country boy and his eccentric elderly aunt. Mandy Kate and Old Job are later guided through several stops on the Underground Rai...
72 pages
6 m, 5 w
Early morning July 1, 1863. Gettysburg, Pa. As thousands of troops from both North and South amass for what will become one of the bloodiest battles of the Civil War, five teenagers from several local farms escape to the safety of the surrounding hills. There's the level-headed Eliza and her little sister, Justine, who's strong-willed; Georgina, whose mother has sheared her hair to make her look like a boy; and Rachel and Jeremiah, a brother and sister from a wealthier family. As they witness the horrors of battle over the next three days, the teens are force...
59 pages
Flexible cast, approx. 7 m, 9 w, extras
Jenny is excited to be reunited with her friends Dee-Ray and Robert at school after a long summer. But there's trouble. Ms. Fishfac, the new science teacher, is coming down hard on the class, handing out outrageous assignments that only a nerd, like Max Pine, would love. Jenny decides to fight back, from organizing the "Glee Club," where the class makes weird sounds and other disruptions, to convincing Mrs. Fishfac to stage a challenge between Max and Robert. Robert, a quiet student, wins by using his hidden gift, a photographic memory, but their triumph is s...
80 pages
17 m, 15 w, 4 flexible. With doubling 9 m, 10 w.
The life of the poor country lad, Pip, changes one day when an unknown benefactor sees that the young man is brought to London and made a gentleman. But who is behind Pip’s “great expectations,” and why is it kept a secret? By the time Pip learns the truth of his circumstances, he has gotten involved with some fascinating people and undergone a vital change of character. This adaptation of the Charles Dickens classic is an excellent choice for schools in that it stays true to the novel, including the amusing theatre scene in which a humorous heckler wreaks ha...
65 pages
8 m, 7 w, 5 flexible parts
Mrs. Moss and her ever-faithful butler, Rhett, have been struggling to keep Moss Manor open but have finally decided to sell and move on. An unusual assortment of prospective buyers arrive, including ladies from the local preservation society; a toilet paper magnet; and a colorful hillbilly trio who claim they're distant relatives of Mother Moss. As the brokering becomes more competitive, word reaches the inn of an escaped murderer possibly heading this way--none other than Dr. Charles Hoarse, a former guest Mother Moss helped send to jail years ago--though n...
76 pages
10 m, 10 w, 4 flexible, plus extras
Adapted from the novel by Rafael Sabatini. All of the drama and adventure of pre-revolutionary France is captured in this action-filled adaptation. Andre Louis Moreau, a young lawyer reared with every advantage in life, vows revenge when his friend Philippe is killed in a duel trying to right a wrong with the Marquis. When the King's legal representative refuses to arrest the Marquis, Moreau incites the people to rise up, and he becomes an outlaw with a price on his head. He meets up with a group of traveling actors and joins them as the dashing Scaramouche,...
69 pages
9 m, 9 w
When Jeremy Wong, a 15-year-old gay student, is savagely beaten and killed by two fellow students, the whole school reels from the blows. Reporters from all over the country descend on the town. Deep divisions among the students emerge as the student council debates whether or not to hold a memorial service. The brutal murder forces each student to search his or her own conscience and beliefs. Some react with denial, some make excuses, some are outraged, and some are frightened. Others respond with courage and caring, while a few start to question and change ...
60 pages
6 m, 6 w
It is New Year's Eve, 1999 in Montana. Because of the forecasted Y2K disasters, the Johnsons are well prepared and eager to start their new lives. They are hopefully awaiting other survivalists to join them in their bunker. However, the others, including the haughty and well-bred Langfords and the common, run-of-the-mill hillbilly Hick family, are not exactly what the Johnsons had expected. Add two uninvited and unseen conspiracy survivalists, and you have a mix of nuts who think the world has ended. Rather than disaster, this adventure turns out to be comedy...
72 pages
7 m, 11 w, doubling possible
Hawthorne's masterpiece comes vividly alive in this adaptation which begins at the gallows as Colonel Pyncheon greedily steals the land of Matthew Maule to build a magnificent house. But with his dying words, "God will give you blood to drink," Maule curses the Pyncheon family for generations. A hundred and fifty years later, Hepzibah Pyncheon, an aging old maid, is forced to open a cent shop in the now decrepit house to keep herself and her child-like brother from starving. It seems all hope is lost for the family. But that's precisely when pretty, 17-year-o...
59 pages
6 m, 11 w
Doc Robbins, a dentist with a heart of stone, rules the town of Last Gulp with an iron fist. Though folks treat Doc with due respect as their mayor and the only “medical” man in the territory, there’s no shortage of suspects when he dies following a swig of rat-poisoned sarsaparilla. Everybody, it seems, had it in for Doc. Bonnie Vivant wanted to turn her old saloon into a fancy restaurant, but Doc wouldn’t let her. Three old prospectors Crusty, Dusty, and Musty, all resented the fact that Doc had jumped their claims and wondered if he ever struck it rich. Af...
72 pages
Flexible cast of 12
Here is a hysterical, non-partisan look at our fearless (and not so fearless) U.S. Presidents, their achievements, their failures, and their idiosyncrasies. This play offers a flexible, kazoo-playing cast the opportunity to portray history as never before! From newscasts, game shows, reality TV, talk shows, beach movies, the Grand Ol' Opry, and Shakespeare soliloquies, a cast of 12 actors presents all of the United States Presidents in twenty brief scenes. Former Presidents interview for jobs, advertise used cars, head to Fort Lauderdale for spring break, and...
62 pages
5 m, 6 w
Five teenage girls get so upset with their boyfriends' ways that they form a support group, Good Girls with Bad Boyfriends. Tracy doesn't like the way Paul dresses, Katie wants Tony to be a steady boyfriend, Natalie is tired of Ralph's acting like a wild animal, Donna is fed up with jokes from Jerry at her expense, and Barbara wants to keep Frankie from flirting with every girl around. The girls go to some real extremes to change behaviors. But hey, these guys do not change - or embarrass - easily! A hilarious play that effectively captures the awkward pleasu...
61 pages
9 m, 6 w extras
Wilhelm Frankenstein, last remaining heir of Victor Frankenstein, has come into the possession of Victor's notes. Having recently suffered the loss of his young wife, he becomes obsessed by the idea of re-creating her by following Victor's methods. A young medical student, Jurgen Bruchner, discovers Wilhelm's plans and begs to help him. However, as the task nears completion, Jurgen begins to have second thoughts about the morality of their work. In a dramatic laboratory scene, the "bride" is created. Having been made of many different parts and memories, Wilh...