Full Length (21 & more Actors)
David Copperfield
Classic by Craig Sodaro
67 pages
15 m, 13 w, 7 flexible, extras, doubling possible
Adapted from the novel by Charles Dickens. A coming-of-age story of a boy in 19th century. A young hero battling a difficult youth, we see David's struggles from his childhood days at the family's estate in Blunderstone, to his early life of poverty and misery, to his final, joyful success. Many of our favorite Dickens' characters are present: David's gentle mother, Clara; the loving housekeeper, Peggoty; his cruel stepfather, Murdstone; his schoolmates Steerforth and Traddles; the amusing, ever-on-the-run Micawbers; the lovely Agnes Wickfield, and the despic...
The Birds
Classic by Claudia Haas and Richard Cash
58 pages
1 m, 7 w, 28 flexible
"The Birds" was originally written by Aristophanes as a satire on man's society. In this loose adaptation, three children embark on a journey that leads them to the Great Bird's Nest in the Sky. There they hope to live away from all the constraints of home and school, but instead of living "free as a bird," they find the birds trying to outdo humans in a far more complicated society. The cast is a mixture of children, meddling gods and goddesses, and a rich array of bird characters. Aristophanes' humor and satire are left intact as the play pokes gentle fun a...
Magic Island
Mystery by David Meyer
59 pages
Flexible cast of 21 (from 12 m, 9 w to 7 m, 14 w)
Maxwell the Magnificent, the famous magician, has just completed a gruelling world tour. His entire production company has returned to Max's private island estate to collect final paychecks and head for home. It is here, while checking over props, that Max comes to the reluctant realization that his continuous bad luck on tour was by design. Someone has been sabotaging his act! It's hard to guess who it might be because as the faithful butler intones, "To know Max is to loathe him." So Max and a police-inspector friend arrange a special command performance wh...
Romeo and Juliet
Shakespeare by Eric L. Magnus
73 pages
Widely flexible cast from 28 to 41
The classic and timeless tale of Shakespeare's two star-crossed lovers takes on new life in this clear and concise adaptation. Audiences will understand and love this show with its lack of archaic phases or dated references. Reduced to two acts, this version makes our greatest play more accessible for modern audiences. Actors new to Shakespeare will appreciate the added stage directions as well. This is a Romeo and Juliet for today. Running time is between 90 minutes and 120 minutes, depending on further optional cuts clearly explained in the script.
Life on the Mississippi
Classic by R Rex Stephenson
64 pages
Company of between 18 - 35 actors
Here is a combination of three of Mark Twain's books blended into one story that continues Huck and Tom's great adventures. Huck and Tom are called to Arkansas because something mysterious is happening to Uncle Silas. As only Huck and Tom can, they set about solving the mystery that involves twin brothers, the maniacal Widow Dunlap and her nere-do-well son. This story is as poignant and humorous as Huck Finn, but without any of the racial overtones that in some areas has made Twain a controversial author. About 90 minutes.
Tell-Tale
Drama by Rebecca Gorman O'neill
84 pages
13 m, 21 w. (With doubling 5 m, 8 w. )
TELL-TALE is loosely based on the life and death of Edgar Allan Poe. It is, in essence, Poe’s last confession. It takes place in the Baltimore hospital where he lies in a delirium before his death. Poe is forced to look at his life, his mistakes, his outrageous behaviors, and, in the end, he must try to find peace. This peace in death comes by way of the only peace he had in life -- telling a story. Poe starts his story by casting himself as the dashing, tragic hero, but as the play progresses, his own memories slip from his control, turning on him and forcin...
Swamp Romp
Farce by Burton Bumgarner
59 pages
7 m, 9 w, 6 flexible
Life is anything but dull in the Great Okeeadokia Swamp. At Lester's Bog Mart Convenience Store, locals gather to purchase supplies, check out video rentals (a wide selection of three) or try Lester's delicious "Almost Fresh Catfish" or "Kind of Fried Chicken." The local book club has been working on "War and Peace" for months, and they're up to page 5. Young local resident Everett Mudd is trying to make a low-budget independent horror film which he wants to enter in the Sundown Film Festival. Five biology students become lost in the swamp when their professo...
Sleeping Beauty Queen
Comedy by Craig Sodaro
52 pages
8 m, 17 w, 7 flexible
Everyone expects the beautiful Belle Beauchamp to win the title of Miss Kingdom of Luxuryburg. But one contestant, the evil Malvinia, will stop at nothing to have that crown placed on her own head. She hires a witch, Ottilie, who casts a sleeping spell, and it works like a charm. As everyone falls asleep, Malvinia grabs the crown for her own. A few months later, a musical boy group known as the "Charming Princes" notice a terrible drop in their music sales. Their agent, Maxine Develin, insists they find a new sound. The boys head to Luxuryburg on the urgings ...
JT and the Pirates
Comedy by Wade Bradford
75 pages
6 m, 8 w, extras
This rousing pirate's tale is set in the strangest and most mysterious of places: junior high! When a young girl named Jenny Taylor (JT) stumbles across a magical book in the school library, she is transported into the past and finds herself on a tropical island surrounded by pirates! She manages to travel back to her own time, but the meddling and boisterous swashbucklers follow along. Talk about fish out of water! Now, on top of homework and bullies, JT has a bunch of buccaneers to take care of! At lunch, in history class, (where their take on the Pilgrims ...
Hail to the Chief
Comedy by Craig Sodaro
64 pages
7 m, 11 w, 5 flexible parts
Fellow Americans! Your President has more problems than the Treasury Department can count! When he ends up stranded in the sleepy mountain town of Turtle Creek he finds the folks there none too happy 'bout the new highway passing them by. To make matters worse, his daughter's rebellious boyfriend shows up with his own political agenda. Also popping in unexpectedly is a lady CEO who's into acquisitions - and her next planned take-over is the White House as the new first lady! Add an inept Secret Service agent, two chiseling advisors, and an underworld kingpin ...
All Hallows' Eve
Suspense Terror by Burton Bumgarner
52 pages
Flexible casting
Adapted from tales by Catherine Wells, Guy de Maupassant, and W.W. Jacobs. Three terrifying tales are set on or around Halloween in a New York brownstone. In "The Actor," (2 m, 3 w, 1 flexible), a young girl, who lives with her eccentric parents in a house rumored to be haunted, asks a famous actor to frighten her by portraying the house ghost at a Halloween party. She gets a lot more than she bargained for when she is truly frightened out of her wits. In "The Hand," (3 m, 3 w, 4 non-speaking), an arrogant hunter has his prized trophy mounted on the wall of h...
Princess and the Pauper
Comedy by Burton Bumgarner
73 pages
14 m, 7 w, 9 flexible, doubling possible
Based on the story by Mark Twain. A young girl visits the White House on a school tour and is mistaken by the Secret Service for the mischievous daughter of the President. She is escorted to the family quarters, where she inadvertently meets the real First Daughter who resents the loss of her freedom notoriety has imposed. On a lark, the girls decide to change places for twenty-four hours: the President's daughter goes to a housing project, and the student remains to spend a night in the world's most famous residence. Unfortunately, the President's daughter i...
Master Skylark of Stratford
Classic by Sylvia Ashby
60 pages
From a large cast of 24 or more to an ensemble cast of 5-6 m, 5-6 w.
Adapted from a novel by John Bennett. Here is an excellent picture of the Shakespearean era from a young person’s point of view without being about the Bard himself. Young Nick is so enamored of the theatre that when his strict father forbids him from attending, Nick runs away from his home in Stratford-upon-Avon. When a disreputable actor, just released from jail, discovers Nick’s beautiful voice, he calls him Master Skylark and forces him to perform with his troupe. Nick's captors treat him well, but he longs for freedom and his home. His voice eventually b...
"Macbeth" at the Midnight Carnival
Classic Horror Shakespeare by Steven Fogell
55 pages
29 or more characters, much doubling possible.
Incorporating the work by William Shakespeare. An eerie traveling carnival, run by the frightening Madame LeBeau, arrives outside of a small American town in the early 1900s. Several children sneak into the carnival and quickly discover a wicked world of darkness and mystery. Trance-like, the townspeople are soon pulled to the tent and end up as characters in the tale of "Macbeth." The Mayor and his wife become Macbeth and Lady Macbeth; Mrs. Cambridge, the local widow, becomes Hecate; and other citizens become Macduff, Banquo, Ross, the Apparition, and others...
Enter Fairy Godmother
Fairy Tale by Eric Senne
52 pages
9 m, 9 w, 8 flexible, doubling possible
Seeking comfort from her miserable life and an easy ticket to the prince's ball, our heroine Ashenputtel cries out for her Fairy Godmother. The magical matriarch who arrives, however, is a no-nonsense narrator who works her magic by giving lesser-known folktales a playful yet empowering twist. This Fairy Godmother offers no magical pumpkin carriages, but rather spins three separate tales of women from around the world who make their own happily ever after. Story one, from Ecuador, is "The Search for the Magic Lake," which features a peasant girl who must bold...