58 pages
9 – 46 performers possible
We all know the nursery rhyme "Hey Diddle Diddle," but when you stop to think about it...how can a cow jump over the moon? If a cat could play the fiddle, wouldn't it be all over the internet? Why is a dish running away with a spoon? What’s the little dog actually laughing at? And how do they all connect with each other? This family comedy offers seven different outlandish tales speculating about what might be “The True Story of Hey Diddle Diddle.” It has a completely gender-flexible cast of 9-46 actors and runs about 55 minutes in length. Its target audience...
56 pages
8 m, 8 w, 4 or more extras as female pirates
While evading her wedding and overbearing fiancé, Lizette de Champlay, a headstrong French woman, leads her ladies to a British merchant ship. Once aboard, the ladies upset the sailors and their disciplined captain, Roger Thornwood, convincing him to hunt for treasure on an island home to a fierce band of female pirates. As Roger and Lizette begin to fall for each other, Lizette’s fiancé and her father follow them to the island, only to be captured by the pirates. What follows are battles of the heart and sword as everyone searches for their treasure.
67 pages
Widely flexible cast (5 -14 m, 9 - 31 w)
Horror movies can be lots of fun! Join producer C.C. Bellows as he meets five directors whose movie pitches come alive onstage. Of course, C.C. knows that audiences only really like what they’ve seen before, so each of the directors has tweaked a famous horror film. “The Calamityville Horror” tells the story of a family who move into a house that’s haunted by circus animals. In “Saturday the 14th,” a group of college kids hope to find the famous ghost, Jacob Voorbees, a hockey player who fell through thin ice. In “The Extortionist,” a young girl is possessed ...
68 pages
Flexible cast, 10 to 50
Picture yourself in your own family album with this incredibly funny, sometimes touching, always entertaining play. Pick and choose from some 20 different scenes about family life to design a play that makes your drama family unique. The scenes are in four groups, "Getting Along," "Bustin' Loose," "Problems and Opportunities," and "Life and Death." Some of the scenes are just plain fun, like "TV Wars" and "Name That Stress." Other scenes capture the heart, as "The Funeral" and "Senior Split." Rap numbers bridge your acts while an opening and closing family "p...
73 pages
12 m, 13 w, optional extras
The wealthy Grayson clan has gathered for daughter Juliet’s wedding shower. Her brother, Jefferson, has brought along his new girlfriend, but Jefferson’s former girlfriend and Juliet’s former boyfriend both show up as well. Awkward! Things really heat up, however, when older brother, Jesse, falls for his brother’s new girlfriend. When Juliet’s fiancé has his secrets revealed, the wedding falls apart, and tears and accusations ensue… but in the end, the women come to realize that happiness is not that far away. They were simply with the wrong guy.
74 pages
13 m, 14 w, 5 flexible, extras
Based on the novel by L. M. Montgomery. When elderly Marilla Cuthbert and her shy brother Matthew decide to adopt an orphan to help with farm work, they expect a boy to arrive at the train station. Instead, a talkative, imaginative girl with fiery red hair and a taste for romance shows up--Anne (with an "e") Shirley. What use will she be to them? asks reserved Marilla, but tender-hearted Matthew feels they might be of some use to Anne. It turns out that all three are much more than useful to one another: they're as vital as breathing. In joyful, hilarious adv...
49 pages
Flexible cast from 25 - 50
Here is the classic re-telling of the rags-to-riches fairytale of a young girl forced to live with her cruel stepmother and her equally cruel daughters. Cinderella's kind and gentle nature, despite her surroundings, makes her a favorite with the three feisty mice who have also taken up residence in the house. Their motto? "Get `em and bite `em and beat `em up!" Meanwhile, in another part of the kingdom, a somewhat childlike King and his Queen are zealous in their pursuit of grandchildren. A ball, a ball is the thing wherein they'll capture a daughter-in-law a...
72 pages
Flexible cast of 32
Those wild and loveable Ozark hillfolk, the Hawleys, decide to pay a surprise visit to their California cousin, Charles "Chicory" Seabury, and his snobbish wife, Josephine. They couldn't have picked a worse time for Josephine is planning an exclusive reception for visiting royalty. After trying unsuccessfully to get rid of the relatives, Josephine decides they'll have to attend charm school. When that fails, she locks them in their rooms. But the clever hillbillies, led by Gram Hawley, are not so easily put off. On top of it all, Josephine realizes someone ha...
70 pages
28 flexible parts
"The Bard!" offers an enjoyable, approachable introduction to William Shakespeare. In Act I, we discover his world and his realities, his life and his times. In Act II, abridged scenes from "A Midsummer Night's Dream," "Romeo and Juliet," "Twelfth Night," "The Merry Wives of Windsor," and "Macbeth" make the man and his works come alive for both the actor and for the audience.
Sound effects include dramatic opening music with Gregorian chant; trumpet fanfare; wind, thunder and lightni...
45 pages
11 m, 13 w, extras
From the story by Washington Irving. Ichabod Crane, a nervous and superstitious sort, is the new schoolmaster assigned to Sleepy Hollow, a small town by the Hudson River. He sets his eyes on Katrina, the eldest daughter of rich farmer Baltus Van Tassel. But Katrina is already "claimed" by Brom Bones, the biggest bully in town! As Ichabod woos the fair Katrina, Brom schemes to regain what he considers his rightful place. He blackmails four unwilling witches into conjuring up the infamous Headless Horseman. With the help of a little stage magic, the Horseman m...
87 pages
28 depending on doubling. (7 - 16 m, 12 - 21 w, 11 flexible)
Following his shenanigans up the beanstalk, Jack has built a real estate empire in Goosetown, and now his ambitious mother is determined he should solidify their fortune by developing an amusement park and condo complex. But one property owner is refusing to leave, and Jack soon finds he’s up against more than just the old woman who lives in a shoe and her many clever children. No amount of golden eggs are enough to withstand the growing forces that line up against Jack: Pressures from Old King Cole; a dodgy partnership with the not-so-Noble Duke of York; the...
68 pages
3 m, 1 w, 5 flex; total of 9 with doubling, 42 w/o doubling
Ever forced to wait and wait…and wait? Want to scream at nonsensical bureaucracy? Then you’ll sympathize with Mr. Poosch who, after he accidentally leaves his well-made coat in the country to the North, finds tremendous hurdles when he attempts to get it back. First, he cannot obtain the right paperwork to travel, and then, when he finally arrives, it is Sunday and the country is closed on Sundays. A homeless man finds the coat and finds his luck turns around while wearing it. Meanwhile, poor Mr. Poosch finds himself broke, hungry, and laboring in the street....
76 pages
11 m, 22 w, 2 flexible. (Minimum cast 2 m, 5 w, 2 flexible.)
A King, grieving over the death of his son, demands that a weaver create a tapestry that will provide comfort. The woman weaves six tales into her tapestry. The first tells the story of young woman who must learn about herself. The second concerns two farmers who have a chance at a tremendous fortune, but it may cost them everything. Other tales teach more lessons. Finally the Woman weaves the story of Tatiana, a mother who loses her daughter and almost succumbs to her own grief. Upon completion of the tapestry, the King must decide whether he has found conso...
43 pages
9 - 22. (7 m, 9 w, 6 flexible. Minimum of 9 actors with doubling)
Welcome to present-day Sleepy Hollow. This famed little town now has traffic lights, modern plumbing, even a Dunkin’ Donuts – but traces from its past remain. A troupe of actors takes us on a tour of Sleepy Hollow, but the participants begin to suspect that there is perhaps more truth to the legend than they realized. This inventive adaptation delivers a faithful retelling of the classic short story within a contemporary framework. The past clashes with the present, as the young square off with the dead, and the Headless Horseman is thrust into a 21st century...
60 pages
6 m, 7 w, 10 flexible, doubling possible
The Untold Story of Rapunzel and her Twelve-Story Prison. Not many folks know the TRUE story of how the beautiful, golden-haired Rapunzel ended up alone, locked in a tower …until now! You see, her parents promised their first-born child to a witch (who preferred to be called an enchantress). But little did the witch know that Rapunzel had an ugly twin sister Ethel. By stealing the witch’s glasses, the parents are able to switch babies. Years later, the witch discovers the truth, gets the now spoiled, self-centered Rapunzel back, and hides her in a tower with...